Bottle free!!

Well, Levi is doing great now without hos bottle. I cannot believe that things went so smooth coming off it all at once and just not bringing it out again. I am so proud of him. Now if potty training comes as easy we'll be doing good. We went and bought a potty just to sit him on it off and on and let him get used to the whole idea of it. When he's ready we'll do that but, I personally think he's still too young to get the whole idea of it even if he hates being wet and pulls at his diaper when he is. He does grab his diaper when you ask if he's wet and sometimes goes to get one when he is but, I think it'll still be a little bit before he's ready for the potty... we'll see. Nancy, Eric and Isaac are still at the beach and although Eric has swimmers' ear and has been to the doctor twice I think they are having a good first vacation as a family. The new picture of Isaac here is one she posted on his blog from the beach. I miss them and can't wait till they are home and we can get together and I can see him walking! He finally turned loose and took off by himself walking now!! I am excited for them and can't wait to see him walk. I know his mamaw Kay can't wait either. I bet this has been a long 2 weeks for her and Doug with Isaac being gone. Headed to bed soon. I have been on a cleaning spree while Steve and Levi are snoring! I have to do this while Levi is asleep but, I am getting tired being that it's 5:30am! I took a nap and got back up to clean while he is asleep. I get more done that way. - Tracy

Coming off the bottle!

Hey all, it's been a little while since I last posted but, we've been so busy with Steve being in the hospital and work that I haven't found the time to update the blog. Anyway, the only thing that is really new is that a week ago today Levi had only taken a few ounces of milk for the whole day from his bottle. He pretty much had his sippy cup all day instead. When I realized that last Sunday afternoon, I thought I would try just the sippy only on Monday, even for naps. He did fine. Therefore, I decided we would just take it all together and see how things went. If they got too bad I would give it back and try again later. However, he didn't really do that bad just at naptime and bedtime mainly. We just had to start wearing him down so he would go to sleep easier since he wouldn't have the security of his bottle at bedtime. He has been almost a full week bottle free today. We are so proud of him that he's done this well. In this past week there has been a few times where I know he was wanting it bad and I felt so sorry for him but, I think if he's come this far it's too late to give it back now.We went and bought a potty so we're ready when he is for that one. He will pull at the front of his diaper if you ask him if he's wet so, maybe soon he'll be ready. Until then... Tracy , aka "Levi's mom"

Play date yesterday with Guatemala group

Hey, I know I haven't posted in awhile but, I have been so busy and Steve finally got to come home Friday after being in the hospital since April 5th. Levi is so excited that daddy is back home and he is just all over him and dropped me once again.I'm now just the diaper changer, feeder, bather and bottle maker once again. No really, I don't mind daddy needs some extra bonding time again with him and is loving every minute of it.
Yesterday, Levi and I joined Nancy, Isaac and Eric attending a local group Nancy was somewhat involved with before Isaac came home for other couples who have Guatemalan/adopted children. They get together several times a year just to stay in touch and have play dates for the kids. I think it's real important as they all grow up to know where they came from and that there are many other kids also from Guatemala who live near them. I plan to stay in touch with this group and try and take Levi to all their events. The gathering yesterday was at Warriors Path State Park in Kingsport. They have a new playground that was awesome and the kids loved it. They had a good turnout but, it was so hot! Those poor dark skinned, black headed kids were all sweatin' like crazy! Levi had a good time though and as far as I know that was his first time on a swing and he loved it.
Once it cooled off some outside I let him get in his new baby pool he got from his daddy and I for his birthday. He had the best time playing and splashing the water. Later in the evening Levi, daddy and I took a long nap together. It was nice!! Levi was so excited that we were all 3 there laying in the bed for a nap. He'd roll back and forth kissing daddy then kissing me. The past 2 nights have been so peaceful for him that he has slept through his morning bottles and barely moved through the night. He used to be so restless every night but, it is like he knows everything is back to normal (well we're working on normal but, better) like before Steve got sick. Nice to be home and try and get straightened out with Levi's routine again. Blessings- Levi's mommy

Steve's 1st Father's Day

Well, Sunday went pretty well for Steve's 1st Father's Day. I had everything planned out of what Levi and I were going to do for the day. First, we went to the hospital early enough for us to watch the church service with him. His sister, Becky had our web cam there and we tried to watch it live via web cam but, the hospital Internet is a little slower than the church high speed Internet (at least that was what I figured it was) and it was a little choppy at times. After we watched the service, I had cooked a roast that Steve had been asking me to make so we ate... well. I had a truck load of stuff to carry into the hospital. We gave him his gifts and Levi played and played there getting into everything! He went from pushing all the buttons on Steve's bed to playing with his remote... like I said into everything. We finally left to come home and Steve got to nap and we came home to take one too. Levi slept for 2 hrs and of course I did too... it was nice. All in all we had a pretty good day spending time with daddy and then just resting and I spent some extra time home with Levi, which has been hard to do lately with Steve being in the hospital. We just can't wait for him to get back home to us and things get back to normal. - Levi's mommy