Cow Appreciation Day-July 14

 Chick-Fil-A has this event every year, called Cow Appreciation Day. If you half-dress like a cow, you get a free entree.  If you fully dress like a cow, you get a free full meal.   Every year we seem to miss it, but not this year!
I had fun making Ian a little cow costume.  It was fairly quick and easy to make, just a onesie with felt cut-outs sewn on.  I like the way the ears turned out.  Ian looked adorable.  I didn't make the big two kids a costume because I didn't have the time, energy, or resources.  Besides, they don't eat much and Ian wouldn't eat a kid's meal, being only 5 months.  So they ate Ian's meal. They maybe asked once why they weren't wearing black "clouds" like everybody else, but they didn't seem to mind much that they weren't. As for Erik and I, I simply pinned some black "clouds" made out of felt onto white shirts.  I couldn't resist making some udders for Erik to wear, haha! We got free sandwiches. We ordered fries and that was good enough for us because we don't care about the drinks. The kids had a good time playing in the play place and Erik and I enjoyed the (mostly) free meal!

And a flashback to our very first Cow Appreciation Day back in 2010.  I think Gabe was just over a year:

Fun with Ian!

 This post could go on and on with cute pictures of Ian, but I've selected some of my favorites.
Ian is quite the character!  He is good-natured and sweet like Gabe, but there is also a spirited, fiery streak in him like Elisa!  He is such a blessing! We love his giggles and grunts.  We love his big blue eyes and those golden curls that have just started to grow in.  We love his happy taps and his happy "swims".  We love his chubby fat rolls and his wonder at the world around him.  We love his (now) 6 "toopers" (teeth) and his fat, grabby hands. We love Ian!!

Jump Jump! He loved this jumper for awhile, but now he hates it, so up in the attic it goes...

 Just a day in the life of being a baby.  Getting his diaper changed.

 My sweet Ian at church.

 He loves his excer-suacer, even to this day.  These are a must-have for babies!

 Gotta love these chubby thigh rolls!

This was taken just as Ian started showing interest in toys, grabbing things, and putting them into his mouth.  Leggos are now out of his reach!

 So cute!

 All clean!

 Mmmmm....yummy leftover noodles!

Happy tappy!!

All giggles.

Ian was always fascinated when the music for one of my shows started to play.  He'd always act like it was something extremely important that needed his undivided attention.  It is funny how big his eyes would get when the music would start playing!

Ian's "swims"

Happy splashies!  Ian loves playing in water, and also loves playing with big brother and sister.

Ian is obssessed with the laptop.  The only reason he will move anywhere is to get to the laptop!

 

Trip to Utah-Portraits at Camera Shy

Lisa and I went to Camera Shy to get these portraits taken of the kids. We coordinated the kids the best we could, and I think the outfits worked really well. My kids had to each borrow something from Lisa's. Ian is wearing one of Aiden's onesies, Elisa is wearing Aaliyah's dress, and shhhhh don't tell Gabe, but he was wearing a pair of Aaliyah's jeans haha. I think the pictures turned out really well. I have at about 5 of these hanging on my wall, and I know Lisa has a few on her wall. I was happy that the kids (mostly) cooperated. Aren't they all just so cute?!

 

Silver Teeth

 I guess both kids have inherited my awful teeth.  Two years ago (from now) I took Gabe to the dentist and she found 3 cavities.  She said they were small and to just keep an eye on them.  At the next appointment, she discovered that they had all grown substantially, and one was so bad that he would need a mini root-canal, which meant going to a pediatric dentist.
This place was an hour away.  Poor Gabe.  He wasn't very happy when the procedure was finished.  I didn't care for the dentist that much.  She seemed self-conscious and unfriendly to me.  $400 later, Gabe had a nice silver tooth.  He didn't want to show anybody for a while, but now he's at peace with it.

 

 As if Gabe's silver tooth wasn't expensive or a big enough pain, turned out that Elisa needed one as well.  At her last dental appointment, the dentist discovered a cavity in each molar.  She said that the enamel in her molars didn't come in properly.  So we went back to the same pediatric dentist (that is way too far away) to get her cavities filled.  When we got there, the ped dentist said she would need a silver tooth in one of her back molars.  And she wouldn't go ahead with the procedure without getting clearance from Elisa's heart doctor first.  What a fiasco.  So I had to set up another appointment to go back.  Gabe just got the Nitrous Oxide and he was fine, but since Elisa is younger, the dentist said that she wouldn't be comfortable doing the procedure on Elisa without sedating her first.  $300 for sedation!  Yeesh.  I told them it would be too expensive, and they knocked 50% off the price.  Erik said he could slip Elisa some sedative before the procedure, but I didn't think that was a good idea, so I just agreed to pay the $150 for the sedative.
Elisa looked forward to the appointment, obviously she didn't understand what an uncomfortable procedure it was, even with sedation.  So we made the obnoxiously long drive back to the pediatric dentist again. Elisa was a good girl during the sedation process.  After the procedure, she was very unhappy.  I think she was in some pain.  I took the kids to McDonalds for a Happy Meal and wasted a dollar on a silly toy that Elisa didn't even like.  I went to Dairy Queen and bought her a shake, and she felt much better!
Hopefully I'll never have to step foot into a pediatric dental office ever again, but if they've inherited my awful enamel, then I see root canals and fillings galore in their future!