Blissfully Outnumbered

Kellan's 2!!

2011-09-06T22:11:00.000-07:00

Ok, so you might notice in thie next few entries the lack of pictures of Kellan. That's because he HATES getting his picture taken. He runs as fast as his little feet can take him. Im also to blame in that I usually get so caught up in life, I suck at taking pictures when I really want to! For example, Kellan's 2nd Birthday. 4, count then FOUR pictures were taken the whole day of the party. Pathetic, I know. I didn't even get a good 2 year picture of him. Sighhh...sad story. But, here's what I did get. We had a Dr. Seuss Party! I had scoured the internet for the proper theme for him and lots and lots of ideas and came up with SO many that I wanted to do. Of course, my eye was much bigger than my stress tolerance. I edited and dropped the elaborate games and crafts I had, adorable favors, and most of the decor. We went for the easy jumphouse and good food kind of party instead. However, I did have a menu that included: HAM and cheese sliders and GREEN deviled eggs, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches cut with FISH cookie cutters, and a lot of totally unrelated to the theme food lol. All in all, it was an awesome day. Kellan loved having all his cousins and friends there.MY amazing sister, Minnarie, painted this banner for the theme. She spent so much time on it and always comes to my rescue when I get stressed out.

the yummy lemon-raspberry cake

red velvet cupcakes with the most delicious cream cheese frosting known to mankind

and Finally my sweet boy, My big 2 year old!

TBALL!

2011-09-06T21:27:00.000-07:00

If you've been following the blog for a while or know anything about Kade, you know that he's had a long time love and obsession with baseball. He has been waiting to be in Tball since he was 18 months old, talking about it nonstop. I kept telling him,"When you're 4, you can do Tball." It seemed so far away and then all of a sudden, it just crept up on me. He was 4...and I was late on Tball sign-ups. I was a nervous wreck for about a week, calling everyone from the tball agent to the different coaches at the fields practicing to finally the commision of Little League for our region. I couldn't have him watching practice at our nearby park and asking me why he wasn't in tabll every day, could I?! So, he got on a team finally and he loved it. It was a bit of a challange as 4 year olds really love to fight and dog pile each other when the ball comes near them, but he had a really good season:) Here are some pictures!

Insanity!

2011-09-06T21:18:00.000-07:00

Life is insane. Sometime a blog just becomes the last thing on your to do list! I am going to attempt to catch up over the next few days and then try to update as ften as humanly possible:)

Just some cute pictures to share that I took back in February. The boys, they love their daddy and on this particular morning, refused to share him. Kellan kept crying and saying,"MY turn!!!" lol, I love them to pieces and can't believe it's taken me this long to post them!!

Kade's 4 Year Pictures

2011-03-21T19:21:00.001-07:00

Well, picture. I took a bunch of them, but I was only trying to get one good one to send out with his invites, since I was pressed for time and late on sending them out. So, we went that morning, got his hair cut, went to the park for 15 minutes and went home to send them out. I know, I need to learn not to procrastinate!
Here's the one that made the cut:

But, here were a couple of the outtakes that made me laugh and realize the reasons I love Kade. Possibly because he's the biggest goofball with the craziest, silliest, sweetest smile you've ever seen:)

And he has a creative mind, insisting I take a picture of him in the "slide circle."

And mostly, because he makes faces like this when he's genuinely trying to take a "nice picture."

And because he's the best big brother to this little guy(I had to include it somewhere it in:)

So, yeah...that's right. I have a 4 year old. Go ahead and cry. I did:)

Kellan Seymour, 20 Months

2011-01-04T22:39:00.001-08:00

Kellan Seymour. Oh my. This boy is such a sweet little man. He is so much like Kade and SO very different at the same time. Kade was all over the place. Kellan is very much one track. He watches people and loves to imitate everything his brother does. He never just walks, ALWAYS runs. He is Grandpa's little buddy. He is my little cuddle bug, something Kade NEVER did. Kade would give me cuddles and go about his business. Kellan checks in with me and gives me a few minutes worth of cuddles then runs away and always comes back for more love. I love it. He is unbelievably smily and cheerful BUT also very stubborn and shy. His smile is one that lights the room. I find myself oohing and ahhing over his every feature, from his beautiful hazel eyes to his silly little smile to his fuzzy little head to his big round belly. Even as I type this, I feel that sting of tears, that sentiment because he is such perfection. He is the perfect addition to our family. He sleeps the same as he has since he was 4 weeks old. From 8:30-7:00 every single night. His voice is deep like his brother's and he is beginning to talk in 2-3 word combinations. He says a few new words each day, so at this point it's almost impossible to keep a log of them!! Funny characteristic: when he's focused on something like watching TV or his brother, he gets this sweet expression on his face and raises his shoulders and kind of tilts his head. It's ridiculously precious. There really isn't enough time before I pass out for me to go into any more detail about this little man:)

Some of these pictures I've already posted, but as I said, this kid never holds still so pictures of him are so rare!

A couple pictures from the last post with our family pictures.

I took these pictures one day while he was eating a bagel and cream cheese for breakfast. He thought it was so funny that I was laughing at him:)

I'll post more of these pictures in a different post, but this is a picture of the boys playing with a kitchen that Kellan for got Christmas. He is SO obsessed with my pots and pans and utensils, I HAD to do something!!

This is one of the pictures I took for a review for In The Know Mom on Soopsori Ecowooden Toys. Probably one of my favorite reviews yet.

I love my sweet boy so much and cannot believe that he is so close to being a 2 year old. I am the luckiest mama alive!

So Happy Togetherrrrrrr

2010-12-29T17:08:00.001-08:00

Kade had a project for school where he had to have a family picture, and I shamefully realized we didn't have a decent one since Kellan was...8 months old?? haha, yeah. So, I brought my best friend with me to a nearby park and had her snap the family photos and the ones of Duane and I and I took all the ones of the boys. I love them so much and am so glad that I finally broke down and did them!!

Kade Liam, the happy boy

2010-12-29T16:52:00.000-08:00

I did manage to find lots of happiness in the crazy that has been the last few months. Kade is such a funny, crazy, smart and challanging boy. I love these pictures because they really radiate Kade and his spirit.

I knit this hat for Kade. It's not my best work, but I love the chunky knit and how adorable he looks:)

October/November

2010-12-29T15:58:00.000-08:00

I know, I said somthing along the lines of not keeping you hanging for that long anymore and I'm here to tell you that I failed.

The last few month have been uneventful in activities we've done or places we've gone. We've pretty much been home bodies. Well, this kids and I have, Duane is still slaving away at school. This last quarter has been brutal, he does 4 days a week, 12 hours a day, 16 units. He's been staying in Stockton at his Dad's house to save on gas, so for those 4 days I am by myself with the kids.

We had a long long 8 week break in receiving disability from Oct 30th-Dec 23rd. Longest 2 months of my life. The doctor didn't send in a re-evaluation after detirmining Duane needed a 4th surgery, and then it took forever for them to fax in the new one, so it was just a long and frustrating process. This is why I didn't blog. The place that I was in emotionally wasn't one to share with everyone. Not that I was outwardly depressed, because I am always happy for my kids, but I just had nothing to report! haha, so that's been the last couple months. Sitting, waiting, wishing. I tried to get a job and went for training and everything was just not working out to allow me to get there. It became apparent to us all that working was not the right thing for the kids and my dad. I belong at home taking care of them, so that's where I've been. To top it off, Duane's car broke down and he's had mine, so Dad and I have been sharing his car. Hence the homebodiness:)

If this is a depressing post, I don't mean it to be. I really am happy that things are falling back into place for us and becoming more normal. I am just so incredibly thankful for all that I do have in my life. Through this all, I have been able to keep my eye on the silver lining and focus on my kids and their happiness.

Sighh, glad that ones done:)

Color the Skies 3

2010-10-05T09:38:00.000-07:00

If you've been reading my blog for a while, you know that last year and the year before we do something called Color the Skies. It's an event benefiting Children's Hospitals. They lift off a whole bunch of hot air balloons and have vendors and jumphouses and Kade's favorite, a firetruck, helicopter, and ambulance. This year was the first year that the balloons actually were able to go up because of the wind. My best friend since kindergarden, Breanne, and her boyfriend came with us. It's been so fun to be able to spend time with her since she graduated from California College of the Arts in SF. I love love love her and so do my kids:)

It was a super fun day and with 4 kids, we were happy to go home and rest for a little bit:)

Rain in August

2010-08-29T22:47:00.001-07:00

This last week has been weird weather. This summer has been pretty moderate, usually under 95 degrees, whereas we are used to up to 115 degrees in the summer. This past week though, we finally hit 108 and we were all dying! Then I looked at the forcast and saw that temperatures would be in the 70's over the weekend...yay!!!! Just what I had been waiting for! So, yesterday morning, Saturday, we woke up to wind rushing in our window and and it was soooo nice and exhilerating. We jumped out of bed, put long sleeves and jeans and the new Paul Frank socks I have been DYING to put on the boys(Kellan's first toddler sized socks...tear!), and SWEATSHIRTS on and had breakfast on the go as we walked down to the park. As we started walking, it was sprinkling! Now, any normal parent would think,"Oh, it's raining, we had better walk home." But it has been sooo hot, we were all so excited we just went to the park:) Once the sprinkling stopped, we took the kids out of the stroller and let them play for a little bit. It was so nice and cool and early enough in the morning to where Kellan wouldn't put down his sippy and blanket haha.

hanign out with daddy

sweet face baby

my monkey

showing me how torn up the flag is...i love how he notices all of the little details

slide monster

taking turns driving the "train"

Pretty much the only good that cam eout of this weekend. Duane was really sick all weekend and I was fussy. Did not make for a very good time:/...but a fresh start tomorrow!

Taekwondo

2010-08-29T22:14:00.000-07:00

At the swim school, one of our longest and most loyal clients name is Jojo. He starting swimming with us when he was 3.5 years old, now 6, and is still my favorite student to date. He is so adorable and sweet and SO good at swimming. His parents are THE nicest people I have possibly ever met, so gracious and sweet and I am proud to call them my friends:) Jojo stared taekwondo around the time he started swimming and he has been doing soooo good. He has some national titles I believe and in such a short amount of time! I don't know how it all came to be, but the space that the martial arts studio was at had to close down so Jojo's mom worked really hard and found a space and started their own martial arts studio and call it Jojo's Martial Arts Academy. They just opened and are offering trial lessons.

Kade has been in a really aggressive police officer phase for some time now. No matter how much we talk to him about it and explain a police officers role, though he understands, it is still fun for him to act like he's an officer arresting and shooting people and roughing people up. Not only is it the officer, but the football player(Kellan gets tackled more times a day then I care to count:) also. I have decided to try out taekwondo to help channel that aggression and help him understand how we use our bodies and for what purposes, and also to respect our and other peoples bodies. So we went to the trial lesson on Friday.

Kade has a little friend named Brayden who is my friend from growing up, Kaci's, son. Kade and Bray Bray tend to wrestle. I am the anti violence, anti-guns mom and unfortunately, Kade is allll about it. The thing with him and Brayden though is that they have big fat smiles on their faces and really love to play together. I'm trying not to be too anal about the whole thing and just let him be a boy...sighhh:)

Kade was excited all day to go, but once we got there he kind of shut down. Didn't want to move, take his shoes and socks off or do anything, just watch. Now if this was a swim class, I would put him in the pool and tell him that if he was going to cry I would be leaving. Usually the children stop crying after a couple minutes when their parents aren't around and it is great for them. With this though, it's a different environment, it's not a situation where a screaming kid is welcome. After about 45 minutes of watching and me trying to get him involved, he finally became interested enough to go and play with Brayden a little bit and eventually was working with the instructor.

The kids doing their kicks. Kade sat and watched with me. I love the one of Jojo looking a me. He's always makign sure Miss Lacy is wacthing him haha

Starting to get a little more excited while he watches

Warming up with Bray Bray finally!

Yay! He's talking to the teacher AND practicing with him. I'm so excited!

This is what I'm talking about. They start out with nice hugs...don't they look sweet...

Annnnnnnd then they knock each other down haha...its so bad! but SO cute! Kaci and I were like,"Boys, no no! Be gentle and nice....Oh wait, Lacy take a picture!" hahaha

Luckily we are going to do a few more trial classes before we decide on what we will do, but it is something that he has been asking about all weekend, so we will play it by ear:)

A's Games Galore

2010-08-26T09:11:00.000-07:00

Comcast Sportsnet, the local cable sports network out here, held an A's tickets hunt where on Twitter, they tweet out clues and you basically hunt them down to find the 50 tickets. Well, Duane was in Stockton for jury duty and got an update to his phone that was a clue that he KNEW was Stockton at the Ports stadium. So, he went down and sure enough there they were. He ended up winning the tickets.

So, for the last couple of months, we have been trying to squeeze in as many A's games as possible, because they had to be used before September. After we went to a bunch of games and took large groups of people too on Friday, we still had 7 left over before the weekend. So, we decided we would take Kade for some Mama and Papa time on Saturday. We had SO much fun with him. We took him on BART which is the commuter train to the Bay Area. It was his first time and he was sooo cute about it. He really is such a special little man. He is so smart, so in awe of everything around him, so sensitive, so beautiful, so....I don't know how to explain it. So full of life. I am really glad we got to take him for some time with us.

Then on Sunday, we tried to give them away on Facebook and no one went for them, and we found out that Kade's favorite player, Gio Gonzolez was going to be signing autographs before the game, because it was Hispanic Heritage Day. So, there we went again. We ended up leaving last minute so missed meeting Gio, but Kade didn't notice. He was stoked about the train again and eating his hot dog:)

It was a busy weekend and I don't think I ever want to do 3 games a weekend again, but we did have lots of fun and it's been such a good summer being able to enjoy Duane's favorite past time, the A's!

This is the first game we attended this summer, they were $2 tickets so I jumped at that! Nice little date night:)

Ok, this one is hilarious. It's the first date night we had in like...a year. No really, not kidding. We were a little bit giddy to get out of the house!!!

This game was some awesome seats my mom bought for Father's Day for Duane previous to the ticket win.We were right behind home plate and got to meet the players and get lots of stuff signed, basically Duane was in heaven. It was also 70's Throwback night, so the A's wore their 70's uniforms aka BRIGHT YELLOW. The promotion upon getting in the coliseum was a free Joe Rudy jersey, hence the bright jerseys:)

This is a game we took Duane's family to. It was a day game, super hot and I got burned bad! I always forget to put sunscreen on myself, but slather my children up, will I ever learn?! I of course, forgot to take pictures, but we were walking through the tunnel and Duane and Kade looked so adorable. Kade is wearing another jersey they gave away that day:)

This was this last Friday. We took a group of Duane's friends from school, we tailgated and our best friend, Catherine and her daughter came with us too. Duane and Catherine are die hard A's fans, so they are really cute with their maching jerseys...let me just remind you of a certain picture really quick...

