Dr. Jessica Rutledge

When we flew in from Vegas, we were on a very short schedule because my sister was being hooded that night as a doctoral graduate in Occupational Therapy from Belmont University.  So, yeah, she's the DOCTOR!  All of the family came in to see Dr. Smarty Pants walk across that stage!  We are all so very proud of her.  It took a lot of hard work and many many tears, but she made it! 

During the hooding ceremony, they asked the graduates to go outside for a group picture.  As I was snapping pics of Jess walking down the aisle, I had taken my eyes off Mary Haddox for less than 5 seconds.  When I look up from the lens of my camera, I spot her....walking up the steps of the stage.  She gets on stage, and does a few ballerina spins, and I'm about to have a coronary.  She sees my face and immediately knows that may not have been the best decision she's ever made.  She gets down and tells me "But mommy...it was my turn to be on stage".....Needless to say, it was very cute, but oh wow...my blood pressure.

VIVA LAS VEGAS!!

At the end of April, Nick and I went on a much needed trip, just the two of us (well, 3 if you count Baby Tucker) to Las Vegas.  IT WAS PHENOMENAL!  I have been once before, but it was on a bachelorette trip for my BFF and we will definitely leave it at that.  Nick had never been.  I knew it was going to be an experience and I could not WAIT to see Nick's face when they handed him the "business cards" late in the afternoon on the strip! hehehe

My parents kept MH and she never even knew we were missing.  We tried to FaceTime with her, talk to her, etc and she could care less.  This was the longest we had been away from her and it was miserable, but good for everyone.  We left on a Saturday and came  back the following Friday. 

While in Las Vegas, we decided to do the whole "tourist" thing and see the Grand Canyon(which is only like 2.5 hours away) and also the Hoover Dam.  Both were breathtaking and unbelievable.  We rented a car to drive to the Grand Canyon and asked for directions from the rental agent.  They got us there, but forgot to include some very small details....like....there is absolutely NO LIFE FORM the entire way there--no convenient stores, no fast food, no neighborhoods, NOTHING.  And another small detail they left out was the last 9 miles were offroad.   Yes, offroad, meaning no pavement, no slag, just very loose gravel and dust.  Thank goodness we opted for the rental insurance because we each got a turn playing Dukes of Hazzard with the car in the mountains.  We had a ball!!!

And as our Tucker luck would have it, we ended up on an Indian reservation were we had to pay $44 a piece just to SEE the Grand Canyon.  Good one.  The rental agent didn't bother to tell us there was no way to get to the canyon without going through the reservation and using their charter buses.  Oh well, memories...thats what we pay for these days!  And, again as our Tucker luck would have it, by the time we got to the Hoover Dam they had sold out of dam tour( :) ) tickets so we had to do the small one.  And yes, there were many "dam" jokes during the tour!  And the last thing that is just hilarious is I have always wanted our picture in front of the Welcome to Las Vegas sign.  After a $10 monorail ride, a free tram ride, and a $30 cab ride, we make it to the sign to see there are lights out on the sign and you can hardly read it PLUS its nighttime and you can hardly see anything.  Well good.  Dumb picture, dumb sign. 

While in Vegas we saw lots of sites (some we wish to forget) but we saw three shows: O by Cirque du Soleil, Le Rev, and Dancing with the Stars.  All completely awesome.  In my next life, I'm going to be one of those acrobats.

Here are a few pics from the trip:

We had a phenomenal trip, but this was the best of all:

We had a SUPER awesome piece of luggage waiting at baggage claim in Nashville when we got there!!!!  Thanks Jess for bringing our cargo to the airport!

Whoa....Baby!

Well, the title sums it up!  We're having another baby!  A baby BOY!  We found out Friday that Baby Tucker is now Baby BOY Tucker (only ONE baby btw).  And, of course, Nick and I cannot agree on a name. Not even one.  He made a statement that whoever won the Masters we would name our child after (however, I did not agree to such nonsense) and wouldn't you know, the winner was named Bubba.  Yep, Bubba.  Bubba Tucker.  I think it fits our family appropriately. 

When we told MH she was getting a Baby Brother she replied "I want a cookie".  haha Well, I see how you feel on the matter.  When we told Lambeau he was getting a brother, I think he skipped twice as much as normal (bc only real men skip) thinking he will no longer have to play dress up and ridiculous games with MH.  He can chase a ball, chase the boy, do man stuff, etc etc.

