Compare and Contrast

First watch this...


Then watch this...


Now, is that scary or what?!?!

Hair Done

My hair grows quite quickly apparently. And, as if there are some of you out there who don't know, it is also quite curly. Well, it is bloomin' hot down here in Alabamy, and I grew tired of having my hair on my neck. So, when Kari asked the other day if she could get a hair cut, I decided to join her. We cut Kari's hair to her shoulders. I took a huge leap, and cut off 10 inches (I think it was more... I think her measurement was a bit faulty) to donate to Locks of Love. I was truly a bit terrified after it started to curl up and shrink, and wondered what I had done to myself. I didn't want to be a mushroom head. However, I am quite pleased with the results. This is the shortest my hair has been to my remembering. The hubby is even not totally disgruntled. The off the neck thing didn't work out quite like I planned, since now it is so short, it really has no where else to go, but it still goes in a pony tail, so I am ok.

Mommy and Kari's hair do's together :)

Why we love our children

Once, a few hours ago, a mother was nursing her quite large, but still precious, little son. As she stood him up to burp him (actually, she must now bend his knees and let him kneel while she burps him so he burps onto the cloth and not over her shoulder and onto the couch...) he nuzzled his face into her neck and shoulder, and she loved it. She was amazed at his strength as he used his chubby little arms to push against her shoulder to look right into her face. The mother thought this was so sweet, and was truly touched by the gesture, that her infant son wanted so much to see her face that he used all his strength to get a better view. And then, he burped right in her face. Ahhhh, the sweet smell of spit up... :)


And then, this one time, said precious infant was giving his mommy slobbery kisses all over her cheek. Then he spit up and it went all down her face and into the neck of her shirt. Memories....

The End.

Easy Entertainment

Kari seems fond of blowing up balloons, drawing faces on them, and then kicking them around. Should I be worried this is foreshadowing of things to come? Kidding :) She is becoming quite the art-eest and I am enjoying how her drawings, colorings, and pictures are becoming more and more involved, thought through and detailed. She drew this the other day, and I couldn't resist. Note the "air holes" at the bottom of the nose so the air can come in. Also note the line across the nose at the top. This way, the "air doesn't get out". She is so smart!

Movin' on up... Part Dos...

Dylan has been holding his head up while on his stomach for quite a while now by propping himself up on his elbows. However, only in the last week has he been actually doing push ups... You know: actually using his arms to push. So, the other day I went in to get him from his nap, and he had wrestled his way out of his swaddle (apparently he had been awake for a while). This is what I find:

Peek A Boo... I see you...

I think big sister was doing something over there.

Little sly grin. I am in trouble all ready.

We have tried a few naps in his new crib to see how he likes it. I haven't tried an over night thing yet because, recently, with this teething thing (going on almost 2 weeks now) he has been waking up several times (and I do mean a good too many times) a night. We will transition him to his big boy bed as soon as he goes back to sleeping through the night. I am beginning to wonder if it really is teething or something else. Anyone else have a 2 (or more) week teething experience. If so, any suggestions?

This is him sleeping in his new big boy bed. Hubby said this is the first time he has looked small....

And a cute picture of his chubby legs and little clubbed feet. I couldn't resist.

Kidlet-isms

We said prayers today before eating lunch. Apparently I always say "Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for today.... Etc, etc." Well, today, I just dove right in and skipped this day and went on to the food. Kaitlyn was having none of that. Before I closed, she whispered loudly "Thank for day." Silly girl.

Dylan, as I have mentioned before, drools quite a bit. Today (and every other time she has said it) Kari said, "Mommy, where is the rag? Dylan is drivvling a little bit." Its supposed to be dribble. Who am I to correct her? :)

My Bumbo

If Bumbo's were around when Kari was born, I didn't know about them. If I had know about them, I would have bought one. As it stands, since Kari and Kaitlyn can sit up, and Dylan is not far behind, it is probably a bit late to invest in one. So, we improvise.
We used Kaitlyn's chair and daddy's belt. Works for us.

Family Togetherness

I love it when the kids play together.

I turned my back for one minute, and when I turned around again, this is what I found. Kaitlyn likes to play with her little brother. She really does. She just doesn't understand that laying on him may not be the best idea in the world. Thankfully, her little brother is only slightly smaller than she is, and seems to be weathering the attention well :)

Fort Bedroom, AL

Lately Kari has been asking for entertainment. Well, not asking so much, as demanding. "Mommy, what should I play with?" "I don't know Kari, you have tons of toys. Why don't you play with the babies, or the horses, or the puzzles or the crayons?" "I don't want to play with those. What else can I play with?" What happened to the toddler who could amuse herself with just about anything. We are going to have to work on that. Thankfully, Kaitlyn is starting to step in and play with her. I am super happy when they get along. And when they don't, boy will you know. Kaitlyn has a set of lungs on her!!! Anyway, today, I helped them build a fort, so they have somewhere to play while I shower, etc. Here is some photo documentation :)

Its the little things.

