December Snipets

I finally had to chance to upload some photos this afternoon and wanted to share...

Leah is starting to show interest in the Baby Einstein series and suddenly Kendall has re-discovered it. She now asks for "baby all-stan" more than even Barney. Below is a snap shot of the sisters enjoying a morning show:

Leah and Kendall playing the evening I caught Leah rolling over...this picture was taken shortly before:

Once I realized the squirt had rolled:

Leah and her beloved "Ma"...

Me again...

I know I just posted a matter of moments ago, but wanted to pass this video along...my new favorite Christmas song...

Brandon Heath - The Night Before Christmas

Prepping for the Holidays

The past few weeks have passed with blinding speed! I finally got motivated to decorate for Christmas, which is odd because usually I can't wait to decorate. In fact, the first Christmas after we got married, we purchased a tiny little tree with ornaments around Halloween and were so excited about it that we went ahead and decorated right then. The years since have followed similar suit, and we traditionally decorate for Christmas the week before Thanksgiving. This year was a little different - likely because I struggle to find the energy to keep up with the daily chores, let alone add decorations into the mix. But laziness and complaining aside, the decorations finally went up a couple weeks ago :o)

Kendall will be moving up to a new class next year - early preschool is what they call it, I believe. I'm excited for her to be with older kids, but sad to say goodbye to her current teachers Miss Donna and Miss Kristen. They are both extremely sweet and always so friendly to Kendall. One good thing, I think her best school friends - Johnny (aka Donny) and Bree - will be moving up with her so hopefully that should make the transition less painful.

Kendall is all about her cousins Jake and Ella right now - particularly Ella. Due to her petite size, she has inherited quite a few of Ella's hand-me-downs, which she completely adores. In fact, the only coat and shoes that I can get her to willingly wear are Ella's, which she emphatically reminds me each time I put them on. She talks about them at least three times a day and literally spins with excitement when she knows they are coming to visit.

Leah rolled over for the first time (that I've seen) last week. We were sitting on the living room floor and she was doing her usual routine of rolling to her side and then back on her back, when suddenly I realized she face down! A few huffy moments later, she had returned to her back and began kicking her legs over once again. I have since tried to get it on video, but she hasn't quite cooperated. We tried cereal a couple times this week, but I think she still needs a few more weeks to be able to sit up a little better. She starts to slowly fade to the side after a few minutes, which makes her angry and instantly uncooperative for feeding. I'm hoping she will take to eating a little better than big sis did - we are still struggling with that!

I am completely finished with Christmas shopping - yay! In fact, I ran to the mall to grab something and was literally in and out in 15 minutes. This was good thing for me, considering my anxiety for crowds had started to bubble up as I drove in through the traffic.

We are looking forward to our cozy family celebrations...I have good authority that Santa is bringing something pretty fun this year :) Photos to follow suit at a later date...

where to begin...

Life has been so crazy lately that I haven't had a chance to post, or hardly take pictures, which has been a little sad. I try to snap a shot here and there to capture funny moments more than creative angles these days. There are so many funny stories to tell and events that have passed, not even sure where to begin...

The months of November and December are busy birthday months for me...my mother's is November 15th, followed by Trenton's on November 17th - short break for Thanksgiving - then rolls my sister's, the twins, and my grandmother's wraps it up before Christmas. Trenton's actual birthday was pretty quiet, but a few months ago I purchased Dallas Cowboys tickets for the November 22nd game against the Washington Redskins. Boy, was he excited! I think he told me 'thank you' about a million times that day. I could dedicate an entire post just regarding that experience, but I'll be as brief as a mother of two under two awake and on the loose can be...the game itself was pretty tame - not much scoring happening on either side, but the ambiance of it all was overwhelming! The most noteable part to me was when the 'doors' opened at 10am. All non-season tickets must enter through the end zones. When we initially arrived, I thought we would go through regular glass doors that lined the area, but suddenly around 10 I was proved wrong. The ENORMOUS glass WALL started to recess into the sides...it was truly a sight to behold.
Trenton and I in front of the stadium

Fortunately the Cowboys won, so we were able to walk away from the day completely happy, but there were many close moments there! I kept asking him that if they didn't win, would he still have enjoyed the experience...and of course, he said he would.

Leah is just a growing, growing, growing! We had her four month appointment a couple weeks ago and she was a whopping 15 pounds - just 6 short of her older sister. Oddly enough, we happen to pull Kendall's records and found that she was actually heavier at the same age.

