so.so.so.behind.

I am so behind on posting about my adorable kiddos that I don’t even know where to start.  My little sweet potato is no longer on formula – as of Thanksgiving she is a whole milk drinker =)  Now we just have one on formula!  She is also getting 2 more of her top teeth in – the ‘sharp’ ones (!) – poor girl!!  Gage has started smiling and cooing – it’s just adorable!  [although he does smile more for daddy]  Gavin continues to amaze me every single day.  He’s just such a funny, bright, sensitive, polite little man and I love him to pieces.  Things here have been quite crazy, to say the least, but I feel so blessed to have these beautiful children.. I’m one lucky momma!!  Some days are great, others not so much, but I just try to take it all one hour at a time and just be the best I can be.. for myself and my family.  My main issue right now is finding time to work out..  I am miserable with this extra weight but sadly have very limited time to do anything about it.  I got sucked into a zumba ad on tv this morning – it sure looked fun and looked like a great workout.  Maybe I will look for a zumba dvd and give that a try.

Okay, that’s enough.. Big G, Middle G and Little G are all asleep so Momma K should be sleeping too!!

(i am so far behind I never even posted about Gage meeting his Great Grammie for the first time.. boy was that emotional.. but so so so so special!)

party time!

This week will be full of 1st birthday party preparations and praying for my brother’s health – strange combo I guess.  I don’t want to share details about my brother on the blog yet but prayer for him and for my family would be greatly appreciated.

Here is Miss Gabby’s FIRST birthday party invitations.. I ordered them through Etsy and I love love love them!  The date was printed incorrectly on the first order but the seller fixed it and printed them again for me!

I promise I will post photos after the party!!  I cannot believe my little Gummy Bear, Sweet Potato is almost ONE year old!! =)

keeping my mind off things..

Some frightening things have been happening with my brother Chris.  I won’t go into detail yet on here but prayers are greatly appreciated.  I’d be lying if I said it hasn’t really gotten to me; for many different reasons.  The situation has been weighing heavy on my heart and my mind so I thought I’d do the Wee Bit of Me Wednesday questions to get my mind off of things for a little while.

{one} what kind of camera do you have?
Well, I have 3 that I use currently.  My DSLR is a Nikon D40, my point and shoot is a Canon A560 (I think) and then we have another digital with a really decent zoom.. it’s a Lumix (something) – that one was Steven’s before we met but I’ve claimed it as my own now =)

{two} you just won $1000 and you have to spend it on yourself on one item. what do you buy?  most likely a new camera.. I don’t know which one but something real fancy =)
{three} if you had to choose, would you rather live with your parents in the same house forever or 5000 miles away?
oh my goodness, definitely in the same house.. I could NOT be 5000 miles away from my parents, heck no!!  And I would NOT want my kiddos to be that far away from their grandparents.
{four} is your christmas tree up yet?
not yet – we hope to go pick it out and chop it down sometime during the first week of December
{five} do you bring reusable bags to the grocery store?
yes.
{six} which would be worse: listening to the same song on replay for the rest of your life or having to eat the same meal everyday for the rest of your life?
listening to the same song on replay for the rest of my life – that would drive me bonkers!!
{seven} name 3 things you are thankful for this season.
my beautiful family, my health & my job.
{eight} do you dye/highlight your hair? if so, do you do it yourself or have it done at the salon?
I do dye my hair.. not too often though; the last time I dyed it was a few weeks ago and the end result was awful.  My hair was black.. scary black.. so I had to get it corrected.  Thank goodness my dear ‘sister’ Patty saved me and gave me her hairdresser’s number!! I’ve now learned my lesson and will only be having Tricia dye my hair from now on.  I do hope to get highlights soon; something different!

{nine} would you rather watch a movie at home or at the theater?
I almost forget what it’s like to watch a movie at the theater.. it’s been at least 2 years since Steven and I have seen a movie any other place than at home.  It’s fun to get out but it can get expensive. 

