Sickness and in Health

This month has been very hard for the Peters Family. First Morgan caught a stomach virus that lasted six days. Three days after she recovered from that she came down the the Flu. High fever of 104 and all the other fun stuff to go with it...runny nose, sneezing, coughing, aches...the works. Then one by one we all came down with it. First me and then Chad...we thought Hattie was in the clear and then sure enough it hit her too. There really isn't much worse than sick children. You wish you could take away the pain and the suffering and you just can't. With both sicknesses there is nothing we could have given them. We just had to wait it out. Comfort and some Tylenol is all that the doctor ordered.

Here we are a week and a half after the flu attacked and we are all still suffering on some level. Morgan and I have congestion that seems to be hanging out for the long haul, Chad seems to have come down with a new cold and poor Hattie is still a mess. She just can't shake it. It breaks my heart. Hattie is usually such a happy smiley baby. Now, we are lucky to get a few good smiles out of her a day. Oh, how I want my poor baby to feel better. I am thankful that the girls got sick at different times. If they had both come down with the illness at the same time I don't know if I would have made it through.

Now that the worst is hopefully behind us I can look at things with a new perspective. I am so thankful that my family has our health. I know that health is something that money can't buy. You can buy many "things" in this world, but without your health you will have a hard time enjoying all the "things." During these last few weeks I just kept telling myself, this will all be over soon. I can't imagine how different things would be if that weren't true. I am going to try to look at all these nasty virus's that attacked our family as a reminder. A reminder that we are so lucky that our bodies are healthy...healthy enough to fight off a virus on its own.

Everything is better with a little Boomer

Boomer makes everything better. Our American Yellow Lab is the best dog in the world. Now, I am sure every dog owner feels their dog is the best but I am here to tell you why we love Boomer so much. Boomer was a wedding gift from a friend from college. We were moving from Oklahoma to California and Chad's best friend decided to give us a going away/wedding gift of a puppy. Boomer was so tiny. He was such a good boy. We were so excited to have him as we started our new lives together as husband and wife. He was a perfect addition to our new family. He made the trip across country sitting at my feet in my Honda Prelude. For the first years of our marriage, Boomer was our only baby. He went everywhere we went. I remember when he was just a few months old we would even skip going to the movies because we didn't want to leave him alone. Or, if we went to the store...he would come with us, he would just wait in the car.

Boomer went on many hikes and swam in several different bodies of water in his first years of life. He is great to take camping, hiking, walking...pretty much anything outside he loves. He was easy to train and never was a runner. If we took him off his leash even at a young age...he would stay close. Boomer traveled with us wherever we went...to the Redwoods, San Francisco, Tahoe, All over the Mountains in Colorado and California. Even though he was born in Oklahoma he has seen a lot of the United States. And of course when we moved to Texas Boomer was along for the ride.

When Morgan was born Boomer had a rude awakening. He was no longer the only baby in the family. However, Boomer welcomed Morgan into the family with lots of licks and smells. He loved her just as much as we did. Even though the attention was drastically taken away from him he still loved her. As Morgan grew her love for Boomer grew with it. She would pull on him, grab his eyes, tail...you name it. And, Boomer just sat there. He is so gentle with the girls. The only thing that has ever caused tears when it comes to Boomer and the girls is his powerful tail and when he thinks their toys are his.

Just as Boomer was loved by Morgan, Hattie has found a deep love for him as well. Her eyes light up every time he walks in the room. Whenever she is starting to get fussy we just have to call Boomer over and the tears are gone. Just like Morgan, Hattie likes to play with Boomer. She really likes it when he licks her face. Huge belly laughs! She also really likes it when you put her on top of him like she is riding a horse. As most of you know who have seen Boomer his is as big as a small horse.

I am sad to say that Boomer is getting older. He just celebrated his ninth birthday in January. Even though he is getting a little grayer and he has calmed down a bit since his puppy days, Boomer still brings us so much joy. I hope he is here with us for many more years. Here are a few of our favorite pictures of our favorite first baby Boomer.