Ok, now that we're past that, here are a couple of pictures from that night...I'm just gonna prpare you, I couldnt find my makeup...yeahhh...that's how often I wear it:)

These ones are from Saturday night, my favorite game yet.

Walking out the door to go to the game!

Kade and Daddy on the BART

Kade is a little unsure about the train at this point, but SUPER excited.

My favorite picture of the night.

I didn't take any pictures on Sunday, because...well, I was kind over the games haha. It was a day game and I made the mistake of wearing a black shirt and dark washed jeans...yeahhhh, I don't know what I was thinking haha

So, that's all of them I think, we had a blast and Kade and Duane especially enjoyed the games. I'm really just there to cuddle with Duane when it gets cold and watch Kade get so happy. He now knows all of the players names and the chants/songs that go along with each player haha...wow, sucha mini Duane!

Children's Museum

2010-08-26T08:40:00.000-07:00

We love going to the Children's Museum in Stockton. Kade, especially love it. There is a fire truck, helicopter, ambulance, police car, police motorcycle, tractors, bus, a "grocery store" and much much more. Kellan is just to the age where he can enjoy it too. Hoever, I do not recommend taking 2 children, one of which wants to skip straight through to the emergency vehicles and the other who just wants to play with anything with a steering wheel or a ball, when you are spouseless and it's nap time....yeahhh...bad call Lacy. Both kids going in 2 different directions every 5 seconds and appoximately 5 meltdowns later, we actually did have fun:) We went with our besties, Rachel and Hailey, probably one of the last things we will be able to do until they leave us and move to Utah...sniffle sniffle.

A Year Ago

2010-08-17T17:25:00.001-07:00

I was just thinking about how much has happened in the last year.

We moved on the 15th of last August from our home in Lathrop to our current home in Tracy. We had originally moved there when Duane was working in Livermore. Rent prices were about $300 cheaper a month and there was still a train station nearby(Duane was taking the commuter train). Our lease was up that August and a lot had changed. Duane had been laid off about 9 months earlier and had just started putting weight back on his knee from his second surgery, which made it so that he couldn't work. I had started working in Tracy for my sister's swim school, because she really needed some office help and Kade was going to preschool in Tracy too. So, back to Tracy we went and moved into another house that my sister's landlord owned and was trying to hurry and rent out. We ended up renting the house for $200 less than any other house in the area(b/c of the best school district in Tracy). We love our house and don't plan on moving for another year, or until Duane finishes school.

Kellan got his own room. He was 3.5 months old and we were SO ready for him to be an independent baby! He had been sleeping through the night for 3 months so it was fabulous to have our own space back!

Kade started preschool. He started 3 days a week at a preschool here in the development called TLC. He loves all his teachers, his friends, and comes home singing songs and telling us things that we never even imagined. Like singing, "Skidamarink" or "Months of the Year." He is such a smart boy and at 2.5, just really expanded everything from his knowledge to his vocabulary. He is still there and will be switching over to the California Headstart Preschool Program next week. He will be going 5 days a week and I am kind of sad about it. I'll miss my little lovie! He is excited though, of course:)

Duane started school in October. It's hard to believe he has almost been in school for a year already. It has gone by so so fast and hopefully the next6-12 months go by just as fast so he will be all done! ;)

Kellan had just started sitting up by himself, eating rice cereal, able to go in his jumparoo. GOSH, this kid is so big now!

I thought I would just include some little pictures of how "baby" my men were!

I am positive that this next year has a lot in store for us. We will celebrate our 5 year anniversary, Kade will be turning 4, Kellan will be turning(cringe) 2, Duane will be done with his AAS, start school for his CCNA cert, starting a job search, we *hopefully* will relocate, and we MIGHT have a CONVERSATION, just a conversation then about expanding our family:) I can't wait to see what all it brings:)

cell phone photos

2010-08-11T23:40:00.000-07:00

So often, I just take out my phone when something is quickly happening that is just so adorable i cannot resist. The majority of my very favorite photos are on my phone, so I thought I would just add my favorites...but there's a lot! because im kind of in love with them:)

one of my favorite pictures of kellan. this just absolutely embodies every ounce of love that is Kellan

my favorite part of the day. when duane comes home in time for bed time on tues/thurs nights, he is just the best! he does bath time, bed time, story time, rocking, singing, everything. REALLY just the most amazing father and his kids adore him.

i took this the other day, because kellan was just intently watching his brothers every move and i just love it so much!

ok really...love him:)

bouncing his zebra and thinking its hilarious!

i took this picture and cried because i realized that Kellan is now a toddler. isnt that sad? this was in june i think. hard day!

Duane's dad got the kids a slip n slide and they LOVE it! i was surprised that kellan even enjoyed it, but my water babies had wayyy too much fun!

one of our park days. the kids love it so much, we try to go as often as possible when duane is home in time. this is like RIGHT before bed time but we really wanted to spend time together with the kids!

this is when we went to see toy story 3! i despise character tees and such and this was the cutest one at target that they had that wasnt too obnoxious. once i realized it matched a button down he had, i was SO happy! doesnt he look excited waiting for the movie to start?!

this is my best friend since kindergarden, breanne, and i. she is the only non-mom friend that i still have from pre-baby days. and i wouldnt have it any other way. she adores my kids, will offer to change a butt, hold a screaming child while in a restaurant, laze around the house with me instead of going out on a friday night, and sit and knit with me on the couch. she is the best! anyways, she came with us to toy story 3 too! the kids love their auntie brea!

i love this picture. kade was asleep and kellan and i were hanging out in the playroom and he was sooo cuddly. i just love this baby!

this summer, like every other season, we had some sicknesses. this is my snot nosed baby cuddling with mommy. i just love how sick he was this day and how happy is he to be with me. <3 him!

my baby, all curled up in bed with me. yes, i said baby. dream killers.

this was the bout of kade's sickness. breathing treatments every 4 hours...no fun for an active 3 year old!

my honey all ready for church. can you tell he likes baseball?

this was a hard day. after lunch, i put kade down for a nap asap. well he decided naptime was not his idea of a good time and basically had a meltdown. kicking, screaming, hitting meltdown. i basically cried all the way up the stairs putting him in his room. the second i laid him down and talked it out with him, he was my sweet baby again. he flashed me these smiles and i just remembered that he is only 3. and he is my sweet precious boy and all was forgiven:)

this is kade, oh...im sorry. i mean, buzz lightyear. he insists on being called buzz sometimes. this day, he had just finished all his salad and asparagus and was showing us how big and strong it made him, buzz lightyear:)

the lovins at target, our favorite. haha...dont you just wanna smoooosh their faces?!

<3

kade and duane....their bond is so special and strong. they really are best buds. there are just no words for all of the love i felt as i took this picture!

we went with all of duanes family to an a's game. kade loves baseball and duane loves the a's....a lot. haha

funniest picture ever. gosh i love this boy!!!

Ok, so sorry for how sporatic these posts have been. I've just been trying to squueze a few months in quickly so we can move on. I think that's all the pictures, but we'll see:) Expect me to keep it regular ok?! No more seasonal blogging!

Randoms.

2010-08-11T23:15:00.000-07:00

I've said that we really haven't been up to much this last couple of months but work and school, which means I haven't taken out my camera as much as usual:( I love taking pictures so much and especially of my kids. They are just perfect:)

Anyways, here are some randoms from the summer!

my sweet baby

did i mention that hes obsessed with cars? :)

kade is positive he is woody when he wears this hat and vest haha

i asked him what kind of face this was and he said,"this my grumpy face!"

this is the happy face, if you didnt notice

buckethead baby

just snuggling

ok, we had to go somewhere one day and i had to run upstairs and wake Kellan up, and he was sleeping like this. i just love his little lips and his chunky elbows and oh yeah, that little tushy!

my favorite In The Know Moms

2010-08-09T22:49:00.000-07:00

When I first became a mom, I heard about the site, cafemom through my sister-in-law. It is basically a networking site for moms where you can join different groups and talk to other women just like you. I joined a group called January 2007 Moms and Babies. Through that group, I joined another group called Fendi Moms, which was all about product obsession:) Basically we would discuss new and exciting products for mommy and baby and share our feelings on the products and go to each other when we had questions like,"Which double stroller should I get?" or "I'm looking for a dress for a wedding, I'm pregnant and have this body type, HELP!" We all formed friendships and a little community. The creator of the Fendi Moms group, Sarah and another mom from the group, Erin, branched off and created a website doing what we were doing, discussing the best, safest, and eco-friendly products for our babies, but on a much grander scale. The called the site, In The Know Mom. You've heard me talk about this site and my little blurbs I write every once and a while there. I am the only one with boys and basically asked to participate in the site, because I felt it was missing that perspective.

Since I've had so many questions about how it came to be, this is how I became connected with the site. We live all over CA and AZ and I love having them as friends! It's such an unlikely friendship and such a funny story how it all happened but I am really thankful for it. These ladies are basically my sounding board when I am sad or struggling with something and I trust them all with my deepest secrets and feelings. I hope to meet them all personally soon and spend some time together, because I love these ladies!

I have met one of the mommies, Jennifer. She is sweet, silly, and sarcastic like me and Kade and her oldest daughter are the same age and then her youngest and Kellan are a few months apart. We both have had similar struggles recently with life, which for me, at least has helped me a lot. Her hubby was working in a nearby town for a couple of months and her and her 2 girls came up to visit him and we got the opportunity to go to our favorite place, Superfranks! Of course I didn't get any pictures of the two of us(next time Jenn!!!) but I did get a couple of the kids. I have boys, she has girls, sooo needless to say, they ignored each other for pretty mucht he first couple hours we were there haha. Kade is pretty crazy and bouncing off the walls and her girls are silly and sweet, so I think they were a little confused at each other. BUT, just for proof to the world that they did briefly stand within a few feet of each other, I am documenting:)

I love this last picture, because of how Kade is holding onto her waist haha. It was so cute. Miss Maya is obsessed with mermaids, so Kade went around the Fish Tank room and got all of these little mermaid dolls for her. She had a huge arm full but mommy rained on her parade and told her she could only hold a couple haha

Look, photo op!!!! hahaha

I can't wait to visit again soon!!!

Fourth of July

2010-08-09T22:22:00.000-07:00

We had a pretty calm June, so were gonna skip right over the the 4th!

We had planned to go to the Oregon coast with my best friend for the holiday to her families home there, but Duane had jury duty on Tuesday and we didn't want to have to speed back home. So we stuck around and, what do you know, we got sick. It started with Kade on Friday with the flu. I had been babysitting my nephew who was sick, so we knew it might come at some point. Then Saturday morning, it was my turn. Devastatingly sick and violently so. Then that night, it was Duane's turn and Sunday we were all really weak so we took it easy.

We started the day with Duane sleeping in and the kids and I going to the park here for the 4th of July breakfast. We then went home and I made the boys some shirts with the freezer paper stencil technique and then went to the parade that is held downtown here in Tracy. After some lunch, we headed out to Sacramento to visit my brothers, Scott and Shawn and their kids for the day. We swam and saw the fireworks together, which was super fun!

The only picture I took were at the parade, so once again, just the boys:)

Memorial Day!

2010-08-08T03:26:00.001-07:00

Every year for Memorial Day, we like to go camping. The last 2 years just didn't happen because of life and having a newborn. This year, we did it! My sister and her kids, her dad's side of the family, my best friend Rachel and her daughter Hailey, and us went up to Whiskeytown for a weekend of camping fun!

However, on the 3.5 hour drive up, about 1 hour from our destination Duane got a call that his Dad, who recently had a difibulator put in his heart, was in the hospital because it had become infected and he needd surgery to have it removed. His dad has congestive heart failure, so we decided the best thing to do was to go up to the campground, spend the night and Duane would go home in the morning. My dad was amazing as always and drove up and picked up Duane and left us with our car.

So that being said, the trip was challanging camping alone with 2 kids, one of which was newly mobile and realized he could actually walk away from me, but I wasn't really alone, I had my sister and best friend so it was ok. It was just a little bit difficult to contribute to camping duties and still keep a close eye on the babes.

We lounged around, drove up to Shasta Lake at Silverthorn resort, spent time there in Whiskeytown at the "beach" and had s'mores and campfires and made some awesome memories. It was such a fun trip, but kind of stressful. Safe to say, the next trip will be with Duane!

I didn't take really very many pictures except for when Duane was there, otherwise I didn't have a spare hand! haha. but I love the pictures I did get:)

Promises, Promises!

2010-07-27T08:39:00.000-07:00

I PROMISE this week I will be updating my blog...starting with Kellan's birthday...Yeah I know, that was 3 months ago. I fail:)

Kellan Seymour, The One Year Old

2010-05-24T11:09:00.001-07:00

Gah! I know, I am incredibly behind! Life has been insane so we will just gradually build up to get us current. This is Kellan's birthday post:)

Our little man turned one on April 28th. The day was a normal day, we just hung out, napped, played, and got the house ready and food ready for his birthday dinner. My parents, sister and her children, Duane's brother and his family, and my best friends were there to celebrate with us. We made Kellan's favorite, Whole Wheat Penne with a Homemade Spinach-Pine Nut Pesto sauce and chicken. We had parmasean asparagus, and broccoli and mmm pineapple! I made red velvet and s'more cupcakes(a la Bakerella...love her!!!) I had planned on doing an actual birthday party, but with all other parties around the same time, we just didn't find a weekend that worked for us. But it was ok, the important people were there.

Here's a short little acheievement list of things he did by his 1st birthday:
-Walking
-I stopped breastfeeding on his birthday(woohoo! one year! hardest thing ever!)
-He started drinking milk from a sippy, skipped the bottle
-Saying "mama," "dad," "dog," "hi," "kaaaaade!", "gurt" for yogurt haha
-He had mastered the stairs and started trying to get up on the couch
-LOVES cars. LOVES. he will push anything andeverything around the house like its a car...funniest thing EVER.
-sleeping through the night still, since 8 days old:)
-4 teeth!

That's pretty much it! We had a fabulous dinner with family and friends, and we are so so so SO thankful for our little Tellies who lights up our every moment of the day with his bright smile, beautiful green eyes, and bald little head:) We love you Kellan Seymour!!!

