Check-Up

Today was Mackenzie's four year old routine well child check up. We arrived. We sat down. Mackenzie had to go to the bathroom while we were still in the waiting room. No problem. I asked the nurse for a cup (knowing they would want a urine sample) and the three of us (Mackenzie, Josiah, and myself) headed into the bathroom. We were barely in that bathroom door when Josiah announced that he wanted to use the potty. Rather than wait for my assistance, my two year old boy pulled his LOADED diaper and shorts down to his ankles. Yes, folks, it was loaded with poop. Nice. He had the poop smeared clear from his bottom down to his ankles in no time flat. Great. I sat him on the toilet seat in hopes of containing the mess. By the time I had him in a fresh diaper, we had cleaned the entire lower half of his body, as well as the parts of the bathroom including the floor and toilet seat. Somehow we managed to keep his clothing clean, which is a blessing as I did not have a back-up outfit with me! After all that...Mackenzie no longer needed to go at all. That "urge" had passed. Therefore, we still needed a urine on her! Ha.

At this point we were pulled from the bathroom (we were in there awhile, you realize) directly into the exam room. I was already exhausted by this point, and the check-up had not even started yet. The rest of the trip was fairly uneventful in comparison, though Josiah was a bit wired.

Mackenzie passed the hearing and vision tests with flying colors (and had fun doing them as this was the first time!) and her urine tested normal. She weighs 31 and 1/2 lbs which puts her in the 25 % for weight. She is 40.25 inches tall, which places her in the 50 % for height. She received four shots today: Polio, MMR, Varicella, DTaP. That catches her up on immunizations until she is twelve years old! (Except for annual flu shots, of course.) She screamed as I held her down while the shots were given. She calmed down immediately once they were over. I tried to explain how terrible the diseases are in comparison to the shots. Yeah, that's the nurse in me. I did give her some sympathy, too, though! :)

We did it! We survived! That's how I felt by the time we were done. Other than Josiah's diaper incident, all went well. Ha.

Chocolate Covered Kenzie

After a day exploring the Norris area (hiking, playgrounds, driving), we all four enjoyed some ice cream from Bruster's on Labor Day! You might think Josiah would have been the messiest, but he ate his too fast to be messy. Mackenzie, well, the pictures truly are worth a thousand words! :)

I Love You

As I tucked Josiah into his toddler bed tonight...
he said, "Night, night."

Me: "I love you, Josiah."

Josiah: "I love the chairs." (giggle)

Me: "Silly boy! Whatever happened to, 'I love you, Momma?'"

Josiah: Smiling, "I love the chairs!"

Weird conversation. So it goes at 2 years old! :) Josiah keeps us on our toes. He has been a Momma's boy lately, and I love all the extra cuddles and those precious hugs!

Who Will I Marry

As I tucked Mackenzie into bed tonight, she asked me, "Mom, will I sleep in my twin bed when I grow up or will I have to get a bigger one?"

Me: "Well, I don't know. You can sleep in your twin bed when you grow up, but if you get married I think you'll need a bigger bed."

Mackenzie: "Oh. Will I marry Josiah when I grow up?"

Me: "No, you won't marry Josiah when you grow up because he's your brother. You can't marry someone you're related to, and besides, he already has a special role; he's your brother."

Mackenzie: "Oh. Then who will I marry?"

Me: "I don't know. Only God knows who you'll marry, if you choose to marry. But I do know that it will be to a someone you like a lot, someone you like so much that you love."

Mackenzie: "Oh! I'm going to marry Laura!"

Me: Laughing, "No, you won't marry Laura! She is someone that you love, but she's a girl. Girls only marry boys, and boys only marry girls."

Mackenzie: Smiling, "Why?"

Me: "Because God is very clear about that. That is the way he made it."

Pause.

Mackenzie: "I know. I can marry my daddy!"

Me: "That's really sweet, but I'm already married to your daddy!"

Mackenzie: "So who will I marry?"

Me: "Only God knows the answer to that question."

Sigh. Precious thoughts and ideas. We had a long conversation that was a lot of fun! I had to post it. I don't want to forget these moments.

Our Week

"Back-Pack, Back-Pack," for you Dora the Explorer fans out there, that tune will ring a bell! David and the kids found these at the mall. Being the huge Dora and Diego fans that they are, David and the kids couldn't resist!
Mackenzie and Josiah proudly wore their new backpacks around the mall the rest of the evening!
Laundry, anyone?
Silly, Girl!
Messy, Boy!
(Now you see why we only use finger paints just before bath time at our house! Perhaps it should be called "body paint" instead of finger paint. Ha.)