We are excited about the new addition, but yet very nervous.  We had NO idea what we were doing with MH, and I'm a little nervous that we didn't learn anything either.  I do know that the first night at home, they will need more than 1 oz of formula at each feeding.  We starved MH the whole first night at home.  I literally called the nursery at like 6:30 am the next morning and told them this kid screamed ALL. NIGHT. LONG.  After we were on the same page of how much to feed her, things calmed a little.  Not much, just a little. :)

We are excited that it is a little boy.  MH will not have to share her "princess" title, nor her "prettiest little girl in the whole wide world" title.  Those are big.  And, I'm pretty sure she is not going to share the spotlight.  I'm just guessing....

On a serious note, I have no idea how I am going to be able to love another child as much as I love MH.  There are no words to describe the feeling I have when I look at her.  She is my everything.  All wrapped up in a 30 lb body.  So far, "everybody" has been right when they have said things like "God gives you the maternal instinct" and THANK YOU GOD for giving it to me because I had, like, zero.  And, they were right when they said "You will just know" "Your life has just begun" etc etc.  Let's hope they are right when they say "You will love them equally, but differently" "you will not show favoritism" etc etc because that is mine and Nick's biggest concern.  Don't fail us now!!!!

Below is our announcement pic. 

And, for the boring stuff, I am 18 weeks, due Sept. 11 but I have a C-section penciled in for August 31, haven't been THAT sick, not nearly as sick as I was with MH (I thought I was dieing with her), lost 11 lbs, HATE McDonalds, still like catfish, LOVE water, coke, and half/half tea, wasn't real fond of BBQ, but that's getting better, and
STILL.CANNOT.STAND.THE.SMELL.OF.SHRIMP.BOILING.IN.KROGER.

That should be against the law.  Period.  It sends me running to the front of the store, food left in basket unattended in the aisle. 

Like I said in the first post, our life is a wild roller coaster ride!  Hang on tight, the ride has just started again!!!!

Marry Me

Mary Haddox was a flower girl in a wedding for her preschool teacher "Ms. Katie" and Mr. Jason.  She and her BFF Maddie were both flower girls.  Maddie's mother and I were not sure if the world was ready for both of them.....At the same time......In the same place.....Doing the same thing.  But Ms. Katie had no opposition!

During the rehearsal Friday night, they did not disappoint.  From basically climbing the walls to chasing each other, to arguing about making a mess-they were the life of the party.  As they were practicing, Mary Haddox would throw some petals down, and Maddie would tell her "Stop Mary-you make a mess" and MH would reply "I NOT".  And this continued down the aisle during the whole rehearsal.  Chrissy (Maddie's mom) and I were hysterical.

 Sometimes she can be bossy...(I have no idea where that came from) I can only imagine what she is telling the wedding director in this picture...Or maybe I don't want to imagine......

 Here is where the little "tiff" came in on making a mess.  As you can see, MH looks proud, Maddie is in disbelief.

 But, they obviously got over it really quick and kept it classy, because once they made it down the aisle, they were giggling at each other.

Make yourself at home girls.  Don't mind us, its just a wedding...no big deal.


They ended up doing wonderfully with very little disruption. 

 Chrissy and I were making the "shhh" face..Betcha never would have guessed that...

This was during the Lords Prayer.  Maybe Nick and I are doing something right....

Of course, as parents of toddlers in a wedding, Nick, Chrissy, and I were more nervous than the bride and groom I do believe.

MH and Maddie made a new friend, Emily.  Emily was the bride's cousin who was also the maid of honor and who also I'm sure by the end of the night wished Katie never would have asked MH and Maddie to be in the wedding.  We even had to intervene during the rehearsal dinner because MH and Maddie would not leave her and her date alone.  They pretty much followed her around and did everything she did. 

Take a look at the video.

The wedding was beautiful and the reception was a lot of fun. We wish Mrs. Katie and Mr. Jason a lifetime of happiness!  Thank you for letting us be a part of your special day.

SUMMA TIME in March.....

This week has been spring break for all the neighborhood kids and most everyone else except me and Nick.  I'm not sure where our brains were the day we chose majors, but not in the teaching line.  We got in the business line who doesn't get Christmas off, no Spring Break, no summer, etc.  Dumb.

