Our Miracles... Our Life

Katelyn

2012-02-16T18:47:00.004-06:00

Katelyn at birth
3 weeks old.

1 month old in the dress my mom wore as a baby. My mom's great grandma Mary made it for her! Each of the girls have worn it.

2 months old at our family photo shoot

3 months old opening her first Christmas present

4 months My cousin made this for an invention contest. it is a mosquito net bassinet for babies. Katelyn got to model it :)

In a few days she will be 5 months old! my how time has flown!

Self Photo shoot

2012-02-16T18:42:00.003-06:00

Hadley found my camera. She somehow turned it on and was taking pictures of her self. when I uploaded them I had to laugh. silly girl!

riding a two wheeler

2012-02-16T18:10:00.004-06:00

We have been talking about taking Ellie's training wheels off for awhile but we couldnt decide if she was really ready and we didnt want it to fail and her be scared to try later. She tends to not forget so a bad experience would stick with her. Well on February 4 Ellie decided it was time. She begged jess all day long to take the training wheels off her bike. So he told her if he took them off he was not putting them back on. Five minutes later she was riding it without training wheels! The next day she decided to show and teach the neighbor girl how too!

I will admit as I watched her ride away I thought of her as a baby and how big she has gotten. Made me cry and I know a few blinks and she will be driving a car and then off to college! Time is just flying.

*disclaimer she always seems to wear her bike helmet (even not riding a bike) but for some unknown reason we were all so excited we forgot that step. she now wears the helmet all the time :)

I love you because.....

2012-01-13T00:12:00.002-06:00

well hello my good friends. how have you been ? I know it has been awhile but give a momma a break she now has three kids! in reality it is just to hard to blog from my phone and ellie hogs the computer and if she is in bed then I am too busy winding down (aka too lazy!)
anyways I found an idea on pinterest (yes I am addicted) that shows a frame where you enclose a paper that say I love you because _____________________________ and after you frame it you can fill in the blank by writing on the glass. I love it and plan on making it soon! But the idea got me thinking. Do I tell the people around me I love them enough? But more importantly do I tell them why? I know when I hear I love you from anyone in my family it melts my heart but when they add why it brings tears to my eyes. It reminds me that I AM LOVED. what I do is appreciated. what I do matters to them. And God gave me this moment to find JOY in all he has given me. Im trying hard to not just stop with I love you but adding why. I dont want those words to get overused. i want my family to know why I love them.

Im going to share a few that I have been really feeling but without getting too wordy ;)
Jess I love you because you are my best friend. I may have some really great girlfriends but you are my true best friend. I know that no matter the obstacle you will be right by my side to hold my hand or help me up.

Ellie I love you because you make me laugh. You say the funniest things that have me laughing out loud months after they happened. You get this from your dad. I love that about him too. You are everything I ever hoped for and more.

Hadley I love you because you are most like me. You are so stubborn and although sometimes it has me so frustrated I know that you will grow to be a strong woman who will not let others change what you know is right. Stand strong my love (but please, PLEASE stop being so stubborn and just go poop on the potty!)

My dearest Kit Kat. I love you because you melted my heart today. A simple game of patty cake turned into loads of giggles from both of us. Making you smile and laugh is one of my favorite parts of the day, even if it is at 4 am :)

Introducing Katelyn Ione Mickle

2011-10-04T12:40:00.000-05:00

Just going to share my birth story of the day Katelyn arrived. It was a very exciting one!

I had been having contractions off and on for days but at my last appointment on September 15 I was dialated to 3 and was 75% effaced the same as the week before. I woke up Monday September 19 and took Jess to the train station at 7:15 am. I then headed back home and had to knock on the door because I was locked out! Cindy let me in and I sat down and was talking to her. She jokingly told me if I had remembered my key I wouldnt have been locked out. I laughed and then all of a sudden I felt warm fluid. I looked at Cindy and said I think my water just broke. (7:30ish) I was scheduled for a c section on Wednesday so i had given up hope I would go on my own. I had accepted the csection finally and now I was a bit nervous because Jess was on the train. Cindy called Jess and finally he answered and got off the train in Buena Park. Cindy called a friend who came to stay with me and the girls and then left to go pick up Jess. I was not having contractions so I waited to call the doctor until I knew Jess was on his way back home. I went upstairs and packed my bag and got ready to go. My contractions started about ten til 8 and they were not strong at all and they were about 7 minutes in between. I was talking through them so I didnt feel the need to hurry. Jess called and said they were on their way about 8:30 so I put a call inot the doctor. She said to head to the hospital when Jess got there and they would be waiting for me. At about 8:50 My contractions went to about 3 minutes apart but they still were not that bad at all. I still could talk through them. Jess walked in the door around 9 and went upstairs and changed and then we headed out. A few miles down the road I had a really strong contraction. When we got on the CA 55 the contractions were strong and constant. no time in between and very painful. We arrived at the hospital about 9:25 and decided we needed to Valet park because there was no way I could walk from the parking structure. walking to the elevator I had to stop for a contraction. getting off the elevator I had to stop for a contraction. getting to the desk I had to stop for a contraction. The people in the waiting room after seeing me told Jess to push the call button because the check in lady was on break. a nurse came and decided I needed a wheelchair because I could not walk anymore.

The nurse wanted to check me in but a different nurse said I needed to go to triage. I was in a lot of pain and they took me off to a triage room but once we were on our way the nurse asked when my contractions started and I told her my water broke she yelled back to admit me. Duh lady! Anyways I got into a gown and laid down and they started asking ?'s that I could barely answer because I was in so much pain. I told them Im supposed to have a csection and she stopped asking ?'s and checked me and I was at a 7 with the head right there. The nurse said I might have a failed csection because I might not have time to get em ready. Things got very crazy from there. several nurses came in and were getting me ready. 5 minutes at the most past and I was really screamig (yes I was that lady!) The nurse said I needed to be checked again and in doing so she said something to the other nurse who quickly called for a delivery table and then 30 seconds later said we dont have time to wait lets roll her in this bed because we need to get to a room with an isolette fast! I felt like the room flooded with people quickly and off we went running down the hall. (jess says yes there was a lot of people but it was more of a fast walk not a run) LOL. In the hall I could not help but start to push. They told me to stop but my body could not. I was also tingly all over (I was hyperventalating they told me) and the doctor on call came in and said my doctor was not going to make it but we were going to have a baby very soon. The baby was crowning . In two pushes Miss Katelyn Ione Mickle entered our world. She had to be given oxygen and was very bruised but after a few minutes they brought her back to my arms. She weighed 8lbs 12oz and was 21 1/2in born at 10 am sharp. exactly 2 1/2 hours after my water broke and less than 30 minutes from getting a room at the hospital!

It was VERY scary happening so fast and all the thoughts of the bad things they told me could happen because of her size I was worried the whole time. she was not as big as they thought and I had no trouble at all with her birth. I was so excited that I actually had the birth I so very much desired. Not only did I not have a csection I also delivered with no drugs at all. It is everything I wanted and I thank God that it was his plan not the doctors.

First picture of our family of 5!!

Hadley loves her new sister. She loves holding her and the way she says Katelyn could melt your heart. SO cute!

Ellie is completely infatuated too. She is a great helper and loves to cuddle her. (note Katelyns very bruised face)

Katelyn at one week old. I caught a first smile. Thank you multi shot feature on my camera!!

We are so in love with her and she is just perfect. We couldnt have asked for a better baby!

And by the way Jess and I knew she was a girl since our first ultrasound. If you need someone to keep a secret we can do it pretty well!

changes

2011-09-08T15:16:00.003-05:00

Since I have blogged last there have been so many changes in our lives. With the change in season we found out in January baby #3 was on its way. Funny how God just has things happen in his time. We tried forever for Ellie and quite awhile for Hadley so who would have guessed that after deciding we wanted to try for baby number 3 it would happen THE VERY FIRST MONTH!! We were shocked and very happy. We announced it to family and friends (and facebook) by asking lineman or cheerleader. How funny how some people got it and some people did not LOL
Anyway among all this Jess had made the decision to quit his job and start his own business. He leapt out of the starting gate very busy and was v ery successful. Then comes the big changes.
As we grow into adulthood we are faced with decisions that only we can make. You have to decide what is best for you, your spouse, and your children. Some decisions are hard to make and some are easy. On craigslist one day Jess found a job in LA that he decided to send his resume in on. we have always enjoyed CA. Well he was contacted back and asked to come in for an interview. So off he went and upon returning he was offered the job. We sat and talked and tossed around what was best for us. NOt our extended family, us. It was a very difficult decision but we decided that we had to do it. We could always return home if it didnt work out, if we hated living in CA or just to visit. Some paths you are only shown once and this just felt right (although very tough!).
Me being the chicken I am made Jess tell most of our family and friends. It was so difficult but we knew we were making the right choice when God kept having all the pieces just slide together. We have been here a few weeks now. it was not easy packing up our lives and moving 1600 miles away while being 35 weeks pregnant. I left my doctor whom I have the upmost respect for and had to pick a doctor out of the 1,000's listed in a ten mile radius. Upon coming I found out the baby is BIG, I have to follow a gestational diabetes diet (they say I have it I say I dont!), go to non stress test twice a week, weekly doctor appts, and the occasional diabetes training and ultrasounds. But we are here, I am going to deliver hopefully on my own at a beautiful and prestigious hospital that overlooks the ocean. The girls are happy and loving the beach and pool. Jess is liking his new job and all the opportunities this position will give him and soon we will have 3 great children that God has given us to raise and be good people.
Ill update more when I know more about baby number 3. We are hoping that the doctors are wrong and they wont be 10-12 lbs by delivery date and I can deliver without having a c section! Please keep the Mickles in your prayers as we live out of a few boxes til we can find a place to call home.

thankful 23

2010-11-23T12:23:00.002-06:00

Today I am thankful for Jess and the 11! years we have been together :) I look back and the good times have far wout weighed the bad. We have grown up, together and even more in love. With failing relationships all around it makes me even more thankful to be so in love with him. What started as a cheerleader wearing a jersey to the championship game has become one great life that I am forever greatful for. From all the trials and tribulations we have been through we have held hands and prayed for hope. Our daughters are proof we can make it through. Eleven years is great but I look forward to the next 111 by his side.

Thankful 17

2010-11-23T12:03:00.003-06:00

17 I am thankful for 2 of the best gifts God has ever given me. Honestly I dont think we could have been any luckier. We were given two beautiful intelligent beings to shape and mold to be images of God.