I will conclude with a funny story...a few weeks ago we were playing in Kendall's room when she said "bed" and I asked her "do you want to go into your bed?" and she said "YES" so I placed her in her crib. She then said "sissy!" so I asked her "do you want me to put SISSY in your bed?" and she said "YES!" so I placed Leah carefully into the bed next to her. She then grabbed her favorite blanket with a bunny on it and said "sissy bunny?" so I went and tracked down a blanket for Leah and placed it on top of her. Then Kendall looked up and said "Mama, moo!" and started to wave towards the door. I asked her "you want Mommy to leave?" and she said "YES" and waved her head as far up and down as it could go.

I see how it is.

Kendall and "sissy" after telling Mama to "moo"

The Mysterious Case of Mr. Dah-nee

Kendall has been quite the chatter box lately, but I must admit that I don't always understand what she is saying. Many times she will repeat herself and point until I understand, but sometimes I just don't get it.

Like lately she has been saying this name of something or someone...'dah-nee'...and I could not for the life of me figure out what that meant. I would mention it to anyone that knows Kendall well again and again, I wonder who or what dah-nee is? I would ask Kendall if she could point to 'dah-nee' or show me who 'dah-nee' was.

What or who on earth is this mysterious 'dah-nee' that she keeps mentioning?

Well, this evening we were giving the girls a bath when I mentioned to Trenton about this little boy in her class. He's a cute little guy, if not a bit precocious, with thick blond hair and chubby toddler cheeks. He's always the first one to smile hello or to wave goodbye. I was mentioning how he must get into trouble because the teacher is always saying "Johnny, stop that" or "Johnny, don't do this" and suddenly Kendall looks at me saying "Dah-nee!"

Mystery solved!

"Dah-nee" is "Johnny"!

Not a happy camper...

You may be thinking this 'unhappy' camper was me...well, to be fair, I was not particularly jazzed about the short-notice event. I mentioned something on Friday night in regards to how the weather was perfect for camping and who knows how much longer that would last...we had actually planned an earlier camping trip over Labor Day weekend, but we canceled it due to rain. So our Friday might ended in its usual chaos with Trenton searching for open camp sites. I did not think he would find one on such short notice...and he didn't.

In our area.

We ended up driving to Lake Texoma, roughly 1.5-2 hours away on the Texas/Oklahoma border. So I wasn't exactly thrilled...but on we trooped...carefully planned excel spreadsheets from years past were printed off...however these sheets didn't include the 'child' factor, so I tried as best as possible to gather what I could for that 'little detail' or 'details' now with Leah.

I was already a little stressed out before we even make it out of our own city limits...Kendall was late for her nap, so she was fussing in the backseat and Leah decided to famously 'kick it up a notch.' But again...on we trooped...

We made it there around 2:30. Unpacking is never easy, but because I was essentially tied up watching the kids, Trenton had to do most of the rest (putting up the tent, unpacking the bags, etc etc etc) alone. That process took around 2 hours, but eventually we left our little site and drove to the small marina about two miles away. This was not smooth sailing either. We had both dogs, plus baby, plus crazy little toddler. I tried to carry both Leah in the baby sling and Kendall on my hip while Trenton got the dogs, but Leah kicked the notch up SO high that we decided to tie the dogs to a post near the car.

I destressed a little taking some pictures...I really think I got some GREAT pictures. In fact, I love so many of them that I have already half-way made a slide show that I'll attach at a later date. Here are some of my favorites:

Kendall...she just LOVED to yank on poor Bandit's chain...

Trenton and Kids

How can you not smile at this beautiful baby grin?

I LOVE the look on her face on this picture...kinda summed up the whole trip for Kendall!

On our previously scheduled trip back in September, we had actually planned to leave Leah because we thought she would be the biggest hand-full....little did we know that she would be the BEST ONE. The child was great...she was content, she was smiling, she was the perfect baby. Big sister, on the other hand, there aren't quite words to express what an experience she was.

Crying, fussing, screaming...rotate these actions about 50 times and you pretty much sum up Kendall. She wasn't bad the whole time, but it was almost as though she decided to enter into the world of the terrible two's at exactly the same moment we went on this trip. There was actually a moment last night, I think around 3am, where she woke completely out of a deep sleep and started screaming APPLE! JUICE! APPLE JUICE! APPLE JUICE!

By the time we made it home this afternoon, we both realized that we had each had maybe 30 minutes of relaxing time in 24 hours.

So we'll have to hold off on the whole camping thing...for at least a year...for maybe 5!

