The Story of Us

Busy, Busy, Busy!

2011-08-23T07:26:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note to let everyone know we're still here...just been very busy. As I mentioned in previous posts...we sold our house and are set to close on both at the beginning of next week. We're very excited, but still have a lot to do and get packed. At least I have these two little helpers to help me :)....

Other than that, we've just been enjoying this beautiful weather and counting down the weeks until Baby #3 arrives. I'm currently 26 1/2 weeks and can't wait to meet our new son or daughter! I'll update more on life once we get moved and settled in.

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

23 Weeks!

2011-08-02T06:40:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned last week...we FINALLY sold our house. We couldn't be more excited and are now in the process of waiting for closing on both this home and our new home in Garner. We can't wait! We should be moving by the end of August, so this month will definitely fly by!

Speaking of flying by...I can't believe I'm already 23 weeks along in my pregnancy already. It hardly seems possible that in just 16 short weeks we'll meet our little one. He/She has been very active lately...especially in the middle of the night when I'm trying to sleep ;). It's so fun to feel all the kicks and movements though...I'm soaking it all in since this will likely be our last baby.

It's been fun having Kaelyn a bit older with this pregnancy...she sure is anxious to meet her baby brother or sister. She asks me everyday when the baby will be here and is always talking to/kissing my tummy! She especially loves when the baby moves while she's talking to him/her. So sweet!

Anyways...that's my quick update for the week. Not much else going on here...just starting to back up boxes and get organized for our big move.

Exciting News!

2011-07-27T05:58:00.001-07:00

I had hoped to post an update a bit sooner, but life has been so crazy lately. As many of you may know..we've been trying to sell our home for about 1 1/2 years. It's been a long road...but through it all we have continued to pray and trust that God has the perfect plan for us. We knew the day would come that we'd sell our home...but had no idea it would all happen so quickly. God is good!

Over the years we've had lots and lots of showings (most people seeing the house 3-4 times), and even several offers, but nothing really ever came of any of them. Then...a couple of weeks ago we had a showing...THE showing! Someone walked into our home once and decided she wanted to make an offer two days later. Not just that, but unlike past offers...this was one we felt we could work with. After a couple of days we worked out a deal and our house was under contract. This week she had her inspection and everything went great. We are now on our way to closing (hopefully by the end of August)!! YAY!!

Of course, along with selling a house, comes buying a house. With Scott working in Iowa we knew we needed to find something that was convenient for him. In looking at the smaller towns around the area, we decided on one that seemed to have the most to offer. We ended up finding a home we both fell in love with, and yesterday...came to terms on that one as well!! By the end of August we should be all moved out of our house and moving into our new house. We couldn't be more excited!! I am really looking forward to the move, and couldn't be happier that it will all be happening before Baby #3 arrives. We should be all settled in by that point which will be great.

Anyways...that's what has been keeping us so busy these days. I will try to update again soon...and will hopefully have pics to share too!

Lots to share....

2011-07-12T16:50:00.000-07:00

Wow, it sure has been a while! I have to tell you that over the past year I've had every intention of sitting down and writing a post to update you on our life. In fact, I've started several times, only to have about 10 drafted posts that I never got around to publishing.

Over the past year (actually it's been longer than that) much has changed. I now have a 3 1/2 year old and 1 1/2 year old. Where does the time go? Kaelyn is as active and talkitive as ever. She is not yet in school, but loved going to Awana on Wednesday nights at church this past year and enjoys Sunday school immensely. Her teachers always comment on how grown up she is and that she's very entertaining and fun. As someone who is more quiet and shy myself, I know she got her Daddy's outgoing personality which is great! She loves making new friends and is comfortable in almost any situation she's put in. She also still has the sweetest, most tender and caring heart as well. I love that about her! She loves to learn and anytime we do activities here at home, she's very eager. She enjoys working on writing her letters/name and is currently working on number recognition and correspondence.

Kaden has grown and changed so much too! Just a year ago he was a little baby...now he is our big boy! He's walking/running around and loves to play with his big sister. They adore each other and it's so neat to watch them interact. I love it! He is more quiet, and also has a very sweet side. He loves to cuddle, and these days is becoming more of a daddy's boy than a mommy's boy. He began walking around 11 months and since that time has been climbing on everything. He is so brave and definitely all boy! He still uses sign language some, but is starting to say more words which is fun too. The common ones we hear are mama, dada, kk (for Kaelyn), baby, baybay (what he and Kaelyn call their blankeys), eat, more, papa, uh oh, up, hi, and bye. He's a very content little guy and is still an amazing sleeper!

We are so blessed to call these two little ones our children! They are such a joy!

We are sure enjoying our summer! The nice weather and warm temps have given us plenty of time to spend outdoors running around, enjoying picnics, playing at the pool and taking walks to the park!

One of the nicest weekends so far was July 4th. It wasn't too hot and wasn't too cold...absolutely perfect! The kids had a blast at the parade as well as the zoo with Scott and I as well as my parents.

I am still a stay at home mom and love being able to spend every day with my kids. There haven't been too many times I've been away from them, so this past February when Scott and I took a trip to Jamaica together...it was quite different for me. We had a great time, but after the 5 days was up, we were definitely ready to get back and see our babies. They did great (thanks to my wonderful parents who watched them!).

In March, Scott took a new job...one he has dreamed up since getting into the agronomy field. He now works for Bayer CropScience. I didn't even know Bayer had a division other than medications, so that is neat. He's loving the job as a sales rep, especially his more flexible schedule. He now works from home which means we see him a lot more too. No more working weekends or extremely long days which is nice too.

Our house is still for sale. We took it off the market when Kaden was born and put it back on last June. We've had lots of interest, but are still waiting for the right buyer. We are excited to move back to Northern Iowa and be closer to family when the time is right.

We also have some very exciting news which many of you may have already read on Facebook already! We are expecting baby #3, due to arrive in November! That makes all three of our kids November babies which is a lot of fun. I'm almost 21 weeks along and feeling great. We had our 20 week ultrasound today and baby looked healthy and is growing right on track. We are thrilled about our growing family and feel incredibly blessed! We decided not to find out the sex of this baby (we didn't with Kaelyn or Kaden either)...so come November we are looking forward to one of life's greatest surprises! We figure there are very few real surprises in life, and this is one we wanted to have with all of our pregnancies. Either way we will be thrilled to have a new daughter or son and can't wait for Kaelyn and Kaden to meet him/her. Getting to see him/her on ultrasound today was amazing.

Profile

Although I'm sure I've missed many things that have happened over the past year, these are the big things I wanted to update on. I will do my best to update more regularly!

My kiddos are growing soooo fast

2010-04-30T19:02:00.000-07:00

So I was just talking in the last post about what a big boy my little guy is getting to be. Little did I know that the very next day he would get his first tooth. And then last Friday...his second tooth! Wow...he really is growing up fast!

I can't believe how fast the time goes the second time around. I just love watching all of the milestones he and Kaelyn both go through. Other than the teeth, Kaden has been loving rolling around the floor and playing with his toys more. He adores his big sister and loves spending time with her whenever he can.

Kaelyn loves doing art activities. The other day she was painting and absolutely loved it! I really enjoy seeing the proud look on her face every time she creates a 'masterpiece'. She has been smiling from ear to ear ever since we hung it in her playroom. :)

I love these two kids more than words can say. I feel truly blessed to be their mom!

It's been WAY too long!

2010-04-20T16:14:00.001-07:00

My has it been a LOOONNNGGGG time since I posted here last! Life continues to get more and more busy and I struggle to find the time to fit everything in. I'd like to be better about posting more frequently though, as I really think it will be fun to look back on all of the memories one day.

Both kids continue to grow like crazy! Kaelyn is doing great without her pacifier and is of course, talking up a storm. I can't believe the intellectual conversations we're able to have with our 2 1/2 year old...it truly amazes me sometimes. I love watching her little mind work as she asked me questions about the world around her. Lately, her favorite thing to do is pretend. She'll come up to us with a pad and paper and say 'what would you like to eat sir?' like a waitress. It's too cute!

She has also started to go through that 'let me do everything on my own' stage. She is getting dressed completely on her own now...and even likes to pick out her own clothes (she LOVES dresses!). She enjoys trying to match them together. She's such a big helper.

Kaden is growing so fast! I can't believe he will be 5 months old this week already. Where does the time go?! WOW! He's such a happy baby...smiling all the time. Last month he started wanted to sit up more and more on his own. We still put plenty of pillows around him in case of an accidental tumble, but he's getting stronger and better at it with each day that passes.

He also loves the sound of his voice and will coo and 'talk' to us all the time. I just love seeing him smile and listening to his sweet little voice and laughs. It's the absolute best. He's definitely a Mommy's boy and enjoys any time we get to spend together. He's still sleeping like a champ and actually getting on to the same sleep routine as Kaelyn pretty much (with a couple more naps of course) which has been really nice!

He's rolling over both ways now...so needless to say, he's not in one spot for very long now. He's always grabbing at toys and wanting to chew on everything. I'm pretty sure one of his bottom front teeth is getting close to coming in, so I'm guessing that's the reason for all the chewing.

The other day I was reminiscing and was almost sad thinking about how fast the time has gone. I cannot believe my little girl is 2 1/2 and my baby is already 5 months. Each stage is so much fun though. We feel truly blessed to be the parents of these two wonderful kids!

As summer nears we're looking forward to warmer weather and more time spent outdoors. I can't wait as we've been couped up for far too long between winter and all the rain we've been getting.

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Spring so far!

It's Official: No More Pacifier!

2010-03-07T09:37:00.000-08:00

For a while now, we've been wanting to get rid of Kaelyn's pacifier. She only had her pacifier at night time, but was still very attached to it. There were some major changes between potty training, moving to her big girl bed, and a new little brother...which put off the 'weaning' process until just recently. Being two years old, I knew it was time, but wasn't quite sure the best way to go about it. Thanks to some input from others, we decided 'cold turkey' was our best bet!

Kaelyn around 4 months old

We wanted to be sure that when we took it, she had something meaningful to have with her at night (a stuffed animal or something) to take its place. We weren't sure what to do, and then someone gave us a great idea...Build-A-Bear! Why didn't I think of that?! We took Kaelyn to Build-A-Bear yesterday and let her pick out and make her very own animal (she picked a monkey). When it came time to stuff the monkey, she grabbed her pacifiers and stuck them inside. It was such a proud moment for me to watch!

Making her 'Build-A-Bear' monkey

Putting one of her pacifiers in the monkey

She picked out some pajamas for her (since the idea was to have something for bedtime in place of the pacifier) and named her Boppy since she always called her pacifiers 'bops'.

Meet Boppy :)

Everything was going great...she didn't fuss once about putting her 'bops' in the monkey. But, the true test was not whether she could part with them for the day...it was night time that we were really wondering about. Bedtime came and as she crawled into bed she asked where her pacifiers were. We reminded her where they were and that now she had a new special friend to sleep with at night. That was it...not another word was said about her pacifiers. She laid her monkey by her, we read a story and she said 'Night Mommy'. I was floored...was it really going to be that easy?! We thought she may wake up in the night crying, but again, nothing. She handled it like such a big girl!

I am so glad that someone gave us the idea of the Build-A-Bear. I think it was a great way to make her a part of the whole process so she understood what was going on each step of the way. It allowed for us to take her bops cold turkey while still giving her the comfort of knowing that they're always with her, and best of all...she now has something special to take its place

Other than that we haven't been up to much. Kaelyn, myself and Kaden all have had bad colds for about a week now. We're beginning to feel better which is such a relief! It felt great to get out of the house yesterday, that's for sure! I've taken quite a few pics since the last time I posted...I will try to post them soon. :)

We're still here...

2010-02-22T08:13:00.000-08:00

It's been quite some time since I've posted here....I apologize for that. Life seems to get busier and busier. Things are wonderful though! The kids are continuing to grow SO fast...especially Kaden! He will be 3 months old tomorrow and is already in 6-9 month clothes. Those 'little baby' stages go WAY too fast!

Kaden is an extremely smiley baby. He loves to coo and even gives us a little giggle here and there. He loves his big sister and 'talks' and smiles most with her. :) He's sleeping through the night and is so content during the day....such a joy!

Kaelyn continues to amaze us with her vocabulary. Her newest thing is pointing out signs as we drive. We have no clue where she learned it...but she'll say "Mom, stop sign" or "Dad, a turn sign". She's our little backseat driver...hehe. The other day she said "Daddy, be careful...there's cars coming!". :)

There's been a lot going on since I posted last. A couple of weeks ago Scott and I decided to take the kids to an indoor waterpark a couple of hours from where we live. We're all getting tired of being cooped up in the house this winter, so we thought this would be a fun little getaway...especially for Kaelyn! We were right...she (and the rest of us) had a BLAST! This was the first time Kaelyn (and Kaden for that matter) had stayed in a motel...so that was pretty special as well.

