Even when I am afraid...

In light of the 2012 Election results---

After hearing the election results tonight, I went in to the rooms of my precious children.  I was overwhelmed with their innocence (obviously, they are born sinners who can only be saved by God's grace, but I mean innocent in terms of our country's decisions) and the thought of what they might have to endure because of the decisions that were made tonight.  I became afraid.  

Even when I am afraid, I am reminding myself of these things:

1. God is still on His throne
2. Jesus is still the King of kings and Lord of lords.
3. The Bible still has all of the answers to every problem.
4. The tomb is still empty.
5. Jesus is still the only way to heaven.
6. Prayer still works - it still makes a difference and God will still answer prayer.

7. The cross, not the government, is still our salvation.
8. There is still room at the cross.
9. Jesus still saves anyone who places their faith and trust in Him.
10. God is still with us always - He will never leave us or forsake us.

Lord, please have mercy on our country!!!  

Life Changes

Things have been pretty crazy around The Cobb Household for a while now.  It seems like someone has been sick for almost the last 6 months.  In September, John Thomas got sick.  And, he got really sick.  It got worse & worse and developed into pneumonia.  I'm pretty sure we should have qualified for a buy one get one at the doctor office.  In October, our pediatrician diagnosed John Thomas with asthma...it seemed to rear it's head with the virus or whatever he's had the last couple of months.  They sent us home with a nebulizer.  We've had to do pulmicort twice a day & albuterol when needed (which is better than the 4 rounds of oral steroids we've already had to do).  On top of that, we found out that John Thomas is anemic.  He has to take an awful tasting dose of liquid iron supplement every day.  I was going to mix it in his food, but I didn't want him to have an aversion to whatever I was mixing it in, so now I just drop it in his mouth.  It's terrible.  

The pediatrician sent us to a pulmonologist ped specialist at Children's Hospital.  The doctor is fabulous!!  We had our appointment this past Friday.  It was a long, hard day.  John Thomas had to have a chest xray--which was awful.  We had to pin him down & he screamed & cried.  They decided that his reflux was back (remember that he had it when he was a baby...miserable), and apparently the asthma & reflux affect each other, so we are back on our meds.  This time I get to give him a pill that dissolves in his mouth (similar to a teething tablet, but bigger), and it tastes yummy, so he likes it. :)  They also put him on allergy medicine because his asthma also gets bad according to weather conditions (we had a problem after the pumpkin patch & when the weather changed & got really cold).  They took him off of the nebulizer and now we use an inhaler with a chamber thing that kind of looks like a bottle.  It's so much better because it only takes 30 seconds VS. the 15 minutes we were doing of breathing treatments 2 or more times a day (he hated the nebulizer--I had to hold him down--literally--for the entire time--it was awful).  The down side is that these new meds are expensive.

Also, I had to take Hadley to the doctor yesterday, and she has an ear infection--which may or may not be related to her negative ear pressure in her ears.

Life is really, really hard right now.  I'm not even going to try to sugar coat it.  I am thankful for my precious family & that my kids aren't really sick with something that can't be resolved (we saw some scary things while we were at Children's).  If you think about it, pray for us.  I'm trying to remind myself that this is just a phase in life.  We still know & trust that we serve a gracious & loving God.  We are trusting in the plan that he has for our lives. 

Jeremiah 29:11 

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

9 Months...

9 months.  That's how long you were in my tummy.  That's how long you've been in this world.  It's such a weird feeling because now that you are here; I simply cannot imagine what life was like without you in it.

--still wearing a size 3 diaper
--still wearing 6-9 months clothes.
--you love to "talk" and squeal and hear your own voice
--bath time is a favorite.  in fact, you love everything about the water--the pool, the hose, etc.
--you love singing, just like your sister
--sister adores you!!!  the two of you have your own "language."  She talks to you in "words" that are really just jibberish, and it makes you laugh every time.
--you are so ticklish!  It makes me laugh!
--you are very mobile...almost crawling...you can move every direction except for forward (since 8 months).  You get pretty frustrated once you've backed yourself into a wall.  I think it's pretty adorable.
--you love your water cup--again just like your sister.
--FOOD--you're crazy about it!  If we are eating, you want to eat, too.  You can feed yourself great, too.
--you have 6 teeth (since 8 months)
--you're still nursing about 4 times a day.  here is a "sample schedule."
     *6:30-wake & nurse
     *7:15--solids
     *8:15--nap
      *10ish--nurse (sometimes--sometimes you only do the afternoon feeding at around 3:30 or 4)
      *11:15--lunch, solids
      *1:00--nurse & nap
      *3:30--nurse
       *5:15--dinner, solids
       *6:00ish--nurse & bed
--so, as you can tell, you do a lot of eating. :)

(I have to run now; coming back later to finish the list)

Lately

I have lots of blogging catch up to do, but I'll just start here for now.  Later I'm going to squeeze in a post of my beach trip with Jeremy and Hadley's first day of K3.

