EMERSON A. YATES COURTLAND A. YATES

Family

2011-08-20T06:30:00.000-07:00

Went to Cousin Michael's wedding in Dothan and got to catch up with some uncles, aunts and cousins we never see! Mom should have not waited until we were checking out to take pics, but we had such fun...especially playing with Shaelyn. Hope to make it out to San Antonio soon to visit again!!!

Firsts on the Fourth

2011-07-18T08:53:00.000-07:00

OK, so we celebrated the fourth with several firsts! Court learned to open/close doors so this has provided hours of entertainment (and ouchies for little fingers) since and Emerson decided he was going to be a big boy. Out of the blue he decided he was going to start going potty and wear big boy panties...i'm sure we'll have some setbacks, but so far no accidents in his big boy undies! yay!

July 4th, 2011

2011-07-18T08:34:00.000-07:00

Cousins!

2011-07-08T14:31:00.001-07:00

Father's Day 2011

2011-06-27T14:09:00.000-07:00

Below are a few Father's Day pics and pics of Emerson in his precious Prince "throne" that Aunt Jamie gave him to help him earn that red scooter!

More Presents...and Finally, Someone Else's Birthday!

2011-06-15T11:28:00.000-07:00

Emerson celebrated the last of his b'day last weekend though b/w us I think he may be going through withdrawals. However, at least he got a birthday fix this week with Claire's 5th B'day Party at Chuck-E-Cheese! Court loved it but Emerson was a little scared of the character. Nevertheless, that didn't stop them from dancing, playing games and having a good time!

Court has made slight improvments with his eating in recent days, but we still have a LONG way to go! He is eating bananas, yogurt, apples, applesauce and even taken a bite of a frenchfry! But, when i say eating that usually only means a few bites or nibbles. We start supplementing Children's Hospital Early Intervention with the Bell Center's Early Eater's program next week. Say a prayer that b/w the two therapies we will make great strides with his eating. Though this one is quite costly (EI is at least fee)...we think it is time as he can't continue to live off nutritional drinks.

Potty training is not going too well for Emerson, but hey give him a snack/sucker and a movie and he can kick back with the best of 'em.

After the Party...

2011-06-15T11:16:00.000-07:00

And you would think the celebrating would be over...but not for this birthday. There was still more to come. How could we forget presents?!?!?!

Emerson's 3rd Birthday Splash-a-palooza!

2011-06-15T11:09:00.000-07:00

Emerson asked to have a party at his house where all of his friends from school could come and play....so we decided due to the extreme heat lately to have a slash-a-palooza. Little did we know the entire neighborhood would be w/o water, but thankfully it came back on about one hour before the party! Emerson had a blast...the water baloons were a hit with the kids.

Oops..had a little accident in the pool but Bear was there to ensure clean-up went as it should!

Happy 3rd Birthday Emerson!!!!

2011-06-06T08:45:00.000-07:00

Happy 3rd Birthday to our sweet eldest son! Mom was so proud; when we asked what he wanted to do for his birthday, his response was simple: "Chicken Wings" Atta boy! Happy Birthday and We Love You!

Happy Memorial Day

2011-06-03T15:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Memorial Day and Thanks and...........SORRY! We had a great time at the beach; just hope we didn't ruin it for everyone else. The boys had been sick leading up to and the lingering effects of that and getting entirely off schedule did not bode well for my boys' personality, complacency, attittudes, vocal ranges, fussiness, tantrums, and the list goes on and on. Of course, they have been little angels at home this week so sorry you hit them at such a bad time! But thanks Pop and Meme for putting up with us and for Emerson's birthday party!

Graduation from 2 Year Old Kindergarden

2011-05-23T07:48:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day Weekend

2011-05-11T09:14:00.000-07:00

We had a great Mother's Day weekend. Everyone enjoyed the neighborhood crawfish party on Saturday and on Sunday we all wen to church, Stix (our fav) and then to the park for pictures.