Kaden enjoyed taking everything in, and sleeping :)

Always making friends :)

There's our brave little Kaelyn going down the waterslide all by herself

This past weekend was very busy. First, Scott and I went on our first date since Kaden was born. My parents were kind enough to come up and watch the kids for a couple hours while we went out to eat. It was so nice. I love having my family close enough to do things like this...and the kids just love spending time with Grammy and Grampa!

We also had some professional pics taken this weekend. They were for Kaden's 3 month pics...but we also got a family one and a few of the kids together. Both kids did great! :)

A couple more random pics...

I guess this post should have been titled "Picture Overload" :) I guess that is what happens when I go so long between posts...I'll try to be better about that.:)

Where Does The Time Go?!

2010-01-07T20:01:00.000-08:00

Kaden is just about 7 weeks old already. I used to say it ALL the time with Kaelyn, and still do some...but where does the time go?!? It literally seems like just yesterday I had him, and now he's nearing two months old already. I love seeing him grow and learn new things, but at the same time I wish time would slow down a bit. The same goes for Kaelyn too...she is over two years old and growing like a weed. I just wanna keep my kids babies sometimes.

Kaelyn has really been into reading lately. She's always loved to read, but it's fun to actually see her pick up a book, sit down by Kaden, and start reading to him. She reads as though she knows what the words are say. For instance, the following pictures were taken today as I walked into her bedroom. She was saying, "One day, the bear..." and flipping through pages and showing them to him. It was absolutely adorable to watch.

She's also loving the alphabet lately. She can recognize almost every letter and has even been trying to write some of them. Usually it's just scribbles, but she'll turn to me and say "Mommy, look, an "M"" or something along those lines. I just LOVE to see her discovering new things and learning.

Kaden is doing many things as well. This week he began giving us those cute baby smiles not just while he is sleeping but also while he's awake! He's also been cooing a lot more. It's really fun to hear his little squeaks. He's still an "eating machine" as Kaelyn calls him, but also likes to sleep. He's waking up once a night and sleeps about 5-6 hours straight before he does. Slowly we are settling into more of a routine and it's fun having him awake more during the day.

The following are a few more pics taken over the past week....

Christmas and the New Year

2009-12-30T11:45:00.001-08:00

Wow...ok, so it seems like forever since I've posted. Between 5 family Christmas's we found ourselves to be quite busy over the past couple weeks. We had such a wonderful time though...it was great getting to see all of our family and celebrating the real meaning of CHRISTmas with loved ones!

This was Kaden's first Christmas which was pretty special. Many of our relatives had not met him yet, so that was fun. This was also the first Christmas that Kaelyn really got into opening gifts. The excitement on her face as she opened each one was priceless! She woke up yesterday morning and said "I'm happy. Time to open presents, Santa's here". We had to explain to her that "Santa" already came and would not be back until next year. I'm glad she enjoyed the holiday so much though, that she's still talking about it. :) She and Kaden both received many wonderful gifts. Here are several pics from our time spent with family.

Going outside to play in the snow at Grammy and Grampa's

Kaelyn and her cousin Emry on the sled together

Kaelyn and Emry with their brothers (Kaden and Israel)
Israel and Kaden (cousins just 12 days apart in age)
My Family
My parents with the kids
Emry and Kaelyn waiting to open gifts
She was so excited!
Gift from Uncle Jake
She was thrilled about her new Minnie Mouse underwear :)The best Christmas present this year!!

Our BlessingsKaden

Our Family
She loves anything and everything to do with dolls...so this stroller was a HUGE hit!
One happy girl
Daddy's little Vikings Fan
One last picture. For those who know me, and/or follow this blog, you know that my twin brother and his wife have two sons....Emry who is 12 days younger than Kaelyn and Israel who is 12 days younger than Kaden. They were all born around the same time of year...so I thought this comparison of pictures was kind of fun. This is Emry and Kaelyn at Christmas 2007 and Israel and Kaden at Christmas this year.

This week also marked Kaden's 5 week birthday. I can't believe he's already over a month old! Even though Kaelyn was this age just two years ago....I forgot how fast the time goes. We had his one month appointment on Monday and I could not believe how big he is already. He went from 7 1bs 14 oz and 21 inches at birth to now 11 lbs 7 oz and 22 1/4 inches!! WOW! Our little boy is growing right before our eyes. I'm glad he's growing and such a healthy little guy...but part of me was a little sad to know that he's no longer that 'newborn' we brought home from the hospital. That stage goes SO fast! I already have put away all his newborn clothes and he no longer fits in newborn diapers. Where does the time go?! At three weeks he rolled over from his tummy to his back and is now working on mastering rolling from his back to his tummy. He's already a little boy on the move. It's been fun watching him as he becomes more attentive, we've even gotten a little smirk here and there and it makes my heart melt. Big sister is still loving her little brother and is always asking to hold him. Here is a pic of our growing little peanut....

Tomorrow we will be ringing in the new year with my parents and brother. They are coming up to stay and I'm really looking forward to it. I'm sure we'll eat lots of yummy food and play some really fun games! Speaking of which, a little side note here...one game I received for Christmas was Marble Pursuit. It's a super fun game we've played as a family for a few years now at family get-togethers and now I have my very own board. I can't wait to play it tomorrow. If you've never heard of it, or are looking for a fun family game, you can check it out here. Anyways...as 2009 comes to an end and I reflect on it...I have to say the one word that comes to mind is blessed. I feel incredibly blessed and have so much to be thankful for. This time last year we did not know that we would be adding a fourth member to our family. That in itself has made our year truly amazing. Kaden is so wonderful. He's such a sweet little guy and we feel so lucky to have been chosen as his parents. Kaelyn is our little sweetie and to have her as our daughter is pure joy! We look forward to 2010 and all that the Lord has for us.

I doubt I will be back to post before the New Year....so to all who read here, I want to wish you a very Happy New Year!

Catching up...

2009-12-14T07:39:00.000-08:00

It's been a little while since I posted, so I thought I'd catch you up on what's been going on with the Gaskill's.... :)

After all the snow last week and being confined to the house for the most part, the kids and I were more than ready to get out and do something this weekend. Scott and I had a little more Christmas shopping to do, so we decided to take the day on Saturday and head up to Mankato. It was cold, but a beautiful day to be out and about. We had a wonderful time and finally finished up our shopping. One thing we are realizing more and more each time we go out with the kids is how much longer everything takes...haha. :) I remember when we had Kaelyn we always said how much longer it took us to get from one place to another now that we had a third person to get ready in the morning. Now...having a fourth has made things even more interesting. Just getting in and out of the car and everyone situated is quite time consuming. It was a great day though, and the kids did fantastic! :)

Here's a pic of me with my babies before we left to go shopping....

Other than that we took it easy this weekend. It will be the last weekend for the next three weeks or so that we had nothing going on. Next weekend begins our many Christmas get togethers with family which I'm really excited about. :) Many of them have not met Kaden yet, so that will be fun to introduce him to them as well.

I'll leave you with a couple of pics from the past week (including our Christmas picture of the kids for 2009)....

Christmas Pic 2009

Our New Nephew

2009-12-10T15:37:00.000-08:00

Time has kind of gotten away from me over the past couple of weeks. We have been so busy adjusting to life as a family of four and falling more and more in love with the newest addition to our family. :)

I wanted to update quick with a fun addition to what some would consider kind of a crazy story regarding my twin brother and I. :) As many of you know, I have a twin brother Josh. Obviously we have had to share a lot of things over the years...birthdays, high school graduation, even friends. Most would consider this to be fairly normal, but over the years our story becomes more and more unique. Once graduating high school we both ended up going to the same college...graduating the same year. Our weddings were just 8 days apart and our first children were born just 12 days apart. Like most, we thought the chances of having our children that close together again would be rare. However, back in March when Josh and his wife called to tell us they were pregnant again...we had the very same news. The story got even crazier this past weekend when their second baby was born...get this...just 12 days after Kaden!! We thought that was pretty neat. :)

Josh with his son Israel, and me with Kaden

Me and Israel

We had the chance to go down to Cedar Falls and meet our new little nephew. Israel Michael Sankey is such a sweetie. I can't wait for he and Kaden to grow up together...I know they will be great friends, just like Emry and Kaelyn are. :)

1 week old....

2009-11-29T17:13:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow Kaden will be 1 week old already...I forgot how fast the time goes when they're this little. We're loving every minute and falling more and more in love with the newest addition to our family. Kaelyn absolutely adores him too! He has been such a great baby...so content and sweet. We feel truly blessed!

We have taken quite a few pictures as you can imagine :)...here are several taken over the last week.

It's a BOY! :)

2009-11-24T17:38:00.001-08:00

I wanted to hop on the computer quick and update you with news of our little one's arrival! Kaden Scott was born on Monday morning and is absolutely perfect. He is such a sweet little boy...we are so in love with the newest addition to our family! Kaelyn is a very proud big sister and LOVES to hold and kiss him! We feel truly blessed.

More pics to come....

Tomorrow, Tomorrow, I Love Ya, Tomorrow...You're Only a Day Away!

2009-11-22T10:03:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow, Tomorrow, I Love Ya, Tomorrow...You're Only a Day Away!

This was the tune that went through my head as I woke up this morning thinking about the fact that tomorrow is Monday the 23rd...the day I go in to have our little one (unless he/she arrives before that-meaning today, but it's not looking that way). I am very excited to meet our new son or daughter and am happy that the time has finally arrived. I am finally feeling like everything is ready for his/her arrival (house clean, bags packed, etc). I will not be on my blog to post for a while...but will try and pop on at some point to update you on his/her arrival!!

No Baby Yet...

2009-11-20T08:12:00.000-08:00

Well...no baby yet. Monday is the day unless he/she decides to arrive early! :) I can't wait to meet our little one and see Kaelyn in her big sister role. I don't think she completely understands what's about to happen, but what she does know is that there's a baby in Mommy's tummy and soon Grammy and Grampa will be coming to stay with her while Mommy and Daddy go to the Dr to get the baby. She's been talking about it a lot lately.

Speaking of talking...her vocabulary continues to amaze us every day! Since before she was 1 she has been talking, single words and short sentences "where's the ball?" was her first bigger sentence at 11 months old. As you can imagine, this vocabulary has only grown and now at two she speaks in sentences to us. It's great being able to have conversations with her...I love it! It's not just the sentences that amaze us, but the words she chooses to use...some days we ask ourselves where in the world she's learned them from. :) For instance, this morning as she at a donut she said, "It's delicious Mommy". Delicious is a word I'd never heard her say before...so that was kind of fun. Last weekend at her cousins birthday party the new 'word of the day' was beautiful! :)

Some other milestones we've been seeing over the past couple of months:

She's also big into letters, numbers, shapes and colors. She can say and recognize more than half the alphabet, can count to 13 and recognizes some of those numbers, and loves to point out her shapes and colors to us. What a big girl!

Singing is also a huge deal around here. She LOVES to sing! Lately it's been ABC's and more recently 'Jesus Loves Me'. I'm going to try and get it on video soon so I can share it with you all.

Anyways...I have a feeling this will be the last time I post before Baby Gaskill's arrival. We have a very busy weekend ahead getting ready for his/her arrival. I will keep you posted... :)

Hope everyone has a blessed weekend!

What a busy weekend!

2009-11-16T09:52:00.000-08:00

Wow...the past several days have been a whirlwind and very busy for us. Thursday we had my Grandma's visitation and Friday we had the funeral. It was a sad time, but also one of celebration as we reminisced about her life and the memories we have to cherish. It was great to see many family members and friends as well. Saturday our nephew Emry turned 2! He and Kaelyn had so much fun playing around at his Circus Themed Birthday Party! It was a blast and I'm so happy we were able to be there to help him celebrate. (I'll post more pics soon)

Yesterday, Scott, my dad and my brothers all went to the Vikings game. They had a great time, while us girls were home and able to relax some. After such a busy few days, it was nice to have a day like that.

Today marks the one week countdown until we meet the newest addition to our family...can you believe it?! Ahhh...it's so exciting! :) We're really looking forward to meeting our little one. The fact that it's only 7 days away though, means I still have some things I need to do. I'm not sure how good I will be about posting this week as I need to make sure everything is ready for his/her arrival. I will be sure to update you soon though on the arrival of our little one. :)

A Bittersweet Week So Far

2009-11-10T11:12:00.001-08:00

Today I had my Dr Appt and everything is looking great....just one more appt. and then we'll get to meet our little one (unless he/she decides to arrive early).:)

On a more sad note....my Grandma (Dad's Mom) passed away yesterday. She had Alzheimer's for the past 8 years or so....so her quality of life was taken from her long before now. My Grandpa passed away in 2006 and that is when she went into nursing home care. I'm saddened that she is no longer here with us, but am SO thankful for her Faith in the Lord and know that she is much happier and finally free of this disease which took the last 8+ years of her life away, as well as the fact that she is now with my Grandpa once again. I will be sure to share the memories I have of her with our children and can only hope they grow to learn how wonderful she and my Grandpa both were and what a profound impact their Faith had on us and our entire family.