Jeremy had Labor Day off this year (I'm talking about Saturday--normally he has class).  Saturday we went to my Aunt Tricia's house in Dothan.  The kids had a blast and we did, too.  Monday Jeremy had the day off of work and we went to a park in Wetumpka.  Here are a few pictures.

I love this little fella!  I never imagined how much this little boy would steal my heart!

 

 

I LOVE these two guys.  The big guy has Law School graduation set for Mother's Day 2013.  Y'all--that's only 8 months away!  I can't believe we've come this far!! :)  I'm so proud of Jeremy and all of the hard work he has put in this last 3.5 years!!

 

 

This picture is a little blurry, but I think it's really sweet of the two of them.  Look how tall Hadley is in comparison to Jeremy.  Wow.

 

Bath Babies!!  I've been bathing these two together for a loooong time now!  They both love it.  John Thomas splishes and splashes and makes the biggest mess all over the floor.  He loves to bang his toys against the side of the tub.  Sister is playing princesses on the other side of the tub, of course.  John Thomas loves to have his hair brushed after his bath (so funny since he has almost zero hair).  He smiles so big!  I think it's adorable.  Hadley is so proud of her brother, and she loves to show him off.  She is a tremendous help to me.  It's so strange because I've only had the two of them together for 9 months, but it's almost like I can't remember what life was like before I had both of them.  I love them tremendously. 

 

Meet Sweet Piper Jane!!  This little angel belongs to one of my best friends.  Isn't she a doll?!  She was born 18 days early and was still 7.8lbs!  Wow!

 I sure do wish I could sleep like this.  Sweetness.

My sweet angel heart.  You bring me so much joy, Hadley!!

Hadley Marie

 First day of K3

I've been terrible about writing down things about Hadley.  Right now I feel like I will never forget, but I want to be certain that when I'm 80 years old that I will have everything written down!  

 
1. What is your favorite color? Pink
2. What is your favorite toy? Anything that has to do with Princesses

3. What is your favorite fruit? Purple grapes
4. What is your favorite tv show? Curious George and any princess movie
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? sandwich--usually turkey
6. What is your fav outfit? Dresses!!  You only want to wear dresses!
7. What is your favorite game? Hide and Go Seek
8. What is your favorite snack? Crackers or Pretzels 
9. What is your favorite animal? you love all animals
10. What is your favorite song? Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
11. What is your favorite book? Pink Princess book
12. Who is your best friend? Mommy & Daddy
13. What is your favorite cereal? Fruit Loops
14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Sidewalk chalk, playing in the dirt, swinging, chasing
15. What is your favorite drink? lemonade and sprite
16. What is your favorite holiday? Birthday
17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? bunny
18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Pancakes
19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? cupcakes
20. What do you want to be when you grow up? a princess


Oh sweet Hadley Girl, you are growing up too quickly.  I'm so proud of you.  You are so smart, kind, and gentle.  I thank the Lord for your life!!

Ready for this...

Jeremy and I are leaving on Thursday, and we are going to the Portofino in Pensacola for 4 days...all.by.ourselves.  To say that I'm excited would be a VAST understatement.  We strongly considered taking the kids, but we decided we really needed the alone time.  Jeremy will begin his last year of law school at the end of this month.  GRADUATION is scheduled for Mother's Day 2013--I'm pretty sure I couldn't think of anything better. :)

7 months

John Thomas is 7 months old now.  We went for our "6 month" appointment.  It was originally postponed at his 4 month check up because he had an ear infection.  He has had horrible reactions to his shots every time.  We just got back from the beach (blog coming soon), and he was due for his shots 1 day before we left, so I postponed the appointment again.  Soooo...we went for his 6 month appointment on his 7 month birthday.  So, stats will be a little off from his sister's, but here they are:

weight--17.13lbs (40%)

height--27.25inches (55%)

head circumference 18 (85%!!)--good thing I had a c-section!

John Thomas got his first tooth on his 7 month birthday!  Here is a short list of what is going on with him:

--Loves to sleep in his crib.  He wants to be warm, and he sleeps with his blanket and bunny.