Ellie is so adorable and uses the best manners. She is kind and caring and loves to help do everything but clean :) She is a mommys girl and if I leave for two minutes when I walk in the door she tells me how much she missed me. She is as smart as she is cute. Right now we are working on reading. She knows all of her letters/ and sounds so we decided why not jump into reading. My aunt Kelly gave us some books that she has memorized but since as she reads she points to the word she is reading she is picking up on words like the, I , a, and etc. Ellie overall is more than I ever wanted in a daughter. I remember thinking right after she was born how no two people in this world could ever make another Ellie. I still look at her and think the same thing. Amazing!
And my Hadley. If I had to describe her in two words it would be Daddys Girl. She loves me too but when she sees her dad her eyes light up and she takes off for him. I actually love that about her because we have the same taste. im head over heels for her dad too :) She loves LOVES babies. Luckily we have a lot of them here so she gets her fill. She also is one smart cookie although she doesnt talk much (maybe because her sister never takes a breath). You can ask her to go get anything and she goes and grabs it and brigns it to you. She loves dogs (like me) and gives the best hugs in the world. Jess and I were so lucky to be twice blessed.

I chose to share this thankful on day 17 because that is their birthdate and I am not sure it could be any more special than that!

Thankful continued

2010-11-23T11:50:00.004-06:00

15- I am thankful for being so close to most of my family. I can count the number of times I have ever had someone watch the girls that was not a part of my family (or Lindsey). I love seeing my girls love them as much as I do!

16- I am thankful for my inlaws. No matter the differences we might have they love me as if I was their daughter and they raised the most wonderful husband. They love my girls and are patient when the girls dont warm up right away.

17- See next post

18- I am thankful for football. Once again, I know pathetic, but it is so much a part of our lives that I honestly dont know what we would do without it. (NO Blaze readers that does not mean Jess is playing next year! He can be a fan :) )

19- I am thankful for fall. The weather has been beautiful and watching the change of seasons is one of my favorite things. I welcome it each year and the jeans and hoodie weather is the best. And when I have to say goodbye and wear my winter coat and hats and mittens I know that it will be back next year :)

20-I am thankful for my education. I dont think you appreciate all the teachers you had until you grow up and are trying to teach your children. They put so much love into what they do and I am thankful that they cared enough to give me an education I am proud of.

21- I am thankful for my grandparents who are still alive. and I am thankful for each new day I get to spend with them. I know we do not see you enough and we need to make them a priority because you just cant get those days back!

22-I am thankful for choclate because some days it just makes me feel so much better :)

Thoughts on raising kids

2010-11-14T21:05:00.002-06:00

I have been thinking a lot lately on how I want to raise my kids. there are things Jess and I know we want to do and things we know we dont want to do. But some things have been coming up that have really got me thinking.

First ever since Ellie did the trike a thon I have been thinking that we need to find more ways to help others around us. I want her to grow up not only knowing it is our duty as Christians to help those in need but to actually have experience doing it. I want it to come naturally to her and not to ever feel like it is a chore to be done.

Secondly I want her to help on her own accord. I recently put together a lesson on Advent for our kids at church and found some great articles on having kids help those in need. Among the great ideas I read that it is important to teach kids that although it is great for parents to take their kids shopping to buy that toys for tots, it would mean even more if the kids had to use thier own money. Sacraficing for others is not always an easy accompl;ishment especially to kids but if you really think about it what a great lesson on teaching them to share with others what they themselves have.

So here is my plan for this holiday season:
Get Chris's address in Afghanistan and take Ellie shopping and use ten dollars of her money as well as some money of ours and buy goodies for his unit. Lesson I am hoping to teach that their are people (like uncle Chris) who are overseas who are helping to keep America free so we may do what we want here. Yes I know she is three but she will get it. she still talks about the helicopters we saw flying over our house as they were leaving for war.

Take her shopping to pick out a toy for toys for tots. Lesson- There are lots of little girls and boys who dont get Toys for christmas and we can help them so they can have something to open on Christmas too.

Make ornaments for the priests in our life. for father Brian who married us and baptized Ellie, For Fr. Tim who baptized Hadley, and for our new Priest Fr Jim. Lesson- to be thankful for them in sharing our faith and to let them know we appreciate what they have done for our family

And an idea a parent from church gave me that I just love. she makes/buys small ornaments and wraps them and puts them in her purse. When they see a salvation army bell ringer not only do they drop change in the bucket she hands them a small ornament thanking them for the time they have given to help spread the Christmas message of love. Lesson- Both of us will learn to take the time to appreciate the little things people do that almost always get overlooked. LOVE IT!

Any other ideas you have? I would love to hear them :)

Thankful Part 2

2010-11-14T20:28:00.004-06:00

November

4- I am thankful for my sister Sadie. On this day 15? or so years ago she was in a very bad car accident and I am very thankful to have her still here today. Although we fought and fought when we were younger she is one of my best friends today. I know she loves me unconditionally and that no matter what she would have my back.

5- I am thankful for my sister Maggie. After years of sharing a room together the age gap has lessened and she is another great friend. She has been through a lot in her life and she had rose above some really crappy things. Life isnt fair and although it is a hard pill to swallow she survived the unthinkable, losing a child, at just 17. Shes not only my sister and friend but a hero as well.

6- I am thankful for my brother Drew. Take my personality and flip it around and you have Drew. Although at times we are so different that is what I love the most about him. He can let those little things go and not think of every possible negative thing that could happen. This is a trait I long to have. And he also loves unconditionally. When he gives you a hug you can feel the love behind it. He will always be my Drew Boo

7-And to finish off my sibling I am thankful for Louie. I have always felt a bond with Louie from the time he was little. I am so proud of the person he has become. Even beyond the talent he posseses he ahs the truest kindest heart. He is a great role model for any young man and I am proud to share that he is my brother. He will make something big of himself. He cares deeply for others and puts his heart into everything he does. I hope my kids learn this from him, heck I hope I learn this from him!

8- I am thankful for my mom. I mean heck she raised five FIVE! outstanding citizens basically all on her own. She loved each one of us and found a way to connect with each one of us differently. Each one of us five are so different, but she found a way. You know she did a great job though when adult children come together and all get along, do stuff for each other, and talk on a regular basis. I have found that is not a trait very common in todays society.

9- I am thankful for my dad because without him I would not be here. I may not be as close to him as I am to my mom but I have never felt like he didnt love me. I never felt like he was not proud of who I have become.

10- I am thankful for a roof over my head and food to eat. Although i am ready to move and want a bigger house. We actually do fit in our house and wants arent always needs.

11- I am thankful for the nieces and nephews I have in my life. I can honestly say I love them as if they were my own children. As the years go by and the accomplishments they are starting to build up grow, I find myslef sharing stories of them with others as if they were mine. I love you Devin, Cayden, Jayce, Charlotte, Corbin, & Jaelyn!

12- I am thankful for my cousins. Who knew it would be so much fun growing up AND old with some of the best people in the world!

13- I am thankful for babyzone. Although I dont get on much now, I have made close friends with ladies all over the US. What started off with a common due date has grown into lifelong friendships. I have now in person met 2 of the ladies and I am hoping to meet many more! (one already scheduled in Feb!)

14- I am thankful for tv. I know I know lame, but besides books, it is my favorite way to chill out. and for a sick mommy who doesnt feel good and doesnt want to be a jungle gym it is the best :) ( I know I am pathetic)

Thankful in November!

2010-11-03T22:34:00.002-05:00

On facebook many people are doing a status a day of what they are thankful for. I decided I wanted to do it in my blog. I probably wont blog everyday but at the end of the month I hope to have 30 things I am thankful for. Living the life I do I know that wont be a problem.

Nov. 1- I am thankful for my God. With him all things are possible and he is good all the time. My faith is so much of who I am that I am very thankful that I hold a place in my life for him.

Nov. 2- On Nov 2 (my grandma Charlotte's Birthday) I am thankful for my loved ones who are now gone. I hold memories of each of them and love telling stories of the fun times we shared.

Nov. 3- I am thankful for my freedom and for the soldiers who fight to maintain that freedom!

Trike A Thon

2010-10-06T21:52:00.002-05:00

Last week Ellie participated in the St. Judes Trike A Thon with her preschool class. We (I) set a goal of $35 to be raised so she could get the t-shirt. I sat Ellie down on my lap and we found St. Judes website and I explained to her how this hospital takes care of sick children and uses money to help them. I told her when she did the trike a thon that she was raising money to help those kids and the hospital that takes care of them. We asked our Family and friends to donate and support Ellie and boy did they ever. Ellie raised $175.00 for St. Judes Hospital. After it was over and I asked her if she had fun she told me I loved helping those kids to feel better. What can we do now to help others.
I am so thankful that she has a kind and caring heart (even if she likes to pick on her sister). I am researching more ways Ellie can help St. Judes and other charities in our area. I would love to foster the art of giving in her so she loves it as much as I do.

Finally.....

2010-09-19T14:41:00.004-05:00

It has been ordered. Since I heard about the Kindle I have wanted one. Reading is my favorite hobby. I love the way my imagination can paint a picture of what I am reading. It calms me and I often find myself rereading books off the shelf I have read several times because I dont have a new book to read. Well thanks to swagbucks I will now have the capability to read just about any book I want by a quick download and it is much cheaper than buying the book. Plus they have hundreds of free books that can also be downloaded. I went with the $139 Kindle because my Phone can be a Hot spot so I should not need the 3G network on the Kindle, plus if I do go anywhere I can plan on having enough books to keep me busy!

And because I am a girl and I still had left over Amazon gift cards from my swagbucks I bought this too make it prettyAnd this to protect it in my black hole, I mean purse. Arent they pretty. I love the whimiscal patterns. And I cant wait to get it!

After it was all said and done I paid 10.99 for everything. I joined swagbucks in Jan. 2010 and have been using it as my search engine to go to blogger, my emails, facebook, and any other site I deccide to visit daily and randomly I will win swagbucks. As I accumulate the swagbucks I have been redeeming them for Amazon Gift Cards because my heart has been wanting the Kindle so badly. Jess told me I should use them to get something I wanted so I decided to do something for me for once. Well this week I should be receiving my long awaited winnings in the mail! If you have not already you should try swagbucks out. There is no gimic there is no trick. You just use it as your search engine and win randomly. If you refer people you can win up to 1,000 swagbucks along with their winnings and that is how I built up my swagbucks so fast.

I have refered many family and friends who were very hesitant and did not see the point but after trying it out they love it too. My referral link is www.swagbucks.com/refer/sampooh If you are interested you should check it out. I am sure glad I did!