My family is currently in the process of planning funeral arrangements. Between that and our nephews birthday this weekend, I am unsure when I will update my blog again. Will keep you posted on Baby Gaskill :)....

Two Weeks and Counting....

2009-11-09T08:28:00.000-08:00

Well...only two weeks to go...I can't wait!! :) It's weird to think that we are down to that short amount of time already. Knowing that the baby could come at any time and things will be getting quite busy soon, we spent Saturday afternoon putting up our Christmas tree and decorations! I know, it sounds early....but we figured we'd rather have it done now and not have to do it once the baby is here. It's kind of fun.....feels like Christmas already in our house. :) Kaelyn sure loves all the lights and decorations too. Scott just has lights to hang outside on the house sometime this month and everything will be done. Such a great feeling!

Saturday morning we had Kaelyn's 2 year pics taken. She did very well and we got some good ones. When I have a little more time I will try to post a few of them. I still can't believe my baby is too....weird to think that much time has gone by already. We are truly blessed...she is such an amazing little girl!

This week I have a Dr Appt and also look forward to the weekend. Saturday is our nephew Emry's birthday (he's turning 2) so we get to go down to Cedar Falls and celebrate with family and friends....should be a great time! Sunday, Scott, my brothers and my Dad are all headed to the Vikings game...I know they'll have a wonderful time. Us girls are just going to hang out and enjoy an evening at home.

Hope everyone has a wonderful week! Enjoy this beautiful weather!!

More Pics....

2009-11-05T07:01:00.000-08:00

Just 2 weeks and 3 days until we meet our little one! I know I've said this many times, but it's amazing to me how fast this pregnancy has gone. I'm hoping the next few weeks continue to go just as quickly, as we are very excited to meet our new son or daughter and for Kaelyn to meet her new sister or brother. :) Everything is still going smoothly...except for the fact that it's becoming harder and harder to sleep at night. I just can't seem to get comfortable. I told Scott this is my body's way of preparing me for those sleepless nights with a newborn...at least I'll be ready. :) He/she moves all around all night long, that doesn't make it easy to sleep either. I love it though...we feel very blessed!

I realized yesterday that I never posted any pics of the kids trick or treating. Emry (Kaelyn's cousin) was here, so they went trick or treating together. Our mall here in town does a fun trick or treating event every year, so we took them there out of the cold. They had a lot of fun!

Over the weekend, Diana (my sis in law) also helped me finish decorating the kids' rooms. She is SO good at creating vinyl decor, so I asked her if she would help me make something for Kaelyn's room and the baby's room. When she showed up to our house with the following things...I was thrilled!!

Kaelyn's Room

Baby's Room

Well, I hope everyone is having a fantastic week....

Kaelyn's TWO!

2009-11-02T11:37:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was Kaelyn's 2nd birthday...where did the time go?!? As I prepped and prepared for the big day, I continually thought about that day two years ago when we brought her home from the hospital! I'm sure that's something that goes through every parent's mind as their children continue to get older. I have a feeling most parents often find themselves asking the same question...where has the time gone?

I'm a little sad that she's already two. My little girl is getting so big...speaking to us in full sentences, having us wondering half the time where she has learned to communicate the way she does at such a young age. She's also becoming more independent and amazes us each and every day. I feel so blessed to be her mom...I couldn't ask for a sweeter little girl. Although it's a little sad to see her getting so big, we also know that exciting things are to come. Each stage offers many new and exciting things, and soon that will be our family becoming a family of four. I cannot wait to see Kaelyn as a big sister, as I know she will be the most helpful and loving there is.

We had some great times with family so far to help celebrate Kaelyn's big day! Friday we spent the evening with Scott's family...having cupcakes, opening gifts and visiting. Saturday my family was over. We had cake (the first cake I've ever decorated...Scott helped a lot too), opened gifts and that night Kaelyn and her cousin Emry got to go trick or treating together. Sunday we spent the day at home and had a few other family members stop by throughout the day. It was a very special weekend for Kaelyn and I couldn't be happier about that.

The Cake :)

Playing with her cousin on her Birthday

As I was reminiscing about our little girl and how much she's grown, I came across several pictures throughout the past two years that I thought I'd share....

4 days old

3 Months

6 Months

9 Months

12 Months

15 Months

18 Months

21 Months

24 Months

Birthday Planning

2009-10-29T07:04:00.000-07:00

I am sitting here in front of my computer when I should really be getting things ready for this weekend! My baby is going to be 2...I can't believe how quickly the time has gone by. We're not having a big party, but will be seeing a lot of family over the next few days. We have so much family between the two of us that it's easier to let them come by when they're free rather than planning a big party like we did for her 1st birthday. It should be a lot of fun! I am going to attempt to make my first decorated birthday cake...not sure how that will go but I will try to post pics once it's done.

Baby Update: Yesterday I had an appointment and they told me everything was looking great. I am still measuring 2 weeks ahead and the baby's heart rate was around 148 this time. I am so excited to meet our little one and to find out if Kaelyn will have a baby brother or sister!! Just over 3 weeks left....it's getting close :)

I suppose I better get busy on all that needs to be done today...have a great Thursday everyone!

TGIF!

2009-10-23T10:19:00.001-07:00

It's Friday, one of my favorite days of the week! It would be better if Scott was home with us, but on Fridays he usually gets home earlier than normal...so that's always nice! I don't know about you, but for us, this week went by really fast! We were gone for a few days at the beginning of the week, dogsitting for my parents. Scott decided to paint Kaelyn's room pink a couple of those days after work....and it looks so cute! Now her room and the baby room are almost completely finished. They look great (pics to come).

Today is Kaelyn's last swimming lesson. After that we're going to Scott's Dad's house to celebrate my birthday. If the weather permits, tomorrow we will be taking Kaelyn to the Pumpkin Patch with his Mom and then Kaelyn is going to have her first sleep over with Grandma Annie. Scott's mom has been wanting to take her some weekend for quite some time, and this weekend worked out for everyone. She'll have such a good time. Scott and I might go out to eat or something, it's been forever since we did that just the two of us! We also will be able to get some of the things done that are still on our "to-do" list. This is the last weekend before the baby is born that we have completely free.

Speaking of the baby...just 4 weeks and 2 days left! I can't believe it is coming so fast. I am SO excited, but know there is a lot to do between now and then. Kaelyn is starting to talk more about the baby these days which makes me think she's starting to understand there's a big change coming. She's going to make a great big sister!

Well...I suppose I better get off the computer and start doing some cleaning around the house. I need to take advantage of every minute Kaelyn is napping. I'll leave you with a cute pic of Kaelyn in her new chair from Daddy...it's just her size. :)

One Year Older...

2009-10-21T13:48:00.000-07:00

Isn't it crazy how quickly the time flies?! Today is my 27th birthday and I think each year that passes goes by faster than the last. Having a birthday in the middle of the week makes it a little difficult to do much. That's ok though. I've been too busy nesting and planning for Kaelyn's birthday (in just a couple of weeks my baby will be 2 already) to even think about my own birthday. Scott is always good to make every birthday special though.

We also had fun celebrating with my family this past weekend. We went out to eat and celebrated mine and my twin brother's birthday, as well as to celebrate my sister-in-laws birthday which is just 5 days after ours. It was great getting everyone together and the yummy food and cake were wonderful!

All in all I'd say so far this has been a wonderful 27th birthday.. Being with family is always my idea of a great time! Oh, and the highlight of the day would have to be when Kaelyn started singing "Happy Birthday" to me. :) Melts my heart. She doesn't know the verse "Happy Birthday Dear Mommy", so the whole song was "Happy Birthday to you" and it was absolutely adorable! It's the little things that mean the most!

A Little Overwhelmed

2009-10-15T08:02:00.000-07:00

So...I get on my blog this morning planning to update you all on Baby Gaskill...and as I begin writing I realize that my little "baby countdown" widget says 39 days left! I am SO excited to meet this little one, but seeing that there's so little time left and so much to do...it has me feeling a bit overwhelmed today! Scott got the baby room painted which was a big job on our to do list to get done...but I still feel like there's much more to prepare before our little one arrives. I'm sure it will all get done...I just need to take it a day at a time. :)

As I mentioned in Monday's post...we were all a bit under the weather with colds. Thankfully we are all feeling much better. The cough is still there, but the rest of the cold symptoms have passed. We're all sleeping well and getting over this nasty little bug!

Baby Update: Yesterday I had my Dr appt. Everything is looking great! The baby is growing wonderfully and I'm measuring a couple weeks ahead. They think this baby will be a little bigger than Kaelyn (who was 7 lbs 9 1/2 oz) so we'll see if they're right. As with most OB appts...it was pretty quick and routine...5-10 minutes. I go back in two weeks for my next appt.

A Bit Under The Weather

2009-10-12T07:00:00.000-07:00

Is it really Monday already?!? Where do the weekends go? We had plans to get a lot done this weekend, however Scott, myself and Kaelyn have all come down with pretty bad colds...which means some of our plans were put on hold. It's especially been miserable for me, as there's not much you can take for a cold when you're pregnant. Sleep has been almost non-existent at night as well. Thankfully Scott and Kaelyn have been sleeping well and are able to take some meds to help with the symptoms. I'm hoping it passes quickly...no fun!

Even though we've all been under the weather (speaking of the weather, what is up with this snow??...it's falling as I write this), we were able to do some of what we needed to. Friday we started cleaning the house after Kaelyn's swimming lessons. Saturday we ran some errands and wen to my cousins wedding reception. Kaelyn and her cousin Emry got to spend some time together there which was fun!

Sunday we weren't able to make it to church with the colds we all have, so we stayed home and slept in. I made a batch of cookies to freeze for when the baby comes and Scott got the baby room painted (pics to come). Overall it felt like we were pretty productive...I just wish that the weekends wouldn't go by so quickly. I have a feeling this week will be the same way. Wednesday I have a Dr Appt, Thursday is MOPS, and Friday is swimming lessons. Oh well..I suppose it's ok the days are going by quickly...it just means we're that much closer to meeting our little one! :)

Sweet Big Sister

2009-10-09T06:53:00.000-07:00

Kaelyn loves talking to her baby brother or sister and feeling him/her move all around in Mommy's tummy! :)

She's going to make such a wonderful big sister! I can't wait...just over 6 weeks to go! YAY!

7 More Weeks!

2009-10-05T13:53:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe how quickly this pregnancy has gone! With Kaelyn 40+ weeks seemed to take forever, but not with this one. I cannot believe that I'm just 7 weeks away already...and that next month we will meet the newest addition to our family!! It's such an exciting time, but also has me realizing that if time continues to go this quickly, I have a lot of things to get done between now and then.

I guess you could say I've settled into the "nesting stage" a bit early. I want to make sure I have some baking done so that meals and goodies are ready to take out of the freezer during those hectic first few weeks. There's also the baby room that we still need to get organized and so much more!

In some ways I am hoping that these next 7 weeks go by quickly. I can't wait to meet our son or daughter! On the other hand, I suppose it wouldn't be so bad if the weeks slowed down just a little so we can be sure to get everything ready and organized before his/her arrival! Either way I'm planning to enjoy every minute of the rest of this pregnancy....feeling the baby move, getting things ready for his/her arrival and even the expanding belly that gets harder and harder to fit into most shirts that I own. :)

My twin brother and his wife threw us a baby shower yesterday! We had such a great time getting to see many family and friends. We feel very blessed to have received so many wonderful gifts (it was a diaper and children's book theme...a genius idea thought up by my sister-in-law) and feel even more prepared for the baby's arrival now!

Here's a pic of she and I at the shower....with 7 weeks to go! We're due less than a week apart!

23 Months Old!

2009-10-01T13:38:00.001-07:00

Today Kaelyn turned 23 months old! I can't believe she will be 2 in just a month!! The time has just flown by. It hardly seems possible that in less than two months we will have a 2 year old and a newborn. We feel truly blessed and can't wait!

Here's a pic of our little 23 month old princess! :)

Time With Family

2009-09-29T06:18:00.000-07:00

It was a very busy, but fun weekend! Friday Scott and I took Kaelyn to her swimming lessons, then finished cleaning the house...as we knew we'd have lots of family visiting this weekend.

Saturday My brother and his family came up, as well as my parents. Kaelyn was SO excited to have her little cousin Emry here to play with her! They have a lot of fun together. It's neat to see them running all over the place and enjoying each other's company! :)

Hugs

Kisses

We had a lot of fun playing games and just catching up. I always enjoy it when they all get to come up and visit. Sunday my parents watched Emry and Kaelyn for us so we could head up to the wonderful JBF Consignment Sale that goes on twice a year in the cities! Since we don't know what we're having, we didn't get much for the baby....but for Kaelyn we were able to find her almost everything she will need to get through the winter and into the spring for clothing. It's such a great way to shop for little ones...especially knowing how fast they grow out of things. We were very happy with all the great deals! Josh and Di had great luck too...finding things for Emry and their baby boy who is due just a week after our little one.