--loves his paci

--This boy loves to eat and wants to eat whenever you are eating!  I feel like I can't keep up with him on the nursing schedule!  

--His schedule:
6ish--wake & nurse

8:30--breakfast, solids

9:00--short nap

11:00--lunch, solids

1:00--nursing, and nap directly following

3:30-4:00--wake & nurse

5ish--dinner, solids

6:30--nurse & bed time.

--John Thomas ADORES his sister, and she adores him.  They already play so well together, and I feel so blessed!  Hadley helps me so much with her baby brother!

--He says--Mamamamamama,  Babababababa, and other sounds.

--he scoots himself in his crib until his head is squished at the top of the crib.  I'm not exactly sure how he is doing this--pushing his feet or what.  When this happens, sometimes he wakes me up at night.

--He HATES to be on his tummy--complete opposite from his sister.

--I think he's starting to get fussy when he realizes I have left the room.

--He can feed himself puffs--when he tries really hard.

--He loves mummums.

--He is very good with his hands and can grab anything he wants.  I see a lot of hand/eye coordination in him already.

--This boy is CRAZY about the water.  He loves the pool and his bath!

--He loves to hear singing, just like his sister.

Summer Time

I can't believe July is here!!  Hadley is swimming like a fish.  Here she is swimming with her floaties, but since this picture, she is starting to swim without her floaties, and she can even touch the bottom of my parent's pool (shallow end of course)!!

 I love my babies!!  John Thomas is almost 7 months old.  He is sitting up like a champ and has been since 5 months old.  I started feeding him solids at a little over 5 months.  He is hungry ALL the time.  He's had--green beans, peas, sweet potatoes, mixed veggies, pears, bananas, apples, berries, avocado, black beans, chicken, Gerber puffs, mum mumms.  Maybe something else I've missed?  On a solid surface (like hardwood or tile) he can scoot himself around.  I'm nervous that crawling isn't too far off.  He is a terrible napper.  IF he is in his own crib, he will take a GREAT afternoon nap with Hadley at around 1:00.  But, I honestly can't complain because he sleeps great at night.  We kinda started not swaddling him when he was so sick in June.  His fever was SO high, and I was concerned that the swaddle would keep it even higher.  After he got over the fever, I tried to start swaddling him again, but he was breaking out of his velcro swaddle and waking up only in his diaper--freezing cold!  I just put him in his jammies to sleep in now. :)  He is wearing size 3 diapers and is in size 6-9 months clothes.  I put him to bed every night around 6:30-7:00 depending on our evening plans and Hadley's schedule.  He wakes up every morning at about 6:00.  I guess this is good & bad.  Bad--because I WANT to still be sleeping!  It's good because Hadley usually sleeps until 7-7:30 and this gives me time to feed John Thomas and get things ready for the day.

We have had a rough summer.  Everyone has been really sick.  But, finally we all got "well," and we took an Adult's only weekend to the Lake with some of our good friends, Sarah & Will. 

 Jeremy & Will

 My sweetheart!

We also just celebrated our 7 year anniversary!!  We have been together for 11 years.  I accidentally put on facebook that we had been together for 12---oops!  Jeremy noticed my mistake!  Oh well!  When it's been that long, who is counting?? :)

Here we are before our date night on our anniversary.  We went to Bonefish--one of our favorites!  Jeremy, I love you, and I'm so thankful to be sharing my life with you.  I'm excited to see what our next year holds! (!!!!!)

30 What??!

When I was a kid, I remember thinking that 30 was SO old.  Wow.  Times have changed, and I am 30.  To be honest, I'm thankful. :)  Another year older is another gift from the Lord.  It certainly beats the alternative, right?!!

My sweet friends, family, and especially my husband spoiled me on my special day.  I had lots of thoughtful people mail me cards and gifts.  And, let's face it--aren't Facebook birthdays just the best??  They sure do make you feel loved!  Jeremy certainly surprised me with thoughtful gifts!

He gave me a Keurig for my birthday!  I wasn't expecting that!  I went to visit one of my best friends down in Florida, and she has one.  I ranted and raved over it when I got home--never thought Jeremy would get one!  What a surprise. :)  John Thomas gave me new dish towels, dish cloths, and pot holders from Williams Sonoma. :)  And, Hadley has been saving all of her money so that we could have a spa day together--what fun!!  Jeremy even had the kids make me birthday cards while I was away at a shower one day--so thoughtful! 

 Some of my gifts

 My sweet guys!!


We decided to go to Sinclairs on the Lake for my birthday dinner.  It's actually only about 20-25 minutes from our house, and it's a fun drive.  We had a great time! 