Prayer...an interesting question

**Warning: Deep and Religious Entry Alert! This will not be a cute/informative entry regarding my kiddos**

Per my normal routine, I wrapped up this evening by scanning through my blog list for updated entries...I recently added a blog from a person that I've never met. In fact, I have no clue where in this world she may be located but found her on some link of a link and liked that she had my same camera (Canon 40D) and was extremely descriptive in her lessons on how to use it. At any rate, this evening she had a very thought-provoking question...what is the point of prayer? She didn't exactly phrase it that way and I didn't exactly read the whole entry...skim-reading has really been my downfall since having children...but it was still an entry that has kept me from falling asleep with both kids and husband in bed.

I definitely understand the importance of a strong prayer life...it's important to talk to our Father, to praise Him, thank Him for all our blessings, and to ask for forgiveness for our many sins...but why do we ask for things in prayer? I do it all the time...in fact a majority of my prayer time is probably spent in asking for things...to keep my family safe and healthy, etc...but suddenly the thought crossed my mind that has honestly never passed before...why? If God is all-knowing, if He is the beginning and the end, and He knows all the in between (and He does)...why do I ask that He keep my family safe from intruders in our home? Doesn't He already know if there are going to be intruders at some point in my home? God does not answer all prayers, and for good reason, but what's the point for us to pray for specific things if He already knows? And another interesting question...does the number of people praying for something/someone increase the likelihood of an answered prayer? If I'm the only person praying for something, does that mean it's less likely than if a million people were praying for the same thing? I have personally experienced the peace that has come from multiple people's prayers on something, but did that help with the outcome in the end?

Is it horrible to be asking these questions? Should I be praying for something or just praying that God will change my heart to line up with His will?

I know that God wants me to pray for things, so I'm not questioning whether we should do it...just likely overthinking. Is this one of the questions that we shouldn't ask?

"And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints" (Ephesians 6:18).

I know that the need for prayer is very strong and that it is such an important part of a Christ-centered life...this was just a question posed that I had never thought of before. I am interested to hear feedback as to your perspective too.

Leah's Updated 411

Leah is 15 weeks and 1 day...she can still squeeze into a #1 diaper, although the "1-2" size that Pampers makes is actually better...she has many nicknames (some she might rather forget some day)...Beaner, Baby Beaner, Baby B, Lee-Lee, Lee-ster, the list goes on and on...she is turning into a fabulous night sleeper like big sis (8 to 12 hours almost every night!)...she has the cutest dimple and loves any kind of funny noise you can make with your mouth....she wears 3-6 months and has almost outgrown it!...her feet and head almost rival the size of her 18 months older sister (you better stop beating up on her Kendall - she'll be able to fight back soon!)...she has gorgeous skin tone and rolls upon rolls on her chubby baby thighs...we think her eyes are going to be blue like daddy's but we're not 100% sure...her eyebrows are SO expressive, I can get 15 very different looks from her in about 5 minutes depending on those brows!...she loves her bouncer and the sound of running water...she does not like to be in her crib unless tightly swaddled (thank you daddy)...she can cry from "0 to 60" in 5.2 and has no mercy once she gets started...we know she has decided to "kick it up a notch" when we hear the dreaded 5 second pause, this inevitably means screeching cried will follow...she has lost most of the hair on the top of her head and has a "bald ring" around the back of her head...we struggle to keep her cradle cap at bay but this is something big sis eventually grew out of...she is going to be a flower for Halloween and should be a pretty adorable side-kick to Kendall's "Bee" ensemble.

First Playdate

I should probably clarify that this wasn't our first playdate ever - we have enjoyed many playdate/therapy sessions with my friend Sarah and her little darling Allyson - but this was my first playdate with total strangers. I've been going through some odd mood moments, likely relating to my return back as a part time associate...I had actually written a blog post about it and ended up pulling it after I had a few minutes to think better of it. At the moment, my feelings tend to end as a all-out complain-fest, and I'm sure everyone has better things to read than that. Moving on to the all-stranger play-date...every now and again I feel the need for new or change...one would think adding a new member to the family and cutting all my hair off might fit that need, but I was still left needing something new. I was reading through an online forum when I came across a place where mother's go to host and attend playdates and decided to join. I was instantly amazed at all the creative and fun-sounding playdates that were on the calendar - one for every day except for Sunday. I decided to attend the New Member's Brunch this morning, figuring that would be a good way to ease into it - with other 'newbies.' To be honest, I was not very excited about it this morning. The week was long and tiring...the past few days have been rainy, and Kendall woke up with all wheels spinning at 6 am...but we still managed to leave the house on time and made it with no real issues. I'm very glad we went...I got to meet about 6 other mothers and they were all very nice and friendly. We were all exhausted by the time we got home around 2pm and took a 'family' nap until about 5.