Lets face it. It is really the little things in life that bring us our every day joys. Mine for today? Doing something that required my hands to come up near my face and catching a whiff of my Bath and Body Works Coconut Lime Verbena scented soap. It is one of the luxuries I allowed myself to indulge in during their buy 5 for $15 sale. I don't normally get to do that, but it worked out that month. Love it!

Movin' on up...

In an effort to keep up with Dylan's huge little baby body, we are movin' on up. Size 3 diapers, Size 6-9 clothes. And look, we are even moving up in pacifiers.

Before

It looks too small for his cute little face.

After

Might look even a little bit too big. But not for long.

Also, please note in the first picture the large amounts of drool both on his face and neck and on his shirt. Apparently, the little boy is teething. A bit early compared to his sisters (Kari didn't get a tooth until she was 11 months old, and it seems like Kaitlyn was between 6 and 8 months). It has also thrown off his wonderful sleeping habits. Once we kicked the uncomfortable dietary squirmies, he slept quite regularly for 8-10 hours a night. I know, I was completely spoiled. Now, he will go back to sleep, but I have to cuddle, shhh, give his pacifier, orajel, etc a few times a night. Lets hope this passes quickly.

Dylan Videos

Dylan Talking :)

It is supposed to be a cute video of Dylan

exercising... It is kinda lots of other things, too :)

4 months and 2 years

Today was a doctor day. I know they are 2 weeks apart, but I waited so I would only have to go to the office once. Today was Dylan's 4 month check up and Kaitlyn's 2 year check up. We got a clean bill of health for everyone and both the doctor and the nurse said how cute the kids were and how well behaved. Thank heavens for small miracles :)

Dylan Michael

4 months
17 lbs 5 oz (95%)
26 in tall (90%)

He loves to talk to his daddy. I am thinking about moving him to his crib already. Both girls stayed in the cradle in our room until they were 6 months. Moving him has multiple reasons. For one, he is the size of the average 6 month old (if not bigger). For two, he sleeps on his stomach, so although he isn't crawling, he scoots around with his toes. Kinda makes me nervous. And I wouldn't be completely honest if I didn't say that I selfishly want my room back. However, he still eats around 5:30-6 in the morning, and when Justin isn't home, he keeps me company, so... I guess we will just have to wait and see. He can "stand" and is just starting to be able to get things into his mouth, namely the burp cloth or his fingers... He is down to 5 feedings a day and 3 naps. He is in size 3 diapers, and tomorrow I think I am going to go through and switch all his clothes from size 3-6 to 6-9... He would suck his thumb if I would let him (which I don't really plan on doing) and he still isn't ready for dairy/chocolate/eggs/etc to come back into my diet. I tried some in the last few days, and although he didn't scream all night long, he thrashed about alot. Also, the pediatrician asked if he is drooling alot (which he is... change his outfits a few times a day). Apparently he is already teething (they may still take a while to come through, but they are starting). And life goes on :/

Kaitlyn Rose

2 years

23 lbs 4 oz (10%)

33.5 in tall (50%)

My little peanut. She is average height, but pretty light. Some days I would swear she weighs less than Dylan. This is her doing thumbs up. This is also me trying to get both her smile and the thumb in the same picture. She has only recently mastered this skill. She used to put out her pointer finger too, looking like she was shooting a gun. (Note the other fist is closed tight. Hey, don't laugh... This takes a lot of concentration :)

This is her trying to put up her two fingers... Still working on that.

This is "Yay for 2!!!" Kaitlyn is still in her crib. I am thinking about changing it to the toddler rail. I only changed Kari because she figured out how to crawl out, and it worried me she would fall out. However, with Kaitlyn I don't have to worry about that... She has an older sister helper who helps to pull her out. I am not sure that is much better :/ Kaitlyn recently started speaking in whole sentences, and she is fluent in Kaitlyn-ese. You must also be fluent in Kaitlyn-ese to understand her. And believe you me, I am not. Hubby and I occasionally look at each other for help with a translation, and more often then not are met with raised shoulders... She is also a great copy cat. Everything Kari does/says, Kaitlyn wants to too. So far this hasn't bothered Kari too much, so I suppose that is a good thing. She is also progressing with her potty training. She won't go poopy in her diaper anymore, only in the potty. That is a blessing and a curse. I love not having to change poopy diapers, however, when she has to go in the middle of Dylan nursing, or making dinner, things get a bit hairy :)

Kari Reese

4 1/2 years old

38 lbs 4 oz

42 in tall

Kari's thumbs up.

No, there is no such thing as a 4.5 year well baby check up. You try taking a child to a doctors office when her 2 siblings get to do something and she doesn't. Lets see how well you do.

Kari's Yay!