Trike A Thon

2010-09-13T13:25:00.001-05:00

Ellie is going to be participating in her preschools Trike A Thone for St Judes. if you would like to donate and help her reach her goal of $35 you may follow the link to her page. She would love to surpass her goal and help kids at St judes. I hope that starting young in charity work will give her a giving heart. :)

Ellie's 1st day of Preschool

2010-09-09T07:21:00.002-05:00

Yesterday Ellie started preschool. She is in the Mon & Wed Am class. Both Jayce and Thomas are in her class as well so I am a little nervous that she wont make new friends. I was hoping she could make some girlfriends as well but she is one of 4 girls. :) But nonetheless she should make some great friends (outside of the people we already know)Jess took the day off work and we packed up the van and headed to Tiger Tots. she was more than eager to get there. She found her hook right away and hung up her bag and coat. went it an found her name and put her girl on the train. The picture is of Thomas but you can see Ellies name right next to Jayces.

My big girl walked right to the circle time rug and never looked back. I did get a kiss in and a good luck but Jess did not. We didnt want to push it because she did so good so we just turned around and walked away. This is where I have to admit that although I did not cry I was very nervous. I have never left Ellie (or Hadley) with anyone besides family or very close family friends. We tried to have a baby for so long that I have been so over protective of them. And with a family as big as ours you dont have to rely on outsiders help as much!

I went to pick her up and I was glad to see they were out on the playground. Ellie has been wanting to play there since they put it in. The picture shows her class marching to the gate to go home. She is the 3rd one back. Right by Jayce once again. :)

She came running to me with a big smile on her face. she said she had so much fun! I asked her if she cried and she said she bumped her head once and cried but that was the only time. She made a straw necklace that she gave to me (and then later took back, LOL) and used scissors and cut a picture. She told me they had goldfish whales (I think it is cute that she 1-noticed they were the generic goldfish from walmart that are in the shape of whales and 2-she knew they were supposed to be like goldfish.) and juice.

Although I am a little sad she is growing all too fast I am looking forward to seeing her blossom to a much more independant preschooler. She loves LOVES learning and I just know she is going to love school.

Oklahoma

2010-08-18T08:01:00.003-05:00

Jess's football team made the National Championship Game in Oklahoma on July 31st. We packed up the van, picked up Tanner, and headed to Tulsa. The girls did awesome on the 8 hour trip. No crying from either one and Ellie had no accidents!

We arrived in Tulsa about 8 pm and it was 100 degrees! We quickly checked into our hotel which was a very crappy hotel. Our air barely worked and one of our beds was leaning. But we were tired and the rest of the team had yet to arrive.

Although we were hoping for a great game, Jess unfortunately ended his semi pro career the same way he ended his high school career. They lost 52-10. We have met great friends through his days of playin g football and I am so glad he decided to do this but I must admit I am more than happy that this part of our life is over. it took so much time and we had NO time for any family time. He had practice 2-4 days a week and then the games pretty much took up most of the weekends.

I look forward to all the things we will be able to do next summer, including watching the team with him sitting next to me :)

Pictures to come

Shrine Bowl

2010-08-18T07:39:00.003-05:00

My brother Louie was selected to play in the Shrine Bowl this year. This is a great honor as it is an all star game for high school senior football players. And becasue he is the "baby" of the family we went all out and made shirts, tailgated and all that goes with it.

I was disappointed that the coach would choose him to be on defense hoping he would intercept the ball and the other team did not pass theentire time louie was in. So he had 3 big hits for losses and then they NEVER ran to his side again. You would think the leading rusher in the state of Iowa in class A would get to play running back but whatever! Even though his team lost we are proud of him.

He is now off to college at Grand View and will play football this fall. I am excited to watch him in a new stage of his life but sad he will no longer be a Madrid Tiger. Words cannot describe how incredibly proud I am of him of him with every accomplishment he has received. And I am looking forward to all of the future accomplishments :)

Happy Late Birthday!

2010-08-03T22:51:00.003-05:00

I didnt post then but I want to make sure I document their birthdays.

On July 17 (their actual birthday) we had a big carnival birthday party. We had games set up and had lots of prizes to be won. We rented a cotton candy machine (yummy!) and borrowed a popcorn popper. The kids loved having these treats. (ok mom and dad did too!) Well in true Iowa fashion it was HOT and HUMID! So after lunch we broke out the water toys and cooled off a little. Ellie had a blast and her and Jayce talked about it for days afterward

summer of swag!

2010-06-05T00:13:00.003-05:00

I know I have shared about swagbucks before but I am goign to urge all of you to really look into it. It is awesome! I have earned $100 in amazon gift cards in less than 6 months! How did I do this you ask?
well I signed up free of charge to a wonderful website called swagbucks.com and use theri search engine to go to my everyday sites that I visit frequently and also for anything I want to search. So my facebook, gmail, farmville, aol, blogger, etc. addiction has earned me swagbucks with winning on random searches. They also randomly offer codes that you search for and you can grab those to make your swagbucks jump even higher! As your sb (swagbucks) add up you can shop in the swagstore to redeem for great prizes, $5 amazon gift cards is my prize of choice. I really wanted a Kindle but it is just not attainable in our budget but swagbucks has made me almost enough to get one!

On Monday they are kicking off the Summer of Swag! They are going to have a five code day of extravaganza! What a fun way to make your sb jump super fast! Also they are going to offer a new high end bill ever day next week. Every 7th person will win that big bill so your chancves of winning big are increased!

Once you have an account you will love it so much you will get others to sign up using your referral code and you can earn from their searches as well. And because they are so very kind and want more people to sign up for swagbucks they have offered a code to new members through June 11. Just give the code SUMMEROFSWAG (case sensitive) when you sign up and you will get an extra 20sb!

Just click on the link and get started today! So many of my friends who have signed up wish they would have done it a lot sooner. We spend time on the internet anyways we might as well be earning something while we do it!

http://www.swagbucks.com/refer/sampooh

All smiles

2010-05-24T22:07:00.002-05:00

Hadley looks like this 99% of the time. She is such a happy happy girl. I wouldnt say baby because she is growing up so fast. She is very close to walking and if she would just drop her fear she would be good to go! She walks along anything in reach and can now go from one thing to the next. She loves her daddy. Her eyes just light up when he walks in the door. She still only says dada and hi! Although she can sign dog and eat.

Her eyes light up when she smiles and her giggle is infectious! She loves food and could drink water/juice all day long. She has learned to scream and she lets you know if she isnt happy. She is leary around strangers but loves her cousins and close family. She is so much fun and I look forward to all the fun times to come!

A says ah, b says buh

2010-05-24T21:52:00.003-05:00

This is what our world revolves around. Ellie is obsessed with the alphbet and the sounds they make. She now knows all her uppercase letters and most of the lower (she sometimes gets caught up on few but other times remembers them) and she knows all the sounds each letter makes. You can give her a random letter and she can tell you what it sounds like and some words that start with that letter.

Our new task is to start on the sight word list. I plan on making go fish/memory card games with the sight words to make it fun. I have always said I want her to know how to read before going to kindergarten and I really see that happening. She loves books and is so smart that I think she will pick it up very quickly! It is amazing how fast she learns. I am hoping her love of books continues throughout her life. I love reading and find such joy in a good book.

Happy 3rd Birthday to Charlotte Jo

2010-05-24T13:08:00.002-05:00

Last week May 18 was my niece Charlotte Jo's Birthday. She was born sleeping and we miss her dearly. We go out every year on her birthday to visit her grave and take pictures. I dont understand why God took her all too soon, but I sure wish she was here playing with Ellie and Jayce.

Happy 3rd birthday Charlotte! We love you and miss you!

Pretty girls

2010-05-16T21:30:00.002-05:00

My beautiful Goddaughter Scarlett Stevie Schaffer. We had her baptism on sat. night and it was so much fun. It is always such a blessing to see these tiny babies getting their very first sacrament and joining our church. And it is even more fun getting to be her Godmother.

Since I had the girls all dressed up I decided to take advantage and get some pics. Like usually Ellie broke out her smile. I cannot wait until she gets over this. I hate it. she has the most beautiful blue eyes and she squints so you cant even see them. We are going to a wedding in a few weeks so we will try again :) Since Jess was at his game he wasnt there but we took some photos of all us pretty ladies anyway. Ellie and that stinkin smile. she is lucky shes cute :)

I squatted down so ellie thought she needed to also. Turned out it was the best pic!

Rain Rain Go Away

2010-05-12T15:21:00.003-05:00

It has been raining in good old Iowa and the wind has been blowing! We are all feeling it. We were stuck inside all winter long with 7,000 ft of snow on the ground and now it has been raining so bad that I feel like we could open up a pool in our backyard.
But with rainy days comes time to get stuff done inside. Although my house could use a good spring cleaning I have been scanning pictures. My scanner program is acting up so it si taking a lot longer than I planned and I have gotten frustrated and anxious so many times. It has however made me aware of how very thankful I am to have a digital camera! Not only that but to have one the entire lives of my kiddos. Now to make sure I tackle that humongus picture file so when Ellie is a senior I know exactly where they all are :)

2010-05-10T12:57:00.002-05:00

Today is a hard day for me. Five years ago today I lost my first baby. It hurts as much today as it did five years ago.
But God is good and I am blessed. Although I do not understand why it happened I have come to terms with it but it does not make the pain go away.
But I am forever greatful for her

and her.
They are my life and they are definately worth all the rough days.

excuses excuses

2010-04-29T12:05:00.002-05:00

I could come up with 101 excuses why it has taken so long to blog and here are just a few:
1) I have been insanely busy with church. We have 6 days left before our school year is over. I have a first communion on saturday and then another on Sun. I have reached the point where I just want to be done and so everything is a struggle.
2) My youngest brother Louie is graduating very very soon. I have oodles of pics I need to scan a book to be made. But hey I have the invites done and I have the ideas swirling in my head so it is just finding the time to actually gettin it done!
3)Ellie has decided that 6 out of the 7 days a week naps are overrated. She will not fall asleep so my once glorious naptime to have time to get stuff done turns me into hushing ellie and jayce so they dont wake up Hadley from her nap for the thrid time in 15 minutes.
4) Jess reformated my computer and I didnt know what I wanted to do with pictures. So the other day I spent 3 hours uploading and organizing my 2010 pictures. Not fun and I will never ever ever ever let them pile up that much again.
5) Jess has started football (both coaching and playing) so my 5 minutes of free time has been narrowed down enormously. The only night he is home before the girls are in bed are Sun and Mon. so I spend most of my night cooking, feeding, bathing, cuddling, and putting to bed, then of course cleaning up at least the mess from supper. By the time this is all done Jess is walking in the door to shower and eat then I get a shower and then I am so exhausted I go to bed. He loves football both coaching and playing but I am burnt out. I never wanted to be the reason for him to stop but honestly I have to put my foot down and next year this WILL NOT be happening.