Surgery Number 3

2010-05-02T04:56:00.000-07:00

I forgot to make a post about this, for the people who keep up with us. For those of you who don't know, I will add a quick explaination.

December 11. 2007, Duane was walking the warehouse at his then job and his steel toe boots caught on a 1/2 inch bolt sticking out from the cement. He fell onto his left knee and dislocated his knee cap. After being out on Workman's Comp for 3 months, the doctor felt he was ready to return to work. After a month or two of being back, he started having severe pain in his knee. He was told to get an MRI to check and see what else could be wrong and with the waiting period for Workman's Comp to approve the MRI, then the surgery, it took another 4 months for the surgery on his torn meniscus to be approved. Duane was laid off October 2, 2008 and had his surgery November 12th. Exactly one year to the date, on December 11, 2008, Duane tripped over his grandparents blind dog and fell right on the knee, 2 weeks before he was able to bear weight on it again. Through more MRI's, he was approved for surgery number 2 to repair the damage done to the meniscus again, which happened in March of 2009, right before I had Kellan. Because I was in my 9th month and bed ridden and suffering from crippling allergies, Duane being the way that he is jumped up and started putting weight on the knee as soon as he could so that he could take care of everything around the house, from Kade to cleaning. He ended up putting himself through a lot more damage. He had another MRI which showed a torn meniscus and possible hole in the cartilege and through the cycle or waiting for approval once again, he had his surgery April 14th.

Ok, so that was kind of a long explaination. But it's been a long 2.5 years!

Going in with a lot of uncertainty for what they would find, he had the 3rd surgery and the surgeon found lots of fraying of the meniscus, an obscene amount of scar tissue(which was causing the majoity of the pain) and thankfully NO hole in the cartilege. IT was really best care scenerio for the surgery and we are really thankful for that. Now, two weeks later, he is off of the crutches and using a cane. He has been approved for phycial therapy and starts this next week, I believe. We are really hopeful for a smooth healing process and excited at the possibility of no more excruciating pain. It also comes with a concern and a lot of stress about what happens when the pain is gone and workman's compensation stops. Duane is currently going to school full time taking 16 units, so him working is something hard to consider so we are trying to figure out the next couple of months.

Very stressful, but through it all, I must say this: I have found that this injury has been a blessing is disguise in a lot of ways. If he were still doing the work he was doing, he would not have gone very far and everything that he was trained to do or ever wanted to go back to school for was very physical work. Having to look past those things and discover something that he has a true passion and talent for, being the IT field, has been so fabulous to see. He would've never found it if he hadn't been forced to. Also, he has gotten to spend a lot of time with our boys that I know they will look back on and so will we for the rest of their lives and be thankful for. Not every child gets to spend that really crucial bonding period with both of their parents. It has made us a really close knit family unit and I am so thankful for that.

Wow, this is such a rambling post, but its been that kind of event in our lives:)

Here is proof that Duane is the nicest, most helpful man alive. Hours after surgery, he is on the phone with my mom, bascially hacking into my moms computer to help her with some problem she was having. I love this man:)

The 3 Year Old

2010-05-02T04:22:00.001-07:00

There is something about this 3 year old phase. It is touch and go with Kade. One moment, I want to rip my hair out from the attitude, overly active imagination(aka turning everything into a GUN!), tantrums, back-talk, and dawdling(aka taking 5 hours to get out the door!).The next I am so full of love, joy, contentment, and pride for his sweet disposition, vivid imagination, affection, love of learning, and how good of a big brother he is. We get a lot of "Mama Kade-A Time." I love sitting and listening to his stories, the explainations he comes up with, the general funny things he says, and of course the cuddles. Here are a few pictures to just better illustrate for you:)

I am always very hesitant to buy building blocks or legos or anything like that for him, because he tends to turn things into guns right away. I know, its in the blood, the genes, but I am still trying to delay the gun obsession. We are in the thick of it right now(more like the downhill side). Because of the police officer obsession, the gun obsession manifests itself quite often in an aggressive way(I think he walked in on someone watching cops or something and now thinks that police officers are loud and aggressive, which nakes for a fun day when he decides he is "Officer Bob Kade Liam Handsome." See what I mean by a wild imagination!)

At least there is a balance. This is my favorite picture of him right now. He is telling me a police officer story:)

I just love this picture too. He is such a sweet boy. Be still my heart!

He loves school! I had to pull him out a couple months ago because we were sick for so long and workman's comp cut our income down IN HALF(that is a whole other issue and post in itself!) but with the swim school doing so well, I am able to work a lot more and put him back in. He is a happy camper. I snapped this photo for an Appaman post I did over at In The Know Mom, as we were walking out the door to go to school.

I love watching my sweet big boy grow up and learn more and more about life and watch him develop. I am so increidbly blessed to be this little boy's mama. It is no joke when I say that when I look at him and John Lennon's "Beautiful Boy" plays in my head and I am always near tears with an overwhelming sense of love and gratitude. It those stress hormones, I swear!

Happy Easter(late of course:)

2010-04-08T11:17:00.000-07:00

Usually for Easter, I LOVE to get Kade a cute little church outfit, in fact I kind of love it a little too much. This was Kellan's first Easter and guess what? Easter Sunday was also General Conference. Before I realized that, I had alrady gotten their little matching outfits, so the churchy pictures are the Sunday before.

Taking a picture of them together is near impossible. Kellan was just starting to walk here and he does not want to stay still, especially for his brother or my camera. He is basically trying to excape in every picture in this post:)

Here is Easter Sunday. I wanted them to have Easter outfits, but didn't want to spend a whole bunch of money, so I went the crafty route and made some tie tees and got cute little polos. Total cost of Easter outfits, $10 each. Yeah, awesome.

We went to Duane's Grandparent's house and did a little Easter egg hunt with his brother's son, Brody, who is a year old than Kade. They love each other:)

We then went to my sister, Minnarie's house for egg hunt number 2 and spent the rest of the day there with my parents, and lots of cousins. I took soooo many pictures here but will only post a few, or it's gonna get kinda long:)

Of course, I wait to get them all together in their tie shirts till about 9:30 pm when they are all sweaty and tired. Genius:) Again, Kellan trying to escape:)

Same with this one. Right before we went home. We all look AWFUL and exhausted, but hey, how often do we actually stop for a family picture? Totally post-worthy.

This is what happens when Duane gets a hold of my camera(on the off chance I'm not looking:)

All in all, it was a beautiful Easter with lots of family. I missed going to church on Easter, but conference makes up for it of course:)

Oakland Zoo

2010-04-03T08:23:00.000-07:00

We recently bought an Oakland Zoo membership through a deal a day site for $40 off of $85! It's such a good deal, I couldn't pass it up and it gives up free or discounted admission to a whole bunch of other zoos, including SF Zoo, Aquarium of the Bay- SF, and Micke Grove, which we love. We went for the first time the other day loved it:)

This is the only picture of Kellan from the day, because he was sound asleep in the stroller the whole time we were there:)

Kade was really cute and excited about the snake and snake eggs haha

We loved the giraffes:)

This picture is completely gratuitous. We got Kade's hair cut this week and I am in still in mourning of the curls. It's still plenty curly, but not as much on the sides:(

We have a bit of an elephant obsession around here:) Kellan was awake at this part and he just watched them in awe too

While we were there, we detoured to the Oakland Temple. Kade loves temples and this time, we got to take him in the visitors center too, so he really enjoyed it:)

The Homestretch

2010-04-03T07:55:00.000-07:00

On March 28, my biggest man, Kellan turned 11 months old. How are we here already? How did this past year pass so fast?!

A lot has happened in the last month with Kellan's development. Here is a word list:)

dah- dog
hahhh- hi
cahhh- car
gook- book
plah plah- splash splash
gurrr- yogurt
uh-uh- uh-oh

Those are the audible words. The other things he says he will say if we work with it on him for a couple minutes. He tries really hard to say everything we tell him to. Which is a good thing, because he is VERY vocal:)

A couple of cool things have happened this month. Kellan took his first steps attempting to get me from his Grammy! He isn't fully walking yet but he totally can! The other night he was walking from me to Duane and decided he didn't want Papa afterall, so he just went around him and kept on walking. He totally can, he would just rather speed crawl:)

Much to my dismay, Kellan hated baths and the swimming pool. He would cry and was really uncomfortable, kind of like putting a baby on grass for the first time. He just didn't know how to feel about the water. Through swim lessons, he has become reallllly confortable and will even splash in the water, reguardless of if he knows it will get in his eyes.

This isn't really exciting, but he LOVES pasta, but I mean is that any surprise, he is my child after all:)

Some other things are that he can clap, wave, sign "more" and "all done" and blow kisses! He has mastered going up the stairs and down, he is doing really well, but I still stay right next to him, just in case he loses his balance. He is a sweet, cuddly, mama's boy, sometimes sensitive, sometimes crazy, and makes THE funniest little noises. He will do these little growls when something makes him happy. Seriously, adorable! Duane and I just look at him and say,"Could you be any cuter?!" He loves his big borther and follows him all around the house. Kade loves having a little brother and fully take advantage of thr attention Kellan gives him:) We have one more month till one year old and I cannot believe it has been sneaking up on us so fast. Expect the next Kellan post to be one full of sentiment and boo-hooing:)

Monterey Bay Aquarium

2010-03-17T22:53:00.000-07:00

We had been planning on going to the Monterey Bay Aquarium for months and plans always slipped through and then the breaks between the kids being sick and not just didn't come on the right days. So, this past weekend, everyone was healthy, Duane's knee was feeling good so we decided to go. The kids were really just in awe of the majority of it all. Kade wouldn't touch anything in the indoor tidepools and was, at first freaked out by the sharks so close to us, but once he realized that the glass was between them, he was fine.

My chunky butt, just along for the ride

Let's gooo MOMMMM!

Kellan was in such awe once we put him in the carrier

Kade was afraid of the sharks at first, but once he got used to it, that was his favorite part. He even got a shark plushie and shirt:)

My favorite exhibits there are the seahorse and jellyfish. I had no idea that something like this even existed! A sea dragon.

Beautiful Monterey

Loved everything about this exhibit! So mystical and beautiful and serene.

There was a baby and toddler area that the kids played in for about an hour. Super cute and fun.

So, that was basically it. I forgot to clear my card before going so, it ended up filling up here. Then by the time I deleted everything, the battery died. Both of our cell phone died this day too. hahaha. Goooo figure. We ended up hopelessly searching for a Verizon and got car chargers. Such a fun day! I would love to go back soon and do the stuff that we didn't get to!

A Usual Week In Our Life

2010-03-15T09:01:00.000-07:00

Nothing significant has been going on in our lives. Duane is slaving away at school, I am being mama, cook, chauffeur, taking care of Dad, doing In The Know Mom, and taking lots of pictures:)

We love the park. We love our Rachel and Hailey, what else can say?

Swim Lessons on Mondays and Wednesdays.

Trying to encourage this one to walk

We try every couple weeks to go and do something fun and inexpensive with the kids when they have a blessed break in sickness. We love us some Superfranks:)

And we have a lot of pajama days, I'm not even gonna lie:)

And my days, all day, consists of me talking Kade down from turing things into guns. Notice the vest? Yeah, Halloween constume...from 5 months ago. Not to mention the train tracks. Should I just give up on my "No Guns" stance? I don't think it's working:)

What We've Been Up To

2010-02-22T11:48:00.000-08:00

Duane- He has been going to school full time with some pretty grueling hardware classes. They are really starting to get into the parts and functions of the computer, so even though its a challanging class, it's a lot more hands-on, which Duane loves. As far as his knee is concerned, he had an MRI which detirmined that he had another meniscal tear and also a hole in his cartilege. The doctor, on the other hand, did not see what the radiologist saw, so after some consulting with a few different radiologists and doing some more Xrays, they decided to go ahead and move forward with surgery number 3. It is going to be exploratory surgery and hopefully, they will find something to repair so that Duane will no longer be in the excruciating pain he is in. Now, its the waiting game: waiting for Workman's Comp to approve. Have I ever mentioned my servere distaste for WC?

Me: I have been doing a lot of knitting, just learned how to crochet, and reallt just getting the sewing/crafting bug. I have been juggling countless doctor appointments, breathing treatments, administering various medications all day long and trying to keep the babies happy and comfortable. I also started contributing to a fabulous modern mom find and reviewing site, In The Know Mom. I'm the only one who has boys, so to keep mama's with boys equally informed and stylish, I have been having a lot of fun researching and contacting companies about their products. Check out the site, the ladies who started it are amazing and smart and so great at finding the best, modern, trendy, educational, and eco-friendly products. Here are some pictures from my first review of a company called, Fat Tie. Kade LOVES his shirt.

Kade: Because of all of the sickness, bronchitis, ear infections, etc, I decided to pull Kade out of preschool until we get him completely healed. It seemed like every time he would get better, he would go back to school and it would start all over. Then Kellan would get it from being exposed to Kade and it was just a never ending cycle. He has been going a little stir crazy but I've been trying to keep him happy with lots of crafts and play-dough and creative time.

Kellan: Sick sick sick. He has had 5 infections since he was 4.5 months old. The doctor is pretty positive that he is immuned to the Amoxicillin, so they started him on a new one. When we are over this hump, we are being referred to an Ear, Nose and Throat doctor to look into tubes, which I'm a little nervous about, but am open to possibilities. This past week has been really hard. He had really high fever and horrible congestion, and suuuuper clingy and fussy but I get a little smile every now and then. Here is a picture of him with his little sickieface, but always mama's boy:)

Grandpa: Dad is doing well too. He caught the bug with the rest of us, so he just got over that but is doing a lot better now. His numbers still look great and his kidney function is still up to about 38%, which is great for when he started so if we keep up the diet and medicine, he won't have to worry about dialysis for some time. We had a family member pass away, so he flew out to Florida to be with the family. It was hard for me to accept that he was going by himself, because I'm a little bit of a worry-wart, but he's doing well there. He is having a good time visiting with people he hasn't seen in decades.

So, that's how it's been nowadays. More to follow soon as I am always camera-ready:)

Park Days

2010-02-22T11:33:00.000-08:00

We have a great park a block from our house that has lots of fun things to do, including a baseball field that Kade absolutely loves, where we took his 3rd Year Pictures, and a skate park. When we have some time and everyone is feeling good, we'll get the kids out fo the house and let him go wild. And of course I have to bring my camera everywhere I go.

Kade super excited to go to the park.

He's being a firefighter here:)

Kellan's 2nd time on a swing. My camera's battery died the first time!