Grammy and the kids

Grampa giving pony rides

Here's a couple of pics of Di and I...only 55 days to go for me! YAY! We are due just 6 days apart and can't wait to meet our little ones and to have our little ones meet each other!! :)

It was a fantastic weekend! I had a wonderful time and am still exhausted from how busy we were. Today Kaelyn and I are gonna take it easy and enjoy our Tuesday!

Not Feeling Well

2009-09-23T06:42:00.000-07:00

What a week this has started out to be! Monday afternoon Kaelyn became very clingy and whiney (which is not like her AT ALL). She said her tummy hurt and by 4 in the afternoon the poor thing was throwing up. :( This went in the remainder of the evening and into the night until 12 am. Yesterday she woke up in a good mood, but still said her tummy hurt. She was very sleepy and just under the weather...not herself at all. She rested lots and I made she got lots of fluids...and some food (not much though). Thankfully by last night she seemed to be back to herself...playing and running all over the place. We're not quite sure what she had, but it must have just been a 24 hour bug. Scott and I are blessed to have not caught whatever it was and are still feeling great. I'm so glad Kaelyn is feeling better...it's no fun to see your little one not feeling well. This time was much different than times in the past when she got sick, because she could actually tell me with her words what was hurting and how she was feeling. That helped a TON! She also knew that if she felt she was going to get sick, that she needed to "cough" into the bowl next to her...and she did! She's such a good girl. :)

That has pretty much been our week so far. The rest of the week will be spent doing housework, baking and getting ready for my parents and brother and his family to come visit for the weekend! We're very excited to have everyone coming...Kaelyn will LOVE it too! My brother and his wife (Josh and Di), and Scott and I are planning on going to the consignment sale we go to every season (Just Between Friends) in the cities. I can't wait, as we always find such great deals on clothes for Kaelyn! While we're there, Kaelyn and her cousin Emry will be enjoying some time spent with Grammy and Grampa. They'll have a wonderful time I'm sure!

What a Productive Weekend!

2009-09-21T07:07:00.000-07:00

Last week was quite the eventful week! It began with Scott in the hospital and us and the Drs thinking he had appendicitis....thankfully he didn't, but it was still scary! Then Wednesday I had my 30 week Dr appt., Thursday I had MOPS (what a blessing to Moms to have a program like this available!), and Friday was Kaelyn's first day of swimming lessons!! Overall it was a great week, just very busy!

This weekend, Scott and I decided that there were many things we still needed to get done around the house before his busy season REALLY starts to get busy and of course, before the arrival of our new bundle of joy! My parents were kind enough to take Kaelyn for the weekend so that we could work on everything we needed to. She had such a fun time at Grammy and Grampa's and I am so happy to say that Scott and I really got a lot accomplished as well!

Scott was able to finish the painting that still needed to be done on the outside of the house, we tore out our front landscaping and planted new plants, finished getting Kaelyn ALL moved into her room...now the baby room is officially the nursery without having all Kaelyn's clothes and things in there. We also got the house cleaned, the laundry done, groceries bought, and even had time to watch Fireproof on Saturday night together. It's been a long time since we had the chance to sit down and watch a movie, so that was nice. We've watched that move several times, but it never gets old. We just love it!

It was great to see Kaelyn and bring her back home last night....when she's gone we miss her like crazy! :) She had a great time and is still talking about Grammy and Grampa's house today. This week my plan is to finish working on the baby room, getting things organized and going through all of the gender neutral baby clothes we have to prepare for this baby in just 9 weeks!!

I hope everyone has a blessed week....hopefully I can update here again soon! I'll leave you with a couple more pics taken of Kaelyn this week.... :)

9 1/2 Weeks Left!!!

2009-09-17T09:25:00.001-07:00

I cannot tell you how happy I am that we're less than 10 weeks away from meeting our little one! I just had my 30 week appointment yesterday and everything is going great! I'm measuring about 1 1/2 weeks ahead and the baby's heart rate was great!! It feels great to be in the third trimester now and know that we have just a short time left. I know 9 weeks sounds like a lot...but I have a feeling it will go very quickly!

I am beginning to 'nest' much earlier with this pregnancy. With Kaelyn I think it started around 36 weeks or so...with this one it's already been going on for a good week! I just want to make sure everything is ready and perfect for our new bundle of joy. That means cleaning like crazy, getting all of the things we still need for him/her, etc. I'm even starting to make a list of the foods that I can make early and freeze so we have plenty of food to eat in those first busy few weeks. Thankfully we will have my parents here to help out the first week too!

Lately when I am out in public, I have people asking me how far along I am and if I'm having a boy. They must think this baby bump is resembling that of a "boy pregnancy" or something?!? Scott and I have fun guessing, but obviously have no clue what we're having. This pregnancy has been different than Kaelyn's in some ways, but there have also been many similarities, so who knows?! Guess we'll find out soon enough. What a wonderful surprise that will be! :)

Other than that, life has just been busy as usual. Scott is entering a busier time with work and I have now started going to my Dr appts every two weeks. I start MOPS tonight, and tomorrow Kaelyn and Scott start swimming lessons for Kaelyn! She is SO excited and is always talking about how she gets to go "swimming in the pool with Daddy" tomorrow! When we're not running here and there, Kaelyn keeps us busy running at home. :) She's so much fun! Her vocabulary amazes us every day as well. She is using full sentences to tell us what she needs/wants.

Well...that's about all for now....I'll try to post pics of swimming lessons soon. :)

Still Painting....

2009-09-07T16:05:00.000-07:00

Well, it's Monday afternoon (almost evening) and Scott is still outside touching up the paint on the house. I wish I was able to help him. Everyone's help this weekend is SOOO appreciated! It was a big job and took much longer than we expected. Thankfully between our parents and Scott's sister he had much of the help he needed to get things done. Today he's just been finishing up some odds and ends places. Kaelyn and I haven't been outside a whole lot, except to go on our daily walk together...but when we are it's been fun to see the progress being made. This fresh coat of paint has made such a difference...it's like a whole other house now! I love it! Soon I will try to post before and after pics. :)

The sad thing about it being Monday afternoon already means that Scott goes back to work tomorrow. We always miss him when he's gone. At least it's a short week though, and it doesn't sound like his schedule is as busy as it was last week. Hopefully he'll have lots of time at home to get rested from this very busy and long weekend!

I don't have much news to share other than that quick update. I will leave you with a very smiley pic of Kaelyn though...I just love it! She makes every day so wonderful!!

Busy Busy!

2009-09-03T11:00:00.001-07:00

It's crazy to think that our little girl is nearly two years old already! It really began to hit me as she turned 22 months last Tuesday! Crazy how quickly the time has gone. Soon I will be planning a birthday and then getting ready for the arrival of our little one. Life is great! :) In some ways I wish it would slow down a bit...the weeks just fly by and Kaelyn is growing before our eyes. But, on the other hand, I wish it would speed up a bit so we can meet the newest member of our family. I'm sure the next 11 weeks will go by quickly hopefully!

These past couple of weeks have gone by SO fast! We have been very busy!! Scott and some of our wonderful family members are getting ready to paint our house this weekend. There's so much more that goes into painting a house then I ever realized! It should go smoothly with so many people though, and I know the outcome will be well worth it! Right now our house is a grayish blue color, but we have decided since it needs to be painted anyways...to paint it a warmer gray (no blue). I think it will be a nice fresh look and a great change. We haven't taken our house off the market yet, but will do so soon if there are no offers in the next week or two.

This past weekend we celebrated Scott's birthday. On Friday night he and I went miniature golfing while Kaelyn hung out with my parents for a couple hours. We had such a wonderful time. It's been a while since we did anything just us two...so to have that little "date" was great! Kaelyn had fun with Grammy and Grampa too! :) On Saturday we celebrated his birthday out at his dad's house. We had a great time, and Kaelyn absolutely loved being able to play on the farm! She loves the piggys, the huge yard to run in, and of course...the four wheeler rides with Grandpa!

Happy Birthday To My WONDERFUL Husband!

2009-08-27T07:30:00.000-07:00

Today I want to wish my wonderful husband a very Happy Birthday!! He turns 27! He said he doesn't feel any older, but neither of us can deny that the closer we get to 30, the older we feel. I still feel like we should be in our early 20's, but the time keeps ticking on. It's been great though....and we love every minute of our lives. We are truly blessed with wonderful family, health and friends!!

Even though Scott works today (and a much longer day than usual unfortunately), I hope he has a wonderful day. Kaelyn and I will be thinking of him often and waiting for him to get home. She's talked with him on the phone and said "Happy Birthday Daddy....I Love You" which I know just melted his heart! He is such an amazing husband and Daddy...we are so lucky to have him in our lives! Maybe this weekend we can do something fun to celebrate!

I'm Still Here....

2009-08-24T15:34:00.001-07:00

I can't believe it's been SO long since I posted here last! Things have been quite busy lately and I've been working on a post since last week, but just never got it finished until just now. I used to be so organized....as time goes on, that has gone out the window I'm afraid. A little update since I posted last with what we've been up to....

The garage sale we had a couple weekends ago went great! It went much better than I had ever expected it to. Before we had it, I began thinking it was more work than it was actually worth, but I was SO wrong! We made quite a bit of money and were able to clear out much of our storage closet. Such a great feeling to be cleaning things out before the baby gets here in 91 days....not that I'm counting or anything...;) I'm very thankful to my parents for helping us out with the sale and with Kaelyn...I couldn't imagine trying to run the garage sale and watch her at the same time. She loved her time with Grammy and Grandpa!

About a week ago, we finally installed the countertops we've been wanting in our kitchen. The previous countertops were quite old...probably original to the house. (I will post pics soon of the before and after). It looks great and adds such a warm feeling to this space. We also picked up a new stove and microwave, which really looks nice too. Although our house is on the market, there haven't been any offers for a while, so we've decided to take it off the market if it doesn't sell by the end of September. I don't want to be moving when I'm 8 or 9 months pregnant, and once the baby comes we won't be able to have showings and go out in the middle of winter whenever there is one. We'll put it back on the market in the Spring or Summer and see what happens. We love it here, so whenever we're supposed to sell...even if it's months down the road, we're ok with that. :)

Last week Scott was gone for a few days for work, so Kaelyn and I went and spent some time at my parents house. We had a great time. It's always nice to have some company while he's gone, as well as a little help with Kaelyn too.

This past weekend Scott's family had their annual golf outing. My parents were invited to come along and we all had a great time! I didn't golf, but Scott and my Dad did and loved it!! They had a super yummy meal and it was great to spend time with them all.

Other than that I've been keeping busy with my other blog, which I guess I consider to be somewhat of an at home business of sorts. I am being contacted by many more companies to offer reviews and giveaways to my readers, which means much more time spent on it on my part. It's great though, and I love every minute of it. If you haven't ever visited my Mom Blog, check it out at A Mom's Balancing Act. That's where much of my time is spent when I have some down time.

Oh, and the pregnancy is going great as well! I'm 26 weeks now and feel great. I can't believe we're about to enter the third trimester already. I'm getting very excited to meet our little one...only 13 weeks left! :) Here's a pic of me and my growing bump taken last week at 25 weeks.

Couldn't Ask For A Better Weekend

2009-08-10T12:33:00.000-07:00

What a fun and busy weekend we had!! The Freeborn County Fair was going on last week...so Friday night we decided to take Kaelyn and see all the animals. She enjoyed it last year, but this even more!!! She was even big enough to go on a couple of pony rides (she talked Scott's Mom and Aunt into it :)) and had a blast...I think that was her favorite part of the entire fair!! It was so fun to see her interacting with the animals and loving it so much...it's really the little things in life that are so wonderful!

Friday night we decided last minute that we'd like to take Kaelyn up to Como Zoo before the weather gets too cool. Little did we know we would be picking one of the most humid and hot days of the entire summer! It turned out great though and we all had a great time...my brother Jake even got to come which was a lot of fun! We took Kaelyn to the Zoo last summer too...but again, just like with the fair, she enjoyed it even more this time! She LOVED seeing all the animals...especially the monkies...that is all she talks about now. :) Her sad little face shows how much she would miss the animals...this was taken of her as we were leaving the Zoo.

Daddy and Kaelyn

Kaelyn and Mommy

Uncle Jake and Kaelyn

Sad to leave the zoo

Sunday we went to visit my Grammy who's in the hospital. We met up with my parents for lunch and then went and visited her for a while. It was nice to see her doing well after her knee surgery, and am so happy that she gets to go home today!!

Although a long weekend, it was full of fun and I couldn't have asked for anything better! Now we're here on a Monday, pretty tired but loving every minute of it! Scott and I are busy planning for a Garage Sale we're having this weekend and I'm so thankful my parents will be here to help out with that as well...should be fun!

Baby Gaskill is doing great! I'm beginning to think he/she is going to be a soccer player with all the moving around and kicking that's been going on ;)....I love it though...feeling the baby move and watching as my belly shifts from one side to another is one of my favorite parts of pregnancy. I am anxious to meet our little one and can't believe he/she will be here in just 15 weeks! It sounds like a long time...but I know the time will go by so quickly!!