New Year's Eve celebrating with Boomer

Hiking at Brown's Hole in Durango, CO

Out for a walk in the snow in Colorado

Swimming and fetching

Morgan learning to pull herself up on Boomer


Morgan checking out Boomer's mouth

Is Boomer a horse or a dog?

Kisses for Boomer and Morgan


Boomer playing with Hattie's Toys

Kisses from Boomer

Hattie loves Boomer

Belly Laughing

Morgan (7 1/2 months old) and Daddy in London




Hattie and Mommy out for a walk


There really isn't much better than hearing your baby belly laugh. I don't think it was the very first time that Morgan had a belly laughing attack, but there is one time that sticks out in my memory of her as an infant. Chad and I were planning our trip to London with Morgan and we needed a heavy duty backpack carrier for Morgan. We were in REI trying out different styles with her and she was having so much fun. We found the right one and she knew it. I was testing it out in the store with her in the back and she was laughing SO hard. I guess it was fun for her to be on Mommy's back bouncing up and down. By the end Chad, Morgan and I were all laughing so hard we were crying. Morgan loved that backpack and had a blast riding in it all around London. If she was ever starting to get fussy all we had to do was bounce up and down...and the laughter began. We even had a little mirror that we could hold up so we could see her face...it was precious.



Hattie and I had a similar moment the other day. We had all been stuck in the house all day and Hattie and I decided to take Boomer on a walk around the block. I put her in the baby biorn and the three of us were off. It was a windy day so I was a little worried how Hattie would do. But, within a few feet of our driveway Hattie had started laughing. I am not sure if it was her enjoying watching Boomer (who makes her smile just by walking in the room), the wind on her face, or the bouncing up and down as we walked down the street...but, something started the laughing attack. She was giggling so hard....snorting at times...it was contagious. I was laughing so hard with her...the two of us were a sight to see I am sure. Tears were running down my face I was having so much fun. The only down fall was that she was facing out so I couldn't see her face. But, I could feel her body giggling. It was almost like that game you play when you are a kid where you lay your head on each other's tummy. The first person laughs and the chain reaction begins. As each person begins a new laugh...everyone else joins in. Before you know it the room is full of laughter.



Those two moments with my girls laughing so hard to tears will be embedded in my memory forever. I love those moments. I hope there are many more to come. I know that in hard times I can think back to the way I felt in those situations and an immediate sense of joy will overcome me. I am so thankful for that.

A little about Miss Morgan

As hard as it is for me to see her grow up, I am so happy to watch the little lady that Morgan is becoming. There are all types of phases that two year olds go through, the needy phase, bad dreams, no sharing, independence...just to name a few. And as each phase passes you see how much she has learned and how she has developed.

One of the phases that is constant is the no sharing phase. Whenever Morgan has friends over to her house to play it is a hard lesson to learn that you have to share your toys with your friends. To her everything is "mine." I can't imagine how hard that is to see your toys in someone else's hands. I am sure she thinks someone is taking it away from her. But, the other day we were over at a friends house and Morgan did such a great job at sharing I was so proud of her. She would play with something and then let her friend play with it next. Taking turns has definitely been established in Morgan's eyes. I am sure there will be many tear over sharing in the years to come...but, I am happy to see Morgan growing and learning. Baby steps.

Another thing Morgan has really started to do dream. She wakes up sometimes in the middle of the night confused about where she is and what is going on. Last night she was talking about the "brown fire", who knows what that is but she didn't want it to get her little sister. How cute is that.

Morgan has also really started to gain her independence. It seems that we are hearing "I'll do it myself" a lot these days. She wants to get in and out of the car herself...pull up her "pull up" by herself...go on the playground by herself...and so on. She has also started to like to help me cook. She wants her own bowl...her own apron...and she wants to "mix it herself." It is wonderful to see her develop the independence skills and learn who she is as her own person.