This is a different day. There was a break in the rain and the sun came out so we took a quick trip to the park to let Kade run and get his crazy out. And our favorite, Gavin and Aedan and Auntie Sam came with us for a quick breather. No pictures of Kade this day because he wouldn't sit still but good ones, all the same.

Ignore the towel Duane brought to wipe off the slides. Also, Kellan was a little cold so Duane stuck hinm into his sweatshirt:)

The crazy sky that day.

Gavin was stoked about jumping off this ramp with his bike.
"I flew like 10 feet in the air!"

Micke Grove Park

2010-02-22T11:08:00.000-08:00

After being sick for a few months off and on, we really haven't had many oppotunities to get out of the house and do something fun, so after Kade had a good weekend, we decided to go with our best friend, Rachel and her daughter, Hailey to Micke Grove Park, an animal conservatory in Lodi that is a favorite of ours. And of course, I didn't take barely any pictures of the animals because well, I'm a bit obsessed wiht our kids haha

Even though Kade was feeling great, it was the start of Kellan's turn to be sick. He got his 2 bottom teeth and the congestion started this day. It was awful and he was so sick and pathetic, but sweet like always. Notice the tired eyes:)

Showing me some monkey or bird no doubt

Kade and Hailey are 3 months apart and have been besties since the day she was born, so Kade always has the best time with her.

The white on Kade's shirt really blew out this picture but you know how it is with 3 year olds, you take the picture when you can!

Sweet LOVE

Kade climbing a tree, being a bad example, of course:)

This is apicture snapped off of my friend's camera. I just had to include it because it's so funny. She got them little snakes from the gift shop. Hailey named hers "Greeny" and Kade named his "Child," because that's what I call him when he does something naughty, so he's being an authority figure I guess haha

It must be LOVE...

2010-02-11T11:01:00.000-08:00

That's all:)

Oh, and speaking of love, I have a few new projects planned.

Suddenly Seymour!

2010-02-07T22:08:00.000-08:00

I sing that song to Kellan all the time and it is so cute because Kade sings it with me and Kellan gets soo happy. Love Little Shop of Horrors:)

With all the Kade updates and birthday celebrations, I thought it was about time for a Kellan Post.

Kellan turned 9 months old on the 28th and has been doing all sorts of big boy things.

He has recently become obsessed with laundry baskets. He loves to climb in and out of them, take the laundry out, push them around. And he happens to look oh so cute doing it:)

He has been crawling and stand up and cruising on anything and everything he can. He is starting to stand and trying to let go to stand by himself. I love the early mobility stages so much because they start to test their limits.

Kellan is most definately a lover baby. He loves to snuggle and sing and dance and smile and kiss. It's so funny how much he is like Kade with his little personality and how smily and happy he is all the time. He is a mama's boy for sure:)

But has the biggest smiles and laughs for his papa.

He tends to get into a little bit of trouble, getting into everything he can and trying to climb up an down the stairs
He also is self-feeding most everything and using a sippy when he can.

And I just had to include some photos of a super cute beanie that I knitted him, like Kade's. He is not very much of a fan of hats but looks so so cute!

It is so hard to believe sometimes how big and old he has gotten. He is 21.8 lbs and 30 inches long at his last appointment. And 3 more months till he is 1! I already have the party planned in my head haha. I am just really excited to see what the next couple of months has to hold for him and his development. We are so blessed to have this happy, sweet little lovie:)

Baseball Bash

2010-01-31T11:59:00.001-08:00

Are you tired of the birthday posts yet? haha

Kade had a super-fun and family-filled birthday party on Saturday and it was so nice to catch up with some friends that we hadn't seen in a while and have some of us that grew up together all in the same room with our kids playing together. Kind of surreal and fun:)

Hansen Stadium
Accidently zoomed but I kinda like it haha

Our best friend, Catherine, and Duane are die-hard A's fans and bought matching jersey's several years ago and finally got the chance to wear them together haha

Kellan did a lot of this. Eating, sleeping, spending time with his Grandma's and aunties and cousins. However, I did learn that if you give the kid some pasta salad and he's stoked:)

My best friend, Breanne's mom and her made this little face cutout for the party and Kade didn't want to take a picture with it yesterday but for an example, here's my handsome nephew, Aedan:) We took pictures of every child in it and they got to decorate their own frames and take the picture home.

Our long hard efforts on this cake paid off! I don't know anything about cake making but with my mom's knowledge and my sister's knowledge and OCD-ness just like me, we worked it out.

Kade has always been a bit freaked out by "Happy Birthday" so when it gets sung to him, he is a little scared haha

Blowing out his candles!

This is the only picture I could get of Kade looking at the camera while opening presents

A fabulous day and another year past, I cannot wait to see what all Kade's 4th year has in store for him. How I love him so:)

Happy Birthday Kade

2010-01-31T10:32:00.001-08:00

We woke up in the morning and Kade got his 2 little present that I knit him. I made him this little rocket ship.

And this little hat.

Then he went to school and came home and we had some mama-kade time.

After nap we went to a super fun place called Superfranks, which is like Chuck E Cheese's but it's geared toward toddlers and tired parents. They have an organic and all natural menu and big comfy chairs and certified teachers there for routine music circle time and crafts. We took Kade's best friends, my best friend's dauther, Hailey and Duane's brother's son, Brody. My camera died right before we went in, but I got to snap these pictures of them:)

Then we came home and had make-your-own pizzas and cupcakes, but my camera died so I didn't get picture. All in all, we had a perfect day together and Kade loved it:)

Kade's 3 Year Pictures

2010-01-31T10:22:00.001-08:00

My sister and I made this adorable appliqued shirt together(because really, we do everything together) and I decided to take him down to the park around the corner from our house that has a baseball field and take some pictues for Kade's invitations/third birthday. I'm really happy with the way they turned out and laugh whenever I look at them. Kade is so obsessed and so precious about how much he loves baseball.

Sneakpeak

2010-01-14T21:33:00.000-08:00

Can you guess what kind of birthday party we are having this year:)

Kade's First REAL Haircut

2010-01-11T02:28:00.003-08:00

I did it. I had to. It was becoming...

unruly.

to say the least.

e.g.

We found a place about 20 minutes away that has the little cars that they cans it and play in while they get their hair cut. I don't think we'll ever go there again, but we went because Kade was a little apprehensive about it. It was a great experience. He got to ride in Thomas and watch "Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs." But, now that we know that he will do ok, I think we're good to go to Super Cuts haha. He was still a little scared(as you can tell by his little face in the pictures, he was being shy) but he did soooo good and held nice and still.

Here's the 'fro for effect:)

And the finished result.

Much to Mommy's relief, it is still beautiful and curly, just under control:)

Kellan's Blessing

2010-01-11T02:12:00.000-08:00

I know, the kid is 8 months and he just got his blessing, right? Well, because of several different reasons, no one could do the blessing until now, so January 3rd, we got his blessing done. I was afraid he would scream his little head off, so we did the blessing in the Bishop's office and one of our oldest and best friends, Gary, was in town because he and his wife came home from being stationed at Ft. Polk, LA to be sealed in the Sacramento temple, and able to be there. My dad did the blessing and it was really very special and it's something that I, being the Daddy's girl that I am, really will always cherish.

So, here is a cute shot of the boy in his outfit that JUST barely fit him at 6-12 months:) He is a bit of a chunky monkey haha

Christmas Morning

2010-01-09T11:10:00.000-08:00

Sampling Santa's cookies

Showing me the airplane ornament

Kellan was more interested in Kade's toys

All of the presents before the craziness

Brothers opening presents together

The only picture I could get of them to pose together lol

All in all, it was a great Christmas morning. Kade got a lot of creative stuff, art sets galore, play-dough, but his favorite was a police/firefighter bundle. He lovesss everything police officer so, he was stoked:)

Ward Christmas Party...SANTA!

2010-01-09T10:57:00.000-08:00

This year, Christmas was especially fun because he understands so much more what it is all about. Not having much money for presents was really stressing me out, because Christmas is so commercialized and every Christmas special is about how many presents the children get under the tree, so I was afraid what Kade expectations were going to be versus the reality of what it was going to be. So, really talking to him and reading to him more about the Savior's birth and that Jesus is the reason that we have a Christmas day. He gets it and is so excited about it, especially since we've had a baby recently. He gets really excited about Mary having baby Jesus.

Kade is obsessed with everything Christmas: songs, lights, decorations, and especially SANTA

Manteca Lighthouse

2010-01-01T10:29:00.001-08:00

Sorry for the late post, but this last few weeks have been CRAZY! We have been sick non-stop so it's been a bit hectic.

We started off the holidays by going to a house decorated with over 125,000 light in Manteca. We go every year and usually they have Santa and free hot chocolate but this year, I think we went on an off day. We went with one of our best friends, Rachel, her boyfriend and her daughter, Kade's best friend, Hailey.

Here is a picture of part of the house. I didn't feel like walking across the street to take a picture of the full house haha

We will keep going year after year, because Kade absolutely LOVES it.

Oh, and Did I Mention?

2009-12-11T09:28:00.001-08:00

That Kellan is now officially crawling??? For about a week and a half now. We are in the "I'm a mobile baby that can follow my brother around everywhere and drive my mom nuts" phase:) He is pulling himself up on everything he can, crawling, more able to play with Kade, AND he is eating a lot more solid foods with no issues. It seems like he should still be my little baby but he is now about 7.5 months old and one year is creeping up on us fast! Here's a crazy crawling baby picture of him trying to get me:)

He is also using more and more sounds and words. His newest one is "mama" but he has said "dad" or "dada" or "papa", he also follows the dog around saying,"gog-gog-gog-gog-gog." He is such a fun little lovie and just a little light like his big brother.

Curly Cue

2009-12-09T20:46:00.000-08:00

Due to 3 weeks of croup, bronchitis, fevers, migraines, asthma attacks, breathing treatments, antibiotics and whatnot, there is currently a lack of anything exciting in our lives. SO, I just thought that I should talk about what has been on my mind most recently and confess my love for Kade's hair. He is almost 3 and has had one hair cut and is coming up on another one, but I just cannot force myself to do it. I have always been completely obsessed with it, even when it was just his fuzzies:) So, I thought I would just chronicle his hair growth, whether you care or not, it makes me happy:)

Baby Kade:
Just starting to grow at 14 months(note the one small curl:)

18 months:

Two Years:

Pre-Hair Cut:

Post:

And my favorite new pictures of it now:

So, am I crazy? To cut or not to cut? That is the question. I am so scared that the curls will go away!

Discuss:)

Giving Thanks

2009-11-21T13:14:00.000-08:00

I have said many times that our current situation is hard and it can be very easy to dwell more on the bad than the blessings. With Thanksgiving around the corner and all of the commercials and different updates that people are doing on their Facebook's, I just think about it more and more and remember that though this year has been difficult, I HAVE been blessed beyond measure.

I have my life and my health. I have my children who have their lives and health. I have my husband who works so hard, is always helpful to every single person who might need anything even though is in constant pain. I have my dad who, seemingly, has nine lives and though he has several health problems, he stays positive and really lifts me up when I'm feeling sad. I have my mom who helps so much when I need it. I have my sister who I look up to so much for her strength and motivation and knowledge. I don't think I could've gotten through Kade or Kellan's births without her and Duane working as a team. I couldn't have gotten through Kade's newborn stages as well as we did. I couldn't get through most of the challanges I face without her to talk to and her guidance. I'm thankful for all my siblings and extended family. I am so thankful to have such a huge, widespread family. I am thankful for the roof over my head, my working vehicles, the friends that have stuck around and enriched my life. I am thankful for my faith and the gospel. I am thankful for the lessons learned daily. I know this too shall pass and this few years of struggle will be all worth it for the 50+ years of bliss.

I found this video and just love it and how greatful it makes me feel.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tuwid8_O8dk

My two little blessings

Plan Toys Airport Giveaway

2009-11-20T19:40:00.000-08:00

Another fun and ADORABLE giveaway from Intheknowmom.net!

I LOVE Plan Toys so sooo much. They have so much cute and educational and downright fun things!

This weeks giveaway is the Plan Toys Airport. Kade would looove it!

GIVEAWAY!

Back to School, Back to School...

2009-11-17T21:55:00.000-08:00

Sorry, couldn't help the Billy Madison reference:)

This is a Duane post.

This has been a really tough past 4 years that we have been married. We have experienced the recession first hand with lots of lay-offs and, the past 2 years, dealing with the work injury has been a particular challange. The last year has been the most challanging, stressful, emotional and trying year so far. Most of you know, Duane fell at work December 11, 2007 and has had 2 surgeries on his meniscus in the past year. He still has severe limiting pain and his orthopedic surgeon is positive he needs more surgery. With the lovely workman's compensation insurance not approving physical therapy or another MRI to see exactly what is causing the current pain, we have just been stuck in limbo. Knowing that we have this time off for Duane to get back to school has been really difficult given his phyical condition, he hasn't known what to go back to school for that is not physical or taxing on his body. For several months, we have been fighting with the insurance company to approve physical therapy and there is just no way that it is going to happen, so Duane decided to look at some different faster options on getting a degree doing something that would not depend on his phyical ability.

After looking at several options, Duane took a tour at Heald College and looked at the different programs and decided that he really wanted to get into the IT Networking Program. After 12-18 months, he will have his AA in Computer Networking, which is fabulous considering this occupation is something that will never become obsolete, because of our dependence on technology. Everyone keeps saying,"Aren't the private colleges so pricey?!" It is, its $12,000, but he's already received a $4000 scholarship, we qualify for the FAFSA and Duane's dad was injured in active duty and receives money through the VA and so he is eligible for the GI Bill, which will pay for the remainder of his tuition.

He is attending full-time and I am working part time to help out so our lives are a little like passing ships at the moment, but this has been so good for him and will be great for us and our family.

I am just so grateful for the opportunities that have risen for us recently and I never thought that I would EVER feel this way, but I am so very thankful for our current trials that we are struggling through and have still managed to remain best friends, very much in love, and co-partners in our marriage and parenting. That's not to say it hasn't been a struggle, because it has, but I am just exceedingly grateful for everything that makes us stronger at this point.

I have several pictures of the kids to post, but I don't have time right now, so a random post will happen as soon as I upload the photos:)

WeeSqueak Shoes(giveaway)

2009-11-10T23:17:00.000-08:00

The other day when we went to a family fun type place, I saw(heard) a little baby girl wearing these shoes and immediately came home and researched and lo and behold! My favorite mommy site, Intheknowmom, features them with a giveaway! For those mommies who like to stay informed and find the best for their little ones, this site is fabulous!