Easter and other Random Pics

2011-04-27T10:07:00.000-07:00

Well, what's new in our lives? First, Emerson has a GIRLFRIEND?!?!?!? REALLY??? Romi leaves him little drawings of hearts in his backpack all the time, and he claims her right back (though he can't draw hearts yet). He says he has kissed his girlfriend (he calls her that) and hugs her. Not sure when this went down, but they have been together for quite a while. Moreover, she is a COUGAR. He is only 2 and she is 4.

Court is still in eating therapy, but we are taking baby steps. He will eat a few bites of apple, yogurt decently and has recently taken his first bites of bread/pancake (albeit itty bitty bites). THAT IS HUGE! Court is fascinated with the moon for some reason and is definitely our goofy child...

Lots of random pics below, mostly from Easter. Enjoy!

Our little TV watcher...always in a trance!

Daddy and Great Grandmother Evelyn

Court during eating therapy with Ms. Christie from Early Intervention

Double Fisting!

Court still didn't quite understand the whole Easter Bunny (AKA Rabbit Thing)

Emerson on the other hand, knows it means PRIZES!!!

Bear!

My boys showing off their muscles!

Our Easter Day Visitor

Random Spring Fun

2011-04-04T08:21:00.000-07:00

Finally, I took pics of the boys this weekend...just because. I have been awful lately at keeping my camera on hand. Not much new in the life of the Yates! Emerson is officially a big boy...and you best not call him a baby b/c he will seriously get his feelings hurt! Court is jabbering away, though we can't always tell what he is saying. He is still having eating issues, but overall happy and healthy!

Whitney & Patrick Wedding

2011-03-18T14:47:00.000-07:00

Aunt Whitney and Uncle Patrick got married last weekend. Emerson was the ring bearer and did great. We didn't actually think he would walk down the aisle but he went both ways grinning ear to ear. The wedding was beautiful! Welcome to the family Uncle Patrick!!!!

February - Oh where have we been?

2011-02-28T09:31:00.000-08:00

I think this is the longest i have ever gone without posting! Anyway, February has been a work month at the Yates household. Mom decided she wanted an aesthetic change at home, so she took it upon herself (with help from Gran) to repaint almost the entire downstairs BLUE (though various shades)...yes I OD'd on Brown last time and now blue! But, I like the change.

As far as the boys, they are doing great. Court still is refusing to eat anything nutritious and living off his nutritional supplements, but that doesnt' slow him down one bit. So funny and his vocabulary is really starting to explode. Emerson is a great big bro, but the jealousy side has really kicked in. Anything Court grabs is his or "he had it first"...But, they really play so well together most of the time!

Most of the pics below are from Jackson and Harrison's 3 year old b'day party! The kids loved it...

BLUE!!!

And yes, we know, the boys need haircuts....still!!!!

Dance Party

2011-01-25T11:11:00.000-08:00

We occasionally (well frequently) have dance parties in the Yates household. Here is one I just downloaded from new years eve from my phone. They are too cute!

Weekend at the Lake

2011-01-24T08:48:00.000-08:00

The Ramages invited Mommy's highschool friends to the lake. The boys had the best time playing with Ellie (Ms. Lang's daugther), Jackson (Ms. Ashley's son) and Harrison (Ms. Angel's son). It was just after a huge snow storm so they loved throwing ice/snowballs, and running around in the cold!!!

Roll Ducks Roll..(we wish)

2011-01-24T08:43:00.000-08:00

Well, all we have to say is that Auburn won it's second national champtionship...kind of. They have an asterik by their first one since they were on probation, and yes once again they have an asterik by the second one...which will likely be taken away (as of today still under investigation). Their starting quarterback was involved in an admitted $200K pay for play scheme and should have been ineligble for the season...Well, whatever. Through dirty underdealings he was allowed to compete. We cheered hard for the Oregon Ducks to bring on a full fledged quack attack against the cheaters, but it just wan't enough. Oh well..here's to next season! Roll Tide!