Kaelyn is 21 Months Old

2009-08-01T08:55:00.000-07:00

Today our little girl is 21 months old!!! That hardly seems possible. In just a few more months she will turn 2 years old...I can't believe it! She's such a sweet little girl...so full of life and a joy to be around! Her vocabulary is growing so quickly. Each day she says new words and sentences...we can't hardly believe how quickly she went from a "baby" to a little "toddler". I would have to say my favorite sentence that she says is "I Love You Mama"...melts my heart every time!! (I'm still trying to get it on video...but we either can't catch it, or can't hear it...so I'll keep trying).

I can't wait to see her as a big sister...I know she will be amazing! She's such a big helper and very caring. November will be a very special month...our little girl will turn 2 years old and our second baby will join our family! We feel incredibly blessed! :)

Missing Scott

2009-07-31T15:24:00.000-07:00

Kaelyn and I are missing Scott. He left yesterday morning for work in Illinois. He returns late tonight. My parents were kind enough to invite Kaelyn and I over to stay with them last night so we had some company....I'm so glad they did. It was nice to see them and also have help with Kaelyn. We had a great time! Now we're back home and anxious for Scott to get home. I'm sure we'll both be sleeping by the time he arrives, but at least he's getting back in time to spend the weekend with us!

Other than that our week was rather uneventful. It was nice out most days so Kaelyn and I got to spend a lot of time outdoors....we always love that!! Hopefully this weekend will be the same way! We're also busy getting ready for a garage sale that we're having in a couple of weeks...what a big job!

Change of Plans and a Great Weekend!

2009-07-26T19:16:00.000-07:00

The Weekend: This weekend we were supposed to spend time in Cedar Falls so Scott could go golfing with my brothers and my Dad. He found out earlier in the week that he had committed to volunteering for his Grandpa's church...taking the youth out on the lake with his family's jet skis. He was a little bummed, but knew that he needed to stick with what he agreed to do. In the end, even after the bitter cold morning of jet skiing on the lake, our weekend was so great!! Friday we decided that we finally needed to get Kaelyn a climber of some sort. We headed out and came home with this one.

She absolutely loves it! We've been wanting to get her one for a while and finally decided to. I'm so glad we did...it's something she'd be happy playing with for hours at a time! Saturday Kaelyn and I hung out in the morning while Scott was volunteering. After her nap Scott got home and we took her outside to play on her new climber for a while. It was nice to have some time together as a family!!

Today we went to church, came home and after Kaelyn's nap...took her out to swim in her pool for a while. She loves to be in the water so this is something she really enjoyed. What she loved most was when Scott put her climber slide in the pool! It's so great to see such a big smile on her face all the time!! I just love it! :)

Potty Training: Well...we are officially saying Kaelyn is potty trained now! She is only wearing diapers when she sleeps (nap and bedtime), but other than that she is wearing little girl underwear all the time. We could have probably said she was potty trained a couple weeks ago, but weren't brave enough to take her out and about without a diaper on. This week we finally decided we had to...and whenever we went somewhere (including church today), we had her in underwear. She is SO good to tell us when she has to go and loves to go on the big potties in stores, etc. I'm glad she caught on to this whole potty thing so fast....we only started training about 4 weeks ago...so we're thrilled! She always wakes up dry from nap and 9 times out of 10 wakes up dry in the morning. We're happy that she is now potty trained well before the baby arrives.

The Pregnancy: Everything is going well! I'm feeling great and couldn't be enjoying pregnancy more. The second half of this second trimester has been so much better for me. I am enjoying it while I can...as I remember the discomfort of getting even bigger in the third trimester!! We are now 22 weeks and can't believe how fast the time is going! Here is the 22 week belly pic....:)

Family

2009-07-21T14:13:00.000-07:00

We had a fantastic weekend! It was really nice to spend time with my family for a couple of days to celebrate my Dad's birthday. My brother Josh and his family have lived in Texas for the last 4 years, so having them back in Iowa is wonderful! We are all enjoying getting to spend time together as a family and seeing each other more than just once or twice a year!

Friday night Josh and the family, as well as my brother Jake headed up to Albert Lea to stay for the night. It was fun getting Kaelyn and Emry together again! Emry is all Kaelyn talks about now!! She loves her cousin. :) She was quite sad to see him leave on Sunday...I've never seen her so heartbroken. :( It was Forest City's town celebration weekend, so Saturday morning we headed there and met my parents at the parade. The kids LOVED it!! We spent the rest of Saturday playing games, watching the kids interact, grilling out, and of course watching fireworks! What a relaxing and fun day! Sunday we all went to church and then came home where the kids were able to swim in my parent's backyard for a while. I'm so glad Kaelyn has a cousin who lives so close now...they sure had a great time playing together!

Emry checking out Kaelyn's big girl bed before bedtime

At the parade

Fireworks

Swimming

The pregnancy is going great! I can't believe we're actually 21 weeks already! I know, I know...I say that every week...but it's crazy how fast it's going! A while back I said that I'd post an ultrasound pic of our little one...so here he/she is! We can't wait to meet Baby Gaskill! :)

Happy Birthday Dad!

2009-07-17T10:11:00.000-07:00

I have such an amazing Dad and Mom and feel incredibly blessed to call them my parents. They are so special to me, and I appreciate them more than words can say!! :)

Today is my Dad's birthday!! He is the greatest, and the absolute best Dad in the world!! Not to mention a wonderful Grampa as well! Kaelyn adores him! :) He's such a loving and Godly man, and I feel so blessed to have him as my Dad!! I could go on and on...as he truly is someone I look up to and admire...and always will.

Happy Birthday Dad, We love you! :)

Another Busy One!

2009-07-13T09:07:00.000-07:00

This past week has definitely been a busy one for us! Fun, but busy! Wednesday we had our 20 week ultrasound! It was GREAT! My mom came up to watch Kaelyn and Scott and I went to the appointment. It was wonderful to see our little one again. He/she seems to be growing like a weed and the Dr said everything looked great. She said she could tell right away what we were having, and even told us to look away for a moment if we didn't want to know because it was so obvious. It made us think "boy", but who knows...it could be a girl too. Guess we'll see in November! :) We were a little bummed because they only printed two pics off for us, and one didn't really turn out...the baby had moved as she was taking it and it was a bit blurry. It was nice to have a couple of them though. I'll try and post one here very soon....just have to scan them into my computer.

Other than the ultrasound, the pregnancy is going great! I'm feeling much better these days and am finally able to enjoy the pregnancy a bit more. I'm growing by the week and am beginning to finally feel pregnant now that I have a baby bump that people can see in the clothes I wear. It's great! I've been feeling the baby move for a few weeks now, and each day that passes he/she gets more and more busy!

Saturday Scott was in the LM parade for his job...so Kaelyn and I road with him in his truck. It was fun to watch Kaelyn as she waved to everyone and attempted to throw them candy! :) We had a lot of fun and all took naps when we got home. We decided after naps that we'd spend the afternoon at the pool. I'm so glad we did...it was extremely relaxing and fun to see Kaelyn making new friends and enjoying the water.

Yesterday we woke up early because we had early Nursery duty at church. It was our first time working in there and both Scott and I enjoyed watching Kaelyn interact with the other kids and babies. She's such a social butterfly! After church, lunch and naps again :), we got groceries and then headed to my parents house for supper. It's always great to spend time with them!!

I was thinking ahead to all that we have planned the rest of the summer and it seems like almost every weekend is packed! It's definitely going to make the summer go by very quickly, but also means that the pregnancy will hopefully continue to go by really fast as well! Can't wait for November!! Kaelyn and I have a pretty relaxing week and then head to my parents for the weekend to celebrate my Dad's birthday! Should be a lot of fun!

4th of July Weekend Update

2009-07-07T07:15:00.000-07:00

Wow...it's been a while since I posted an update! We left early on Friday for Cedar Falls and got back home late Sunday. We had such a great time spending the holiday with family and helping Josh and Di move into their new place. They're going to love living in Cedar Falls again!! Kaelyn LOVED getting to spend time with her cousin Emry too. It will be nice to have them closer together so they can hopefully get to know each other better. We went to the fireworks Saturday night and it was Kaelyn's first time. I wasn't sure how she'd react, but it went great. She kept saying "wow"! It was fun to see her experience this for the first time. I know next year she'll probably enjoy it even more!

Playing on Cousin Emry's bed

Watching the fireworks and playing with her glow sticks

Tomorrow we have our 20 week ultrasound! Scott and I are both very excited to see our little one again. The ultrasound appointments are always our favorite. We're not going to find out if it's a boy or a girl...we'd like to be surprised like we were with Kaelyn....but it will still be fun to see our little baby again and watch him or her wiggle all around! I can't wait!! I will try and post a few of the pics we get by the end of the week.

Oh...and Friday before heading down to Cedar Falls we got Kaelyn's ears pierced! She did great and it looks adorable. She walks around pointing to her ears and says "ear cute". :) She still got called a boy in Walmart though...guess it's going to take getting some more hair before people stop doing that. haha I haven't got a good picture of her with earrings yet...she's too quick...but I will try to get some posted soon!

I hope everyone had a fantastic 4th of July!

Happy Wednesday!!

2009-07-01T06:23:00.000-07:00

Kaelyn's first day/night in her big girl bed went GREAT! I wasn't going to start her in the bed until next week...but ever since we set it up...she's been showing so much interest that I decided we'd try. Naptime started out a little rough...she just wasn't too sure about it. She ended up going to sleep though and had the biggest smile when she woke up! She was SO proud to have slept in her big bed. Last night I thought it might be a little rough again, but she did amazing! We laid her down at 8:30 like we always do and didn't hear from her til almost 8 this morning!! She slept so well...and once again was SO happy to be waking up in her big bed. Whenever we walk in to get her...she always says...."sit" and pats the bed beside her. She just loves it! :) I'm so glad. This was a big transition that I was wondering how it would go.

Scott's sister Tami is in town for the week. She lives in Virginia and hasn't seen Kaelyn since she was just a few weeks old (besides last week when she saw her when she got into town). She was really wanting some bonding time with Kaelyn...so, she's going to babysit while Scott and I go see a movie! Another date!! This is great. :) Kaelyn will really enjoy it...she just loves spending time with her Aunts.

Aunt Tami with Kaelyn just a few weeks old

Aunt Tami with Kaelyn last week!

Since we'll be gone tonight, that means today and tomorrow I need to spend doing a little packing. We're headed to Cedar Falls for the weekend to spend the 4th of July with my family and to help my brother and his family move! It should be a really fun weekend. I'm looking forward to it. I always enjoy visiting Cedar Falls and of course seeing family!!

A Weekend At Home

2009-06-29T12:33:00.000-07:00

We had plans to go to the pool again this weekend....however, the weather was not cooperating. It was either extremely windy or raining...hopefully another weekend! Having a weekend at home was nice too though. Saturday we got a lot done. We started setting up Kaelyn's new bed and bedroom. She is SO excited! We still don't have it all ready for her....but soon she'll be sleeping in there. Such a big girl! We're praying for a smooth transition.

Kaelyn and Daddy trying out her new big girl bed!

Sunday afternoon our church was hosting a Petting Zoo. Knowing how much Kaelyn LOVES animals...we knew she'd think this was pretty neat. We went and had a wonderful time! Right as we got there, she walked right over the goats and said "Hi Sheep" in the loudest and cutest voice! :) It was adorable. We tried explaining that they were goats, but "sheep" is what they looked like to her....too cute! She also loved the little pigs, the dog and the bunny! It makes me excited to take her to the zoo again this year....she'll enjoy that a lot too.

Kaelyn getting licked by the dog! :)

It was a great weekend and one that was rather productive. That was probably a good thing considering we will be away next weekend in Cedar Falls helping my brother and his family move!

New Milestones

2009-06-25T07:41:00.000-07:00

As I've shared in recent posts, over the past few months Kaelyn has started to show signs that she is ready for potty training. Scott and I wanted to take it slow and and let her tell us when she was ready. She often will tell us "potty" just after she goes, or just before. When she does this, we take her to sit on her potty where she'll sometimes go and sometimes won't. Lately though....she's been telling us before she goes a lot...and runs for her potty. Starting this month she would tell us when she had to go and would go almost every time! Then this week... she's been going EVERY time she tells us she needs to and we've had less and less wet diapers. We're still taking it slow, but I feel are making a lot of progress. Today she has gone in the potty every time so far...no wet diapers!! She goes over to the potty by herself, goes, then gets up and says "look" so proudly and of course after that says "mm" (m & m) which is what she gets when she goes! I'm so proud of her for letting us know that she's ready and really trying at this!! We haven't had to do much but encourage her...it's come so naturally to her which is nice too. It would be nice to have her out of diapers and trained by the time the baby gets here in November....let's hope so!! That would be GREAT!