I could go on but I will not. Look for recent pics to be added soon.

crazy busy

2010-03-09T21:34:00.002-06:00

This time of year is so busy for me. iset goals and I struggle to stay afloat with all the surrounds me and all that I need to do. Everyday I add as many things to my to do list as I cross off. But I am alive and healthy and my girls are healthy and I am as in love with my husband if not more than the day I said I do. I am surrounded by great family and friends and good books.

Speaking of good books my good friend Christina lent me a book a long time ago (sorry Chrissy) and I am finally just picking it up. it is about marriage and I usually am not into non fiction books but I am enjoying this book and it is reaffirming my belief in how I want my marriage to be. I plan to update my thoughts with this book. Im thinking I might need to start a bible study. Any good ideas out there. something easy and refreshing for someone who is new at the whole bible study thing!

March already?

2010-03-01T21:13:00.003-06:00

I cant believe it is March already. It boggles my mind how the older you get the faster time flies.
the sun has been shining and I can tell the difference how I have been feeling. I am a much happier person when the snot in my nose does not freeze when I step out the door! Ellie and Jayce are just itching to get outside as well. they spent today talking about outside and what they were going to do once it warms up some. When we were walking into Tiger tots today Jayce yelled STOP! Look Ellie there is grass! I about died from laughing. Who would have thought brown grass blades would be so exciting! Especially to a 2 and 3 year old.

yeah for good days

2010-02-27T00:47:00.004-06:00

First completely random but these are from last year at this time. me pregnant with Hadley and this is Ellie on Feb 10, 2009
I cannot believe how much she has changed and that she was outside with no coat on and I remeber how nice it was. :( we have not been outside to play in forever because our snow piles are over her head. We are on day 80 of connsecutive days with a five inch snow depth. The record before this year was 54 days.

I woke up on the wrong side of the bed this am. I was tired and cranky. (obviously by the time I am bloggin I have a problem with staying up too late!) the boys came and were kind of loud and before you know it Ellie and Hadley were awake. I snapped my way through breakfast and brushing of teeth and then TRIED to check my email but was interupted. I then get ready to get dressed and a lovely white truck with the letters FEDEX stopped in front of my house. I threw on my hoodie and ran for the door. What could it be! I opened up the package and it was..............FREE JEANS!

I became a fan of lee jeans on facebook back in December and somehow won a free pair of jeans. I completely forgot about them and needed that surprise today. I was eager to try them on and they fit great and did I mention they were FREE! they smelled like fuel so I threw them in the dirty clothes and finished getting dressed.

I then went and everyone got ready for school without complaining or without me nagging to get ready over and over and over. Team Umizoomi was on when we returned and so Jayce and ellie were happy. They helped themselves to the cheezeits and even got a sippy cup of water after going potty by themselves (seriously when did my 2 year old become big enough to do so much for herself) hadley and I decided to farm (on her farm this time :) ) and everyone was happy.

Maggie came over with Corbin and we dined on cheese quessadillas for lunch and then.... WAIT FOR IT......EVERY ONE OF THE KIDS NAPPED! you have no idea how long it has been since they all napped. I sat down and searched for some swagbucks and farmed (my farm this time!) After nap I hurried them off back to sadies so i could go see my cute new little cousin in 3D/4D! Abbie invited me to her ultrasound and I cannot wait to hold that chubby cheeked little girl. She is adorable!

I got home and my friends Christina and Jon Weber swung by to visit and drop off some DVDS for me to watch. It was great visiting with them and talking about all that fun stuff that goes along with being a grown up and starting a family. we really need to spend more time with htem because I miss my Istina!

Jess then came home with Cheese Pizza Hut Pizza (double prize for him for bringing home dinner and remembering no meat on Friday!) and brought in the mail. and what was in my mailbox but a free sippy cup from juicy juice!

My great day is finished off by earnign some more swagbucks through searching and codes! I have no idea what I am going to turn them in for but I am excited at the possibilities!

swag bucks

2010-02-25T07:28:00.002-06:00

If you have not already today is the day to join swag bucks! it is their birthday and they are having some major fun. I have been at it about a month and I have already earned the equivalent of about $15 in amazon gift cards. I am saving mine up for chirstmas as we are going to try and do a lot more shopping online this year.
To get there just click here.

I truly only earn by searching the sites like facebook, farmville, blogger, and any other thing I am looking for that day on swagbucks. I have just been racking up the swagbucks and it puts a little excitement knowing that I am essentially earning free things with tasks I do every day!

farming

2010-02-22T11:42:00.002-06:00

I was doing good but those weekends are hard on me. My weekends are crazy with work thrown in and Jess has started the girls practice so there is not a whole lot of extra time and when there is I like to spend it with my 2 great kids and my wonderful husband.

Saturday was very nice around here. I played with the girls all morning, they both napped (which is a very rare occurance with ellie anymore) and I worked on my farm. Everybody needs their thing and since scrapbooking is my thing of choice and quite frankly I one cant see my table and two dont have a big enough block of time to do it, I have taken up farming on farmville. :) Laugh all you want it keeps me sane, gives me something to look forward to and makes me manage my time better. I have even started Jess a farm. I often get the eyeroll from Jess but this weekend he was off and on the computer a lot. I finally said what are you doing and he has found a castle game. I laughed and rolled my eyes and said farm or castle there is no difference! I think the eyerolling about my farm will stop :)

UGH!

2010-02-18T10:40:00.003-06:00

Here i am trying to make my life better and on the very second day of Lent I feel yuck! I am trying but I just have a negative outlook on things. So I am going to get out all my complaints so I can forget about them.

I am so SICK of the snow. I love Iowa the change of seasons, the people, and not beign cramped. But seriously, the snow can stop. We currently have snow in our yard up to ellies armpits. Now how are we ever supposed to even try to play in it when it would just bury her. I desperately need to get outside and soak up the sun but we cant. It is freezing all the time and it seems like it is just one snowstorm after another. In all seriousness i told Jess to start looking for jobs somewhere warmer. I say this all the time but I honestly mean it. I am so sick of this weather and I feel that spring will be skipped over here because 1)it will take the snow forever to melt and 2)once it melts we will be having major flooding everywhere. And then to top it all off the past 2 days the sun has been shining but opening my curtains causes me the greatest headaches from the reflection of that wonderful sun of the blanket of snow. UGH!!!

Because they have been cooped up inside for months now Jayce and Ellie have their outside voicesinside ALL the time. It wakes up Hadley, gives me a headache, and just irritates me. But really can you blame them since the last time they got to play outside it was OCT!

My house is cluttered. There is junk everywhere. I want to start over. Get rid of everything and only get the necessities. I really plan on doing this but honestly I cannot get motivated.

It has been one year exactly now since I have scrapbooked. You cannot even see my table under the piles of junk. Jess is always gone working or football (which is already starting to irritate me and it is just starting) and I have no time to do the things I want. When he is home I feel like I should be hanging out as a family. I just cant win.

I am in a rough spot right now with my job. I am just not feeling like it is what I should be doing anymore. For all the reasons I took the job are slowly being taken away one at a time. But leaving is not the best interest of the church right now and I just dont know what to do.

Im sure there is much more that are on my complaints list but this is what is heavily weighing on my mind right now.

On a much happeier note at Ash Wednesday mass last night the sermon was on bettering your life during lent. He spoke how there are 3 steps to do it. a) Take an inventory of my life; b) Make amends; c) Make a difference!

I know there are many things I can change to make my life better and I feel i have a good grasp on step 1. Step 2 making amends is what hit me in the face. Part of me is holding on to anger that I need to let go to better me. I need to stop and realize that forgiving and forgetting will help me grow. You do these things for yourself not for the person you are forgiving. And lastly I am left to think on how I can make a difference this lenten season and everyday after.

Lent 2010

2010-02-17T10:33:00.002-06:00

I have decided this year for Lent that I am going to better my life. My hope for this year is to make my family more of what I want it to be and also to deepen our faith inour family unit. I want to blog everyday, pray as a family every day, and spend more time together doing stuff that is fun and that we all enjoy.
I have heard it takes 30 days to form a habit and I want all of these things to be a good habit I have. And since Lent lasts 40 days it will be perfect.

well hello!

2010-02-17T09:43:00.006-06:00

It has been forever since I have blogged. I dont know what my deal is but I just seem to be dreading it. I love to have documentation though so I have decided that I am goign to try to blog everyday during Lent to get back into the habit. I know the girls will enjoy looking back on these memories and I will too so here it goes

So much has happened in the months since I have blogged last so a very quick picture catch up with very vague descriptions.

In October we decided to head west to California because ticket prices were just so cheap. We spent $39 each way for 3 of us, stayed with my cousin Cindy and just hung out. We had a great time and it was nice to just get away! while we were there we took family pictures on the beach. they turned out great and here is a quick shot

Upon returning our Hadley Jean was baptized into our Church. Her godparents are our friends Jon and Christina Weber.

Louie and the rest of the Madrid Tigers made it to the dome again to the state semifinal game. Unfortunately they lost but we have loved watching Louie play all these years and he has now signed to play for the Grandview Vikings next year. We (I) am an incredibly proud big sister!

Hadley had a matching outfit as well :) they also used these as their Halloween costumes

On Thanksgiving my sister Sadie announced she is having another baby. We announced with both girls that we were expecting at Thanksgiving so it was kind of neat to continue that tradition although I will admit I am very thnakful that is was not me who was pregnant this time! (I dont have a pic for this)

We had a great first Christmas with our Haddie. The girls got tons of presents and despite the weather we made it to all of our family functions. I love holidays and spending time with our families!

In January we welcomed another nephew into our family. Corbin Joel Furness came out a boy much to Maggie and I's surprise! We just knew he was a girl but I guess we thought Hadley was a boy too so it shows how good we are at the guessing game ;) The girls love him and Hadley is very interested in his binkie! We have now gotten to babysit 2 times and we love having him around! This Valentines Day Nick proposed to Maggie and now we are looking forward to a wedding!

And lastly we have adopted a new dog into our life. I have been wanting a dog since we lost Blue but with kids I was not looking forward to potty training one. Someone we know was getting rid of their dog because their cat was not to happy about sharing the space with a dog. We went and picked up Maggie changed her name to Maddie and welcomed her into our home and hearts. She is a great dog, loves the kids, and is 100% potty trained! The chunky monkey is the picture is quite cute as well. I wonder who her mom is! :)

And because I now have a 7 month old and a 2 1/2 year old and they are so stinkin cute here is a recent pic :)

Deal's Orchard

2009-11-05T10:34:00.003-06:00

My friends Lindsey Lana, and Susan decided to have a girl's day with the kids. We packed into the cars and headed to Deal's Orchard in Jefferson. Although it was kind of windy we had fun.

we found these bean bag toss pumpkins but the girls decided to put their faces in the holes. It was very cute!