Christmas at Gran's

2010-12-27T12:15:00.000-08:00

Went to Gran's after lunch on Christmas day for our marathon Christmas adventure...this year the lengh was solely attributable to the Yates family. Between meltdowns, hair-toy issues, sleepiness, Mom & Dad not opening their gifts at home, cooking dinner late, bathroom breaks, etc. it was a long day but a good one! We were all exhausted the next day...Emerson didn't wake up until noon! Yikes!

Look...An Alabama White Christmas (kind of)...

Oops. Aunt Beth didn't you read the warning about zuzu pet's in the hair? Court thanks you for his new bald spot :)

Quack Attack...Go Ducks!

Super hero's for Safety!!!!

Santa & Christmas Breakfast...

2010-12-27T12:00:00.000-08:00

Santa was good to us! Although he left the kitchen to Court and the Tractor to Emerson, they seemed to be drawn to each other's presents instead...funny! For whatever reason, Emerson was against the camera most of the weekend...did not want his picture taken (we snuck in a few though)!

Christmas with the Carters

2010-12-27T11:49:00.000-08:00

On Christmas Eve day we ate a late lunch with the Carter family at Gran's! We got so excited when Santa came by on the fire truck....Thanks to the Carter's for our DVD player and movies! So excited to watch them in the playroom at home!

A Makarenko Christmas

2010-12-27T11:42:00.000-08:00

The Makarenko's came in town to celebrate Christmas with Nana and us. I think we gained about 5 pounds each while they were here (well mabe everybody except Court)...b/c we sure did do a lot of eating. We had the best time! Thanks so much for the pirate ship and soccer/lacross set! Hours of entertainment awaits us!

Christmas in Mobile - Take I

2010-12-22T14:20:00.000-08:00

OK, like the good parents we are, we thought since Court was feeling so good upon his discharge from the hospital that we would run home, pack and head down to Mobile that same night for our annual Christmas trip with family. Our little man did great...didn't skip a beat (or a bottle since we are now back on those trying to get 3 pediasures down him a day to get some meat on those bones)! As always, the boys had a blast at Pop and Meme's house. We went to the Christmas parade on Saturday, and Emerson once again confirmed his dislike of the "Rabbit" (AKA Easter Bunny), "McNonal" (AKA Ronald McDonald) and Santa. But, I must say, McNonal takes the prize! After that we went back to Pop and Meme's house for the first of 3 Christmases, and boy was it a doozie filled with legos, movies, an acoustic guitar, drums, the works...and that is just what the kiddos got! They outdid themselves again! On Saturday night we went to Aunt Whitney and the future Uncle Patrick's engagement party..sin kids of course! On Sunday, we went to our annual holiday lunch with the "extended" family as we'll call it before heading home. Too much fun is to be had when we are all together! Thanks for everything!

Wearing Mommy's Gloves...

The new Facebook Pose....not quite sure about this. Goofy if you ask me!

All bundled up in Cousin Claire's scarf to keep warm! Bottle in tow of course!

The McNonal Effect...

Can you believe this kid was just in the hospital the day before...amazing how fast he bounced back!

The future addition to the family...

Who says you can't eat cole slaw with your hands...sure wish he would teach little bro some of his eating habits!

All the boys' Aunts and Uncles together...rare site!

Court's Trip to Children's Hospital

2010-12-22T13:59:00.000-08:00

Well, unfortunately both boys got sick last week, but Court's little body couldn't fight the virus (probably RSV) as well as Emerson's. After a few trips to the pediatrician with Gran, the doctor called the ambulance to take Court over to Children's Hospital. He was having a hard time getting enough oxygen and his heart rate, breaths per minute, etc. were extremely rapid. After a long 8 hours in the ER, they admitted our baby to the hospital for a few days. However, as you can see below, his little body bounced back rather rapidly. Pics from phone aren't the best, but you can follow his marked progress day to day! Thankfully, he is back healthy 100% just in time for Christmas! We are so blessed...(p.s. - Gran got her holidays a little confused. Though it is Christmas, our baby went to the hospital in his Halloween PJ's. Go figure!?!?!?)