So as we pull up to the house, MH notices some of the kids were in their "suits" (aka bathing suit) and they were all working on a sprinkler.  Guess who just HAD to go put her suit on and get out there?!?!  You guessed it.  Me.  haha, just kidding! I have not been in a bathing suit in months and plan to keep it that way!

 

 

I sincerely think she is the cutest thing I have ever laid eyes on and the stuff that comes out of that little mouth will put you in stitches!  I am not biased or proud at all.

During the sprinkler time, my mother called to talk to Mary Haddox and I proceeded to tell her she was playing in the sprinkler with the other kids in the circle.  She assured me we would be seeing Dr. Phillippi (our pediatrician who is a God send for us) by the end of the week! ha  However, it was close to 80 that day and the mosquitos were biting like crazy!  My rule of thumb...If there are mosquitos out, you can wear flip flops/bathing suit/etc.  They are only here when its hot.

BFF

I talk about Mary Haddox a lot, not that I love her or anything, but I want to dedicate this post to our BFF, Lambeau.  Lambeau is a soon to be 5 year old Maltipoo who was our first born!  He kind of fell in our lap and we decided to keep him.  He only weighed a little over a pound when we got him and most of that was hair!  We even had to feed him by syringe some kind of sugar medicine to keep his blood sugar up because he was so small.  I know, ridiculous.  And the beginning of a very high maintenance pup!

Lambeau is really the best dog ever.  He knew I was preggo with MH before I even knew I was preggo with her.  He would climb on my stomach and lay in the same spot every time, which he had never done.  He would even nudge my stomach and try to lick it.  I thought he had lost his mind, but no, I was the one who had lost mine! He was already forming a bond with his new BFF.

Let me just explain a little on exactly how rotten Lambeau is...He sleeps in the bed with me and Nick, with his head on a pillow just like we do.  He is a grump if you wake him up.  Once in bed, do not disturb him by pulling cover, moving around, etc.  He will growl. And that is pretty much the only time he growls (unless my dad is provoking him--which my dad says Lambeau picks the fights with him).  Lambeau also goes everywhere with us.  When he has to stay at his mamaw and papaws, he cries the entire time we are gone.  Annoying? yes.  Sweet? yes.  Rotten?  a HECK yes.  Lambeau also has no idea he is a d-o-g.  :)

He has really grown fond of his "big sis" and they are completely adorable playing together.  She dresses him up, puts hairbows in his hair, feeds his popcorn, ice cream, etc.  They play really well together chasing each other around the house.  She calls him "buddy" because we call him buddy a lot instead of Lambeau.  I'm not sure if she knows his real name is Lambeau.

 

                    

Lambeau and MH do a lot of funny things, but this just takes the cake for me.  Since the weather has been so beautiful and we got an extra hour Sunday, we have been outside, ALOT!  As I walk outside the other night, I found Lambeau jumping on the trampoline with Mary Haddox.  I could not get to the camera fast enough!  I just had to share!

 

When I tell you we have the best dog in the world, I am not exaggerating.  Lambeau is our BFF.  Mine, Nick, and Mary Haddox's BFF.

T & A NIGHTMARE

Many of you know very well that MH is a sickly little girl.  Nothing terrible, but pretty much any small bacteria/virus in a 30 mile radius is picked up and housed in that little, now, 27 lb body.  I am thankful that everything can be "fixed" with some form of medication and nothing is life threatening.  THANK YOU GOD!  However, it's still not easy having a sick child.  For anyone.  After being swabbed 7 times since June for strep, our pediatrician felt it was time to be aggressive.  We got an appointment with an ENT and the rest is history.  Thursday, February 16th MH had a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy.  Here she is before her surgery with her new Ariel surgery pajamas from Aunt Lynn, her medical kit, a pink monkey from her mamaw and papaw and a baby doll....You never know what you're gonna need so she is always prepared :

Surgery went textbook and recovery IN THE RECOVERY ROOM was fine. I was a nervous wreck/basket case which was to be expected.  The doctor told us her tonsils were very enlarged and were crypted which meant there were craters in her tonsils that was housing the bacteria and the bacteria was just eating away at her tonsils.  Barf.  Her adenoids was "disgusting" which was the words used by the doctor.  So, the surgery was much needed.  However, what was to come afterward I could definitely live without. 