The kids and I spent the morning at the zoo while David was at work. Sure made the day go by fast and it was fun, too!
A fun week, and a fun weekend ahead! (Umm, I don't really know what we're doing this weekend, but I'm sure it will be a good one since it is a three day weekend for David!)

Have a blessed Labor Day Weekend, Everyone!!!

August 24, 2004

After a 16 1/2 hr labor, including 1 hour of pushing, and a couple different types of vacuums...Mackenzie Kristen Watson arrived into our lives. In spite of her difficult journey out, which included meconium staining and shoulder dystocia, she is just fine. The extensive suctioning and some oxygen certainly helped my purple baby turn pink! I cannot whisper up enough prayers of thanksgiving that she was okay after her traumatic arrival into the world. And I will never forget just how long it seemed to take before we heard any sound at all coming from that child. Silence in the delivery room after the birth of your child is not something you want to hear. Finally, finally, she cried a weak cry...which grew stronger...and we cried, too!
Check out that "cone head," thanks to my pelvic outlet size!
Proud parents holding Mackenzie!
Mackenzie weighed in at 7 lbs 0 oz. She was 20.25 in long, and arrived at 2:29pm on August 24, 2004.

I did not get a chance to add her birth story/birth pictures yesterday...so here they are today!

Happy 4th Birthday, Mackenzie!!!

My precious baby girl turns FOUR today! Wow. Sometimes I wonder why the time has to go by so quickly. Sigh. Below are several (don't say I didn't warn you!) pictures of our weekend celebration. One of the most memorable things about this year's party (in contrast to those three years before) was Mackenzie's decision NOT to invite any other children. She informed me a few weeks back that she did not want any other children at her Birthday party, except for Josiah. When I inquired as to why, she responded very matter of factly, "Because I do not want any other children to help me blow out my candles or open my presents. I want to do it myself, and Josiah can help me open my presents." Laugh out loud funny. What logic! Okay, no problem as we have already had a celebration with friends in July while in Searcy. So...we had a family party this year. On Wednesday Mackenzie exclaimed, "The UPS truck is in our driveway!" The next thing I knew, she was out the front door carrying a box as big as herself inside. Out came the scissors, and both kids dove into a Birthday in a Box package from Papa and Lili (my dad and stepmom). Among other things, the box contained a "real" puppy. Mackenzie has hardly let that dog (stuffed) out of her sight for a moment! It even came with a carrier, comb, bowl, treats, leash, collar, and coat. The picture above is of Mackenzie holding her dog, Esa, and wearing new Dora pajamas.
This is Josiah loving on Esa!
Mackenzie proudly toting Esa in her carrier!
On Saturday Nona and Mzee (my mom and stepdad), Granna and Z-pa (David's parents), and Uncle Zac (David's brother) joined us for a day early celebration. Mackenzie chose Chuck-E-Cheese as her Birthday activity. I'm not sure...but it looks like the grandmothers are enjoying themselves a little more than the Birthday Girl who appears to be bored! HA. Seriously, this picture cracked me up, but we all had a blast!!
Mackenzie's Bruster's ice cream cake...just like she was hoping for!
Mackenzie standing proudly beside her cake, patiently waiting for the lighting of the candles.
My mom snapped this picture...what perfect timing! You can actually see the candles being blown out.
Mackenzie and Josiah hugging right after she blew her candles out. Aren't they too sweet? They really do love each other.

Now for the presents...remember that Mackenzie got her ears pierced? And that she wanted them pierced BEFORE her Birthday? Yeah. I think she was on to something there...check out all 3 pairs of her new earrings! This first pair is a pair of real pearls from Granna and Z-pa.
This pair is a set she spotted, Blue Opals, and her Daddy and I surprised her with them.
Holding her Blue Opals up for all to see.
Giddy as can be as she opens the 3rd pair of earrings...this set from Nona and Mzee. She had told Mzee she wanted "purple 14 karat gold earrings" for her Birthday from them. Too funny!
And, yes, she got those purple 14 karat gold earrings!

To My Precious Baby Girl, Mackenzie: I love you and wish you the Happiest Birthday Ever. May God always guide you. May you grow to know, love, serve, and honor Him each day of your life. We are so very proud of you.