On a funny side note...we were all sitting on the couch this evening when I see an old sippy cup that had not been in the usual rotation for a while. I had seen it a few minutes before, but since Kendall is famous for digging her cups and eating utensils out and leaving them around the house, I didn't think much of it...until I realized there was liquid in this old old sippy cup. I asked Trenton if he had given it to her, but he shook his head no...he was the one who ended up taking off the lid and sniffing at the apple juice that had to have been at LEAST a month old. Kendall, completely unphased, tried to take it away, exclaiming her usual "app-le ju-uice." Apparently she found it in her toy box...so Kendall probably had her first taste of apple 'wine' today...

State Fair 2009

Yesterday we went for our annual trip to the State Fair of Texas. The day went by so quickly! We got to the fair a little before 11 and seemingly in a blink of an eye it was already 6. As I think I have mentioned in previous blog entries regarding the fair, the main reason I enjoy going is the food...and boy did I have some food! I saved calories all morning so that I could enjoy a Fletcher's corn dog, cotton candy, fried cookie dough, a turkey leg, and some Texas tator twisters. I only got a tiny bite of the cookie dough and turkey leg, since those are Trenton's favorites :o)

Kendall got to go on her first ever carnival ride - a few of them actually. She barely made the height requirement for a couple rides, but I'm not sure she really enjoyed the thrill much anyway - she will likely be more like daddy in the way of rides. I'm hoping Leah will be more like me, or else I will be going to Six Flags alone :oP Although, in her defense, even the baby rides pull some G's I think...my bottom is bruised today and I think I have wip-lash! This is not so uncommon for me - I still have random neck issues that I believe began with the Poteet Strawberry Festival of 2001...

Kendall and Daddy on her first ride



Kendall and Mommy on her 2nd ride

I think Leah had a good time...she slept for most of the day, but woke up for one or two good photo-opportunties with Mommy. We had an interesting time putting the double stroller into numberous configurations that I don't believe are correct (yikes)...we had to be creative because the front seat that we've been using for Kendall can't recline for a nap with the baby in the back...so we swapped...it was interesting...we'll just leave it at that. No one fell out and CPS was not called, so all in all it was a productive experience I would say.

Mommy and Leah

Daddy, Kendall, Big Tex

As with each trip, we had to visit the butterfly gardens...ironically we spent so much time in the 'park' area that we didn't even make it to the more butterfly-filled area, but I still got some cute pictures.

Kendall and Mommy

Kendall can never run fast enough for Mommy's camera...

My sweetie

Happy 60th Birthday Dad!

Today is officially my dad's 60th birthday, although all of his presents and surprises arrived over the weekend. The first surprise was the "delivery" of my dad's brother Steve - he arrived on Friday from Virginia and I drove him over early that afternoon. None of us has seen him since my sister's wedding 7 years ago, so it was wonderful to get caught up again. Both of my parents were so excited that they had tears in their eyes once they saw him.

Dad and Uncle Steve

The next surprise took place the following day - his big surprise party! My sister worked so hard to gather so many things - the email contacts for my dad's friends, putting together the meal items and decorations, printing out the invitations, making the special outfits for us and the grand kids...it was all about to start!

Below are the outfits that we wore to the party. All the grand-girls had matching shirts and skirts. Jake had his own boy version, and my sister and I had our own shirts - each shirt depicted a special moment we had with our dad/grandpa.

Kendall

Rachel

Ella

Jake

Maili

Maili & Kristi

Another set of surprise guests for my Dad - his Uncle Hale and Aunt Dolores - they drove in the previous day from Florida. We haven't seen them since their daughter's wedding a couple years prior.

Aunt D and Uncle Hale holding Leah

It was a fabulous party and my mom and dad were genuinely surprised. I went to pick them up in order to control their arrival time and was grilled the whole time by my mother! The look on their faces was well worth it though - complete shock!

After my dad's entry, both my sister and I said something. My sister read a beautiful letter that had the whole room in tears. I read the below poem that I had written the week before:

What do you tell your dad on his birthday,
How do you let him know?
So much that he means to you
What words will make this show?
　
All the gifts he has given to you
His love, his support, his cares
What can you say that will fit the bill?
To show gratitude for all that he shares?
　
What do you give your dad on his birthday,
To the man that has it all?
Two beautiful daughters, a wonderful wife...
Enough granddaughters to conquer the mall!
　
How do you feel on your dad's birthday,
Are you overwhelmed with the emotion?
Now with your own two little girls,
You understand his heart of endless devotion
　
What do you tell your dad on his birthday,
You hope 'I love you' will be a good start
Then follow with it up with these simple words,
Filled with joy that came straight from your heart.
　
Happy 60th Birthday Dad,
We love you
Here's to many more years,
And much happiness too!