On a separate note, the doctors were exteremely concerned by his size and feeding issues. Little Cout turned 16 months while in the hospital, but is the size of an average 6 month old (18lbs). He just does not have any desire to eat, which has been a struggle for some time. We have an eval scheduled with the GI and occupation therapy for feeding, both beginning early January! We definitely need help, so I am personally looking forward to both!

Random December Fun

2010-12-22T13:21:00.000-08:00

Here are a few random pics from a playday with Griff Stewart, Emerson's Cookie Factory Field Trip and Emerson when he was not feeling well.

Play Date with the cuz's...

2010-11-30T09:15:00.000-08:00

Cousins Claire and Ashley came over to play the other day and help us decorate the tree. They were so funny trying to explain Christmas to Emerson. They said "you celebrate Jesus's birthday, get to sing carols, and Santa brings you lots and lots of presents....It's the best!"

Zoooooooooooooo

2010-11-30T09:09:00.000-08:00

Pop and Meme came to B'ham to visit us a couple of weekends ago. We had the best day outside enjoying the beautiful weather at the zoo! Can't wait to see ya'll again!

Daddy's 40th Birthday Lunch

2010-11-30T08:53:00.000-08:00

Happy 40th Daddy! You sure are getting old! But, we are glad we got to celebrate your old age at Stix! Here's to 40 more! Cheers, Dad!

Potty Time

2010-11-16T11:50:00.001-08:00

OK, so we haven't actually done the deed yet...but school got the little man to at least sit on the potty today! We are so proud! Here is the pic that just sent to me...

Halloween Part III

2010-11-05T08:02:00.000-07:00

OK, the final chapter is here. Jackson came to hang with Emerson for the last night of T&T. They were too cute climbing in and out of that wagon.

Randomly, after the hot air baloon a few minutes earlier, an old military plane came flying by our house LOW to the ground...my camera was off so didn't get a good pic until it had passed....pretty cool though!

Halloween Part II

2010-11-02T08:10:00.000-07:00

OK, so mom got us all dressed up on Halloween Day to goplay and take pics at the park and playground in Ross Bridge. But, as you can see...costumes were not part of the plan. Oh well...we were saving that treat for later that night. We had the best time playing and enjoying the gorgeous day! Still, more Halloween pics to follow....

Halloween Part I

2010-11-02T07:35:00.000-07:00

We had a great Halloween weekend. Started it out by having a Halloween Party at School. Later that night we went to the Pig Iron with Nana...it was a BBQ festival! Gran joined us later. So fun! Nana spent the night with us and then on Saturday evening we went on a spur of the moment trick-or-treating adventure with Claire and Ashley (their neighborhood celebrated on Saturday night). Emerson wore cowboy costume #1 and Court wore his skeleton PJ's. Emerson "got it" this year and had a blast ringing door bells, and then shyly saying "trick or treat" and follow-uping it up with a quiet thank you. The boys were so cute and even got invited into someone's house so she could show her hubby how cute they were! On actual Halloween night (Sunday), we trick-or-treated again (Yep...twice in one weekend) in our neighborhood....pics to follow shortly when mom has a chance to download from her camera.

Hometown Fair

2010-10-28T09:21:00.000-07:00

So, been awful about taking pics lately, but these are a few from Gran's camera...Gamedays are always fun and then went to the hometown fair last weekend...the boys didn't want to ride anything, but they sure enjoyed their snowcones!

Oh well....

2010-10-18T07:42:00.000-07:00

Our neighborhood had a wine and beer festival before the Arkansas game...unfortunatley it didn't give us much luck, but we did have fun! here are a few pics from the day...