Ellie loved the wiggle cars. She hopped right on and ran it like she had been driving for years. She also talked about how she ccan drive now for a long time after.

We also stopped at the corn box to play and like her mom she was a bit skeptical. She didnt want to step and sit in that corn. I do not blame her at all. the thought of touching it made me queazy. She eventually did get in but it was not really her favorite of the day!

We went on a hay rack ride and poor Hadley was in the moby wrap and there was no getting around the sun in her eyes. I took this picture by holding in front of me and I laughed when I saw the outcome. Look at those cheeks! Also note the slobber all over her face. She is like this ALL the time! We think she is working on some teeth but we really dont know because Ellie was never this way and she never got a single tooth until she was almost 15 months old!

On the hay rack ride. Ellie was a little nervous (surprise surprise) so she hopped on Lindsey's lap. the other girls had a blast and were fearless. Could Ellie really be any more like her mommy? LOL

The girls hanging out in the teepee. Note ellies hands. This has got to be genetic thing in our family. Bring on excitement or nervousness and the hands go right to the chin. My cousin annie still does this and so we all laughed when I captured the moment on camera!

All in all it was a great day and we hope to do it again next year!

pumpkin picking

2009-11-05T10:26:00.002-06:00

Jayce, Jess, and Ellie going to look at the horses. I thought it was cute.

and this is how Hadley spent her first year picking pumpkins :) It was cold enough to bring out the snowsuit!

Abbie was helping ellie and she insisted on carrying the pumpkin. Abbie is still talking about how strong ellie is :)

Wow I need to get caught up.

This year my cousin Abbie called and told us her grandpa in law grew pumpkins in his garden and he wanted all the kids to come get their choice of pumpkins. so we bundled up in the 40 degree weather and went to pick our pumpkins. Ellie insisted on carrying her own pumpkin. Jess also had the camera so a lot of pictures were not good cause he captured too many of this mommy in sweats and a hoodie :)

too cute

2009-09-29T20:33:00.002-05:00

ellie sometimes tries to hard to smile :) pretty good smile for someone with an unknown double ear infection huh!

I took some photos today trying to get a good one to use for a baptism invite. they turned out great but this is my favorite and the one I used

and here is the invite

been awhile

2009-09-19T16:56:00.003-05:00

i know it has been a awhile and I have a lot to share but I just uploaded pics and had to share these I took the other day. they are very candid but I love how they turned out! And you must all admit I do have some of the cutest little girls ever ;)

Hadley's turn in the dress

2009-08-31T22:41:00.004-05:00

My mom's great grandma made her a dress when she was a baby and it has survived. We put Ellie in it in 2007 on my mom's birthday and it fit perfectly. Well since Hadley was born at the same time (let alone the same day) it fits her on my mom's birthdya this year (which is today!)
This dress is 50 years old and Hadley and my mom had a photo shoot today.

and here was ellie back in 2007

Mom is Fifty!

2009-08-31T22:30:00.004-05:00

Saturday my mom had a party for her fiftieth bday. All five of us kids got together and bought her a new grill. While we were at teh football game on Friday night Steve set it up and hid it in the barn. Saturday afternoon we all went out and while Sadie distracted my mom in the garage while theboys loaded it up in the back of the truck and hurried it across the yard and on the deck. After passing it a few times and all of us trying to get her to look at it she noticed it and this is her expression

and her checking it out!and all of us (minus Nick)

her party was great and tons of people came. Here is my mom, Kelly, and Brad. They all are older than their parents were when they passed away. WE consider that a huge blessing!

My mom and a few of her friends!

horse ride

2009-08-31T22:27:00.001-05:00

a few weeks ago we went to the Picket Fence Creamery's sample sunday and ellie went on her first horse ride. despite the look on her face she loved it and wanted to do it again.

comparison

2009-08-21T13:27:00.002-05:00

everyone is always saying that hadley looks so much like ellie that they could be twins. I can see similarities but I think they look so different. these two picture are both taken in aug. The top is this year of Hadley and the bottom is Ellie is 2007. What do you think?

Pampered Princess

2009-08-16T00:10:00.002-05:00

The day before I went in to have Hadley my sister gave me a pedicure with a flower on the big toe. ellie wanted her toes painted too, but we didnt think she would sit. Boy were we wrong. Not only did she sit she begged for a flower too and has had her toes painted (with a flower) since. If it starts to come off she wants to call Maggie to do it again. The other day maggie came over and brought her polish and here is Ellie waiting for them to dry. Maggie was blowing on them and asked Ellie if she wanted to help. Ellie responded sitting back in the chair, "NOPE!"

We started the pampering way too early :)

Smile

2009-08-15T23:58:00.002-05:00

Isnt she so cute! She loves to smile when you talk silly to her. Ellie is so funny because she copies everything I say to Hadley. I will have to catch it on video soon and share.

I was waiting for her to laugh she was smiling so big. Im sure that will come soon and I cant wait!

Looking just like Jess down to the small smile :)

1st haircut!

2009-08-10T13:19:00.003-05:00

This past Friday Ellie got her first haircut. We only cut it to have bangs but still it was hard for me! I had not planned on cuttingher hair but I was sick of her hair always in her face and she was starting to fight putting pretties in it. So at 2 years and 3 weeks she grew up in a matter of seconds. Maggie cut it and ellie did so good. she was nervous but did not fight and just ate her suckers. Here is a before

and an after

2 years and 2 week check ups

2009-08-03T20:23:00.003-05:00

On Friday Jess and I ventured to the girls 2 year and 2 week checkups. We found out we have very healthy and very big girls!

Ellie hit the scales at 33lbs and was 34 1/2 in tall, 95% for both. She is in perfect health (thanking God for this) and is very smart although she didnt really show the doctor her skills although he believed us ;) While filling out the checklist for her developmental milestones it is amazing how she is beyond what is needed. I saw the ? does she know some body parts and the ? with does she know at least 50 words and kind of laughed. 50 words was so long ago! The girl is never quiet! We have even come to find out that our choice of words do reflect in our daughter! (so basically here is where I admit that ellie on more than one occasion has repeated my not so nice words! And yes I am still waiting for her to do this to Jess)

Hadley shocked me by weighing in at 9lbs 14 oz which is exactly a whole pound bigger than her birth weight! she is bigger than ellie was at 1 month! She is still 22 in they said she was at birth. When they tested her hearing at the hospital she did not pass in her right ear. they told us to talk with our doc to have her retested. So we asked him and he wants to wait til her 2 month appt to schedule something since she it is just the one ear. He said that 9 out of 10 times it is nothing so he wants to wait awhile to make sure if it was fluid or something like that then it is resolved. other than that he said she is perfect and is obviously very well fed!

sisters

2009-08-01T11:11:00.002-05:00

I of course know the joy of sisterhood since I have 2 great sisters,but I am in awe watching this as a mom. Ellie is just head over heels in love with Hadley. Whenever she opens her eyes Ellie comes running and says "hers awake now!" she then talks to her as if she is her best friend. It just brings tears to my eyes knowing the friendship they will someday share. My sisters are two of my very best friends.

I am so glad we have given ellie the best gift she will ever receive, a sibling. I hope that they both will cherish the gift of having a sibling for the rest of their lives. I know I do.

Down on Howell's Farm...

2009-08-01T10:58:00.003-05:00

My cousin Lauren was back from CA for the month of July. Normally we would of had her stay the night several times over her stay but with waiting to go into labor and then getting up 2-3 times a night I just did not have the energy to entertain anyone. Sadie had her stay last week and we decided to check out a farm in Cummings. The kids had a lot of fun and we look forward to going back in the fall to visit the maze and pumpkin patch.

Ellie is obsessed with farm animals so she was in heaven and loved petting all of them and playing on their playground. Hadley of course decided that sleeping was more fun!

Introducing Miss Hadley Jean

2009-07-21T21:46:00.006-05:00

Its official, she is a big girl!

Due to some training Jess has to go to tomorrow, I had to be induced last week and we could not wait to see when I would go into labor. I called last week to schedule the induction and the only day my doc had open was Friday which happened to be Ellie's 2nd birthday. Since I really did not have a choice i went with it hoping I would go on my own. No such luck. Here is a picture of me before we left for the hospital Friday morning. Yes I know I resembled a whale. I was enormous!

At 8:40am my doctor came in and broke my water. They had been monitoring me since I came in and I was having regular 3-5 min apart contractions before they did anything so the doctor is pretty sure I would have had her that day The contractions took over right away and no more intervention was needed. At about 1:15pm I got my epidural and was 5-6 cm dialated. I was still feeling a lot of pain but just the edge was gone but at about 2:15 she checked me again because the monitor was showing I was close. I was a nine and she said if I felt pressure to call her back. At 2:20 I was feeling like it was time and I was fully dialated. 24 minutes of pushing and out came Miss Hadley Jean. Although I felt almost everything it was wonderful! It was so much faster than the 2 1/2 hours of pushing with Ellie.

Hadley weighed in at a shocking 8lbs 14oz and was 22 in long. She was 1 1/2 lb and 1 1/2 in bigger than Ellie was! ellie was nervous being in the hospital and seeing her for the first time but she warmed up and loves her so much. She wants to hold her and hugs and kisses her all the time. We are all so in love. She is a great baby and sleeps so well. She has been waking only twice a night and nurses like a pro!

still pregnant!

2009-07-13T11:04:00.002-05:00

I am still pregnant. Today I am 39 weeks 1 day. I never rmade it this far with Ellie. I am dialtaed to 3 and 75% effaced as of Friday and I am starting to feel as this baby will never come.

I spent 12 am til 3 am the other night with contractions 10 min apart and then bam they stopped. Not funny! I live with the knowledge that my doc said she would induce me on the 21 if there is no baby by then. I will add a pic when I look good enough to take one. It is hard to get ready every day now :)

Ellie and Jayce's party

2009-06-24T10:08:00.004-05:00

We decided to have Ellie's party early due to my due date being so close to her birthday. To make it even easier we planned Ellie and Jayce's parties together! We decided to do it at a place called the Playground for Kids in Ankeny. We hosted a private party so our guests and us were the only kids there. it was awesome! The kids had a blast and the birthday boy and girl had so much fun (even if ellie was scared on the inflatables!)

Enjoy our pics!

36 weeks 3 days

2009-06-24T10:04:00.002-05:00

25 days to go!!!!!!!! I look enormous and dont feel as big as I look but I am prepping myself for labor. I have been reading up and trying to remember everything. I am praying for a quicker easy labor and going to try no epidural. Cant wait to see if it is a boy or girl!

Huge Giveaway!