Mom, Me, Dad, Maili

We love you Dad - Happy 60th Birthday!

Leah's 2 month checkup

Leah had her two month check up Friday - she is now 11 lbs 6 oz and is 23 inches long - she has grown 4 inches since her 2 week check up! The doctor said she looks perfectly healthy and boy was she flirting it up with him! She has the most adorable dimples when she smiles :)

Leah is such a party animal - she rarely goes to bed before 11 and I think even then she is just pitying her poor, tired mother. She gets up at 9, which would be fabulous if it were not for Kendall, who wakes around 7 usually. This morning was particularly funny - I was in the master bathroom when I suddenly hear Kendall's voice exclaiming "SISSY!" through the baby monitor in Leah's room. I rush in to find Kendall who, once she sees me, turns around and "shushes" me, as though I am the rude intruder.

I better go - Kendall just told me to "moo" or "move" in her words.

Hun Hun Mr. Golden Hun!

Nun Na Na Nah, Nun Na Na Nah...Kendall's World! At least that's what it seems like these days...this entry may seem a little all over the place, but there are so many cute stories that I don't want to forget. By the way, in case you don't routinely catch Sesame Street, the beginning phrase is a take off Elmo's theme song - one of Kendall's favorite tv shows - and I'm sad to say that I know the whole song plus some of the episodes by memory. I know there is some valuable information in my brain that was forgotten to make room!

I may say this every entry, but Kendall is saying so many more words...or at least she is trying to say a lot of words. For example, she says 'hun' instead of 'sun' which I find odd because she has no trouble saying 'sissy' when referring to Leah. The other evening, she was watching her beloved Barney DVD before bedtime and we hear her singing 'hun hun, mr. golden hun'...it was so cute and funny. You can also tell we've made attempts at kicking up the discipline, as she has now picked up the words 'bad girl.' She can also be found at least three times a day chasing after the dogs (aka doe doe's) screaming 'no no doe doe's!' Hmm, you can tell we aren't huge dog fans at the moment, huh?

She loves to read, particularly her Baby Einstein "Baby's First Words" book. It's basically a toddler-proof book with lots of pictures of things labeled by name, shape, and color. Sometimes she will point to different pictures and say "dis" which means "this" and wants you to tell her what the item is. She will also take one of your fingers and use them as her personal pointer too. Lately, she says "mama?" when Trenton tells her what the item is - almost as though she is double checking that Daddy knows what he's talking about.

I will try to post some video soon of her sweet little toddler voice - just so cute! I will post details on Leah later this week since she has her 2 month check up on Friday. Can't believe it's already been 9 weeks!

August Slideshow

I have been substituting my usual blog time with taking pictures, so I thought instead of catching up for the past few weeks I would just upload a slide show with my favorites. Better go - both babies are crying!

Moments from August

Kendall after she climbed on Daddy's desk - so proud of herself

Kendall...you are a day short of 19 months and get prettier every day! You shock us with all the new words you know and with your hilariously innocent commentary. I sometimes forget how much you understand until you do things like snicker after I do something silly or copy my words (scary!). You love your school and proudly wave bye-bye to Mommy on the mornings you leave. You can be very sweet to your baby sister, taking dirty diapers to the trash and softly patting Leah on the head, calling her 'baby'. You are still 19 months however, so you have your moments of taking the diaper and then slinging it to the floor...or trying to catapult your sister in her bouncer through the ceiling...You love Elmo (Melmo) and Barney (Baa-nee) and can watch their videos to no end, much to my displeasure at times. You surprised us all again when you were suddenly able to do the body motions to "row row row your boat", "twinkle twinkle little star", and "the itsy bitsy spider." I think we can thank your school for that...and also for the sudden appearance of the word "mine", which you are suddenly throwing out, even more than "no." Your smile melts hearts and we all love trying to make you smile and laugh.




Baby Leah...you are 5 weeks and a day and getting bigger every day! We thought you might be our low maintenance baby, but now we're not so sure :) You like to take long leisurely naps during the day and then wake up ready to play at night! You have such serious and interesting expressions, like when you arch your right eye brow as though you are speculating about the world. You slept until 2am in your crib one night, but mostly you like sleeping right up again Mommy, which makes Daddy very nervous. I just think you like to hear my heartbeat...and I definitely love having you close. You do not like poopy diapers and will cry and cry and cry until they are changed. You are also not a big fan of bath time, even when sister Kendall comes in to entertain you. Mommy has to keep one hand on you and the other on Kendall - to keep her from jumping in!

4 weeks...Kendall or Leah?