{ten} would you rather win $1000/week for life or $5 million all at once?
I’d say $5 million all at once; I’d love to know that, should something happen to me, my kiddos would be set.. and I’m assuming if something would happen to me the $1000 a week would end.

good distraction for now.. I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable Thanksgiving!!

lots to be thankful for.

you’re getting sleeeeeepy

Dear Gage’s sleeping habits,

I’m sorry but it’s just not working out.. and I hate to say it but it’s you, not me that needs to change!  Having Gage wake up every 2 – 2 1/2 hours at night to eat is simply not okay.  Momma is tired and needs her ‘beauty sleep’ and Gage needs his ‘rockstar son’ sleep so we’d appreciate it if you’d stop what you’re doing and make a change.  Here’s what I propose – maybe 4 hours stretches at night – is that too much to ask??  He does 4 hours naps during the day, why can’t they happen at night?!  Momma does appreciate that he (usually) falls right back to sleep after eating at night but really, waking every 2 hours, no thanks =)

In all seriousness.. both Gavin and Gabby were fairly good sleepers.  Actually both slept through the night at 7 weeks.  Obviously that did not remain constant but they were definitely up to 4 or 5 hour stretches at night.  I just don’t know what to do with Gage.  He naps during the day, about 3 or 4 hours per nap and then is awake for a good bit of time.  I thought at first he was sleeping too much during the day but I really don’t know that he is.  He really isn’t on too much of a schedule yet either.. maybe that’s the problem.. but again, Gav and Gabby created their ‘own’ schedule that just worked well.  Is it even possible to ‘put’ a 6 week old on a schedule??

Okay, enough complaining for now.. I am going to try and get some shut eye while he is actually asleep.. for the next 20 minutes or so!

Love & blessings!!!

wee bit wednesdays.

wee bit wednesdays.

i’m enjoying this new blog i came across – and since there’s been so much going on around here that I’m not even sure where to start I’m just going to do this fun post for tonight!

{one} what time do you normally wake up?

these days it’s not up to me.. but it’s safe to say we are usually all up and getting ready for the day between 6:30 and 7 a.m.

{two} do you have a go-to song for karaoke?

I haven’t sang karaoke since I was in college – back then it was either a Billy Joel song or Livin’ On a Prayer!

{three} if you could only see black and white except for one color, what color would you choose to see?

oh man.. my first thought was red, so I guess I’ll stick with that!

{four} what color best matches your personality?

I am going to say brown – some may say that’s boring – I guess in my eyes it’s a safe, natural color which describes me fairly well – I’m not too crazy, I’m pretty ‘down to earth’ and just a normal gal

{five} if you could choose one meal to cook better than anyone else, what would it be?

anything!  I can cook baked mac-n-cheese and baked ziti – the rest comes out of a box or from a recipe that I usually screw up anyway.

{six} how many keys do you have on your key ring?

two. my car key and our house key.

{seven} do you give your pets birthday/christmas gifts?

nope.  mean, I know!

{eight} when your plate has different foods on it, do you mix or not?

no no no.  I HATE when my food touches or gets mixed together.  I am a BIG fan of sectioned plates =)

{nine} if you could hire someone to do one thing for you all the time, what would it be?

I think I’d have to flip a coin – I can’t decide if I’d say someone to clean my house or someone to grocery shop and cook our meals – I’m bad at both!

{ten} when flying, do you prefer the window or aisle seat?

I will take the window please.

Gage!

I can finally share Gage’s amazing birth announcements that Kelly created for us!  I didn’t want to post it before they had arrived at everyone’s homes and spoil the fun =)  I think they look great.. a huge THANK YOU to Kelly!!!

lots going on here lately – I will try to post more soon =)

Love & blessings!

Big G, Middle G & Little G

My sweet baby Gage gained a pound in 2 weeks!  He now weighs 9 lbs 14 ounces and is oh.so.cute!  He has smiled a few times but this morning I got a really really cute one and it just melted my heart!

Gabby says “HIIIII” now – ‘talk’ about adorable.  She says it in her cute little lady high-pitched voice and waves her hand!  Her daddy was the first to hear it, of course.

Gavin is getting smarter by the day.  He LOVES coloring and writing.  He’s getting really good at making his letters.  And he is still obsessed with hockey.. he even knows which channel it’s on and what time it’s usually on.  Maybe I should take him to the local ice rink and get him on some skates soon!

*every time I get the camera out Gabby does her scrunchie-nose face and Gavin either runs away or becomes Mr. Big Cheese Man =)

Thank You for serving our country!

In honor of Veteran’s Day I just wanted to say thank you to all the brave men and women serving our country and those that have served in years passed.  My father was a soldier in the United States Army and fought in the Vietnam War.  He even had a monkey named Charlie while stationed there =) 

A special THANK YOU to you Dad, I love you!

one.

Our sweet surprise, Gage David, is already one month old.  It’s so funny.. you’re so anxious during those last few weeks of the pregnancy and cannot wait to meet that little baby that’s been kicking you and causing you great discomfort.. then before you know it you’re posting about them already being a month old.. pretty funny.