 Sweet Hadley girl (notice the stalker woman staring in the back ground??  She stared at us the entire time--strange, huh?!)

 Me & my little guy

 Our view at dinner--we are quickly becoming lake lovers--thanks to some awesome friends who spoil us and let us use their lake house!! :)

 Melt my heart!

 My best friend--I truly cannot imagine life without him!  Jeremy, I love you!

 Bright eyes!!

 Our self portrait that night, since no one was there to take our picture

 Jeremy even surprised me with a cake from Cake Designs!!  My favorite bakery ever! :)

Hadley was so excited about the cake!!
(Forgive my awful hair--it's been falling out since John Thomas turned 3 months, and it's just now starting to grow back--ugh.  I did this with Hadley, too).

On another note--pray for the kiddos--someone in the house has had a fever since June 6th!!  Our house has been sick, y'all!!  I thought having one sick kid was tough, but having two sick kids (or one healthy, hyper 3 year old and a sick baby) is tough stuff!!  :(  On top of being sick, John Thomas is getting FIVE teeth right now--we've shed lots of tears, even mommy! ;) 

Blankets, Bunnies, and Slippers...

Hadley has been sick for the last 3 days, running 103 temp.  My poor little monkey.  Don't you hate to see your kids sick?  Jeremy has been sick, too.  So far, John Thomas and I are well, but I am holding my breath.

We were supposed to host supper club at our house tonight.  Have I mentioned how much I LOVE this group of people?  One of my dear friends told me--a true friend will push you towards Christ--I feel like that is what this group of relationships does for us.  I'm so thankful!  So, Supper Club is postponed, and the sicklies are taking their doses of medicine!

May 2012

Lots and lots has happened during May.  I'm going to try to do a quick recap of everything in pictures.

Hadley graduated from her 2 year old class.  Here she is walking in...happy as a lark! :)

 Shortly after this picture was taken, she had a major melt down & refused to participate in her performance.  I think it's because she saw me, Jeremy, and John Thomas in the crowd, and she didn't want to be left out of our group.  

We've played LOTS of princess!!  I love my sweet girl.  

This little guy is growing, Growing, GROWING!!  And, he smiles all the time! 

This is the little napper John Thomas has slept in his entire life.  Once he started pushing himself out of it with his feet--while being swaddled--we decided it was time to move him to his crib.  He's super strong!  

Mother's Day came.  I got a really awesome vacuum cleaner.  This may sound boring to some of you, but this is the BEST gift for me--I'm a little OCD in the cleaning department. 

These sweet little ones have grown closer & closer. 

Hadley had a ballet recital at Montgomery Ballet.  She's obsessed with ballet, and I must say that I think she really does have a gift.  I love my little ballerina.  :)

Melt my heart....

We went to my cousin's wedding in Louisiana.  Here's Hadley at the rehearsal dinner--silly faces!  She was so sweet that night.  She loved playing with all of her big girl cousins.

Sophie, Karlie, and Hadley--this is the best picture I could get of the three of them.  They had a great time at the wedding!! 

We got home from the wedding on a Sunday night.  The very next Monday morning, I took the kids--by myself--to Florida to visit my best childhood friend, Chrystal, and her kids.  It was an amazing trip.  I'm so impressed with the way that Chrystal is on top of everything--so organized!!  I didn't take many pictures while I was there because we were so busy playing.  Here are Hadley & Sydney Anne dancing...they had a great time!!

Silly Girls!!

This is Chrystal's youngest, Blake.  He is a doll baby!!

I can't believe what a big boy Blake has become!

John Thomas was just chillin' on our trip.  He's such a good, calm, easy going baby!!

This guy has just developed leaps & bounds.  He started sitting up all by himself just a few days after he turned 5 months old.  He can roll over both ways.  He also is eating solid foods.  Any time he sees us eating something, he wants to eat, too.  I've even given him puffs and he loves it.  He's still a great nurser.  He goes to bed at 7, and he wakes up at 7:30am. I'm not sure I could ask for much more.  I'm so grateful for this gift!!

The next few weeks are going to be busy, too!  We have a family reunion coming up, and Jeremy and I have an Adult's only Lake weekend planned!!  Yippy!!  I'm about to be 30 years old, and we are taking a big beach trip.  Summer is wild and crazy!  I'm also teaching summer school with ACCESS.  On top of all of that--we just got Jeremy's Law School graduation date for next May!  I'm so proud of him!!

I'm going to try to update again soon.  I have lots more pictures & more to write!