I didn't think the girls looked that much alike...but maybe they do...can you tell which one is Kendall and which one is Leah?

Just love weddings!

I really enjoy weddings...particularly other people's weddings :) You can enjoy the beautiful scenery and usually yummy food without the stress of being the center of attention. Plus I think it helps to remind you of why you married your own spouse.

This past weekend we were able to attend my good friend Chris's wedding. Chris is a great guy in so many ways, in fact I kind of see him as the little brother that I wouldn't have minded having, and I was so happy that he found his 'princess charming.'

There were a couple moments that I found particularly poignant...during the ceremony, the officiant had all family and friends stand up. He then had everyone agree to essentially work together for this newly created marriage. For example, he mentioned that if one side of the couple were to ever come to us to discuss a relationship trouble or issue, we should think about what we can say to keep this couple strong...not just being the 'yes person' and adding to that person's complaints. I also very much enjoyed the father of the bride's speech...he talked about being 'one' with your spouse - no matter whether that person is right next to you or across the globe - you are one. He then mentioned how much he already respected and cared for his new son-in-law and I think that is such a great thing when two families can become one.

Well, I had my first nervous breakdown moment today. I spent the past nine of months of pregnancy in fear of days like today and was shocked that the first two weeks had not resulted in this moment sooner...

Yesterday the mini-van started acting funny. The back wouldn't open with the remote anymore and the car seemed to struggle to start - multiple times. Last night I mentioned it to the husband and he said I would need to take it in to have the battery replaced. We have a long drive this weekend for a wedding and neither of us want to be stranded in a town we aren't totally familiar with. I start getting a little anxious and frustrated about this last night...this is the 5th thing we've had go 'wrong' recently and the 4th relating to cars. And this would be my first experience taking both kids...the husband suggested taking Kendall to day care...yes, this would have been smart, however I felt guilty just thinking about it so I continued on my stubborn way...

So last night was like every other night this week...Leah won't go to bed until after midnight, then she wakes from 2 until 4 and then again at 6. The husband needs 7 hours of sleep to be functional at work, so I've been sleeping on the couch in the living room so we won't disturb anyone. Back to this particular evening...I've had a couple nighttime 'naps' and feeling very groggy when I hear Kendall wake up at 7 - much earlier than she normally does. This makes me a little grumpy because now I'll have to get everything ready to go to the car dealership with Kendall awake and on the loose too...so I get her up, get her juice...start the fun pumping process...pack the bags, feed the baby, change the baby, change the baby again, change the Kendall...run out of bottles for the road, wash bottles for the road...finally get to where I can load up the car and...

THE BATTERY IS NOW DEAD

Thus began my nervous breakdown moment...lack of sleep, frustration, BOTH children fussing...so this wasn't a very good morning for me.

Fortunately after about 30 minutes of off and on crying, I pulled it together and got a hold of the husband to come jump the mini-van. Another blessing from God, the car dealership has a children's waiting room, so Kendall couldn't escape! It was great.

So even though I had to pay $100 for a battery on a car we just bought and had to keep Kendall from banging on glass windows for about an hour...we are all calm now :o)

My take away moment of the day...I CAN handle two kids under two years old for at least 60 minutes...and people really do help you when you are pushing a stroller with one hand and have an 18 month old in the other.

Two week checkup

We had Leah's two week checkup this morning...she's perfectly healthy and has grown a half inch already. She is almost back up to birth weight so we'll just have to follow up next week to make sure she's above it, but I have a feeling she'll far exceed it by then. She's waking ME up now, instead of the other way around, ready to eat!

Trenton went back to work yesterday and it has been calm so far since I've only had the baby, as Kendall goes to daycare on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. We'll see how things go tomorrow! I bought a baby sling today, so that should help to keep my hands free for a toddler :)

Monday was Miss Rachel's 5th birthday and we had the honor of celebrating it with her. Below are some pictures from the past week.

Daddy and Leah

Kendall and Ella

Kendall swinging

Maili, Ella, Rachel and Kendall playing "Ring Around the Rosie"

Rachel and her birthday cupcakes

Kendall's First Haircut

We debated for quite a while on whether to get Kendall's hair cut...neither of us really wanted to, but she refuses to wear any kind of hair pin, bow, or band so her bangs are constantly in her eyes. Well, we decided to go for it this weekend!

Kendall waiting for her turn at "Hair Dittle Dittle"

When she first got in the plane seat I think she thought it was a ride
at an amusement park because it didn't bother her at all...that is, until they put the cover up on her.

She was so upset in this picture that she was even blowing
"snot bubbles"...and mean mommy caught it all on camera!

Watching her favorite person in the world - Elmo

Almost done....