As always, Kaelyn has been talking up a storm....saying new words and sentences that have Scott and I looking at eachother wondering where she learned that. Like the other day when I walked out the room she said "Mama where going? Wait!" Or yesterday when she said "I don't know" and "cute" :). It's just fun to see her learning every day! It's nice because between her signing and her multitude of words we know exactly what she needs/wants and she knows what we're saying too. The Baby Signing Time was the best thing we ever did. Introducing that to Kaelyn at 3 months old significantly increased her vocabulary and I believe helped to encourage her to start talking earlier. It's definitely something we will do with our next baby as well!

I can't believe I'm saying this (it doesn't seem possible)...but in just a matter of days my baby will be 20 months old already! Where has the time gone?!? She's such a joy and makes us smile each and every day! Like last night as I was standing by the stove making supper, she walked over, stood there by my legs and gave me a hug...then pushed up my shirt a little and kissed my belly as she said "baby"....what a sweetie...makes my heart melt! Children are such a blessing!

This week we got Kaelyn's new bedding for her "big girl bed" and also the bed rails. We are planning on setting up her new room this weekend and hopefully start the transition to a big girl bed. She's been a fantastic sleeper since the day she was born, so we're thinking that it will go fairly smoothly. We were hoping to be in a new house by the time we made the transition...oh well. We've decided that we'll move her to the other bedroom we have on the main level and will keep the nursery set up for when the baby arrives. If we move before then, then I guess we move...but we want to plan as though we'll be here just in case. So anyways...it will be a big change for her. I'll keep you all posted on how it goes.....

Father's Day Weekend

2009-06-22T09:35:00.001-07:00

What a fun weekend!! We took Kaelyn to the pool here in town again...she loved it even more than the first time! It was beautiful out with lots of sun! What a fun time to spend together as a family. I love summer!

Sunday we spent Father's Day with both of our Dads. Scott LOVES to golf and hadn't had the opportunity to get out and golf yet this summer. So...I thought for Father's Day it would be fun for him, my Dad and my brother to all go spend the day golfing together. They did, and had a blast! The weather was a little dreary....but they made the best of it and ended up golfing 3 rounds! While they were out, my mom, Kaelyn and I all went to visit my Grandparents and had lunch. It was great to see them! Yesterday afternoon we headed to Scott's Dad's and had supper with them. Kaelyn had the chance to meet her very first baby pig! Grandpa Gaskill has such a fun farm for her play on...and the animals there are so cute! Now all Kaelyn talks about is going outside to see the pigs. :)

I hope all of you had a wonderful Father's Day as well! Wish it wouldn't have gone by so quickly...

Happy Father's Day!

2009-06-21T08:01:00.000-07:00

Happy Father's Day Scott!! You are the greatest husband and Daddy in the world!! We are so blessed to have you in our lives and love you so much!

I also wanted to say Happy Father's Day to my Dad! You are the best!! Love you!

Today Is Our 4th Wedding Anniversary

2009-06-18T13:59:00.000-07:00

Today Scott and I are celebrating our 4th Wedding Anniversary! I say this every year that goes by, but I can't believe it's been 4 years already! We were married June 18, 2005...and everyday since then I thank the Lord for bringing him into my life! He is the love of my life and the perfect man for me! I am the luckiest girl in the world!

The last 4 years have been filled with many blessings....two of which are the greatest is the birth of our daughter, Kaelyn Sue on November 1, 2007, and the exciting news that we're expecting our second baby in November of this year! We couldn't be happier with where our lives have headed in the past 4 years....God is SO good!

It's exciting to think about what the next 4 years will hold... :)

Happy Anniversary Scott!! I love you so much and am truly blessed to have you as my husband!

FINALLY....a nice day!

2009-06-16T21:33:00.000-07:00

Well...we finally had ONE day of sunshine here in the northern midwest and Scott, Kaelyn and I took full advantage of it. Sunday after church and Kaelyn's nap, we decided it was the perfect afternoon to take Kaelyn to the pool. She hadn't been there since July of last year and we knew she'd have even more fun this time! We were right...she loved it and was walking up to little kids the whole time wanting to go play in the pool with them. She's such a social butterfly. :)

Playing in the water with Daddy

Making Friends Everywhere we go!

Hugs

She Loves Her Daddy!

We had a wonderful time and wish we could have stayed longer. The days just go by too quickly. Sadly, the following days have been very wet and cool here. We've gotten so much rain, which has meant that we're stuck indoors as we have been for much of the summer. Hopefully we'll get the chance to enjoy the pool again soon though!

Happy Anniversary Dad & Mom!!

2009-06-16T08:07:00.000-07:00

I wanted to take a moment and wish my wonderful parents a very Happy Anniversary! They've been married for 30 years today and are the best parents in the world! :) I appreciate the Godly example they've set in their marriage...what a wonderful thing and such an inspiration to us all! Have a wonderful day Dad and Mom!!

We Love You!!! :)

Little Chip Thief :)

2009-06-12T06:26:00.000-07:00

From the time Kaelyn was two weeks old we knew she'd be a girl on the move when she rolled over for the first time from her belly to her back. Now, at the age of 19 1/2 months she's proven to us many times that she still always wants to be going, going, going! She's running around all over the place, not to mention climbing anywhere she can. She's a little monkey. :) Scott is at work most of the day during the week so he often forgets just how fast she can be and what a good climber she is. He was warming up some supper for himself one night this week, and when he turned around, this is what he found! Miss Kaelyn standing at the table stuffing her face with the chips he had just set down to have with his supper. Little stinker. :) haha (if you click on the picture you can see she already has a whole one in her mouth :) ) She obviously enjoyed the few she had gotten and we couldn't help but laugh and capture this moment with a picture.

In other Gaskill news....I had my 4 month dr appointment on Wednesday. It was just a quick routine checkup to listen to the baby's heartrate which is always fun! Next time, in 4 weeks, we get to see our little one on ultrasound. If we were going to find out the sex of the baby we would find out at that time....however, I think we've decided that we want to be surprised again like we were with Kaelyn. It will still be great to see him/her again though...ultrasounds are always my favorite appointments! I can't believe that that appointment will also mark the midway point of my pregnancy! I can't tell you how much faster this pregnancy is going. It hardly seems possible that we're almost to 20 weeks already! I feel like November will be here before we know it. YEAH!

Other than that we're still in the process of looking for a house and selling ours. We've had some very interested people walk through...so our hope and prayer is that it will still be some time this summer. God knows the best timing...so we're just trying to be patient and know that everything will work out perfectly.

Kaelyn and I are still anxiously awaiting for the temps to warm up a bit so we can start spending more time outdoors. It's the middle of June already and doesn't feel like it at all. We still enjoy having a ice pop once in a while though...even though it's still not the warmest out...Kaelyn sure loves them. :)

Lots of Changes....

2009-06-07T19:54:00.000-07:00

We've had quite the busy weekend. It was great though!! Friday my brother came up to visit and stayed with us. He is always so excited to see Kaelyn and she loves her Uncle "Jakey" as she always says! :) He and my parents went to Philadelphia Saturday morning for the week so we are watching my parents dog Zoe. That has been a lot of fun for Kaelyn. She's always saying "come zoe" or "nice puppy" as she pets her.

Saturday afternoon we had a graduation reception to go to for Scott's cousin. It was great to see his whole family and spend some time out and about...even though the weather was not as enjoyable. It's been raining here ALL weekend! We had really hoped to make a trip to the pool sometime this weekend, but I guess that will have to wait until the weather decides to cooperate.

Today we had a fairly relaxing day...went to church, came home and all took naps, then relaxed as a family. It was a great way to end the weekend! Today we began working more with Kaelyn on potty training. It would be great to have her out of diapers by the time the baby gets here. We haven't worked with her too much up until now. She'll often tell us she wants to sit on the potty, so we take her in and sometimes she'll go and sometimes she won't. Today she began telling us she had to go and each time she'd actually go when we sat her on the potty. It was very exciting! I'm going to continue to encourage this and hopefully she'll catch on quickly!! :) In the near future we'll also be getting Kaelyn into a big girl bed so we can get her all transitioned before the baby comes. Hopefully that transition will go well too! Lots of changes in the Gaskill household!

Still House Hunting

2009-06-03T06:34:00.001-07:00

Well...the house in FC that we had made an offer on fell through. We haven't sold our house yet, so it was only a contingent offer...which means that someone could still make an offer on it and get it...and someone did just that. Although it was a bit disappointing...we know that God's hand is in all of this and that this house must just not be the one for us. So many times in our lives the Lord has shown us His plan for our lives. Sometimes it's not what we thought it would be in the beginning...but as time goes on we see why it's the very best. He is so good and only wants the best for us!

Our house is still on the market and we're awaiting that perfect offer still. As we wait, we are now searching again for a home. Since Forest City didn't have much else to offer that we liked, we have expanded our search to include Lake Mills. It was our second choice for the town we would live in and does a couple of potential homes that could work for us. Last night we actually looked at one for the second time and took our parents to take a look as well. It's difficult not to be picky when we love the house we're in so much...but overall the consensus was good. It doesn't have quite the space ours does, but is newer and very nice. There are definitely things that we would want to do to "personalize" it and make it our own...but what fun would buying a house be if you couldn't do those things, right?!? We don't know what we'll do at this point....we're going to keep praying about it and following the Lord's leading. If we decide to make an offer and all goes well I think it could make for a very nice house for us. We'll just have to see what happens. God is in control! :)

This week has been fairly uneventful other than that and that we've had a couple of showings for our hosue. Kaelyn turned 19 months old on the 1st...that was pretty exciting too! Kind of bittersweet though...our little girl is getting so big and growing so fast! This past weekend we actually got her a baby (it cries, coos, closes it's eyes, etc) to help get her ready for her baby brother or sister in November. She calls her Emma and carries her everywhere! I know she'll be a terrific big sister!!

My Blogging Experience...Welcome to my Mom Blog!

2009-05-29T14:08:00.000-07:00

I began blogging a couple of years ago...but didn't decide to start this blog until last fall. When I first began in the blogging world, my motive was to keep family and friends updated on what has been going on with our family as well as make a little money here and there (there are many great ways to make money online...especially with blogs)...perfect for a stay-at-home-mom like myself. I decided to dedicate this blog solely to what is going on in our lives, and to dedicate my other blog to "my at-home business" so to speak.

Over the past few months, I've really enjoyed seeing where blogging on my other blog (my Mom Blog) has taken me. It's given me the opportunity to connect with a whole new world of Mommy Bloggers which I love. I get to share my thoughts and experiences when it comes to Faith, parenting, finding great deals, baby products, and even ways to earn money from home. I guess I've never shared this on here....however, I know that many of the people who read this blog are moms like myself....so I thought, what better time than the present. My Mom Blog offers a lot of useful information that I thought some of my readers here would like and maybe even be able to use. Over time I've built relationships with many companies and business across the web too...and even have reviews and giveaways to offer for some really great items!!

The blog I'm referring to is A Mom's Balancing Act. I've spent a lot of time building it and increasing my traffic flow there. I wanted to share it with you in case it is something that may be of interest. I'm most excited about the giveaways that I have running (which can easily be found in the right column of the blog) and will continue to have running over the coming months. Stay tuned...there are MANY coming in the next few weeks especially for some fantastic baby and kids gear!! Giveaways are where people enter (via comment) on my blog to win really great items for mom and baby....everything from baby gear like shoes and cloth diapers....to mommy items like books and clothing! Winners are chosen at random and notified once the contest has ended (all entry rules are posted). I also utilize this blog to earn a little money here and there. I enjoy sharing my findings on easy ways to make money from home using the Internet with my readers.

Anyways...I just wanted to pass this blog along for anyone who would like to check it out!

Hope everyone is having a FANTASTIC Friday!

What a GREAT Weekend!

2009-05-26T18:51:00.000-07:00

What a great weekend! It was so nice to have Scott home for three days with us. We didn't start out with any plans...but turns out it was a fun-filled and busy weekend!! Friday we decided to get the house cleaned so that we could enjoy the rest of the weekend without having to worry about doing chores. Scott surprised me and brought home the movie Marley & Me...so after Kaelyn went to bed we had a movie date night. I had seen the movie before...but it was just as good the second time.

Saturday we woke up to a somewhat dreary day...the rain was falling and the sky was gray. We decided that since we probably wouldn't be able to spend much time outdoors...we'd take a trip to the cities to the Mall of America and visit the Underwater Adventures Aquarium. Kaelyn LOVES fish...especially Nemo lately :), so we knew she'd absolutely love it. We headed up there after lunch and spent the rest of the day there. It was great! Kaelyn loved all the fish...especially the tank with all the fish like the ones from Finding Nemo...that was her favorite! I enjoyed a fun day away with Scott and Kaelyn...we don't do those types of things very often.

Sunday we went to church, then had a wedding reception for Scott's cousing to go to that evening. It was fun to visit with his family and let Kaelyn run around the huge yard at the church! Before the reception Scott painted Kaelyn's nails. :) We had never painted her nails before and it turned out very cute! :) She really liked it too. She walks around look at her toes all day long!