Check it out ladies...GIVEAWAY!

All Because Two People Fell In Love...

2009-11-10T08:22:00.000-08:00

Today is our 4 Year Anniversary. We have been through so much and had some amazing hi's and hard low's. All in all, we have two beautiful, happy, smily, smart, crazy boys that our world revolves around, lots and lots of love and hugs and kisses and laughs. I have really been trying my hardest to focus on all things we have versus what we lack and when I count my blessings, we have so so much.

Halloween

2009-11-02T15:15:00.000-08:00

Just some quick shots of the boys for Halloween. My little cowboys:) I have to say, I always love having 2 boys, but during the holiday season it is even better. November is the month of Thanksgiving and I have really been trying my hardest to focus on things we have been blessed with versus the things we lack and every single picture that I take of my kids just melts my heart and reminds me of the ridiculous amount of love and blessings I have in my life.

Kade's preschool Halloween party...he decorated a monster cupcake

Halloween night...the bounty:)

They were not too keen on taking this one...none of us were really, but its us:)

I got this costume on ebay and I had forgotten to change my address on there when I won it, so we thought it wasn't going to make it to us in time for Halloween but it came 2 days before and I was so excited I just had to put it on him:)

I Feel Like I'm Falling For Fall:)

2009-10-25T22:09:00.000-07:00

Sidenote: We LOVE Noggin:)

I love Fall. I love everything that it includes, like the shift from 100 degree weather to 75 degree weather, the change in the leaves, bundling the kids up, the pumpkin patch, Halloween, Thanksgiving, family, etc. So, we went to the pumpkin patch today with my brother, Shawn, his kids, my sister, Minnarie and her kids. I got some cute cute pictures and of course, have got to share them with all of you:)

all of the cousins. they were trying to get together, but it didn't work lol

p.s. he wears this vest everywhere. hes obsessed with police officers right now and so, he is a sheriff. im just happy he's not wearing a helmet lol

this was zoomed in and i didn't know it, but i think the boys' faces are so stinkin adorable i just had to post it:)uncle shawn:)

Also, we went to the ward trunk or treat and Kade was a cowboy(Kellan's slept:). He isn't too keen on picture taking these days, so I only got a few but he's so cute, it doesn't really matter is he's even looking at the camera:)

picture strike

peanut butter cup boy:)

We are now on the activity commitee, so Duane's aunt came and brought Duane's nephew, Brody and watched the kids for us while we served food and did other activity related things

I got Kellan a cowboy costume that I am waiting for in the mail, so I am super excited for that, but meanwhile, I decided to put Kade's old pirate costume on him and WOW am I in love with this little baby!!!

School Days

2009-10-15T10:06:00.000-07:00

This past week we've had some stormy days and one of my favorite things is bundling up my boys in soft sweaters and warm clothes. I know that I love that feeling of being nice and warm, so I'm sure the feeling is universal. I just took a couple pictures on Kade's way out of the door to school the last couple days and they are just quick snaps but I love this little boy sooo much. It just makes me crazy to realize that he is such a big boy going to school.

no news is good news right?

2009-10-09T11:24:00.001-07:00

I really have nothing in particular to blog about today. Just updating all you lovely people that like to know how we are doing.

Duane is still in pain and waiting for workman's comp to approve something, physical therapy or an MRI for more surgery. So, we hired a lawyer that was recommended by our bishop, who is a lawyer himself.

Kade is in school and learning so so much. He knows his days of the week, months of the year, can count to 13 and count backwards from 10, learned red, green, and yellow lights and what they mean, comes up with funny phrases and new songs every day. He is almost fully potty trained, except for nights. Well, this week, he has been having quite a few accident actually, but he was doing great for 3 weeks. It'll get better again. Just a bad week:) He is still as obsessed with baseball as ever but has realized that there are times when he just cannot where his helmet/hat/mitt everywhere we go, e.g. church, school, birthday parties, the library, etc. We go to library storytime every Tuesday and he really enjoys the songs and stories and getting new books every week. He is in swim lessons and can now swim across the pool with no floatation aids or help from the teacher, with hsi face down in the water blowing bubbles. He is such a little sponge right now and we are just really enjoying every single moment that we get to watch him grow.

Kellan is 5 months now and is the size of a 9 month old.He weighs 20 lbs. He is in 12 month clothing and is sitting up by himself(for the past month), rolling, starting to clap, dance, and scoot backwards on his belly. I love this age sooo much and really really missed it with Kade being such a big boy. He melts our hearts with every smile, every move he makes really:) It's so fun to witness all the developmental milestones and things and little clues to his future personality. He is such a little light, just like his brother.

Dad is doing well. His doctor eliminated 2 of the 3 blood pressure medications he was on and commended him for his hard work. We just had his brother from Carson City and his wife come visit us and it made Dad insanely happy to have them here. I am really glad that Kade is growing up with knowing his extended family, as I didn't really get that opportunity.

As for me, the home is a challange as we have moved and it is almost twice the size as the house in Lathrop. I also work (as much as I can with all the crazy that exists in my life) for my sister's swim school. I do the office work, coach the swim team, and try to help out as much as I can wherever she needs me. I babysit my nephews on Mon/Wed and my best friend's daughter on Tues, which I love having all of them. Friday's are my days with the kids, just spending time. I try not to make any plans because I really want to make it their special day with mommy.

So that's our lives these days. Happy healthy kids and Dad, happy Mama and Papa and we're just trying to get through everything that life throws at us. Here are some pictures of the baby loves to hoold you over:)

Oh, and did I mention that Kade is the most loving, affectionate big brother EVER. He has never once been aggressive or mean. I absolutely LOVE it:)

Cousins, Cousins Everywhere!

2009-09-09T18:40:00.000-07:00

The beautiful thing about living in Tracy again is that we are super close to my sister and her boys. They come over quite often I love having our children grow up together and be best buds. Here are some pictures I shot of them the other day playing in the backyard.

Also, my mom and brothers, and friends. So, when we want to have a family get together, its as simple as that. My brother, Shawn, is in the Navy and is being stationed in Japan so while he is underway my sister-in-law and her 3 kids moved up here from San Diego for the next year. We love having them so close and plan to spend a lot more time with them. So, they have twin girls who turned 4 this week and we had a little mini-birthday party for them at my sisters house. It was so fun to get the majority of my mom's grandchildren together, we were only missing 2 out of the 11.

Kellan was asleep for this picture:)

And yes, I said those girls are turning 4 and Kade is as tall as them, its true:)

And kids aren't kids without a picture like this

Also, Uncle Beau makes himself a target for situations like these...

If you remember this time of year last year, we went to a Childrens' Hospital charity event called Color the Skies. http://lacyboo.blogspot.com/2008/08/color-skies.html

Well, this year we went again and having two kids, I found it very difficult to break out the camera, but I did get a couple shots of Kade and his cousin Brody in the jumphouse:)

And looking at that other post is so so funny because Kade was such a little guy! OH how I love my sweet big boy:)

So, all in all, it was a fun-tatsic weekend with lots of family. We have it pretty good to be that close with all of our loved ones.

Mr. Tellies

2009-08-23T23:13:00.000-07:00

Time for a Kellanator post:)

He fully rolled all by himself the other day and it made me so sad how big my boys are growing. Kellan is 17 lbs of love, laughter, and absolute joy. We are so lucky to have such sweet happy boys as we do. Now, that in no way means they don't have their good and bad days but for the most part, they are just complete joys:)

So, here is what Kellan has been up to:

playing on his belly

being a bumbo baby:)

going to work with mommy and playing in his exersaucer(camera phone on this one:)

and a whole lot of this:

He has been talking quite a bit, making lots of noises. He started scooting around in cirles on his belly the other day. He is just starting to become to mobile and so so big. He also started rice cereal which has been fun and messy:)

It's so funny trying to remember allt he mommy tricks and things you do to make things easier for yourself and how very much your forget in 2.5 years. I find myself saying all the time,"OH! I remember when Kade started doing that." I am just loving every second of being a mom. I love the ages my kids are at and almost don't want them to get any older but I'm sure I'll love every age just as much:)

Kade's Prayer Tonight

2009-08-10T22:21:00.000-07:00

"Dear Hebenry Fodder, Dank do for dis food. Dank do for my Daddy and Mommy and Tellies and Branpa. Say fings Jesus Trist amen."

I love love love this sweet little boy of mine:)

Then and Now: Kade aka Sadest Post Ever

2009-08-10T18:33:00.000-07:00

Did I mention he started preschool today? He's too big for mommy to take pictures of him, by the way. When I asked him what his friends' names were he said,"Tony and Corey." It's hard to imagine that 2.5 years ago he was just a little peanut like Kellan. So, for reminiscing purposes, here are Kade's pictures from then to now...

Birth:

Three Months:

Six Months:

Ni ne Months:

One Year:

Fifteen Months:

Eighteen Months:

Twenty-One Months:

Two Years:

Twenty-Seven Months:

And now, Thirty Months:

Ok, so did that not make you want to cry, because I, for one, definitely have been for the past week. Not because he's growing up necessarily, but because I let it go by so fast. I used to make fun of my sister for this with her first and now, I apologize...I feel your pain:) I cannot help but look back and fall in love all over again with this sweet little boy:)

Kade's first haircut

2009-08-01T15:08:00.000-07:00

You all know Kade's hair. The long, blonde curls that just keep spiraling as they get longer. Well, it was getting a little crazy, e.g.

So, I was brushing his hair one day and it was down in his eyes and past his neck when straight and wet. I decided to pick up the scissors and get to it....and here's what happened

But don't you worry, those curls are here to stay:)

When the hair is actually combed, he looks like such a big boy:)

the baseball boy

2009-07-31T22:48:00.000-07:00

Since Kade was pretty young, he has loved baseball, a love brought on by Duane and my dad, but really he loves to watch every sport. But, oh baseball. He has several different baseball caps and a couple different mits, and lots and lots of balls-hard balls and soft balls. He has a tee, bases, and 2 batting helmets that he wears around EVERYWHERE. Not to mention he has a fabulous arm, which scared us a little because we don't want him to mess it up, but whether he plays or just watches the sport, it makes us smile to see him love something so much. Here are some recent Kade baseball shots:)

i found this shirt for the 4th and knew kade would fall in love with it. he saw the it day before and made me let him wear it lol

the helmet:)

pitcher in palo alto

singing and dancing to "pitcher's got a big butt" lol

hey batta batta swing batta!

We also have a family conflict of the battle of the bay, a's vs giants. duane, of course, is the a's fan and my dad is the giants fan. Kade's new thing is listing off all the people that he loves and the other day, he said,"Mom-mom, I love the Giants." I laughed and said, "What about the A's?" He then says,"Oh, yeah, I love the Oakland A's AND the Giants." lol...he is just too much sometimes and we are loving every moment of it:)

4th of July and a really fun weekend! crazy heavy picture alert!!!

2009-07-20T23:20:00.000-07:00

So, I haven't posted in so long because of the craziness that is life and being sick etc but we have had such fun times. We had a fantastic weekend a couple weeks ago. We went to the beach and a couple of family fun days....also, I finally posted the 4th of july pictures...sorry for the picture overload. I realized halfway though that I sould've done it in individual posts but I was too far in to start over haha

On Saturday, we went to my Dad's IBEW Union picnic that we have gone to every year since I can remember. There are all kids of fun stuff....crafts, jump houses, petting zoo, playgrounds, good country music and dancing, good bbq, bingo, pie eating contests, etc. We love it and it makes me so happy that Kade loves it just as much as I used to:)

they had face painting and kade wanted a tattooo on his arm like papa...he got a moon and stars:)

playing in the rocks

showing off his tat haha

kellan was tired

We went to Pixie Woods, which is a mini-theme park with different themed playgrounds, different animals, a train, carousel, boat ride and water feature, on Friday with my sister, her kids and my mom. I am posting only a fraction of the pictures to save you from realizing how obsessed I am with my children and nephews:)

KAde has this new obsession with making his own drive thru window wherever we go...and serving you Taco Bell:)

:)
us...a very us picture

my gorgeous sister and i

again

the water feature

the carousel

one of the playgrounds

the girls

my cheeseball

papa and his sleeping baby

the boys playing with the bells

kade giving auntie sam kissies

This is at Rio del Mar. Kade loooves the sand and the ocean. Kellan just watched the waves and loved the sounds of them:)

Again, serving me Taco Bell haha

Here are my late 4th of july pictures! We had a lot of fun going to the ward breakfast, spending the day with my mom, and going to the park and to a friend's house for the fireworks:)

we were playing a silly game that he thought was hilarious

hes telling me all aboard!

Next time, I promise, I wont take so long:)

SMILES

2009-06-09T20:34:00.001-07:00

Kellan has been smiling for a while now but he has just begun being smily all the time. My favorite, I have to admit, is when i go to get him out of the crib in the morning and he gives me a big fat smile. Here are some cute pictures I took of the kids and Kellan's smiles!

Also, we went to Reno for Daune's cousin's high school graduation and we finally got a family picture!!! It's not the best picture of us(note: Kade's pirate socks, inability to SMILE and oh yeah, me all together:) haha

Utah, Firehouse Tour and some downright cuteness

2009-06-02T21:16:00.000-07:00

We recently took a trip to Utah for my best friend, Polly's, wedding. I, like I always do, didn't really pull my camera out too much. I didn't get to see her too much while we were ther ebecause she was sooo busy preparing, but we did get to take a little time at Temple Square and we met up with our favorite missionary who we had when we lived in the apartment in Stockon while I was pregnant with Kade.

the time we were here was really fast, we were in a hurry, so excuse the off-centeredness, bad settings and general craziness of these pictures:)

the mirror pool

our little family(we look sooo tired...we woke up expecting to get on the road to drive home and kind of detoured to temple square and then to lunch with him haha)and our favorite missionary, Geoff aka Elder Newman

As most of you know, I used to work for my sister's swim school and one of the adults that we taught there is a fire captain in Tracy. Well, he agreed to do a private little tour for my sister and my kids of the firehouse. Being that we have 4 boys between us, you can imagine how happy they were to go there. We also took Duane's nephew, Brody, who is almost exactly 1 year older than Kade.

here they are in the firetruck

here is Kade "driving" the firetruck:)

here are my sister's kids and kade and Captain Jim:)
proof Kellan was there...just sleeping haha

now for your bi-weekly dose of cute sleeping kids:)

kade had a really high fever a couple weeks ago and passed out in my bed...and took it over as always

and my sweet sleeper boy. always sleeping, always adorable:)

and for all of you just dying for a smiling picture of the boy, this was taken with the camera phone...

