Brave Heart...

I was feeling brave this morning so I ventured to Target with my monsters, by myself. I really try to never have to do this because it is so chaotic but we needed a change of scenery by 8:15 this morning! We made it into the store okay and then they took off! So I became the crazy lady who's yelling for her kids in the middle of the store. Once I rounded them up, we dealt with the cart issue. They obviously couldn't walk beside me... so I decided to go for one of the big carts that has two seats on it... They pretty much stayed in their seat belts (which were of course broken) until the end of the trip when Ben realized it was much more fun to stand up. I think I will go back to avoiding shopping trips for just the 3 of us...

On the way home, we stopped at a nearby park to play for a little while. Another hard task since I can't follow both of them around constantly. They want to climb on the equipment that's too big for them, they want to run away from each other, and I'm pretty sure that they really wanted to see me have some kind of mental breakdown so we stayed for about 20 min. and then headed back home. (Ben cried the entire time... which was pretty fun too...)

When we first got to the park Conner was loving the bumblebee...



Ben apparently was not satisfied with the ladybug...



They loved going down the slide though! I tried to get a picture of them sitting at the top of this double slide but... well you know how it goes!



At least I feel semi productive and it was nice to get out of the house! Now... what to do this afternoon...?

Upside Down...

These are two great examples of how our day has gone so far...






I think they are rebelling because they are back home! Conner even gave Ben a bloody nose this morning! He threw his big magna doodle at Ben's face and Ben's poor nose just started gushing blood. Oh yeah... nice brother!

Great Time...

We have had a wonderful couple of days! We spent the weekend in Bettendorf visiting Nana and Gramps and the boys got to stay there from Sunday til today by themselves! This gave Nick and I some much needed time to ourselves and the boys had so much fun!!! We definitely need to do that more often!!! Thanks Nana and Gramps for a great time!

Top Ten...

Top Ten Reasons I Think (Hopefully) the Boys are on the Mend...

1. Conner licked the top of Nick's head tonight like a crazy person... not sure why he does this...

2. Ben acquired a new scratch on his shoulder and two new bumps on his forehead today!

3. Conner refused to stay in his bed when we turned out the light tonight, opting to run around his room for a while.

4. Both boys tackled Nick when he was laying on the floor and then proceeded to take turns falling off of Daddy's back. (not a game I am fond of)

5. Ben woke up from his nap, walked to the doorway of his room, and very politely called out "Hi Mama, UP!"

6. Conner resumed his routine where he stacks toys up against the front door so he can stand on them and then he can turn the lights on and off and play with the lock on the front door.

7. Nick and I just got fast food for our dinner (not a lot of groceries around here) and Conner promptly came over to me, grabbed my sandwich, and took a huge bite.

8. I have been pouring water and juice down the kids' throats to keep them hydrated, but today after every drink , they would throw or kick their cup to see how far it would go.

9. Everytime I dared to leave the room today they both would either climb up on a table, up into the window seat, or Conner would be turning the lamps off.

10. I will be going to bed tonight a little less scared than I have been...! (and a tad more frustrated too!)

Keep the prayers coming for our little boys... can't wait to see what tomorrow brings us!!!

Mother's Intuition

I took Conner to Urgent Care last night because he seemed like he was fading again... turns out he has ear infections in addition to everything else... he's doing okay today and Ben seems to be almost back to normal so maybe we will actually have some healthy kids sometime soon! When I took Conner in last night, the nurse made me feel like I was being way too overprotective taking him to the doctor when he didn't actually have a fever at the time. I explained what had been going on the past few days but I could just tell, she thought I was wasting her time. What people (and obviously that bitchy nurse) might not remember is that when my kids have colds, they have fevers, ear infections, croup, seizures, all kinds of stuff... My mom and husband reminded me last night that I know what is best for my kids and I do know when something is not quite right. I don't care what I look like to a nurse or doctor who doesn't know me or my kids. "Mother's Intuition" is a mighty thing...

When Conner and I were leaving the doctor's office last night I was amazed at my little guy... We got to the check out window so he gave the receptionist his paper and said "ticker pea!" (sticker please!) He thanked the woman for his sticker and proceeded to hit the handicapped button on the wall so that the door opened. He walked out, through the waiting area, and pushed every door button so that the right doors would open for us as we were leaving. I felt proud because he is turning into such a big smart boy... I also felt sad because when it comes to doctors and hospitals, my kids know their way around...

A Bit Better!

Conner woke up this morning not breathing very well, so we took another trip to the ER. No seizure though so that was good for my nerves! He is pretty sick and has a croup-like cough so I'm sure that Ben will end up with that too. They are both tired, worn out little guys so hopefully their coughing won't keep them up too much tonight. Nana came today to take some of the pressure off so that helped immensely!!! Hopefully we will continue to have better days... I definitely feel better today! Thanks everyone and especially Nana!!!

Trouble...