After we got home Thursday, she was ok for a while.  Eating ice cream, drinking, etc.  I thought at that point it was going to be a walk in the park.  Boy was I ever wrong.  About 4:00 on that Thursday, she completely shut down on us.  Would not open her mouth under any circumstance.  No talking, eating, drinking, etc.  Would. not. open. her. mouth.  Thursday night was pure hell.  She woke up every 20-30 minutes screaming in pain.  By Friday morning, she still had not spoken nor drink ANYTHING nor had a wet pull up for far over 12 hours.  I was beginning to get concerned.  They changed the pain meds to a suppository which I thought would help.  We ended up in the Childrens Hospital Friday afternoon because of dehydration.  I was not very impressed with them and I think they knew that.  After she got fluids, she would at least open her mouth and say a few words.  Not many, but a few.  Progress.  Saturday was still not any good which led us to Sunday.  Again, shut down.  No wet pull up in almost 18 hours, no talking, no drinking, NOTHING.  Called the surgeon on call and he sent us to Baptist.  Let's just say Baptist knew this mother wasn't playing anymore.  This is her at Baptist.  This is NOT my singing, dancing, talking, princess:

  They began running to tests to make sure of no infection, abscess, etc.  Everything came back fine, except she was dehydrated yet AGAIN!  The dr did examine her throat (with 4 adults holding her down) and he said her throat was so swollen he could not even see where the adenoidectomy had been done.  After 8 hours in the ER, 3 bags of fluids, Rocephun, Decadron, and Morphine...we were on our way back home WITH a new, stronger, pain medicine.  I was dieing for something to drink so I asked Nick to stop at McDonalds for a Sprite.  As we are sitting in the drive thru lane, a little voice comes from the backseat "I want chicken nunnetts and a juice box" which translates to I want chicken nuggets and a juice box.  We ordered it for her and she ate every one of them and asked for more.  She ended up drinking 2 juice boxes and ate 7 chicken nuggets Sunday night.  Amazing what a little Morphine will do for you! 

The next few days after that were a little sketchy, but she didn't shut down on us anymore like she had been.  By Wednesday of the following week, she was still not up to par so I called back just to make sure the ENT didn't want to take a look at her, seeing that he had not laid eyes on her since the day of the surgery and we had landed in the ER on 2 separate occasions.  They told me to give her until Friday and we would go from there!  Friday came and so did a new day!  She acted fine, singing, talking, drinking, etc.  We had some friends to come from Meridian and spend the weekend with us to get MH's mind off of being sick.  Went to Chuck E Cheese, Childrens Museum, and Sunday School!  Did well with all of that so we decided to go back to school on Monday!  When she got there, her class had made her a Welcome Back sign and her friends was soooo happy to see her as she was just as happy to see them!  It made me tear up that they care so much for Mary Haddox.  Here is a picture of her sign and some of her friends that were there:

 
We cannot thank all of our family, friends, and church family for all of the prayers, calls, texts, love, and support!  We are truly blessed with a superb support system and we love you all!

Mardi Gras Mambo

We took a weekend trip to visit my aunt in Bay St. Louis and it just so happened to be a weekend full of parades and fun!  While we were there, we took MH to the beach.  My child is almost 3 and has never been to the beach.  I know, neglect.  But in my defense, she has been to DisneyWorld.  That should veto.  This same weekend happened to be the "cold snap" (you know, this winter has been more like spring/fall unless its the weekend we plan everything outside---thats when it gets cold).  Here are a few pics from the Mardi Gras Mambo

She loves the beach!                                                                    Found seashells, but did not like them

                                                            She is a hoot!  A COLD hoot!

                                               Roast Beef Poboy--Looks disgusting, but oh so good!

        Waiting patiently for the parade to start...with her new found friend "Mardi" which is a dog that was thrown to her at the parade the day before!

No, it is not an illusion...They are really THAT close to the float.  I was on the verge of a panic attack.....

                                           Not sure who had more fun...MH or my aunt Beck!

MH and the loot!!  Can you tell we were well liked by the krewes??  This kid got over 25 stuffed animals (and two pair of panties--which I am hoping it was by sheer (*no pun intended) accident)!! It was enough stuff to fill up an 18 gallon rubbermaid tote! 

We had a blast!!