And for a slight comparison, here's Kade at 3 months

I know, its uncanny.

Things You Never Thought You Would Say To Your Kids

2009-05-13T15:51:00.001-07:00

"No! Play with your own nipples!"

Kade is sick so Duane decided to take a bath with him to calm him down and cool off the fever. I'm in the bedroom and all of a sudden hear Duane shout out that little phrase. I could not stop laughing!

Kade is just discovering that he too, like Mama and Papa, has nipples. Along with the fact that Mom somehow has "baby milk in her boobs," it has become a hot topic in the household with him. Just one of those things that are fun to explain. I'm sure it won't be the last funny thing that coms out of our mouths haha

the first 2 weeks

2009-05-12T13:03:00.000-07:00

The first 2 weeks with little Kellan home have been fun, challenging and kind of surreal.

First, the fun:

I've come to realize I can match their outfits:) It's really cute to have them in their little coordinating clothes when I take Kellan out of his carseat everyone looks at them and goes,"Awwww..." I never get tired of that:) Kade is such a good big brother. I must still have some of those wonderful hormones that make you emotional, because when Kade comes over and sits with us and wants to hold his brother or I'll be breastfeeding and he'll come over and sit with me and just kiss Kellan's head and rub the back of his head, I just get teary eyed. It's been so fun to see Duane with his boys. Anyone who has seen Duane with Kade and knows how much that little boy loves his Papa knows what I mean. He is such a wonderful father. He is helpful and loving and patient, I just couldn't ask for more.

The challenges:

Coordinating the 2 boys schedules. Getting used to having 2 and working together to get things done. Kade's attitude is off a little. He delights in telling me "no" but we're working on letting him know that it's not okay to tell mama and papa no, instead we say,"yes mom." Which he has taken a whole other step and started saying,"Yes sir." haha...or "Yes sir, mom!" It's the adventure that is the terrible twos, but we're getting through it. Kellan might possibly have some reflux issues. He has been getting some air when he eats and then no matter how long I burp him for, he vomits A LOT. I'm trying to work out the air every couple minutes so we don't have a problem but it doesn't seem to be helping much. But, he has an appt where I'll talk to the doctor about it. Kade had it too and it seemed to work itself out. It's been hard spending less time with Kade during the day. Today he was in his chair eating lunch and looked and me and smiled and said,"I miss you mom-mom." It made me sad but we are getting to a nice point where the baby has his schedule down and I am able to not be attached to him so much.

Surreal:

I realized about a week ago..."Wow, I am a mom of two boys." I feel so much pressure knowing I am raising future husbands and gentlemen, but with the example of their Papa and seeing how he treats me and what kind of man he is, I'm sure they will turn out to be wonderful men. It's all something that's happened so fast it seems. I feel like Duane and I haven't been married that long and it's now been 3.5 years. Though we've had recent bumps in our life, I am so happy and feel so incredibly blessed to be where I am with all my men:)

On a happy side note, Kellan is virtually sleeping through the night. He sleeps from somewhere between 11-12 to 6-7 am. He sleeps most of the day and is awake for about a half hour to an hour between each of his feedings. The time between his last feeding he is awake the whole 3 hours. He is such a good, patient, happy baby so far, we are really lucky. We still haven't even used the pacifier, so I'm a happy mom:)

So, enough of that. I know what you've really come for...here are some picture of the last week:)

My sister threw an "awe'shum!!!" Rockstar birthday party for her 6 and 8 year old boys last weekend. A rockin' time was had by all, complete with hair dye and a live band. Kade had a blast. He dyed his hair orange(against his will, but he was bribed with soda...haha and once he discovered he had orange hair, he loved it:) He even got to play the guitar and drums. Kellan slept the whole time which my mom thoroughly enjoyed...

We went out to dinner and I dressed the boys alike. Kade wouldn't let me take a picture but here's Kellan! lol

And the always cute sleeping baby:)

More to following next week of course:)

Kellan Seymour

2009-04-30T14:00:00.000-07:00

He has arrived! Kellan Seymour Hansen was born Tuesday, April 28, 2009 at 3:07 AM weighing in at...are you guys ready for it???

9 lbs 7 oz.....20.5 inches long!!! Thats 2.5 oz heavier than his big brother:) He looks so much like Kade and has the same facial expressions e.g. furrowing of the eyebrows, pursing of the lips. Here is a comparison for the people who need it:

Kade at 2 days old:

Kellan at 2 days old:

They both have Papa's eyes and Mom's mouth. They both have the pronounced forehead and widow's peak. Kellan's hair is surprisingly darker than expected but Kade's hair was too and he lightened up after is all fell out:)

I was induced Monday morning and it was very slow labor. I did not want them to break my water bag or give me pitocin, so it went a lot longer than it could have. I gave in to the water bag at 6:30 pm and then the pitocin at 2:30 am. That moved things right along and by the time I had to push, within 2 pushes, he was out. Needless to say I was DONE being pregnant and didn't care how badly it was going to hurt, I needed him out:) From the pushing, his face was bruised pretty bad, but it has cleared up for the most part now.

We are so in love with our little handsome addition and are really enjoying the time we have while Duane is home. Kade is adjusting really well. His attitude has been a little off(saying NO more often when he asked to do something, being more active etc) but for the most part, he hasn't had any issues that concern me too much at all. He loooves his little brother and is very sweet and gentle towards him. So far he has no issues with me holding him so much. It's a relief to say the least.

We wanted to get out of the house today, so even though we probably should've let ourselves sleep in, we went to church. Here is a cute shot of the boys after church:)

Kellan all ready for church

And a quick one for his first bath

I'm sure I'll have a lot more soon. I can't keep the camera off of him, he just melts my heart:)

t minus 5 days

2009-04-22T11:55:00.000-07:00

This last week, we had a little false labor scare just to be horribly let down when the doctor checked and found that my cervix hasn't at all changed which means the likelyhood is I will make it to my Monday induction. I have had a lot of questions for my doctor and he is most conerned about A. My pregnancy history with the protein S deficiency presents several risks of going past the due date. B. The baby's size. He is already guesstimated at 8-8.5 lbs and we don't want too big of a baby. He is clear that I can change my mind at any time but I don't think I will:) I am one for natural labor and 9 lbs naturally is not too fun as I found with Kade.

This weekend, I will stay active and try everything I can to have a baby but he seems nice and comfy where he's at for now, so I am willing to bet Monday will be the day we see this little man. I will keep you all updated:)

Easter Sunday

2009-04-17T21:27:00.000-07:00

Kade was so excited to go to church. After the chaos that has been Duane's surgery and on again/off again pain and well, my ginormous-ness, church has been put on the back-burner. It's one of the biggest breaks we've taken for my whole life, so Easter was really nice to be there again. We had 9:00 am church and Kade looked, well...freaking adorable but I guess I am biased:) He was so excited to wear a tie like Papa, Grandpa, and Uncle David. He frolicked in the flowers that just bloomed outside our house and even took some time to take a whiff:) As if anyone ever had any doubt, Duane is definately the father...my only question is, is this child even mine? haha

I'm really bad at self-portraits of our little family, but here is all I could do...with our red hair:)The most beautiful little boy

Easter Egg Hunt Number 1. We went to Duane's dad's for BBQ and eggs. Kade was so happy to get his basket and eggs with money in them! haha...He insisted on picking up all the eggs with the shovel that was attatched to the bucket...it was slightly adorable:)

We ended up going to Duane's grandparents afterwards where they did another egg hunt that I did not get any good pictures of sadly...I know. I would. Then we continued on to my mom's for a yummy roast dinner. It was a wonderful day with lots of family. Kade got to see all his grandparents(2 sets and a step-grandma) and his great-grandparents, so it was truly a blessing:)

2 more weeks

2009-04-11T22:35:00.000-07:00

You know that point in your pregnancy where you are just done? Where it seeems like it will never come and it leaves you restless? Yeah, I'm SO there. I have become increasingly uncomfortable and spend most of my spare time in my bed where even there, I cannot quite get comfortable. My wonderful husband, though he's recovering from surgery still and had some intense dental work done last week, lets me rest and takes care of the big stuff. It has been a blessing in disguise to have him home with me.

I am 38 weeks on Monday. We had the ultrasound last Friday and after all the measurements, Kellan is somewhere between 7.5-8 lbs right now. If I go 2 more weeks, he could be anywhere from 8.5-9 lbs IF I don't go out of control with the Taco Bell cravings:) Kade was large, as most of you know, weighing at 9 lbs 4.5 oz the day before my due date. So, I am going to be really good and try my hardest eat normal. Also, Dr.'s measurements show that this little one has a large head just like Kade. Gee, I can't wait:)

Other than that, the only updates for Duane are that he is walking and still has pain in the knee but next weeks appointment will tell if physical therapy is preferred and what other options we have from here.

Tomorrow is Easter and I promise that this time I won't be lame and forget to bust out the camera. Cute pictures to follow, I'm sure!

St. Patty's Day and surgery update

2009-03-22T13:20:00.000-07:00

The day before the surgery, Duane wantd to do as much with Kade running around and playing as possible before he would be on crutches for God knows how long. It was also St. Patrick's Day which was a super excuse to take pictures of my crazy face:) So, we went to an awesome park that Kade happens to love not too far away and got some cute shots:)

And now for thr surgery updates! Sure enough, they went in and found another tear in the meniscus that had been repaired with the first surgery but when he fell in mid-December, it just undid all the repair. The doctor went and looked all around to see if there was anything else that could be causing him such massive amounts of pain and that was it. So, that is good news. Second part of good news is that Duane has no weight bearing restrictions, so whenever he feels strong and confident enough to put weight on it, he will start to walk. Which basically means, there is no 8 weeks out like the last time...music to our ears. This is wonderful to hear also, because he will be back in commission in time for me to have the baby which was a huge concern for us going into this surgery. Now, the wonderful job hunt begins...joy:)

baby update

2009-03-17T09:05:00.001-07:00

Over the weekend, I had been feeling a significant drop in where the baby was and it hurts to stand or walk or do anything really. So, I scheduled an appt. for yesterday and they did the fetal monitoring and checked me and sure enough, the baby's head is down, he's dropped and I am dialted just a fingertip. The doctor told me to take it easy for the next ten days so we would be in my 36th week. Take it easy?! My husband gets surgery tomorrow morning! Thank goodness for good friends that help me because I don't know how I would "take it easy" any other way.

So, that's the news. Tomorrow morning at 10:00 is the surgery and hopefully I can last at least another month!!! Here's hopin:)

surgery!

2009-03-14T14:32:00.000-07:00

After talking to the workmans' comp worker and explaining to her that I am due April 26th, so a speedy surgery approval would be wonderful, she rushed the request and approved it in 4 dyas(as opposed to 4 months last time)! So, the surgery is scheduled for this coming Wednesday the 18th. I am a little anxious about it considering that I am into my eighth month and going to be doing a lot of things that Duane really helps me with but I have a lot of wonderful friends and family here to help me with the house, Dad, and Kade so I can focus on Duane a little bit.

I'll update again on Wednesday or Thrusday to let you know how it went.

so close...yet so far

2009-03-04T16:01:00.000-08:00

I haven't updated yet this month and I have a couple of cute pictures of Kade but I can't find the cord to transfer them:(

So, here's what's been going on...

I am currently 32 weeks 3 days pregnant. I know, it's gone by oh so fast! Starting March 11th, I go in twice a week for fetal monitoring just as a safety precaution because of my pregnancy history and protein s deficiency. We are kind of in a tizzy to get everything done and taken care of before this baby comes. Our car that we had was old and needed replacing BADLY as soon as the tax returns came, we paid off all of our bills and put a down payment on a 2004 Saturn Vue which we love. It's a huge weight off of our shoulders to have a safe car for the babes to ride in, its something I was stressing out over a lot. We recently got the big stuff out of the way like the car seat and double stroller. I am just picking out the crib and I will have everything I need.

Kade is doing so good, being a big boy. That is the focus of our days, trying to give him confidence that he is mommy and papa's big boy and what all "big boy" things that entails. He speech is coming along ridiculously well. The other day, we were eating at Togo's and he wanted a drink of his lemonade so he kinda grunts at me and I said, "Use your nice words" and he, clear as day says,"May I please...have some soda?" I couldn't believe it! I had been working on breaking the words up with him and had only done it in 3 word breaks but he just went and did it without any help. I was sooo proud. Things like that are every day happenings here with him, he is just getting so big. He knows that he is big brother and the baby is little brother. It melts my heart when he gives "little budder tellan" kisses:)

Duane is set for his second surgery on his meniscus. He had a fall while he was on crutches after the first surgery and the doctor fears that, due to the pain level he is experiencing, he tore again. The MRI showed nothing, so the doctor did a cortisone shot and still no improvement. Our last resort is to go in with the camera and check for additional damage done during the fall. So, the request has been sent off to workman's comp and we are hoping and praying he gets in sometime before the next 4 weeks considering how far along I am.

For those of you reading for an update on dad as well, he is doing FABULOUS. He recently had some lab tests done and his kidney function bumped up from 30% to 40% which puts him up out of stage 4 kidney disease into stage 3! We are so excited that things are going well, its a huge triumph, for me, to know that he will be here a little bit longer to watch his grandchildren and great-grandchildren grow. When 6 months ago we were looking at dialysis in the near future, now we are no where near it! I am just so ecstatic:)

So that's what is going on here. We are patiently awaiting Kellan Seymour, hoping for surgery soon and a speedy recovery for Duane. Pictures to follow, I promise:)

Kade's "Happy -Day!"

2009-02-04T14:06:00.000-08:00

That's what Kade's calls it, he drops the "birth" in "birthday.":)

I, like a ditz AGAIN, forgot to take my camera out during the party because well, this child inside me is basically sucking out all common sense and logic as well as energy:) I could kick myself considering that both sets of grandparents, step-grandma and great-grandpa were there. That and the lighting was perfect on this sunny day so the pictures would'v been great:(

So, I remembered right around cake time that pictures needed to be taken, so my sister happily obliged and took some for me. I then took pictures of the center pieces afterwards:)

The homemade invitations

the centerpieces that we painted to match the theme(i hate character parties, can you tell?)

the tables

I realized the day before the party that I had a cake to make so I enlisted the help of my best friend, Catherine aka Batman, whose mom made Kade's pirate cake last year, to "help" me aka do it for me:)

Kade blowing out the candles...he really did it by himself!