As of Sunday morning we still didn't have much planned for Memorial Day except for hanging out at home and relaxing. Each of our parents ended up inviting us over though...so we got to go spend the afternoon with Scott's Dad and step mom and then the evening with my parents! It was wonderful! Scott's Dad lives on a farm and Kaelyn had never had the chance to run around their huge yard until Monday. She LOVED it! So much in fact that she didn't want to come inside. We had a great time with my parents as well. My Grandparents were there too which was fun. We ate so much yummy food throughout the day and came home full and tired from a very fun day!

I am glad our weekend turned from a relaxing one at home to a busy one with family. Although time at home is nice...I always enjoy getting to spend time with family too! :)

The Weekend Is Upon Us

2009-05-22T21:42:00.000-07:00

Our week started out a little bit rough...with both Scott and Kaelyn not feeling well and having fevers. Thankfully it only lasted a couple of days. From there our week got better and we even got to spend some time outside! It was SO beautiful out. Kaelyn and I walked down to the park and she enjoyed getting to play with all the kids. I'm so thankful for the neighborhood we live in...I will miss it when the times comes to move. She also enjoyed playing in our three seasons porch....she loves it out there and typically sits by the door looking outside!

Kaelyn has also been enjoying her new little laptop (we got it at the Just Between Friends consignment sale we went to last weekend). She has always been very interested in what Scott and I are doing when we're on our laptops, so I thought this would give her one of her own to use. She LOVES it! She's always saying "puter" and handing it to us so we can open it. Too cute!

As the weekend is now upon us I couldn't be happier. Until yesterday I didn't even realize that Monday was Memorial Day!! YEAH! That means Scott is home with us for a long weekend. I LOVE those kind of weekends. :) We were hoping to make some fun plans as a family...but with the temps a little cooler and rain in our forecast we're not quite sure what we're going to do yet. As long as it's time spent together it will be great! We're getting quite the itch for summer...already talking about taking Kaelyn to a couple of zoos this summer (she LOVES animals) and to the pool of course. Hopefully the warmer temps we saw mid week will come back and stay for good over the next few months, because I know Fall and Winter will be here before we know it again...oh the wonderful reality of living in Minnesota!

Other than that, not much new going on. Kaelyn surprises us each and every day with all the new words and phrases she's saying. It's fun to actually sit and have a conversation with her. Some of what she says is still jabbering, but most of it contains actual words and phrases. I just love it! She speaks in sentences too. She'll pause before moving onto the next. It's pretty precious! I've been trying to get some of it on video...but it seems the minute I push the button...Kaelyn either stops talking, or is only interested in the camera and what I'm doing that I can't actually catch anything. Her newest phrases and words from the past few weeks are "supise (surprise)", "sorry mama", "see ya", and "march (like marching with her feet)".

Kaelyn wasn't born with much hair...and it's taken quite some time for it to really start growing much. Since she turned 1, it seems to be coming in a lot faster and the other day I was actually able to get her hair up in pig tails! :) We were pretty excited. It's fun to have a little hair to work with and actually do something with it! She liked it too.

13 Weeks Pregnant

2009-05-22T09:54:00.000-07:00

We are entering our 13th week of pregnancy....second trimester here we come!! So far this pregnancy has just flown by. It's amazing how fast it goes when you have a toddler to run after all the time. You just don't have as much time to think about it. I prefer it that way...as I'd rather have the pregnancy go by quickly so I can meet our little one that much sooner! :)

As I leave the first trimester behind me, I am noticing things that I am welcoming with open arms. The main one being that I am starting (slowly) to feel a bit better. For the past 5 or 6 weeks I've been feeling so sick most of the day. Now...gradually I am feeling less nauseous, and, as long as I keep food in my stomach, can enjoy my days and this pregnancy more. I remember liking the second trimester the most with Kaelyn...so I look forward to it with this one too! As we enter the second trimester I also notice that I am showing more and more (much faster than with Kaelyn I might add). I like that feeling of looking pregnant and am very excited to be entering that stage of pregnancy.

Yesterday I got to thinking about the reality of having a second child and new baby in the house and I couldn't help but get even more excited. I was looking back at all of Kaelyn's pictures taken throughout the past year and a half and barely remember her being so tiny. Time goes by far too quickly. It's hard to believe that in 6 short months we will have another little one like that in our home and family! It's very exciting. Everyone is already guessing whether they think we'll have a boy or a girl which is fun to hear as well. Although it'llbe tempting to find out, I think we'll wait for the surprise in the end to know what we're having like we did with Kaelyn. Not knowing and being surprised was so amazing....it's not easy...but as of now that is the plan with this one too. :) It's fun to guess though and I can't wait until November to find out whether it's a boy or a girl! Either one would be wonderful.

That's just a little update on the pregnancy.....I'll try and update frequently. :) Hope everyone has a wonderful 3 day weekend!!

Our Weekend: The Good and The Not So Good

2009-05-17T15:22:00.001-07:00

The Good: Yesterday we ventured up to the cities with my parents for the Just Between Friends Consignment Sale. We go to this sale every Fall and Spring and end up coming home with bags and bags of clothes for Kaelyn. I LOVE it! You can't get much better than brand name, good quality clothes for less than $2.00 for a whole outfit!! She is more than set for this summer and the beginning of Fall now. What a great feeling! I always love finding great deals on cute clothes for her. If those of you with small children have never checked out Just Between Friends, you may want to take a look at their website, JBFsale.com and see if they have a sale near you (they have sales all over the US every Fall and Spring).

The Not So Good: On another note....Kaelyn woke up this morning with a fever of over 102. It's had her feeling pretty yucky and tired much of the day. Besides the short time that Tylenol or Motrin is working to keep her fever down....she's wanting to cuddle or sleep on Mommy and Daddy. She is not much of a cuddler, so when she does it's great....we just wish it was under different circumstances. :( It's no fun having a little one that doesn't feel good who can't tell you where it hurts. So far it just seems to be the fever that's bothering her and maybe her teeth. Hopefully by tomorrow she'll be as good as new.

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!

News of the Week!

2009-05-14T05:49:00.000-07:00

Well...as many of you probably already know from Facebook, we're expecting our SECOND baby!! :) We are SO thrilled about it. I had considered sharing the news a while back as we found out almost three months ago...wow is it hard to keep a secret that long :)....but then I thought it would be fun to tell everyone once we had ultrasound pics to share. I have to tell you that seeing our little baby on that screen was so exciting!! He/She was moving all around and looked so cute "waving" to us. Everything looked great. He/She is healthy and growing just as they should be. :) Now I just can't believe that in 6 months we will have our little baby here with us. The time is flying by much more quickly with this pregnancy. With kaelyn I didn't have a little toddler to run after and keep me busy so all of my time and energy was spent thinking about, and reading about my pregnancy. Now however, I am a bit more busy :) and don't have a lot of time to think about it. It's a good thing actually...as it's always nice to have the pregnancy go by smoothly and quickly!

Strong Heartrate...171 bpm! :)

Kaelyn is pretty excited too! She doesn't quite understand all that's going on....but she does know that there's a baby in Mommy's tummy....as she's always kissing it and says "baby". :) She walks around the house signing baby and is loving it! I hope she enjoys being a big sister once the baby is here....as I know she'll be a great one! The timing will be perfect...Kaelyn will have just turned two...so a nice space between the two kids.

This is the shirt we got for Kaelyn to tell our parents the good news! We just let her walk in to the room where our parents were a few months ago and "surprise"! :) They were all floored and so excited! Just a few days before we decided to share our exciting news....my parents received a phone call from my twin brother and his wife in Texas. They called with the news that they are expecting too!! So exciting! For anyone that doesn't know the story of my brother and I...let me explain...we're twins...so we obviously shared a lot of big moments in our lives together! We share the same birthday every year (obviously :)), high school graduation, college graduation (even went to the same college), weddings (well we didn't share them, but Josh and Di's wedding was just 8 days after ours so it was such an exciting and fun time :)), then the birth of our first children. I remember receiving the call from them a couple of years ago....letting us know they were expecting their first baby. We were so excited for them, and the great thing was....we were expecting too (with Kaelyn). We were just about to call them at that same time and share our news with them. It was so funny how our lives seemed to be taking the same course....and our parents just loved it! Two Grandbabies at once...who would have thought?!! The funny thing is...they weren't just going to be around the same age...they were due just one day apart. :) It turns out that they were more like 13 days apart after all was said and done...but still, pretty neat! Now this time...we thought that there was no way that would happen again...I mean, what are the chances?! Well...we were wrong. When Josh and Di called my parents to tell them their exciting news this time, we also knew that we were pregnant already and just hadn't shared the news yet. Everyone joked about "now Scott and Jenna...do you have some news for us"...but they didn't actually think we did. So, when we finally told them that we too were expecting it was pure joy! Now my parents would be grandparents twice again! Our babies are due just 3 days apart this time, so we'll have to see what happens. :) The kids will have so much fun growing up together and having cousins their own age.

It's been a very exciting time for us and one I couldn't be more happy about. We're thrilled about our growing family and these children the Lord has given to us and entrusted us with. Children are such a blessing! :)

So yeah...that's our exciting news that I was holding off until after the ultrasound! (we were actually waiting until after the ultrasound just to make sure we knew how many there were...one or two....as you never know with twins in my family since they run so strongly). We'll keep you posted about the pregnancy and how everything is going over the next 6 months....should be a fun journey!

Thank you everyone for all of the congrats on Facebook!!

Relaxing Weekend at Home

2009-05-09T15:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we had Kaelyn's 18 month appointment! Wow....where has the time gone?! I LOVE taking her to each appointment...it's so fun to see how much she's grown. Since February she's gained 1 1/2 1bs (putting her at a whopping 23.5 lbs) and grew two inches (now at 31 3/4 inches tall)! My little girl is growing up. While we were there she was talking with everyone....saying "hi" and having conversations with them as she so often does with anyone she comes across. I still can't get over how quickly the words started to come once she hit a year old! We're hearing more and more two word sentences too, which has been fun.

Other than the appointment yesterday afternoon, this is the first weekend in a really long time that we don't have plans to be out of town or away from home. We're home for the whole weekend! It's really been nice. This morning we had an open house....so we left for a couple of hours, but other than that we've been home all day! That hardly ever happens on the weekends. Our house is all clean (from getting ready for the open house) so we can just relax a bit. Last night Scott and I watched the movie taken...quite a suspenseful and good movie. I really wanted some movie theater popcorn though...so before we began watching it, Scott went to the movie theater here in town and got some...YUM! :) What a great husband I have!

Now, if only the weather would warm up....Kaelyn has been wanting to get outside so badly! I often find her like this in front of our french doors just dreaming of being outdoors! :) Maybe tomorrow will be warmer so we can?!

I wanted to leave you with a few pictures of Kaelyn. She has become quite the little helper these days! When asked she'll throw things in the garbage, wipe something up with a towel, etc. What a big girl! :)

Wishing everyone a blessed weekend! And, to all those mother's and mom's to be out there.....Happy Mother's Day!!

A Very Busy May

2009-05-04T18:30:00.000-07:00

Well, it's official....my little girl is 18 months old! She turned 18 months on May 1st...it's still sinking in. I can't believe how fast the time has gone. I knew this day was coming...where I would officially say she's 1 1/2, but to be honest....I never imagined it would come this fast. Before we know it she'll be two...wow! It sure has been fun to see her learning and growing though! It's amazing the transformation a child makes in the first couple years of life.

The month of May is beginning busy as usual. It seems May is always a busy time. We have had much going on and in looking at the rest of the month it doesn't seem it will be slowing down anytime soon. Our house is actually the one thing that hasn't had us very busy. The offer on our home fell through...so we are still waiting on God's perfect timing for the right buyer. We do have a house lined up in Forest City for when we sell ours though...so that's half the battle right there. We know the time will come and we're just trying to patient.

I will update you more on the other exciting things in our life that have been keeping us quite busy in a future post. Stay tuned...more to come :)

God is SO Good!

2009-04-22T07:08:00.000-07:00

I am just getting worse and worse at updating on here....I promise someday I will get back to posting regularly. We've still been quite busy with all the house stuff and it's taking up much of our days and nights. That's a good thing I suppose.....it means we're that much closer to selling our house.

Here's the update: On Friday we made an offer on a home in Forest City! We're very excited and currently are still in the counter offering stage (based on a contingency that our home sells of course...no having two mortgages here :)). We're hoping we can come to terms soon BECAUSE....we got an offer on our house yesterday!!! YEAH! Our house has been on the market for 13 days, so we're very happy that it's had such interest and now an offer so soon! We're in the counter offering stage with it as well. We've been in prayer, along with our friends and families, through the whole process and it's really neat to see God working. He's helping for everything to go smoothly and simultaneously between both selling and buying (something I was very nervous about) which is just amazing. What a blessing! We are giving it to Him and know that whatever He has planned for us is the absolute best. :) He is SO good! I will try and keep you posted on how the offers come out. As of now if everything works out, it looks like we will be moved to FC by the end of May!!