Our weekend did not turn out as we planned... not a huge surprise there since they seldom do anymore! To our shock, Conner decided to join the "seizure" club that we've got going at our house on Friday night so we got to visit St. Lukes again. Saturday morning, he was tired, but by the afternoon he was literally climbing the walls, so we headed to Des Moines for my sister's 30th birthday bash. Just before we could make it to our hotel, Conner had another seizure so we got to make another ER trip... He had a very high fever when we got him to the hospital so we waited for it to come down and headed back to the hotel to sleep! Rough weekend... The kids were supposed to spend this week with Nana and Gramps but we'll have to shorten the visit because I am sure we will have some doctor appts now to get to!

I gotta tell ya... I am a true believer that God doesn't give us more than we can handle. But the truth is that right at this moment... it's too much... I am at a loss... I'm having trouble seeing "the light at the end of the tunnel." Please, pray for my guys!!! We need a break!

And then they were 3...

Last night I asked Conner if he knew what today was and he looked at me grinning and screamed "More Party!" We ventured to Chuck E Cheese today to see what it was all about... the boys had a blast! I'm not sure if I would go again anytime soon, it was a little chaotic, but they enjoyed playing some games and riding on some rides. They, of course, didn't want to take time out to eat lunch in the middle of everything, but after the fits died down and we had forced some food into their tummies, we got to play some more. It was a good way to celebrate!







After taking a much needed nap, the boys were ready to party again...



Yep... more presents...







Cake and ice cream for dessert, of course! Both kids loved blowing out their candles (several times!)





Ben started singing Happy Birthday and Conner joined in... very cute!!!



Two successful birthdays today... still doesn't seem possible but it's true... We have two 3 year olds!!!!!

Over The Years...

In the beginning...

Turning one!!!

Two Years Old!!!

They're 3!!!

I still can't believe it...

Little Drummer Boys!

We had a very fun Monday with all of our new stuff! We even got presents at HyVee from the floral ladies! Banging on the drum seemed to be the favorite activity of the day! Ben and Conner liked the drum even more when I put the neck strap on it... very cool...

3rd Birthday Party!

It was a great weekend for Ben and Conner's 3rd Birthday Party!!! Our whole family came over to help us celebrate and the boys had an awesome time! Thanks so much to our families who made the trip and brought our almost-3-year-olds some really great presents!!! I have so many pictures so here are just a few...

I made the guys Hedlund Racing Team shirts... Kinda cute...! (not a great picture... the boys did not want to have to stop running around just so that Mom could get a picture of their shirts!)




We all had soooo much fun playing outside all day! Gramps helps Ben and Conner over the rough terrain of our backyard...


Ben's first tattoo!!! He was thrilled! (Curious George) Conner refused to let me put one on him...!



So many presents..

Ben and Conner actually sat still in their new Toy Story chairs so we could snap a few pictures!

We had to have a Curious George cake!

A late night and an early morning but we all had so much fun! Today we enjoyed playing with all the new toys!!! It was like Christmas in July around here...

Ben shows off his Curious George hat...

Of course it was Daddy's job to put all the new toys together!

I finally convinced Ben to try on the monkey mask... He thought it was pretty funny!


Conner tries out his new harmonica!

Nana and Gramps got the boys a new drum set! Many parents don't like all the noisy toys, but that is not the case at our house. I figure if they're busy playing nicely, I don't care how loud they are, plus it's always scarier when they get quiet... I know that they're up to something! We enjoy the kids' "music!"

Thank you again to everyone for making the boys' 3rd birthday extra special!!! The official birthday is the 14th so we definitely have more celebrating to do this week!

Special Day...

Two years ago today was the day that our kids (finally) got to come home for good!!! I remember putting them to bed in their cribs and thinking that I could just stand there and watch them sleep all night long. It was an awesome feeling! They are trying my patience a little already today (I know - weird...) so it is nice to think back and remember how special this day is! They will be three years old in 5 days... it all goes by so fast!

Cleaning...

Our days have been filled with cleaning and getting our house ready for our families to come this weekend for the boys' birthday! We have kept very busy and have had some great (and not so great) helpers along the way!

Daddy was putting a new picture up on the wall so Ben thought he would do the same thing!



Conner and Dad relax for a few minutes before moving on to the next project!



Conner got a hold of Dad's phone and was trying to figure out how he could text someone...



We have had a busy week... so glad it's Friday!

Happy 4th of July!!!

Early Morning...

Well... it was a very early morning again at the Hedlund household. Having your husband wake you up at 5:30 in the morning because he has to go to work and the kids are up is not my idea of a good start to the day... We have had typical results of the early wake up time today...

Ben couldn't make it through lunch...

... and Conner just got loopy...

You would think at some point they would learn...!

Rock Stars!

Check out our little rock stars! Ben is on drums and Conner is on guitar!

I have to share the next one because of Conner's award winning headbanging!