Random Update

2010-10-04T09:08:00.000-07:00

OK..what's new in the Yates' clans life. Well, Court is officially walking and on the go, though I must admit I miss his cute little bear crawl. He still hates any solid food and sleeping, but he is the sweetest thing you will ever meet. He wakes up every morning (unfortunately in Mom and Dad's bed) flashing the biggest grin you have ever seen and looks around like it is the first time he has ever opened his eyes. He loves to watch and imitate big brother and chase Bear all over the house...Bear does not find this quite as amusing. Emerson has become quite the independent little man with an opinion on everything. He is growing up soo fast. I'm not sure where it came from, but on Saturday we went from "Mommy and Daddy" to "Mom and Dad." Blueberries and Pizza are his all time favorite foods. We have a bonus this week with some pics of the doggies. Mom needs to get better at documenting our 130+ pound puppies. Bear got shaved a little later in the Summer so he is still in the awkward regrowth stage. I'll get some better pics of him next time...he knows he is still a Mama's boy and greets me each morning with the wettest kiss and sweetest moan....Butler, still tests our limits daily, but you have to love his persistence...and he really is the most loving dog ever. If we could just get him to stop stealing all of our food!

Butler

Oh and I forgot to mention, that Court is definitely going to be our mischevious one...We can already tell we have our hands full with this one.

Bear

Butler

Alabama vs Penn State

2010-09-28T13:35:00.000-07:00

Roll Tide. Well, we are a few weeks behind getting pics posted, but in the football spirit we couldn't fail to add these from the Alabama-Penn State game. It was a night game, so the boys were out on the quad literally all day, but they did great...even with the extreme heat! Gran, Jeannie, Suzette and Tim looked after the boys while Mom & Dad cheered Bama on to a victory. RTR!

Fun with the Fam on Labor Day

2010-09-09T13:38:00.000-07:00

I guess it is pretty obvious that we went to Pop and Meme's condo at the beach for Labor Day. I was a little hesitant about the boats for a while, but FINALLY someone informed me that there were no rabbits (AKA Easter Bunnies) on the water. After that, I was much more at ease. We had a blast, as always.....

Labor Day 2010 - Girls, Girls, Girls

2010-09-09T13:26:00.000-07:00

Ha. We fooled you. No, we didn't catch us any women this weekend, but we did (as some may say) dress up like little girls in our cute little white bubbles. Really though, it is seriously OK b/c Mom says we are still under 10 years of age...after that strictly collared shirts. We promise!

P.S. - I promise we are much better models than Mom makes us look. She is still learning to use her camera. Enough already, seriously, she should be an expert by now. Right?

Great Grandmother Evelyn

2010-09-02T12:44:00.000-07:00

We road tripped it last weekend to the beach to stay at Nana's condo and visit with Great Grandmother Evelyn. What a special treat...Courtland had never met her and it was only my second encounter. She lives in Panama City. We had so much fun listening to her stories and playing with all the goodies she gave us. We especially loved our t-shirts and balls and extra large sea shell. I must say I hope I look that good at 88. After our visit, we headed back to the condo to visit before making our way to AJ's and the Boathouse. The boys LOVE live music, so we took the opportunity on such a rainy weekend to let them soak in the local flavor. Court danced so hard he tuckered out on Uncle Ralph's shoulder a few times!

More Courtland First Birthday Shots

2010-09-02T12:35:00.000-07:00

Mom finally got around to downloading the rest of the pics from her camera. Better late than never I guess. The first are from Court's party. We celebrated again on his actual b'day at a Mexican restaurant. Claire and Gran made his cake, which he again refused to even try. Oh well. Poor Nana wasn't feeling too well, so she had to miss the parties, but she came over to the house later to celebrate.

Party Time!