2009-06-05T20:05:00.002-05:00

My friend Cara who has the store I blogged about awhile back is having a huge giveaway!! It is her 1 year anniversary of the store and she is celebrating with giving away a $200 gift certificate!! Check it out and enter today! The button is on my page for her store and her blog address is http://bubblesandbowsboutique.blogspot.com/2009/06/happy-anniversary-giveaway.html

It will lead you directly to the give away!

Congrats Uncle Louie

2009-05-28T09:02:00.002-05:00

My brother Louie participated in the State track meet. He qualified in all his events (100 m dash, 200m dash, 4 x 100, and the 4 x 200). We went down on Thursday and watched him qualify in the 100 and 200 for the finals on Saturday. because I was so burnt :( we decided to skip Friday where he and his 4 x 200 team took 2nd placce and the 4 x 100 team qualified him for the fnal on Sat. Sadie and I with all the kiddos went down on Saturday to watch the finals. It was very exciting and the kids were good. Louie ended up getting 6th in the 100m dash and second in the 200m dash, the 4 x 200 and the 4 x 100. And the best news of all is that Madrid won the class 1A state track title! It was so exciting and we are so proud of him. Now it is on to baseball!

Sesame Street Live

2009-05-17T19:37:00.004-05:00

Well Ellie went to her first musical/show. Friday night we went to see Elmo grows up with our good friends the Bergs. The kids had so much fun! Ellie was intrigued by the characters and danced the whole time. She loved the popcorn and took it all in. Here are a few pics. Abby was by far her favorite.

Check this out!

2009-05-13T12:48:00.003-05:00

I belong to a parenting website and have made great friends! One of the moms has an online store that is just great. She has the CUTEST stuff for little ones. I am planning on finding a big sister t shirt for ellie there and also maybe a birthday outfit! Her cloth diapers are also the cutest if I could just talk Jess into letting me use them.

Click on this to check out her site and share with other mommies!

I also have the button on my blog page all the time!

getting closer!

2009-05-08T07:37:00.003-05:00

On Sunday I will be 30 weeks! I cannot believe how fast this pregnnacy is going. I cannot believe how much I still have left to do! This time with Ellie her room was done put together, and I had washed her clothes 2 times! This time I have the closet cleaned out (both the baby's and ellie's) and I have gone thru the tote and picked out the gender neutral clothes. I also have a good assortment of boy clothes hanging in the closet from garage sales. My grandma, Maggie, and myself have found boys clothes and bought them. We all think it is a boy. We are 100% set on girls clothes since Ellie was a July baby too so we have not been getting any of those.

These pics are of me this week at 29 weeks 3 days. I am figuring I have only about 8-10 weeks before this baby is born. I thought not finding out the gender would be hard but worth it, but honestly things have flown by so fast the suspense is not killing me and I am loving not knowing! We have a LONG list of boys names, not started on girls names, and no way of finalizing the choice. I think we will try to narrow it down a bit more and then wait until he/she gets here and decide the name for him/her. The added bonus of not sharing is you wont have to hear the negative comments about your choice. I can't see someone coming to the hospital and saying anything after the babyis already named, although I honestly would not put it past anyone. :)

Honesty

2009-04-20T22:33:00.002-05:00

Well our very good friends Marshall and Lisa had baby #2 today and I am more than happy to announce Ellie finally has a baby girl to play with! Mallory Jean entered into our wonderful world at 2:05am weighing in at 8lbs 1oz. She is so small, you just forget how small they are at first.

On to my honesty story. Since Jess and I wanted to go see Miss Mallory, I asked Sadie to take Ellie for a few hours. She more than happily agreed. Well I watch Jayce almost daily and here lately him and ellie fight like brother and sister. they want the same toys, same book , and to both sit not just on my lap at the same time but think they actually need the same leg and with my belly there is not much room anymore!

We went and cuddled and kissed on our new "niece" and then went and picked Ellie up. As I was getting her ready for bed tonight I asked her if she went to Sadies today and she said yes. I asked her what she did there and she said "hit". I asked who hit and she replied "I hit". I then asked who she hit and she said "I hit Jayce". UGH! I then went on to say it hurts when we hit others and we dont hit, it is not nice. Ellie tells me "hit naughty". Ok she gets it. I put her to bed and I call Sadie and ask "did ellie hit Jayce today?" "Um yeah why?" I then told her, "well she told me she did. did you put her in time out?"

and what is Sadie's reply...............

"No! I can't put her in time out! I would feel bad!" To this I responded, "Jayce goes to timeout here." Her answer, "Thats different!"

Oh Ellie has everyone wrapped around her finger! But hey at least she was honest!

Easter Fun

2009-04-13T12:31:00.002-05:00

Well Ellie LOVED Easter this year. Over the past two weeks we have done five egg hunts and she really got into it. We even have hidden the empty eggs just for her to find. Here are some pics of our hunts.

monkeys on the bed

2009-04-07T11:34:00.004-05:00

My sister Maggie taught Ellie the 5 little monkeys jumping on the bed and now she wants to do it all the time. Her and Jayce wanted to do it today. and yes we let them jump on the bed! It is fun and we are fun! LOL

hotel stay

2009-04-07T11:16:00.004-05:00

Jess went to Cedar Rapids last week on business and Ellie and I decided to tag along instead of being without daddy all week. We had a good time and it was great just being in a different atmosphere besides home.

Oddly enough ellie wanted nothing to do with the pool. I was a fish when I was younger so I have no idea what the deal was but now she even freaks out for a bath, which she LOVED before hand. Weird. anyway here is some of the pics from our getaway!

animal sounds

2009-04-07T11:13:00.003-05:00

we also have been working on animal sounds.

we know our shapes

2009-04-07T11:10:00.002-05:00

We have been working on learning all sorts of things and we pretty much have shapes down (rectangle still needs work) It amazes me how quick she can learn!

ducks

2009-04-07T10:56:00.005-05:00

I havent been able to find my camera cord but we found it so here we go!

My mom brought an Easter surprise to Ellie last week. Ellie is infatuated with ducks and so we now have 2 baby ducks at our house til they get big and then they are goign to grandmas to hang out with Jack the donkey and bob and tom the goats! We have yet to name them so if you have great ideas please share!

My Brother In Law

2009-03-01T17:35:00.002-06:00

If any of you are interested in Ultimate Fighting my Brother in law is fighting in corpus christi tonight for the WEC. it is his first big show fight and they say he is the underdog but we are pulling for him of course. it is on the versus channel at 8pm CST. His name is Chris Mickle aka the Mad Dog.

Go Chris!

My Lenten Plan

2009-02-25T18:23:00.002-06:00

I will be the first to admit it but my house is a constant mess. there are of course toys scattered throughout, but it is more than that. I hate cleaning, I mean HATE cleaning. In todays economy we have learned that we need to appreciate what we do have and try not to focus on what we don't have. With this I have decided to appreciate the things I do have and to take better care of them starting with my house.
For Lent this year instead of giving something up I have decided to appreciate the things and people I do have in my life and try to make the best of what money we do have instead of the money we don't. I am going to try to make sure the sink is empty and the dishwasher ran every night, The living room cleaned and vacuumed daily, and to make our bed and pick up the dirty clothes every day. The toy room will be deep cleaned weekly (too scary to do it daily!)

I figured if I posted it on my blog I would be more accountable for it so no need to respond, I just need to someone to help me be accountable :)

it's a.............

2009-02-25T08:54:00.002-06:00

surprise still! We went to our Big Ultrasound yesterday morning and the us tech was great at not slipping (although Jess swears she slipped once and said he, I however did not hear it!). she knew we did not want to know so she said only she knows and did not even put it on my chart that way no one can slip up either! I am so excited that come July that Jess will be able to share that big news! How special it will be!

the baby was growing perfectly and was measuring to the due date. The head seemed smaller than ellies did at that point but the tecch looked at ellies and said they were measuring identical and that at my 35 week us with ellie her head was measuring 3 weeks ahead! So I am not out of the woods for another big headed baby. Stupid but I worry about this! LOL. the baby was 10 oz and 8 in long. He/She loved having their arm up by their head and several times we saw the hand move and we could count each finger. it was so neat and so amazing how perfect they are yet so small. I am almost halfway done and it seems to just be flying by!

we have pics but Jess has not hooked up our scanner nor has he reloaded it on our desktop so I might take a pic of the pics later but until then I wont be able to share :(

One last thing is we got a dvd of the us and in great fashion the tech did not record the parts from the beginning where it could have been investigated to see the sex. Much to my moms dismay there is not one screen that shows a shot where you could tell!

just some recent pics of us!

2009-02-17T15:07:00.003-06:00

Not a whole lot to blog about so I thought I would share some pics. We had a beautiful tuesday last week and we were finally able to soak up the sunshine on the deck. Ellie and Jayce loved it. I had been wanting to get some good pics and the sunlight it what I needed. here are a few pics

this one was actually taken a few weeks ago. she is wearing daddy's new hat and loved it!

Maggie was chasing her across the deck

I cant believe how big she is getting

She thought she was big sitting and "stealing" mommy's chair

I love this one. Her hair looks so long and super thick. and no we did not cut her hair the shorter hair is just new hair. I am too scared to cut it!

those with kids please tell me it gets better?!

2009-01-27T17:28:00.003-06:00

First off I do not starve my child. She weighed in at 29.2 lbs yesterday! Here lately all she wants to do is eat eat eat! When I start cooking lunch or dinner she cries from the moment I start it til we set the plate in front of her. All the while screaming SSSSSNNNNNAAACCCKKKK!
I am at my wits end. there is absolutely no way she is that starving. She gets up about 7am and eats breakfast. 9am eats a snack with water, 11:15 lunch with milk, 2pm another snack with water, and I start dinner at five pm mostly done by 5:30pm or a little later and then you guessed it another snack at bedtime. she gets way enough food and is a very good eater but this in between meals and snacks is killing me and our pantry!
Please PLEASE tell me it gets better!! I want my patient child back!

Guessing Game

2009-01-27T12:31:00.000-06:00

This was fun when we had Ellie and I thought we would do it again. Guess the stats of when the baby will be born. This time it will be harder since the gender will not be known til July when he/she gets here!

Few stats about ellie if you think that will help. Ellie was born 2 weeks early at 650 am weighing in at 7lbs 6 oz and was 20 in

with this pregnancy I am measuring to be due July 19 and things are going well.

Good Luck!

Here is the link to our game. Feel free to share with those I do not have emails for. the more the merrier!

http://www.expectnet.com/games/babymickle2

Can we say BRRRRR!