Red and Ribbit

2009-01-29T14:17:00.001-08:00

For Kade's 2nd birthday, we wanted to give him something special that was purely his so what better than a new pet? We have a dog named Sadie but she is very much my dog and loves her Papa and Grandpa and is warming up to Kade even through his craziness. Since we are in a rental, the pet comes down to this...a goldfish and a frog. We went to Walmart today and got him his little pets. So meet...

Red, the Gold Fantail(Kade thought I was asking what color the fish was when I said, what is his name...he didnt get the color right but he keeps calling it Red:)

Meet Ribbit(same thing. I asked him what the frog's name was and he thought I was asking what does a frog say, so we stuck with it:) He's kind of ugly but Kade is in love with this little guy

Kade giving them goodnight fishie kisses before his nap

their tank

Kade, My 2 Year Old

2009-01-27T09:57:00.001-08:00

Kade will be 2 tomorrow, but last night we went and got his 2 year pictures done at a studio. The lady was so good with him and even though he was un-rested because he decided he didn't want to take a nap that day and he was a little scared and confused, she got him to smile and laugh. So, these are the pictures and I am just so in love with my big boy:)

and then these are my favorites without the number 2

And yes, he is digging for something in particular. He wouldn't put his hands in his pockets and keep them there so we put M&M's in there and he is trying deperately to get them:) LOL

remember the dreaded cowboy costume?

2009-01-20T08:10:00.000-08:00

Well, I didn't get back to Children's Place in time to take it back so we just kind of have it in hopes that maybe one day we'll get to use it lol.

For Christmas, Duane's mom got Kade an Elmo DVD called Elmos Wild Wild West. He is absolutely obsessed with this movie and to show his true devotion, he now will wear the cowboy hat all around the house and says things like,"Yee'haw!!!" I secretly love it:)

Pointing to Cowboy Elmo

Saying "cheese" really big I guess lol

my park deprived man

2009-01-14T19:08:00.001-08:00

Because of the "cold" weather here(ok so its been between like 45-60 in the last 2 months), we have not been taking Kade to the park because he has had a constant sinus infection. I've been feeling like I'm depriving my son of something as serious as when he was a newborn and I was having trouble breastfeeding. I've really been so sad about it, because I feel like if he doesn't work his large muscles he's gonna be this hyper crazy little man by 3 o'clock. It's probably the pregnancy kool-aid talking lol

So, I snapped a couple pictures. Excuse the brightness, it was so bright outside, I couldn't see on my camera screen how white is actually was. but they turned out ok. Let's face it, his face is darn near perfect so, I really have no complaints lol

And then there's my little soccer star lol

Ok, may I point out the stupid hat. I know you noticed it, its too ugly to not notice. haha. Duane's little cousin gave it to him and he insists on wearing it all day every day with the exception of nap time and bed time and bath time. Otherwise, he's got the hat. The only reason he's not wearing it in the swing pictures is because it kept falling off:)

He is big...i say that every post, I know...but I need to get it through my thick head I guess:)

Meet Pilar...

2008-12-27T21:42:00.000-08:00

the catapillar...

Notice that little fuzzy thing in Kade's arms?? That is Pilar aka The Very Hungry Catapillar. He ripped his book and so for Christmas, I got him a little set of the book and it came with the catapillar. He absolutely LOVES this thing and tonight, asked if he could sleep with it. I had to say yes, even though I know he'll stay up all night pointing out where all its body parts should be and naming them off for all to hear over the monitor. And for those of you who know that Kade has a blanket that he is particularly fond of, it is buried under his new(well, its old. Duanes mom made it for him when he was born) airplane blanket that he has had since birth but has discovered about a month ago that it has airplanes on it. He MUST have it to go to bed. He was being so stinking cute tonight, I just had to whip out the camera and take a picture of his "cheeses."

Which brings this question into my mind...did any of you ever think when you were pregnant that you wouldn't be able to love the new baby anywhere near as much as the older? Because as he grows and matures and I fall in love more and more, the question pops into my mind:)

secret santa?

2008-12-23T20:00:00.000-08:00

The weirdest thing happened! Someone rang the doorbell and there on the doorstep was a garbage bag full of presents for us. It must have been someone who didnt know us very well, because the clothes they got for Kade were 4t pants and a 5T shirt. I am almost positive it was someone from church, maybe my home or visiting teachers. It was way sweet but I so would've loved to know who it was so I could say thank you or send a note or something. Anyways, hey got Kade a soccer ball that he absolutely LOVES. He is running around showing all of us over and over saying,"sauter ball!!!" It's quite adorable in fact:)

i know i know

2008-12-06T13:54:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone!!! I am lame as always, I know and forget to update in the last couple months. Here's what's going on in our home...

To give you the immediate update, I am a little over 21 weeks and had my ultrasound today and well..

ITS A BOY!!!

thats right boy number 2:) We are beyond ecstatic and cannot wait for this little one:)

Last year around this time, Duane fell at work and dislocated is kneecap and the doctors found a torn miniscus about 6 months ago. We've been waiting for workmans comp to approve the surgery and he got it on Nov 12. They found tears on both sides of his knees so he will be off his feet until mid-January.

Kade will be two in a little over a month. I am a lot more comfortable with the fact that he is a big man because I know by the time I am really depressed about it, I will just have a new little baby. The way God works is amazing.

Thanksgiving...we went to my sister, Glenda's house in San Clemente. It was a little challanging with Kade for the first time. He is the kind of boy who likes to move....all the time. So sitting in the carseat then being trapped in hotel room with 3 other people took a toll on him. But all around he had a lot of fun at my sister's house. I could really kick myself for not taking pictures at all except for Kade driving down. I had my dad's 3 daughters and I didn't even think about taking a picture. Anyhoo-Glenda worked her butt off and made a delicious, gigantic, beautiful meal enjoyed by all.

We got our Christmas tree and hung the stockings and did a little bit of Christmas shopping. I have to tell you I am truly obsessed with the Christmas season. I would listen to the music and have my tree up year-round if it wasn't a tid bit creepy:)

So that sums up the last couple months and now some pictures of whats been going on:)

his new choo choo jammies..hes choochoo obsessed

We went to Carson City to visit my dad's brother, Vaughn and went to the Nevada Day parade

Corn mazes

And then came Christmas time:)

this house we're at has over 150,000 lights and a CHOO CHOO TRAIN!!!! haha, he went nuts

A picture of him smiling with santa...kinda haha

There are a couple more that I will update later with:) I promise I will stay on top of it this time. So, to sum it up, we are very happy, looking forward to Duane feeling 100%(oh he can start putting weight on his foot on Christmas Eve), and enjoying all the time we have left with just Kade. His latest thing is singing. He loves to sing! His favorites include "Adelweiss," "Daddy's Little Girl," which we change to "Mommy's Little Man," "All I Wanna Do," by Sugarland(he really just sings the do-ooo-ooo-ooo-ooo part haha), and he tries so hard to sing his "ABC's." But he says random letters, mostly B I U Y O P over and over in a different order haha. He is just becoming BIG and we LOVVVE it:)

quick

2008-10-28T18:24:00.001-07:00

I went for my 1st Trimester Screening today(which I'm not really even in it anymore, but they had to push it back) and they did an ultrasound and the baby measured at 14 wks 2 days and I'm supposed to be 13 wks 3 days so I am about a week farther along than they thought. My doctor might change the due date to April 26th. I will update this with the pictures later:) Yay, one week closer to having my little love!

lame

2008-10-26T10:12:00.000-07:00

I wish I had some cute pictures to show you but I left the battery charger for my camera at the country club my brothers wedding was at and my card port on the computer isnt working. Sad story. I do have pumpkin patch photos awaiting an upload though.

So, I am now 13 weeks which means I'm in my 2nd trimester. The sickness is kind of subsiding and I'm more having problems with my migraines. I usually just take some Tylonel PM and it doesn't come back until the next day around dinner time. My appetite is coming back and unfortunately the things I want are pizza and bbq'd chili dogs on a wheat bun...don't ask..Hahah. I am definately starting to show which is odd to me but once I realize I'm 13 weeks, it's not so odd. So, I have a belly picture. Since my camera is dead, I had to resort to the camera phone, sad. This was a little over a week ago but I look the same. I'm too small for maternity pants but my regular pants are too tight so I'm resorting to the rubberband on the button.

Duane's knee surgery is scheduled for November 12th which is 2 days after our 3 year wedding anniversary, so we are going to hopefully be doing something the previous weekend. He is stoekd to be relieved of his pain and then he has a job waiting for him in December sometime if not then January. He starts school in January and will hopefully be joining the electricians union in early June.

So, things will be looking up soon. I am just enjoying being pregnant and really enjoying the time I have left alone with Kade. I'm trying not to call him "my baby" anymore. I don't want him to be confused or hurt when the baby comes. For now, he's "mommy's big boy." And he gets very happy when he hears that. Which means I have to coem to the realization that he is a big boy! He is growing out of his 3T shirts...he's a big boy:)

Lazy me

2008-10-16T22:51:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged in a while. I've just been dealing with a lot...I have a Protein S deficiency and because only a few thousand people have it worldwide(not to mention I am my doctor's first case in his 23 years as an OB) there is not much research or really any guidelines of treatment to go by. Basically, it makes my blood more likely to clot and since the baby's veins are so tiny, I have to take baby Asprins to thin my blood until I'm 28 weeks at which point my blood will be a good consistency to the baby's veins. If this treatment is not working, I have to give myself a shot every day. Sounds fun...They don't know any cause other than gentics and since my dad has had kidney failure, stroke, heart attack, clots in his legs etc., they are leaning toward the possiblity that it comes from him. So, I need to go back in his medical records to find if he's ever been tested for it.

Other than that, dad's leg is sooo much better. He can put weight on it now which makes him want to be incredibly independent and go on his crutch alone which is not going to happen again after I asked him if he wanted to end up back in the wheelchair:)

No luck yet on the job front. I'm staying positive. The basics of it is the economy sucks and Duane's line of work is production so if people aren't spending money, there is no production, hence no need for new employees. The frustrating thing is he just needs a temporary job until May when he finishes his classes necessary to join the electrician's union(my dad did it for 40 years and my 2 other brothers do it and he is very intrigued and needless to say, he's making my Dad proud so that helps him:)

My denial of the fact that Kade is almost two is worsening. "He's almost 21 months!" I have to correct people when they call him a two year old:) And to prove that he is HUGE I have recent pictures that blow even my mind

Playing baseball outside before church

Ok, so here is where the big boy in him makes me sad...we are a BIG sports family and he is definately part of the family:) He starts with almost perfect form

And THEN, look at how he follows throught with his foot...his dad and grandpa were pretty amazed...haha

I am trying to accept that in 3 months, my man will be 2 which then means in 3 months after that, I will have a newborn little baby love. Though I have been sad about being pregnant and Duane being laid off, I am almost glad that I am pregnant while this was happening because I have something to look forward to, something to be positively hopeful for and even when I get sad or worried, the joy of how amazing this whole process is is overwhelming. It is most definately a blessing:)

how's this for an update

2008-10-06T21:21:00.000-07:00

Duane got laid off today. Gotta love the economy. They had to downsize and it really sucks. They got him severence pay, which was nice of them. They do, however, have to pay Duane workmans comp when he gets his knee surgery in the next couple weeks for the fall he had at work back around December.

So, my medical expires October 31st. I've been stressed out all day about not having money and I just realized, "Oh wait, I'm not gonna have medical insurance for my unborn child!"

I'm kind of freaking out and Duane is really down on himself and I am trying my hardest to stay strong for him and let him know that there was nothing he could've done different.

So, I will keep you updated on the job search, considering that will be our lives for the next however long it takes.

103.9..yeah, thats right

2008-09-30T17:31:00.000-07:00

So, in the middle of the...morning(haha), Tuesday morning...Kade woke up at 2:00 am and was abnormally hot. I didn't test his temperature because it was quite obvious that he had a fever, so I gave him some Tylonel and put him in bed with us. Enter 5:30 in the morning: wake up again, more medicine. Wakes up at 8:15 am with a burning fever and I realize that the thermometor got lost in the move. So, I run to the store where my son decides to puke all over himself and aisle 4. I run home, test his temperature and its 103.5. Give him more medicine, call the advice nurse and she suggests supossitories(sp?) since the Tylonel isn't touching that fever. So, I run back to the store and ease Kade's request to see his "noona" aka Duane's mom, so we go over to her house where he is zoning out and falls asleep. He wakes up seriously looking scary and pale and has a rash all over him and so I rush to the doctors, pay my stupid $100 co-pay(insurance is being sooo lame right now, thats a different post:) and take him back there, the doctor check his temperature at 103.9, give him a double dose of Tylonel, rushes him to the back, wraps him in warm towels to break the temperature and here is Kade, yelling at the top his his poor little lungs,"MOOOMMM, ALL DUM!!!!" And the nurses at this point must think I am horrible because he is so stinkin' cute yelling at the top of his lungs, I can't help but slightly smile. So, the fever breaks, crisis averted, and that sick little cuddly boy that I selfishly love is back. But STILL today, he refuses to eat food, he has something wrong with his mouth so it hurts when he eats or drinks, and today, he wouldn't sleep at all. It is actually quite the miracle that he is sleeping now and it's almost midnight. Each day is a surprise at this point. But hey, he is completely active today, whereas yesterday my poor man couldn't even stand without his knees buckling and to my sheer delight, he is still as cuddly as he is when he is sick.

Although, tomorrow will be day 3 without eating and if he refuses food, I'm gona have to take him back to the doctor.

Like I said, just another day in paradise:)

Everything is OK! update with picture

2008-09-24T13:15:00.000-07:00

I went in for my physical today and kind of begged the doctor for a sonogram:) I told him I just would like it for my piece of mind. So, he did it and...I am farther along than he thought! He changed my due date to May 2, 2009 and I am 8 wks 4-5 days based on the size of the baby and the baby's heart beat is STRONG 170 BPM. I haven't gained any weight(I've actually lost 1 lbs:), my blood pressure is nice and low(which is actually a surprise for how wired I've been feeling) and I am just so relieved! He said I measured small because my uterus was just really soft, probably because this is my 3rd pregnancy. So, all my fears are silenced and as my mom said, I choose to be positive and happy. I cried all those tears for nothing and now I have learned my lesson. My Heavenly Father will keep me and my little family, I just have to be positive and faithful. I don't have my scanner right now, but I will post the picture soon. Thank you all for the prayers and well wishes. Duane and I are soooooo happy!

Update!!!