Anyway, the past month with Gage has definitely been interesting!  Obviously adjusting to life as a family of 5 has it’s difficulties but I think we’re starting to get the hang of things.  It’s a little different now that he’s awake more and wanting to eat more but we are just taking it one day at a time.  Gage has proved to be a pretty easy going baby.  He never gets too fussy or cries too loud.  He does enjoy being held but most recently has really taken a liking to his swing.  He is definitely more alert now and is starting to scope out his surroundings.  I love to snuggle with him and sign to him =)

• we go to the DR on Friday for a weight check
• beginning to move into size 0-3 month clothing
• wears size 1 diapers
• he seems to enjoy having his diaper changed – and he hasn’t peed on me yet..
• not a big fan of bath time or car rides
• loves being held
• eating 3 to 4 ounces every 3 hours (sometimes every 2 1/2 hours at night.. we need to work on this!)
• has taken trips to Target, BabiesRUs, the mall, Best Buy, Friendly’s, Red Robin, Carters and most importantly to visit his Great Grammie!
• sleeping in the pack-n-play in our bedroom – he hated the bassinet
• he also no longer enjoys the burrito wrap; he loves to stretch out his arms and legs
• will definitely be a momma’s boy – no doubt about it =)  [i hope.]
• noise does not bother him much; he must have adjusted to all the loud noises of our house while he was in my tummy

I sure do love my little peanutnut!!  {yes, I have a sweet potato and a peanutnut}  and a whole song of all the nicknames I had for Gavin when he was a baby!

11 months old!

Gabby Louise is one month shy of turning ONE!!  Oh my dear little sweet potato you sure are a fun chick =)

This is your first ‘monthly’ post as a BIG SISTER!!

• mommy isn’t sure how much you weigh or how tall you are but I will work on this!
• you still wear size 3 diapers but we may give size 4 a shot next time
• you say mama, dada, and you are starting to say “gaaa” – but I swear you said Gage last night at Target while playing with him in the cart
• Grammie also thinks you said kitty while visiting GG – I missed it though =(
• You LOVE playing and wrestling with your big bro
• You are 100%, without a doubt, a Daddy’s girl
• pulling of your socks and shoes is just so.much.fun!
• you are not a fan of baby food anymore – you want whatever anyone around you is eating
• you are still drinking about 18 to 24 ounces of formula a day but we hope to introduce you to milk soon
• you wear 12 or 18 month clothing – depending on the brand
• I think you will be walking by your 1st birthday
• you’ve learned how to go down our step into the living room – it only took a few failed attempts (and a pretty nasty bruise) to get it right
• music makes you smile!
• your top front right tooth appeared on October 19th and your top front left tooth appeared on November 4th
• mommy loves your silly little scrunchie-nose face

love you weezie bug =)

Halloween

I didn’t get many photos on Halloween because I was on Gavin-patrol while Steven pushed around the other 2 kiddos.  Gavin was just on the move too much for me to be able to snap anything.. bummer.  We did manage this precious family photo.. my new favorite!!  [thanks Amanda!!]

And my little lady got new kicks – she just loves taking off her shoes and socks anywhere we go so it was time to get some sneaks with laces! (i.heart.pink!)

that’s all for now, Mr. Gage is awake and demanding some food =)

wordless Wednesday

oops, it’s Thursday. [silly Kiley.]

oh well!

how cute is my sweet potato?!

cute & classy photocards from Shutterfly

I know I haven’t posted anything about Halloween yet.. I’ll get there, don’t worry.. but I wanted to post about this before I missed the opportunity.  Shutterfly is offering bloggers the chance to get 50 free holiday cards – head on over to this site to enter your blog.

I’ve been thinking about birth announcements for Gage, Gabby’s birthday invitations and Christmas cards a lot recently.  Every time I look for birthday invitations I get distracted by Shutterfly’s awesome new Christmas card designs!!  I always order at least 4 or 5 gifts from Shutterfly each year; usually calendars for my mom, aunt and mother-in-law and they always turn out wonderful!  I can’t wait to order this years calendars!!  I was looking through the photo cards and found a few that I just love!!!  [of course I think they are all great but really tried to narrow done my favorites.. I think this first one is my most favorite!]  The first one is my favorite because, as many of you know, I am a huge fan of brown!  I also adore the cute tree and fun colors!  It just looks so cute and classy!  I am hoping (fingers crossed!) to get a good photo of each of the kiddos for the photo spots.. how CUTE would that be?!! 

I will be back on sometime soon to share fun costume photos!

Love & blessings!