2009-01-15T17:30:00.002-06:00

Ok Honestly why do I live here? I know I have already vented about this but come on! I am so ready for spring! It hit well below 0 with windchills of up to -40 in some parts of the state. Be thankful today if you are in warmer temps. I have not left my house in two days and I am praying they have school tomorrow. I do not think I can handle any more days with the kids here. They have been good but I just need normalcy.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-05T09:08:00.002-06:00

I would love to show you some pics of our new years eve but it was pretty uneventful. We hung out at our friends house. Since Lisa and I are both pregnant there was no drinking or partying. We watched a movie exchanged gifts and watched the kids play. We all were fighting sleep at 10, but us adults stayed up til midnight and rang in the new year. Jess keeps talking about our wild adventure and how we are party animals and we just laugh because we would have happily been in bed by 10.

The new year has been pretty uneventful. Due to the crazy fun icy weather we have mostly stayed home and just hung out. We have watched movies galore and watched Ellie totally destroy the living room in 10 seconds. Christmas really caused a toy explosion in our house and I desperately need to go through the toys again and pack some away.

Tomorrow I have another ultrasound for the tech to practice a new test they can do. It should be fun being the practice patient. I am thinking that she will spend lots of time looking at our baby and taking lots of measurements. I am so excited, yet sad because Jess has a class and will miss this ultrasound too. Luckily I am going to record it and he can watch it when he gets home.

why do I live here?

2008-12-30T20:05:00.003-06:00

Today I found myself wondering why I live here in Iowa. I mean I hate the heat and humidity and the summers here are horrible. I hate the cold and I sit here as the wind is blowing with 45mph gusts freezing in my own house wearing a hoodie and SOCKS (I hate socks) and covered up with a blanket. I mean seriously why does anyone live here. My alleriges are terrible anymore and the three days a year it is between extremes to open your windows all I do is sneeze so we still have to close up shop.

Today since stupid me has neglected our pantry and stomachs for well over 2 weeks I had to venture out to grocery shop. I was behind a snow plow on the polk city road and he must have accidently hit the button to release the blade because down it went and hit a block of ice snow and then proceeded to swerve all over the road and I so thought he was going to tip. It was scary. He pulls over and I go past thankful to get away from the overworked this season snow plower who obviously needs to learn to watch what the heck he is doing. We then get to Walmart and somehow spend THREE hours in there and walk out with $200 of groceries. We bundle up Ellie and I put my hood up on my hoodie, I did not bring in my wither coat since it was 35 at least and a winter coat would have jsut been too much. that in itself shows how stupid it is here in Iowa if we think we no longer need winter attire when we think 3 degrees above freezing is nice. We step out and I cannot even control the stinking cart. It was so windy and so bitter cold that just unloading groceries into the van was enough to take my breath away. We had to sit for almost fivwe minutes for me to get my breath back. The whole time I was asking myself why we live here. It really is not the place for us.

And now under my blanket in my house I reflect why I truly stay miserable in this place called Iowa. The Number 1 reason is my family. I have lived in one town my ENTIRE life and it would be so hard to leave. 99% of my family lives here in Iowa and at least 80% of them in my same small town. Although sometimes it would be nice to get away from it all, I would miss being able to walk to my sisters house, drive to see my mom, and miss out on all the family functions. I know as long as we stay here I have 20 people waiting in line to babysit, all of whom I can trust. If I ever need anything they are right there to swoop in to help, and I would miss them

I CANNOT imagine Ellie and the new baby not growing up to be a Madrid Tiger. I mean is there really any other school I would want my child going to? Could I honestly cheer for a different mascot? and we all know I do not colors that are not Black and Orange, plus what would I do with the 7 hoodies that proclaim my high school? It may seem stupid to some but I still am proud to have been a part of that and pride goes a long way.

And lastly another reason I am here and more than likely will always be is Iowa. After visiting many areas of this great nation I have come to realize that although I have to livein extreme hot and humid or cold and snowy, the people here are worth it. People just are friendly. Our crime rate is low, my children can ride their bikes without me worrying, it is safe to play outside, or up the street. And unlike California (sorry Cindy) our seasons change, the leaves change color, we have snow days, and mostly there is snow on Christmas. Although it is frustrating at times, there really is no place like home.

elf yourself fun!

2008-12-08T20:19:00.000-06:00

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/hGJrWZGXmPmIhyQdArwP
Merry Christmas!

2008-12-08T19:41:00.003-06:00

thought I would share our exciting news!

I am due July 19 two days after Ellies second birthday. I am just praying they dont share a birthday!

We feel so blessed and are so excited to watch Ellie become a great big sister!

singing time

2008-11-17T23:02:00.003-06:00

This is our latest. Barney has rubbed off on both of us and all we ever do is sing! LOL Excuse the HORRIBLE voice you hear singing, who knows who let that crazy person sing, but Ellie loves the actions and cant get enough!

Notice her lips moving but nothing coming out. she wants to sing so bad, but just cant quite get the words, besides hooray! It cracks me up. No matter where we are and there is music on the lips move. Enjoy

Big girl bed

2008-10-31T23:07:00.003-05:00

Well Ellie's crib was recalled so we decided to borrow a toddler bed from Sadie and see if she will sleep in it so we dont have to buy a new crib til we have another baby (if we are ever blessed again). Well we took down her old bed tonight and set up her room for the new bed. she liked being able to get on and off it. Well at first when it was time to lay down she cried and got up. we let her play 10 minutes longer and then she was crabby so I laid her down and she was out. However the night is still young. We will see how she does all night and what she does in the morning.

Trick or Treat

2008-10-31T22:59:00.002-05:00

Last night was Madrid's trick or treat and Ellie had a blast! She usually is so snooty to new people and even people she nows. She runs the show on who she will look at and who will look at her. Well we found the key to her heart...CANDY! All you have to do is offer her a piece of candy and you are in. She was not shy towards anyone. It was so funny. My dad who she has always been leary of, gave her a sack of goodies and bam instant bess friend! LOL She gave him kisses and ran around his house having fun with Sadie's boys. It is great she is coming out of her shell! She was tired when she got back and we all slept in til 8 am! It was wonderful.

Night Eyes

2008-10-31T09:52:00.003-05:00

Last Sunday we went to Night Eyes at the Blank Park Zoo. Although it was so windy we had a great time! Ellie loved dressing up in her costume and even met a carebear friend in the bounce room.

and this was just too irressistable to not get! what a cute little butt!

To Remember Our Angel

2008-10-14T21:34:00.006-05:00

Tommorrow is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Day. I encourage all to light a candle tomorrow at 7 pm in memory of all those who have loved and lost a baby. There is not a day goes by that I do not think of the baby that we never got to meet. I often wonder if it was a girl or boy, who it would have looked like, and what a great friend a sibling would have been for Ellie. It hurts me to know that Ellie was not meant to be the oldest yet that is what she will always be known to be. Still after three plus years the pain is there. Yet I know and appreciate so much what I have with Ellie. I found this poem last year and only another who has lost can understand the full impact.

A Different Child poem

by Pandora MacMillian

People noticeThere's a special glow around you.
You growSurrounded by love,Never doubting you are wanted;Only look at the pride and joyIn your mother and father's eyes.
And if sometimesBetween the smilesThere's a trace of tears,One dayYou'll understand.
You'll understandThere was once another childA different childWho was in their hopes and dreams.
That child will never outgrow the baby clothesThat child will never keep them up at nightIn fact, that child will never be any trouble at all.
Except sometimes, in a silent moment,When mother and father miss so muchThat different child.
May hope and love wrap you warmlyAnd may you learn the lesson foreverHow infinitely preciousHow infinitely fragileIs this life on earth.
One day, as a young man or womanYou may see another mother's tearsAnother father's silent griefThen you, and you aloneWill understandAnd offer the greatest comfort.
When all hope seems lost,You will tell themWith great compassion,"I know how you feel.I'm only hereBecause my mother tried again."

Please tomorrow remember me and all the other moms out there who have lost. My special intentions for tomorrow are:

*Our Angel~May 10, 2005 @7 weeks

*My Niece Charlotte Jo~born sleeping on May 18, 2007

*My cousin Dawn Renee~born sleeping in 1976

*My cousin Baby Devine~ early pregnancy loss 2007

*All the moms on my babyzones boards who have lost

Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-09T09:26:00.005-05:00

finally got time to upload our picks from our trip to the pumpkin patch. Last year Ellie hated posing with the pumpkins, but this year she was fine beign with them but would rather play with the sticks.

After searching and searching we found a good pumpkin. Ellie begged to differ on our choice. She thought this green one was much better!

We went with the Bergs and Thomas happily chose one, it was 33lbs!! It weighed more than he does!

I love how they always walk together. Lets just say they better get married becasue we have oodles and oodles of pics of them growing up together. One of Thomas first clear words was Ellie (so cute!) so I think taht is a sign!

We miss Blue

2008-10-08T09:46:00.000-05:00

Just remembering my doggie Blue who died a year ago today.

I miss you Blue!

Thankful

2008-10-07T21:13:00.002-05:00

Inspired by my cousin Sandy I also decided to share what I am thankful for in this rough world we are living in right now.
1) My husband who loves me and tells me that everyday
2) My daughter whose hugs and kisses make the days seem brighter
3) The rest of my extended family
4) For having the freedom to be able to celebrate my faith
5) A house we to live in and a car to drive
6) The great opportunity to get to stay home with Ellie
7) Having enough money to get by, not a lot extra but enough which is more than a lot of people right now
8) Jayce finally using the potty almost all the time!
9) My friends who do have kids and understand the worries of being a mom
10) My friends who do not have families of their own yet that they do not forget me

cRaZy week

2008-09-29T08:20:00.003-05:00

Let me just say going from having two kids that are one and two every day to three kids that age is very different. I exhausted the word NO last week. Our friend's babysitter had a family member die so Thomas hung out with us for the week. Jayce really insisted on showing off for him and constantly was pushing limits. But overall it went great. They all napped (shorter than usual) but they napped. They for the most part got along. We played outside and they stayed on the deck! NO escapees, which is always good. I also found a few new settings on my camera and so I had to try those out. Well I am off to a much calmer week. thank goodness!

We walk to remember...

2008-09-23T13:40:00.005-05:00

Our angel Charlotte Jo. On Sunday we walked in Ames at the Walk to Remember. It was put on by the Compassionate friends which is a group of people who have lost children at any age. Annie made a new shirt for us and they turned out great. there will be another walk at Mercy in October.

Playing Dress Up

2008-09-17T11:37:00.002-05:00

Yesterday I decided to dress Ellie inher tutu that Sandy made her for her birthdya. Jayce wanted to wear it to, but I figured I would break out the Blues Clues costume for him to try on. They had fun and I promised we could do it again sometime!

Fun Weekend

2008-09-01T14:19:00.003-05:00

Madrid celebrated its 125th birthday at the annual Labor Day celebration. We enjoyed in the festivites throughout the weekend and Ellie has never slept so good. So much fressh air and dancing makes a tired girl!