I started this post and didn't get a chance to finish it. During this time my poor little Morgan came down with the stomach bug. There is nothing worse than waking up to screams in the middle of the night and find your baby sick. Poor thing was sick all night long. She kept saying "sorry for choking"...which is what she calls throwing up. Breaks my heart...I wish you could take that away from your babies. She is finally coming around. But, she still isn't herself. She took her nap yesterday on the couch in the living room with all of us around. She just didn't want to be alone. I just love her so much and it kills me to see her not feeling herself.

My parents were in town this past weekend and my father said...."You have done a wonderful job with Morgan." There really isn't any better compliment someone can give you about your children. Even though he is the Granddad and is biased....it is wonderful to hear. I know that I can't take the credit for such a wonderful little girl. She just has such an amazing heart...it makes it easy.

Anyways, I just thought I would post a few things about my little Morgan today. I am happy she is slowly feeling better and the sweet little happy Morgan is coming back and we can watch her next "phase" whatever it may be.

Six Months Old

I can’t believe my baby girl is six months old. These past six months have gone by so fast! It scares me to think about how fast the next six months will go…let alone the next six years. It is flying by. She is getting so big. Hattie is sitting up on her own. She is still a little wobbly but, she can do it. We had her six month pictures taken yesterday and she did such a wonderful job! I can’t wait to see the proofs. She is becoming so aware of her surroundings. She likes to touch and feel everything. She does this thing with her hand where she is scratching everything….feeling the textures. She likes shinny things like mirrors, watches and jewelry. She also loves water bottles. I remember Morgan was the same way. You spend all this money on baby toys and all they want to play with are the remotes and water bottles. She has definitely found her toes. Every chance she gets she is reaching for them and trying to put them in her mouth. It is so fun to watch her concentrate on what she is doing…Reaching for a toy, watching the lights, trying to figure out how to pick something up. You can just see it in her eyes that she is thinking and working that brain. I love every minute!

It's a No Go

Well, we tried to get Hattie to take the bottle and it didn't work. Whoever came up with the idea that "she will eat when she gets hungry enough" was wrong. At least when it comes to my baby. Those five days that I refused to breastfeed her were some of the hardest days of my life! There is nothing worse than denying your baby food...when you have to means to give it to her. She just wouldn't take the bottle. Somedays I could get her to take a few ounces at a time...maybe five ounces in a day (usually a baby at her age should take 32 ounces a day.) Thank goodness she was eating baby food...that is the only thing that got her though the day I am convinced. We watched her weight to make sure she wasn't' loosing too much. But, my little Hattie just wasn't herself. Fussy, irritable and unhappy...I would be too if I didn't get a good meal in five days. But, by day five I just couldn't take it anymore. My last attempt of the bait and switch backfired. Once I gave in to her she knew she had won. Frustrating. Everyone tells me that I have a stubborn little one on my hands...and that I should be nervous about her teenage years. Yikes!

So here we are back to square one. No bottle, but a happy baby. Not sure where we go from here. I have to think there is a better way to get my baby to take a bottle than starving her. I am going to be optomistic that she will get it eventually. Hopefully with a little practice everyday she will get it. Time will tell.

Unexpected Sunday

Last Sunday while everyone was watching the Super Bowl we had an unexpected Family outing. It was a beautiful day outside and we didn't want to be indoors. It turned out to be such a wonderful day. We went to the Botanic Gardens in Grapevine. It is so close to us, I can't believe we haven't been there before. It is beautiful.

Morgan and Hattie had a great time. There was lots for Morgan to discover...flowers, rocks, water fountains, bridges and fish, not to mention the playground. Hattie was bright eyed and was taking it all in with a huge smile. There weren't very many flowers and plants in bloom, but I am excited to go back closer to Spring and see all the blooms.

Here are just a few pictures Chad took capturing out Unexpected Wonderful Day as a family.