Her is the sonogram picture. This one showed the yolk sac the best, but the other pictures either measured 8 wks 4 days or 8 wks 5 days, but this one says 8 wks 3 days. Since the majority of them were more, he changed the due date to May 2:) The scanner kinda blared out the baby but oh well, it's a positive result!

pushed back

2008-09-22T12:10:00.000-07:00

The doctor pushed back my appt to Wednesday because he has surgery. This doctors office must think I'm a crazy lunatic because I call their office 3 times a day to see if my test results are back yet(including my hormone levels to determine if they are as high as they should be for how far along i am supposed to be). It's a good thing the one nurse there is treating me with concern and respect because otheriwse I would've switched doctors by now. She has miscarried several times and she is being very cooperative with me in figuring out what is going on. She said she would talk to the doctor about him just doing the sonogram on Wednesday because I will be 8 wks 3 days. I am not having any of the warning signs of miscarraige yet so I am trying to stay positive that I am just not as far along as predicted.

I am still frustrated with the doctor but I will deal.

On a different note, I have started reading,"The Happiest Toddler on the Block" and I have learned a lot about how to deal with my "spirited child." Thank you Sarah for telling me about this book! I am finding myself not nearly as frustrated and being able to repeat back to him his frustrations and reason with him is helping us immensely today! I haven't gotten to the clapping technique yet but after reading your blog, I tried it out a different way and he is doing ok with it. We will see how my little cave-man progresses. Haha

rough night

2008-09-19T07:51:00.001-07:00

For no apparent reason last night, Kade has a really bad awakening around midnight and had a fit every time we left his room until 1:45 am. So, after "the longest hour and a half of my life," says Duane, I apparently in my delusional state, told Duane to just bring Kade into our bed and I awoke to this...

He had overtaken our bed. I was halfway off the edge...here's a better picture of him sprawled across my queen bed(I never thought he could take up this much room)

He absolutely tore the bed up, took the whole thing over and looked oh so precious doing it:)

That's my daily vanity in the 3rd person:)

im panicked

2008-09-17T21:52:00.000-07:00

So,to preface this post, as most of you know, before I was pregnant with Kade, I had a not so fun miscarraige that was mid-pregnancy and had to be induced and deliver this baby.

Today when I had my appt, first of all, we switched insurance(not by choice) so I pay a heck of a lot more of a heck of a lot less, so instead of having the amazing Kaiser where everything I need is in one building, I get Aetna aka "go to a million different doctors and buildings in 5 different cities just to find out if your pregnant."

So, I have the appt, I have to check all those boxes about pregnancy history which is really hard for the nurses and doctor to grasp the fact...3 total pregnancies, 1 live birth, one miscarraige, and this one. Out of the other two, both were vaginal deliveries. They looked at me like I was stupid,"So, it's actually 1 vaginal delivery.." like they know. NO ITS TWO!!! I really had to explain it in detail to 5 different people that I had to deliver this "fetal demise" as they kept calling it. That's really something to want to re-live over and over in a matter of an hour.

Anyhow, thats just the half of it. So, everything as far as THIS pregnancy is going well until they inform me that my uterus isn't as big as it should for as far along as I am. I immediately assume, ok, well I'm pretty sure I am 5 weeks from conception anyways but the doctor had told me 7.5 so whatever. They go straight to their little voice recording device and state,"patient has smaller uterus than expected due date. this is cause for concern due to the patient's history of fetal demise, possible abnormality." I never even crossed my mind till they said it. Now those old feelings are coming up and everyone keeps telling me, just relax and wait.

Oh yeah...WAIT. That's exactly what I'm going to have to do. I have to go back tomorrow morning to fill out more paperwork, then go to a completely seperate town for a lab test, wait a week for an appt with the doctor then go to another town to a gentic specialist who will give me the 1st trimester sonogram(even thought the doctor stated that he could do it himself) because of my history. All the genetic specialist is going to tell me is that I am a carrier for cystic fibrosis. Duane is not, problem squashed.

I am so frustrated with my insurance, with my doctor, with myself for freaking out, and at time for moving so slow. I have to wait 2 weeks to find out if I am carrying another dead child. I am panicking. God, give me strength.

first prayer:)

2008-09-15T19:15:00.000-07:00

So, tonight at dinner, Kade said his first prayer. It sounded a lot like babbling and some words in there like thank you and please and amen, but he folded his arms in the middle of dinner(long after we had already said the prayer) yelled at me, Duane, Grammy and Grandpa(my mom and dad) and insisted that we fold our arms and help him say his prayer. So, he did! It was too cute, Grammy helped him, but he was so proud of himself, it was hilarious to listen to all that babbling. But, it just made me realize, hearing him say Jesus and a variant of Heavenly Father(it didn;t sound anything like it but he tried:) made he really proud of the way he is being raised, with a belief and a knowledge of God. In fact, it made me so happy, it totally overshadowed the fact that I was so upset that he wouldn't eat his dinner:)

gross cravings

2008-09-15T13:31:00.000-07:00

Ok, so around here, we eat pretty healthy, especially since my dad is on a special diet for his diabetes/kidney disease. And with the additional newfound interest in the Deceptively Delicious cookbook, even more so. So why oh why am I daily, craving McDonalds chicken nuggets and french fries??? I know I want the salt, but can't I crave something salty like Pirate's Booty and have it satisfy my craving? No, life just doesn't work that way. And then, I have to bring my son down with me...he LOVES the chicken nuggets and apple dippers there. And, I even let him play in the little gross play area. He went in the little tube things and down the slide a few times and played basketball and once I realized there was a funny smell coming from there, I had to bolt, sad and ashamed. LOL. This is a problem...I just need to stay busy cooking dinner and pureeing my veggies and stay away from Mickey D's. I'll cry if these cravings last all 9 months:)

Spaghetti Pie accomplished:)

2008-09-10T21:52:00.000-07:00

It was pretty good. My only recommendation is that you maybe mix some crumbled crackers in with thr meatballs and cook them seperately then add them to the pie, THEN bake it. Haha. It's a lot of extra effort but otherwise, they are too soggy. Also, I would say to add a tid bit of garlic powder or an extra garlic clove. It was pretty good though...add some extra pepper and a dash of parmasean cheese on top and its good:) Kade DEVOURED it...mission accomplishes...MWAHAHAH:)

ahhhh...forgot

2008-09-10T10:07:00.000-07:00

I totally forgot to post his video! So, at Kade's great-grandparents house they have a baseball tee and Kade LOVEEEES baseball, so of course he plays with the tee. When we came home after he first played with it, we found him using an Alhambra water jug as a tee, and he was like 15 months old, so we were amazed at the creativity that he had. Anyways, so we still let him use the jug as his little tee just because he likes it. So we started saying, "Here batta batta batta batta" when he's hitting the ball and he tries so hard to say it too, poor guy:)

first attempt at being decpetive:)

2008-09-10T09:39:00.000-07:00

So, yesterday we went to Trader Joe's and got all the stuff we needed for basically every recipe in the book:) I just have one queston for you ladies...How the heck do you fit all the purees in the fridge! I think I'm gonna need a bigger fridge pretty soon here haha. With a household of 4 + 2 every other week, it's slightly full. So, last night I made the Tortilla Cigars...they were a hit! I, like a ding dong, didn't take any pictures of the finished product, but I did come to my senses while everyone else but Kade was done. He loved them! They are soooo good with Sour Cream, we use the non-fat stuff. We also had guacamole and salsa available to dip. We had my mom and our best friend and her daughter over for dinner. Her daughter is 9 and we told her that there was yellow squah and carrots in it after she told us how good they were. She was not very happy that I had tricked her:) But she got over it...

And I think I must make note that I,myself do not enjoy vegatables...at ALL, in any way shape or form. But I must admit, they were pretty freaking good. Duane is begging for the Spaghetti Pie and the Pita Pizzas, so I think that's up next. I personally am ready for the Aloha Chicken Kabobs, thanks to you Erin:)

Ok, so here are a couple pictures that I got

this is hilarious...he asks for a napkin and he wipes from his belly up to his eyes...big man:)

so cute and so disgusting all at the same time

2008-09-07T11:08:00.000-07:00

So, Kade discovered his nostrils a while ago but never had any interest in digging for gold, so to speak....until now. He doesn't like, "dig in" pick his nose but he thinks it's hilarious when I tell him,"ewww, gross!" So he continues to do it. Hilarious

Also, my son now knows 4 songs and actually will randomly bust out singing them

1. Itsey Bitsey Spider

2. Popcorn Popping

3. Old McDonald

4. All I Wanna Do by Sugarland

yeah, thats right...i hear all day,"oo-ooo-ooo-ooo-ooo"

It is so unbelieveable adorable and hilarious and I just relaize more and more that he is a big boy and picks up everything he sees and hears.

the crying hormone

2008-09-06T20:44:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's back. Last night, I watched the Stand Up To Cancer marathon and definately cried through the whole thing. At first, Duane was laughing at me, because he is very aware that when I am pregnant, my emotions are all over the place.

Then tonight, I watched The Locator. This man is like a PI reuniting people with their families. As I had 2 brothers that I met for the first time almost 10 years ago now, it really evoked such strong emotion in me. I cried, of course:) For anyone interested, it's on the WE channel on Saturdays. I don't remember what time because I just pressed the DVR button to record but you have got to watch this show.

Kade's new thing: pretending to wash Duane's and my hair. He opens one hand, pokes it with his index finger, rubs his hands together and rubs our heads. It took us the longest time to figure out what the heck he was doing! Haha...he is just too much:)

i hopped on the deceptive bandwagon:)

2008-09-04T22:32:00.000-07:00

True story...Kade used to be soo good with eating whatever was given to him but now, like me, he sees anything green and there is no way. I can slip some peas into his burrito or green beans into a rice and chicken cassarole but one of my biggest fears having a child was that they would be like me. I hate veggies! I hate the texture, taste, everything, I gag everytime. I can only eat spinach in things, the french style green beans in stuff and sprouts or a piece of romaine lettuce on my sandwiches...So, I have seen so many of your guy's success with the Deceptively Delicious cookbook and i went and bought it and a new blender(mine broke some time ago and I never had a reason to replace it:) I can't wait:)

sick and video of the mister

2008-09-04T01:25:00.001-07:00

I'm getting sick..inevitable...but unfortuantely it is not a direct result of the pregnancy. Everyone everywhere I go is sick with a cold and now Kade and I are catching on and I will feel sooo bad if my dad gets it too:( I basically have a ridiculously sore throat that has come on in the matter of hours...I'm basically miserable...

Got to FINALLY see my America's Next Top Model and Project Runway tonight...they both look soo good. Thank goodness for my DVR.

So, new video...Kade is exploring putting his clothes on and off, naming all his body parts which is hilarious considering he is showing an interest in picking his and MY nose(sooo gross) and today was his uncle's birthday so we've been trying to get him to annunciate his words a little better from the happy birthday we saw on his 1st birthday which sounded like,"ah-pah ba-da-ba" in a Gus-Gus(the chubby mouse from Cinderella)/Napolean Dynamite-like sounding voice:) The video is sideways because I'm so smart:)

Also, a couple of funny pictures from the last couple days...

This is Kade's mischevious look right before he books it into his room to a dead end which brings nothing but tickle torture and nap time:)

This one is on my crappy camera that washes everyone out but i love his little profile and love the Katy Perry on the TV

and another one taken by the crazy face himself with Catherine's feet in the background...mwaaahahaha

Worst Morning EVER

2008-09-02T15:33:00.000-07:00

I went this morning, I reluctantly left Dad for a quick cut and color with Kade in tow. I get there prepared with my snacks, books, toys, sippy and stroller to entertain him. When all of those devices had failed, I called Duane's mom, Laura, to come pick him up. As she's looking through my bag for the keys to get his carseat out, she cannot find them. And my heart sank...I knew I had locked them in the car. CRAP! So, I had to call OnStar to unlock the car and lo and behold, the system in the car is no longer compatible, it needs to be replaced...now I had my dad's van and he has been paying for this service that they no longer can provide him unless he gets the whole system replaced. So, I call AAA. I'm not on the account and my dad or mom has to be there to be able to open the car. So, Dad has to call and put me on the account and he thought I had gone to Tracy to get my hair cut but we moved so of course, I'm here in Manteca. So, I had to call AAA back to have them come to Manteca...and this whole time the poor lady was trying to dye, cut, and style my hair. I had to get up a million times to go out to the car. It was horrible. And I thank God that Kade was not in the car when I locked it. So, thats my blonde moment for the day. And when Duane gets home, him and Dad are going to have a field day making fun of me...shoot.

I'll post the new hair when I'm in a better mood...and I don't like the way she styled it...it kinda looks like a bowl cut HAHA...I'll work with it

color the skies

2008-08-31T22:15:00.000-07:00

So, today we went to Color the Skies, a charity event benefiting Children's Hospital. This was going on yesterday and today but since everything that happened Friday with Dad, we wouldn't go yesterday. So anyways, the event includes craft for kids, games, animal petting, jumphouses and most importantly, hot air balloons and hot air balloon rides and a choo choo ride. Since the wind was so strong, they had to take the balloons down(which sucked, I reallyknew I would be able to get some amazing shots:) but that didn't stop us from enjoying the rest of the activities. Kade had a much needed day with mom and papa out of the house. I tried to get Grandpa to come, but he was in too much pain still, which was fine, completely understandable. Soooo...here are some quick pics of the fun we had:)

he did the hot air balloon craft but was not very happy with it on his wrist so papa put it on his belt loop and he didn't like that either haha

trying to pet and pick up the bunnies. I am not a big fan of the animal petting but thank goodness they had sanitary stuff on hand

duane's brother richard and his son brody also came with...kade loves "un-co" and "bobo"

he was a little hesitant at the jumphouse at first...his crazy hair that i know i need to cut! lol

but he eventually warmed up in the obstacle course jumphouse and then the big boy in him came out

and then he tried to use his bubble stick as a sword, brody was not too into it:)

then he got a papa ride

and perhaps the most adorable thing abou tthe whole day was how badly he wanted to fly a kite like the other big boys but we had to run home to Grandpa so we didnt have time to do the kite craft:( lol

So longest blog ever I know but we had a ball today so revel in it with me OK:)

Dad is doing better. I took him to the doctor tonight because he was complaining of ribpain and the splint and ACE bandage they put on his hand made it swell a lot because of the already lack of blood flow that it made worse, so I wanted to know what else we could do for it. They ended up taping the pinky and ring finger together. The knee they think has a fracture based on a faint line on the xrays, so on Tuesday, I am calling his doctor to have him referred to orthopedic specialists. He is in pain but same old dry sense of humor dad we all love.

I'll pretty much be updating about him on here, so keep checking:)