2010-08-19T08:10:00.000-07:00

Court wasn't too sure about the crowd and definitely not the cake. Getting this old had him a little on edge all evening. Thanks to everyone for making this day so special and for all the wonderful gifts. Also thanks to Aunt Becky for the wonderful cakes and cookie! YUM! (PS - More pics to come...the others are on my other flash card; I will download soon and add the remaining!)

Happy First Birthday Baby Court

2010-08-19T08:01:00.000-07:00

Getting Ready for Court's Big First Birthday party at Gran's. We just had family over to cook out....This was before all the action started!

Hey Cuz...

2010-08-19T07:53:00.000-07:00

Cousins Niki and Alex and Aunt Debbi came in town to play this weekend. Uncle Ralph joined us for lunch and pool time on Saturday. We celebrated Court's b'day and Alex's....he turned the BIG 16 last week. Yikes! Stay off the roads....

Heat of the Summer

2010-08-11T13:37:00.000-07:00

The 110 index has not kept us in all summer. The boys have enjoyed regular outings to the neighborhood pool and park, cookouts, golfball hunts with Gran and mowing the grass with Daddy. Thanks to Aunt Debbi and family for the super cool wagon to transport us!

No not dominatrix (sp?)...just walked out of Mommy's closet with a few of her bracelets/necklace on...I thought I was big stuff!

Other Random Shots

2010-08-06T08:05:00.000-07:00

Well, round one of potty training didn't go so well. But E got some pretty undies out of it anyway!

All Grown Up

2010-08-05T07:23:00.000-07:00

From mowing the lawn, to working on the computer to eating corn like a big boy, Emerson thinks he is all grown up. Little Court tries to get in the mix, but sometimes isn't quite there yet...but he sure does try!

Over the past month, the boys relationship has just blossomed into best buds. It is so cute to watch how they interact and play now. Typically, Emerson is a good sharer and allows Cout to play with his big boy toys. Right now we are trying to teach Court words, and Emerson pats himself and says "Me!"...Court will probably start calling him that soon. Emerson still loves fruit...doesn't want much to do with sweets. Court, on the other hand, will barely eat stage 3 food and NO table food. This kid likes his bottle too much! In fact, this past week he has refused dinner and only wants milk. If we even try a meat baby food, he literally gags and throws up...Looks like he is going to be our picky one!

Emerson mowing the lawn with his Daddy...he loved it!

Hey, Why can't I help?

Working hard on Mommy's computer!

Yummy!

The Retro Run

2010-07-26T08:48:00.000-07:00

So, Mommy, Gran, Court and Emerson ran the Retro Run in Homewood on Saturday night. It was soo much fun. The boys loved the race and looking at all the costomes. Afterward they had beer, barbque and a band. Both boys shook their money makers to the band and had a ball! Emerson also engaged in his own race at the end of the night, running endlessly up and down the street. On Sunday we went to the pool for 6 hours. Oops, Team Safety was slacking a bit b/c they each got a little bit sunburned. Not bad, but definitely pink! Court just loves the water and emerson is getting so much better at jumping in and going all the way under water. He also is doing great blowing bubbles and kicking....vast strides from the beginning of the summer when he didn't even want to be in the gated area of the pool..

Courtland's Christening!

2010-07-21T08:03:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone who helped us celebrate Courtland's Christening on July 18, 2010. He looked beautiful in his dress that Gran made (same one that Emerson used) and he was a doll during his big moment. Afterwards, we all gathered at Stix Restaurant to celebrate the Baptism and Cousin Ashley's birthday.

The boys are really starting to play together more and more! It is so fun watching them interact. Courtland still has his bear crawl and insists laying the back of his hand against his cheek when he waves hello and goodbye. We still can't get him to eat solid foods, but that is OK. Emerson's voabulary is still exploding. He has finally decided that he loves the pool and is doing great at blowing bubbles, jumping off the side and kicking.

Mommy & Daddy

2010-07-13T11:43:00.000-07:00

Mom and Dad don't post pics of themselves very often, but here are a few from their trip to Jamaica.....