And here are: my little stair steps. Yes, all three of their feet are lined up on the same spot on the blanket. And there you have it :)

Discussion Board

I read an article the other day that said that in order for your child to be a good sleeper, he needed to be able to sleep in his bed, and sleep until he woke up. It said not to plan to do errands during the child's nap time, hoping he would either sleep through it or that he would just be happy, even though he was supposed to be asleep. I agree with every statement made and don't usually have a problem, unless I need to leave the house to run errands. I don't know about you, but with 3 children, finding a time when everyone is happy, between meals, not sleeping, etc is practically impossible. The older girls and I have gotten into a schedule where we can usually leave the house by 11 (I know, I know, but gimme a break) and still be home in time for lunch and naps, as long as our errands are short. However, Dylan, if left to his own devices, would sleep until about 12:30 and want to eat by 1. At which point, he will want to go back down by 2. So, I could conceivably run errands from 1:30-2 (and get a whole lot done, right?!?!) That could be ok, except this is lunch time for the girls. So, I usually end up waking him up early from his morning nap, and dealing with 3 cranky children by the time we get home. Anyway, my point is this, how do you other ladies do it? How do you allow your child to get their full amount of sleep, but not be running errands in the middle of nap time/play time/meal time etc. I am open for discussion. Not that what you do will necessarily work for me, but I would love to hear creative solutions to my problem. Also, I am sure that because I have now said Dylan has a schedule in print, he will promptly change it. Anywho, feel free to leave me your solutions in the comments box. Thanks :)

Back to Swaddling

I believe I have mentioned before that Dylan is discovering his hands. Well, at bed time (be it nap time or night time) this has translated into somewhat of a problem for us. He picks on himself. He pulls his pacifier out, pokes himself in the eye, scratches his face, etc. He grew out of swaddling after about 1 month old, and has just been sleeping on his stomach. Well, I find if I sorta swaddle him again (the poor kid is so big his feet don't fit in the blanket anymore) that he sleeps much better. Silly Boy :)

Saturday Morning

I figure that in a few months, Dylan will be on the other side :) Cute, huh?
And this picture I just couldn't resist taking... All 4 of the people I love the most in this life, totally ignoring me in favor of something loud and obnoxious on the TV... Oh well, such is life :)

Church photoshoot

Oh how I love Sundays. Of course I get to go to church and learn about God and feel the spirit and all that stuff.... {Sarcastic Smile} But I also love that I actually have a reason to get dressed up in something other than jeans and a t-shirt that will just get thrown up on as soon as I think I am ready to walk out the door. In other news, I also love that my children are so cute when they are dressed up. Here are a couple of Dylan. He is so smiley :)

Love when he pulls his legs up... :)

All 3 together. Dylan has that "Not Again" face going on, but they are just so cute all smooshed in like that.

And I love this one. Actually a pretty good picture of all 3 of them. Dylan's outfit (shorts compliments of S & M {Stacy and Matt, you pervs} and shoes just plain cute) started the shoot. And both girls wore jellies to church that day. Oh well. I can deal with the socks and semi-sandles thing. Gotta love it when the kids are so dang cute I can't resist.

Hands and Exersaucers

These pictures are of Dylan's first time in the exersaucer. Quite frankly he looks about terrified to me, but the girls look like they are having a ball :)

*Note the high heels*

Mommy, what is that yellow thing?!?!

Sweet little clubbed feet and chubby legs.

You want me to what?!?! Again, please note who looks like she is enjoying
herself the most in this picture.

A couple of cute pictures of Dylan finding his hands. He holds his own hands :)
Sweet little intertwined fingers.

My New Car

Its a minivan actually. There were so many little things wrong with my little Escort that by the time I fixed them all, it would have cost more than the car was worth. Plus, we were starting to outgrow it. And the hubby just didn't feel "cool" riding in it :) So, we looked and found a great deal on a mostly new '08 Dodge Grand Caravan. It had all the bells and whistles we were looking for and a pretty good price. We have already put more than 500 miles on the sucker, so I hope we like it. I haven't really had time to get pictures of our van itself, but I downloaded some from the Dodge site. Enjoy :)

Nope, not my kids, but our windows do go up and down in the sliding doors.

Approximately what ours looks like from the top too. The back seat is 60/40 and there is stow and go in front of the middle ones. Also, the back seat folds into the trunk.
My little upper dash thing. It comes with a kid mirror in it, and the mirror further opens to hold sunglasses. The black buttons in the front open and close my side and trunk doors. (My must have option)

My steering wheel and dash. Note the 3 climate control knobs... one for the driver, one for the passenger and one for the back.

This picture shows the stain resistantance, but I just wanted to show the fabric. (Mine is the same color)

This is what it looks like. Silver and all. I took this picture in my garage. {wink, wink}

With all the doors open. However, my seats don't turn around. At least I don't think they do. I need to read the instructions :)

Back.

That is all for now :) Yay for new Vans !!!

Fun at the pool

*UPDATE* Yes, Dylan was in the pool. The part of the turtle he was sitting in has leg holes and he sat through them for a while. This is how we put him back in when I went to go get the camera. He had a huge wet diaper to prove it... Next time I guess I need to use a swimmy diaper on him too :)

The apartment complex in TN has a pool, so we went to swim there. This was Dylan's first real time in the pool. He tried before, but wasn't so thrilled about it :)