See - that wasn't so bad!

Leah Claire

Our second little bundle of joy arrived Tuesday, July 14th at 4:23 pm. She weighs 7 lb, 6 oz (amazingly the exact same birth weight as Kendall) and is 19 inches long. Her entry into this world was a little different than her big sis...I had my 39 week check up last Monday and was expecting an uneventful visit. My doctor generally won't induce until between the 40th and 41st week, so I was thinking I would go in for the usual checks and come out with an appointment for the following Monday. Well, much to my surprise, my doctor suddenly says "I'll be out of town next week, let's see what we have open this week" and with me still in shock, she left the room. Five minutes later I was being told that tomorrow was going to be the big day and to be at the hospital at 7am to have the baby! So you can fully appreciate what a shock that truly was - I have always thought my due date was too early and was getting constant confirmation of that every time they would tell me Leah was measuring a week or two behind. I was thinking that surely I would be past due and then maybe induced the week of the 20th. Then add the fact that I wasn't really quite ready for the 20th either and now maybe you see how scary the 14th of July was starting to sound.

Still shocked, I head back to the office to finish my last day of work for 3 months...I share the details with my friends and start noticing a weird glance beginning to pass between them. As it turns out, they'd had plans for WEDNESDAY, thus my news that MONDAY would be my last day was really throwing them off. But they still pulled it all together very nicely - cake, balloons, and a Nordstroms gift card...can't get much better than that :) Plus they didn't have the chance to ransack my desk, so bonus points there.

Monday was a bittersweet night...of course we were excited, but I was a little sad for a number of reasons...it would be Kendall's last night as our only baby and I didn't know how well she was going to take it all in. And it was my last night ever to be pregnant - although in many ways that would be a relief (no acid reflux - yay!) there would be so many that I missed: feeling Leah's strong kicks, seeing the bottom of my black hole belly button, and all the special things that go along with having a baby. With all the thoughts circling my mind and also the beginnings of contractions I was feeling, I did not get much sleep that night.

Early Tuesday morning, we loaded up and took Kendall to her day care before heading to the hospital. Due to a large number of births the previous day and evening, we actually had to wait two hours before being escorted to our labor/delivery room. This process was slightly new to me because my water broke with Kendall and we rushed to the hospital at 1am on a Sunday. This seemed much more scheduled...and that was slightly odd. The doctor said I was almost at 3cm that morning, so likely Leah would have been born soon anyway, and that made me feel a little better. The rest of the process went without a hitch...they broke my water and began giving me pitocin...I was able to rough the contractions for about 3 hours until they said I was only at 4.5cm so I asked for an epidural. Again, they missed the 'right' place the first time and had to do it again. I think that hurt worse than some of the contractions! I was at 7cm around 3pm when I started to feel pain and pressure. In fact, they were going to give me more medication when they flipped me on my side and I was almost instantly at a 10. That happened so quickly that they had to page my doctor twice so that she understood she needed to get there RIGHT THEN. Soon there after, sweet Leah was born :)

Kendall has been the best big sister - she is very gentle with Leah. She loves to call her 'baby' and pat her on the head. In fact, I think she is doing better with it than I am! I still have pangs of almost guilt when I look at Kendall and wonder whether she'll feel short changed by another baby in the house. At the moment, she seems completely fine, so I guess I'm the one that needs to get over it!

I am currently struggling to be 'everywhere all the time.' I have missed Kendall very much the past few days because I've been so busy with feeding and caring for her new sister. Although Trenton did help out before, I was the primary care person for Kendall so it's hard when he's taking care of all the little moments that I shared before. I'm sure in time things will calm down and I'll get to regain some of this time again - in fact, I can't wait for things to start feeling normal.

Overall, we are doing great. Thanks for everyone's well wishes this past week!

The Calm Before The Storm?

I had my 38 week checkup last Monday and the doctor said I was 2 cm dilated, but I'm not sure if that's really a big deal or not. With Kendall, I was not at all dilated at my 39 week checkup and suddenly went into labor 3 days later, although I have heard from several others about being dilated so far along for weeks with no labor in the horizon.

Last night was a rough night though. I have had periodic 'cramping' that makes me think my body is continuing to progress and yesterday I think I may have pushed myself too far. We decided to catch up on a few errands in Lewisville - unfortunately it was 100+ degrees outside! The good news - I got a pair of new sunglasses for my birthday that I have wanted for ages. I also had the opportunity to buy a new nightgown and a couple other items for my looming hospital stay. The bad news - while we were wrapping up the evening my lower stomach started to cramp pretty badly although by the time reached home, I really was feeling much better. That is - until I woke up around 1am with horrible stomach pains. If I remember correctly, that's how it all started with Kendall - a general stomachache before the real contractions began. I think I was heading that way when the vomiting started. So now I'm not sure if I had a bug or if I'm beginning the process of labor...I suppose we shall see! I still feel crampy today, but not like contractions where there is a definitive start and stop, so maybe it's just residual from my issues last night. My body does NOT like to labor in the day, so I have at least a few more hours of peace, even if tonight is the night.