Friday night was Madrid's first football game. Of course we had to go cheer on the Tigers and Louie & Toby. Of course we had to dress Ellie up in Tiger gear. She looked so cute! We won 60-0! Louie and Toby both had a great game. Louie had 89 yards and three touchdowns and ONLY played the first half!

Saturday we entered Ellie in the cutest baby contest, although she did not win. We think she looked adorable as always! The also judged on personality and Ellie is a mommy's girl and buried her head in my leg. Oh well we know she is cute!

Sunday we watched Devin and Cayden in the KC punt pass and kick competition (devin won the gold medal for his grade level) we went back late that night and listened to the band and watched fireworks. Ellie of course loved the music and gave us some good excercise as we chased her around and around!

Today we went to the parade. She LOVED it! She never was scared of the loud sirens or anythings. She waved to the people int he parade and we ended up with a ton of candy. She opened three suckers when we were not looking and ate them. What a little stinker!

Pee on the Potty!

2008-08-29T14:28:00.004-05:00

Today Ellie decided she wanted to go potty when I was. She started to pull at her diaper and sit so I took it off and sat her down. She IMMEDIATELY went! It was so cute I had to run for the camera! 1st pic was taken lasst night when she just sat. The second one was from today. she was looking at her accomplishment!

We (I) am NOT pushing it but if she wants to sit I will put her on. Hopefully she will continue to be easy and by the time she hits 2 No more diapers!!!

2008-08-28T16:14:00.003-05:00

Have not posted in awhile. We have been battling diarreha with Ellie for over 2 weeks. She is now better. She had an infection in her colon due to the antibiotic she takes for her kidneys. One thing after another! Well we are better and we are drinking milk again with success!
The past two days have been exciting for us. Jayce is potty training and is now interested mroe in going in the big potty (toilet) over the potty chair so when we go in to potty ellie has decided she wants to sitr on the little potty. After a few days of just letting her sit I decided to take her diaper of and let her try it. To our suprise She went! I know it was a fluke and all but still bery excting! She now trys taking her diaper off everytime we go in the bathroom to sit on the potty. I am just going to follow her lead and let her do it. I wasnt planning on even introducing the potty til January but if she is interested we are going for it!
The other thing she did was growl like a tiger. Jayce and I were growling like tigers a feww days ago and Ellie thought it was so funny! the next day I asked Jayce what a tiger says and Ellie growled! It was just so cute and she does it consistently. I caught a video of it today. Of course when I get teh camera out she does not look at me. IT still is cute though!

Mowing with Daddy

2008-08-18T11:54:00.002-05:00

Ellie hates loud noises. You even show her the vacuum and she starts bawling. She chases me around the livingroom pulling at my pants crying the ENTIRE time I vacuum. If the tv is too loud she cries. She jsut absolutely hates loud noises. Well Jess was mowing the other day and I brought her outside to ride with him a time or two around the yard. Everyone has pictures of their baby on a mower and I figured that was the day! I go outside not knowing what to expect and tada she LOVED it. She could care less that it was loud and obnoxious! She sat on with her dad and even tried driving but did not like the vibration of the wheel. So cute!

great advice!

2008-08-06T21:29:00.003-05:00

I got this in an email and thought it was a great reminder! This is my inspiration!

WHEN YOU THOUGHT I WASN'T LOOKING

A message every adult should read because children are watching you and doing as you do, not as you say.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you hang my first painting on the refrigerator, and I immediately wanted to paint another one.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you feed a stray cat, and I learned that it was good to be kind to animals.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make my favorite cake for me, and I learned that the little things can be the special things in life.

When you thought I wasn't looking I heard you say a prayer, and I knew that there is a God I could always talk to, and I learned to trust in Him.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make a meal and take it to a friend who was sick, and I learned that we all have to help take care of each other.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you give of your time and money to help people who had nothing, and I learned that those who have something should give to those who don't.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you take care of our house and everyone in it, and I learned we have to take care of what we are given.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw how you handled your responsibilities, even when you didn't feel good, and I learned that I would have to be responsible when I grow up.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw tears come from your eyes, and I learned that sometimes things hurt, but it's all right to cry.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw that you cared, and I wanted to be everything that I could be

When you thought I wasn't looking I learned most of life's lessons that I need to know to be a good and productive person when I grow up.

When you thought I wasn't looking I looked at you and wanted to say, Thanks for all the things I saw when you thought I wasn't looking.'

I AM SENDING THIS TO ALL OF THE PEOPLE I KNOW WHO DO SO MUCH FOR OTHERS, BUT THINK THAT NO ONE EVER SEES. LITTLE EYES SEE A LOT ..

Each of us -parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, teacher, friend - influences the life of a child.

How will you touch the life of someone today? Just by sending this to someone else, you will probably make them at least think about their influence on others Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Leave the rest to God

the boys in Ellie's life

2008-08-06T09:17:00.006-05:00

Ellie is surrounded by boys who just love her! All of Sadie's boys just love her (and she loves them equally as much) Jayce and her really are best friends. It is really neat to see the look on both of their faces when they see each other. How lucky are we to have such great boys in our life.

The other day we went over to our future "in laws" The Bergs and Ellie saw Thomas laying on the couch and went running (well as close as she can get to running yet) and said Tee Tee. I really think she was saying Thomas in her own way. It was really cute and it was so much fun watching them play so well together. They really love each other! (Good thing since they have an arranged marriage!)

update on ellies kidneys

2008-07-31T09:41:00.002-05:00

In Feb Ellie was hospitalized with a UTI and after testing we found out she has bilateral stage III Vesicoureteral Reflux, which basically means she is prone to get utis becasue the urine goes back up the tubes to her kidneys before being released from her bladder. She had an utrasound in the hospital in Feb to check her kidney size and shape. She had a repeat ultrasound in June taht showed her kidneys were borderrline too small so they wanted to do another ultrasound last Friday. We did it and her kidneys have not grown at all. Now she has to have a nuclear scan to see if her kidneys are damaged from the infection in Feb. I am worried they are not growing and I cannot find much info on the net about kidney damage and what the size is supposed to be. I worry the worst that her kidneys won't grow and they will fai. I could be way wrong in my assumptions, but you just dont ever want anything to be wrong with your baby. I think the number 1 job being a mom is worrying.

Four years ago today

2008-07-24T07:30:00.002-05:00

I married my best friend. It is amazing it has been that long and even more amazing that is only how long it has been. We have been together for so long I almost forget how it was before we were together. (9 years in Nov. )

We will be celebrating tomorrow by going to the Olive Garden and to the movie StepBrothers with our friends Lisa and Marshall. My mom is watching Ellie and I am even debating on letting Ellie spend the night at her house. I have never left her overnight, but o more bottles, no more breastfeeding, and a one year old who sleeps through the night should be ok. We will see!

Ellie's Party

2008-07-24T07:20:00.003-05:00

The flip flop cupcakes and ellies smash cakeThis is as good as it got. So much for being a smash cake. She just tore off little bites and hardly had a speck of frosting on her face. Oh Well
Riding the dolphin on the baby pool yard
running through the slip and slide
The minute everyone left she passed out. Notice only one pigtail is left. LOL. She also took off her swim top.

Nothing like bringing in her birthday in style. It turned out so good! I was so scared teh rain would come and how we were going to fit that many people in our house, but I did not stress over it and the rain stayed away!

We had a flip flop theme and played with water toys. All the kids had fun and so did Ellie. She was walking around playing with everything. Even the slip and slide. It is so hard to believe our "baby" is one!

she's 1!

2008-07-17T14:41:00.003-05:00

Our baby is one! She was born last year at 6:50 am weighing 7lbs 6oz and 20 in long. how blessed we feel to have her in our lives! How fun it has been to watch her grow!

One year ago today...

2008-07-16T14:22:00.002-05:00

I was pulling weeds at my house and decided to go out to my mom's house. Jess had football practice so Lindsey came to pick me up and we headed out there to help my mom put ringtones on her phone. LOL! Well my mom was talking to her friend Rhonda about it so she decided to have us help her too. She called her phone company to set p picture messaging and she told me what they said to do. I sat on the front steps with her and I felt a bubble in my stomach and then felt a very warm sensation shooting out my pant leg. I immediately started laughing and Rhonda started shouting its ok. (I think she was trying to calm herself downcause I was fine). She then yelled to my mom that my water had broke. My mom being my mom asked what water! LOL. I just remember laughing hysterically because I had begged for my water to break so I would know it was time for sure. I called Jess and left a message still laughing saying that my water had just broke and even though I was laughing I was not joking it was for real. I then sent a text to see if he would get that first. I then called my Inlaws to have his aunt go to where he was practicing and track him down. We decided to head to my house to get my stuff and wait to hear from Jess.
He finally called and said he would meet us at the hospital. He got there about 10 minutes after me and was supposed to have a 20 minute longer drive! He was excited and so was I. They admitted me even though the test said that my water did not fully break (it did the test was wrong). Eleven Hours and Fifty five minutes after my water broke (and 2 1/2 hours of pushing) our lives changed forever. Elyse Kayelynn was born weighing 7lbs 6 oz and 20 in long. She was so beautiful!
It is hard to believe that she was born one year ago tomorrow. So many memories and so many fun times since then. How were we so blessed to have such an awesome miracle in our lives. There is nothing on earth you can better experience than watching your child grow. Ill post pics tom of her growing throughout the past year.

Our camping trip

2008-07-15T10:18:00.003-05:00

Last weekend we went camping near Fort Dodge with our Friends Marshall, lisa and their son Thomas. We had a blast. Ellie did great and she loved beig outside all the time. We played at the park, went for walks, played in the water, and just hung out. Ellie loves Thomas and they had so much fun together.

Friday night Ellie did give us a scare. We put her in the tent when she fell asleep and I went to check on her and she had fallen off the mattress in between the tent and mattresss. I was scared when I did not see her and I was so nervous when I found her UNDER the mattress she owuld not be breathing. But she was fine. Needless to say she did nto nap or fall asleep unless I had her the rest of the trip.

Jess had a football game in Manson on Saturday night so we all went. It was a very close game, but in the end they pulled off another win. the Lightning are now 2-0.

Our 4th...better late then never!

2008-07-09T09:21:00.004-05:00

We had a great 4th. We went to our friend's parents house for a barbeque and then later they set off fireworks. Ellie played with Thomas and the twins in the small baby pool and LOVED it! She was splashing all around and she kept putting her face in the water to blow bubbles. It was so cute. Here is a video of Ellie and Thomas having a blast in the pool.

On Saturday the 5th we went to another party and watched the fireworks again. Ellie also thought she was a big girl and tried drinking from a cup. (It was empty). WE had a great weekend and are ready for the next big party where Ellie turns one!