Kendall's New Table!

I have been meaning to get Kendall a 'big girl' table for the past few months, but just haven't gotten around to it. Yesterday, Ma and Pa brought over a new 'Noah's Ark' table for her and she loves it already. It was the first thing she went to this morning for her cereal and juice breakfast!

Thanks so much Ma and Pa!

It's getting hot!

I hate to complain, because I really do think I've gotten off lucky for the most part - I have roughly a month left and it just started getting hot. But it's hot. And my belly isn't HUGE but the baby is definitely like a portable heater - not necessary this time of year! This pregnancy has been different and I'm not sure whether it's because I have the seasons swapped (Kendall was born in January) or if it was just the luck of the pregnancy draw. At any rate, this time isn't quite so easy. I have horrific acid reflux - to where my body has begun to laugh at the Nexium pills. I've been having these random pains, almost like a shooting pain and then a muscle spasm, right where my legs join my abdomen. The worst though has been the odd lower back pain, kind of where I would guess my left kidney lives, when I "sleep" (or when I should say I try to sleep).

Enough of the whining though - Kendall has been a little handful these days. We finally decided to wean from the bottle. She wasn't getting them much - only with milk during sleep times - but I figured it wouldn't get any easier once her sister arrived and she saw her sipping on one. Today was day three and has been by far the best day. The first two days she would cry for at least 30 to 45 minutes when nap or bedtime rolled around. Our saving grace has really been day care - they don't give milk in bottles, only sippy cups - so that concept was not totally foreign to her. Although she of course prefers the bottle, after about 30 minutes and she realized it was either sippy cup of milk or no milk, she got over the inconvenience. Today was a great day for naps and bedtime - we went for a walk, probably a little too late (H-O-T), and then for a dip in the neighborhood pool. By the time we got back it was already almost 3 and she normally naps from 12-2, so she was EXHAUSTED. Tonight we went to Pappadeux's for early Father's Day...an experience, but it was a late dinner so she fell asleep pretty quickly tonight too.

The room is coming along...butterflies and curtains have arrived (love the Land of Nod!)...I bought a black mirror (as seen in the above picture) from Hobby Lobby and a curtain rod from Target. And deal of all deals, I found another precious butterfly at Kroger for just $4. I'll take pictures of everything once it all comes together. Trenton has a few more things left on his list before baby arrives!

p.s. I finally just took a picture of myself...I have next to none for this pregnancy, whereas with Kendall we documented every month. Oh well...

44 days to go - what?!?!

I know...so I shouldn't be shocked, but that baby count down is really starting to freak me out...only 44 days until the next bean arrives?! I had my 32 week appointment last Friday (I'm now almost 34 weeks!) and everything was healthy healthy. Baby's heart beat was 152 bpm and they said she was measuring a little small, but I always thought the due date was off anyway. I am slightly anemic, but I was extremely anemic with the first pregnancy and came out okay. I am on another iron supplement and maybe it's all in my head, but I do feel like I have more energy!

In other developments relating to baby...we bought a mini-van (gasp or yay, depending on who you are) It's a fully loaded '06 Honda Oddessy and it has been GREAT so far. Kendall adores the DVD and we actually have peaceful car rides now. The downside...yes I'm driving a mini-van and poor Trenton had to trade his truck in for it. But the truck and my Jetta really are too small for two kids, so alas we have joined the group of mini-van owners.

The furniture arrived! Oops - we sold that truck just a couple weeks to quickly! Oh well...we'll figure out the details on that one later...

Other exciting news...we have a new nephew! Nash Trace Brockett was born early yesterday morning and we just can't wait to meet him :)

Pictures from the Trip

I couldn't get the pictures to post correctly with the rest of the update, so they are separately...

Kendall at the hotel

Kendall at the MSC Fountain

Trenton and Kendall under the Century Tree

Kristi and Kendall under the Century Tree

Trenton and Kendall in front of Kyle Field

Trenton and Kendall at the start of the Bonfire Memorial

This was a quote from one of the fallen 12

that I thought was particularly poignant.

Trenton viewing the Center Pole Marker

This is located at the start of the memorial

Kendall loving Daddy at Research Park