One Busy Week

2009-04-15T06:44:00.000-07:00

It's been a while....I've been bad at this lately! We've had a lot going on over the past week or so....and it only seems to get more busy. Between Easter get togethers, house stuff and not
feeling well.....I'm ready for a day to relax!

Last week Scott's sister and her family were back from Virginia for Easter. It was great seeing them...as it had been over 3 years. We had never met their youngest son, and they had never met Kaelyn. It was great getting all the cousins together....so much fun!! Thursday we went to Scott's Mom's house for supper. It was fun to sit around and just visit and catch up with everyone. Saturday we celebrated Easter with my parents for lunch and at Scott's Dad's house for supper. Sunday we were at his mom's side for Easter. It made for a busy weekend...but was so great to see everyone. I wish it hadn't gone by so quickly!

Our Family at my parents

Grampa and Grammy Sankey

Great Grandpa and Grammy Kruger

Cousins-Scott's Mom's House

Easter Egg Hunt

Kaelyn playing with big kids :)

Dying Easter Eggs-Scott's Dad's House

The kids with their Easter baskets

Story Time

On the house issue....we've been very blessed to have quite a lot of interest and have already had 3 showings and two more tomorrow in the first week of being listed. It's hard knowing what will happen or when...but we know it will all work out! We're very excited. It's made it a little hard for Kaelyn and I as we have to leave every time there's a showing. We've gotten the chance to go to the park, walk around the mall and even eat out a couple of times together which has been fun. Mommy and Daughter time! :)

It's been a terrific week! We had a wonderful time with family and look forward to seeing what God has planned for us with our house situation!

It's Official!

2009-04-08T19:45:00.000-07:00

Well...it's official!! Our house is on the market. The Realtor was here tonight and we got all the paperwork filled out and signed. Now it's just a waiting game....a bittersweet one at that. We absolutely love our home! We enjoy living in Albert Lea as well. The move is necessary so that Scott is closer to his job, and it will be nice to be even closer to family, but leaving our first home is going to be hard....and sad. At least we have the exitement of looking for our next home...one where we can hopefully plan on staying in for many, many years to come! We're praying that the whole selling and buying process goes smoothly and quickly.....I'll keep you updated on how everything is going.

Busy Week

2009-04-06T11:52:00.000-07:00

The week is not starting out quite as planned. Yesterday we found that our laptop is not working properly...significantly decreasing the amount of time I've been able to be online today! Our desktop computer is great...but with a little one running around it's not very practical to sit on a computer in our office. It's easier to be on a laptop and take it wherever Kaelyn decides to venture. Needless to say, I may be a bit slow at posting this week as I'm not sure how much time I will have to get on the computer. It's going to be a very busy week anyways.

Wednesday our Realtor is coming to take pictures of the house so that it can finally get listed on Monday! YEAH! It's bittersweet, but we're looking forward to the next stage in our lives and Scott being closer to work. That means that today and tomorrow are our days to really get the house in order.

Thursday-Tuesday Scott's sister and her family will be in town and staying with his Dad. We're going to try and see them as much as possible...as they live in Virginia and we only get to see them once every few years. It will be great for Kaelyn to finally meet her cousins...I can't wait!!

With all of that, plus Easter....I can honestly say that this week will fly by! If I don't have the chance to get online much or post again this week...I wanted to wish everyone a Happy Easter!

Kaelyn is 17 Months Old

2009-04-01T06:33:00.001-07:00

Our little girl is 17 months old today! I can't believe it. It doesn't seem possible that in one more month she will be 1 1/2! Where does the time go?! I have truly enjoyed every stage she's gone through...what a wonderful little girl we have. :) This toddler age is especially fun though... as you just never know what she's going to do or say. It's fun to hear her little voice and watch her make sense of the world around her! I would have to say the most amazing thing about her is the way she interacts and communicates. I never thought that at 17 months she would be trying to say sentences like, "where's daddy at?", but she is! She's like a little sponge...learning so fast! She has a very large vocabulary and is great at signing...so between those two things she's able to tell us what she needs or wants most of the time.

Our little social butterfly has sure changed over the past year and a half....I can't wait to see what the next year and half brings! :)

Newborn-4 days old

1 month old

2 months old

3 months old

4 months old

5 months old

6 months old

7 months old

8 months old

9 months old

10 months old

11 months old

12 months old

13 months old

14 months old

15 months old

16 months old

I don't have a picture for 17 months yet, but there will be more to come. :)

Already Tuesday

2009-03-31T06:23:00.000-07:00

I ended up going down to my brother's and helped him clean his place and get some things packed up on Friday! It took all day, but in the end I think we really got a lot accomplished! With everything already packed up, I would say moving on Friday should go pretty smoothly. I am looking forward to going down with the family and helping him get moved into a place of his own. He'll really enjoy his new condo I think.

Saturday morning Scott and I went to look at a few homes while Mom and Dad watched Kaelyn. We saw a couple that could be possibilities, but knowing that this is a house we're going to stay in for a very long time....we want to be 100% sure that it's the house for us before putting an offer in on it. With prayer and looking at a few more houses I am sure we will decide on the perfect one! Although it is a lot to sell and buy...I'm also looking forward to it more and more!

It's already Tuesday! I can't believe it. Yesterday was not the way I had planned to start off the week with a migraine that lasted from morning til' night! No fun! Scott had meetings late...so that did not help...it made for a very long day. Thankfully I woke up today with a clearer head. A much better way to start the day off! That's a good thing because there's much to do over the next couple of days before we head down to CF and help Jake move. I suppose I better get to work....

Wishing everyone a blessed Tuesday!

Feels Like The Weekend

2009-03-26T06:07:00.000-07:00

It feels like the weekend! I think that's because today I'm busy cleaning and doing most of my "weekend chores", as we'll be gone the next couple of days. Tomorrow Kaelyn is going to go spend the day with Grammy while Daddy's at work and I'm down in Cedar Falls helping my brother get his apartment all packed up! He's going to be moving to a condo he recently purchased, but has been really busy with work. I thought I'd go down to help him as I know moving is a such a HUGE job! Then next weekend we will be down helping him move. He'll love his new place! Friday we'll be staying with my parents, and then Saturday morning we'll be looking at some houses. Our house will be up for sale as of Monday the 13th so we wanted to start looking. Should be fun!

Yesterday I got to thinking about Kaelyn and how big she's getting! I can't believe that next week she will turn 17 months old. It doesn't even seem possible. She's growing right before our eyes. This is such a fun age...I've always enjoyed the toddler stage. She learns something new every single day and it's so amazing to witness. One of her newest things is putting more than one word together. She's done this for a while now....but it's more and more frequent. Her favorites are "no no puppy", "nice baby", and "bye bye Daddy". There are many, but those are the ones we hear the most. She's always been a jabberer and has always had a large vocabulary, but it's fun to start seeing her make even more sense of her words and the language she has. :)

Warmer Weather

2009-03-22T19:57:00.001-07:00

The weather has been SO much nicer these past few days. The temps have actually been reaching up into the 60's which is amazing for this time of year! We took Kaelyn for a nice long walk on Saturday and to the park where she had a blast! Unfortunately we forgot our camera, but I'm sure there will be many more chances for that as summer nears! :)

I have learned that Kaelyn really enjoys this weather and our screened in porch. I like it because it's safe for her. Even on the days when it was a little too windy to be out in the yard, or the grass was too wet...the porch was perfect. Isn't it funny how the smallest things can make little ones SO happy?! :) She just loved looking out the door and seeing all the leaves blowing around. In fact, she loved it so much that each time I took her out there this week, it was hard to get her back in! I'm looking forward to the temps continuing to warm up so we can spend even more time outside! What a fun summer this will be!!

Other than that, we were very busy cleaning the house, inside and out! We're still getting it ready to list by Easter...which means we have a lot to do. Scott was busy raking up all the leaves, cleaning out the garage and helping me inside the house. It was a lot, but in the end we really got a lot done. Next weekend we will be going to look at houses...yeah! The fun part. :) We'll keep you posted.

Playing "Catch Up"

2009-03-17T06:32:00.000-07:00

Wow...I can't apologize enough for taking so long to update here! We've had a pretty busy week!! For an extension from last week...Kaelyn is much better after having her bout with the stomach flu! It was quite the tiring few days, but she got over it fairly quickly! It's so hard to see your little one hurting and not being able to do anything! By Tuesday she was as good as new...talking and running around all over the place!!

In other news we visited with our Realtor again on Wednesday. It sounds like we will be listing our house sometime before Easter! Wow!! That's not long at all. I'm excited, but at the same time it's a bit stressful selling and having to buy at the same time. This weekend or next we will be looking at some house in FC....hopefully there are plenty of options for us. In getting ready to list our house, Scott and my Dad put in a close in our office Sunday! It looks great. Scott is getting the door all stained and then it will be finished. I would say any storage space for a potential buyer will be appreciated. Sometimes I wish we could just move our home with us...it's so perfect for our needs!

My parents took a couple of days off from work, so that's why they came up on Sunday afternoon. They spent the evening with us, then Monday left for a couple of days of yummy food and shopping! We are watching their dog for them while they're gone. She's so fun to have around...Kaelyn adores her!!

That's a little "catch up" when it comes to our busy week! I will do my best to update more frequently...I promise. :)

Hope everyone is having a blessed Tuesday!

Sometimes Things Don't Go...

2009-03-08T08:38:00.000-07:00

...quite as we plan for them to. Scott left on Thursday morning on a snowmobiling/business trip and Kaelyn and I had plans to go back and visit my parents a couple of days while he was gone. Wednesday evening we noticed Kaelyn acting really quiet and sleepy (a combination she doesn't show much...unless she's sick). Sure enough, after taking her temperature we realized she had a 101 temperature.

The next day she seemed ok, so we decided that we'd keep our plans and visit my parents. Thursday and Friday she did great and her fever subsided (we had a great time as always...Kaelyn loves her Grammy and Grampa!). I figured it was just related to teething. Unfortunately, I now realize that it was, and is probably the flu. :( Yesterday morning she started throwing up and has continued off and on ever since. She's taking in fluids, but slowly...otherwise she won't keep it down. She's hungry, but we can't feed her much as she won't keep that down either. We decided to head back home once I realized she was sick...not only because of that, but also because of the freezing rain forecast for yesterday and today. Iowa and Minnesota weather is SOOO unpredictable!

Kaelyn and I are both exhausted today and ready for Daddy to get home this afternoon. She is doing about the same today...cuddling and sleeping a lot.

We're praying, and thanking the Lord for healing over her little body and a fast recovery.

16 Months Old!

2009-03-02T18:16:00.000-08:00

Kaelyn turned 16 months old yesterday! It's still amazing to me how each month goes by faster than the last. I can't believe that she's almost 1 1/2 already! Where has the time gone?!? Our little girl is getting so big. It is incredible how much she is learning and doing...just in the past couple of months. That means changes in the way we do things too. Like, this weekend we bought her a booster seat...she's now officially sitting at the table and eating with Mommy and Daddy. She was slowly growing out of her highchair, and has started to use a plate and silverware some...so it only made sense to move her into a "big girl" chair. :)

We also will be buying her a potty chair in the near future. In the last couple of weeks she has started to tell us when she is about to go potty and grabs her diaper. Soon she will be ready to begin potty training and I have a feeling it will be a fairly smooth process given her communication skills and willingness to sit on the potty. I'm looking forward to that, but still can't believe that she's already that old.

Things Went Well

2009-02-27T06:01:00.000-08:00

Our talk with the Realtor went very well the other day. It's weird to think that we're actually on our way to listing our house and looking for a new one. Although overwhelming, it's very exciting too! We love Minnesota, but we're true Iowans at heart. :)

We discussed our home and the things we may want to think about doing before listing it (thankfully there isn't much at all which was a relief), as well as price, etc. Now Scott and I are just anxious to start looking at homes so that we can try to work this out so we sell and buy at the same time. That's the tricky part! I know God will work it all out and everything will go smoothly, it's just a matter of not knowing that is hard sometimes. That's when Faith comes in though, and we've learned that God's plan is the very best for us so I know everything will go wonderfully! :)

I am so glad it's Friday, that means Scott will be home with us for the weekend, as well as my brother who is coming to visit until Monday! We always enjoy his visits....I know Kaelyn does too. She loves her Uncle Jake!

If I don't get back to writing before next week...I hope everyone has a blessed weekend and finds some time to relax!

And The Process Begins...

2009-02-25T05:38:00.000-08:00

Well, today is a pretty big day for us. We have a Realtor coming to look at our place to let us know if she thinks it's ready to list and if there's anything we should do before listing it. We're a bit nervous, as we've never had to sell a home before, only buy one. I watch HGTV a lot, but even that hasn't prepared me for this yet...haha! I'm sure everything will go fine, but we're just a little overwhelmed with having to sell a house and find one to buy all at the same time. It's nice that we're not being pressured by Scott's job to move right away, that helps to relieve some of the stress. They want us to move closer to his job, but whenever the timing is right. That's helped us out a lot which is so nice! It's so great to have such an understanding employer...he's very blessed to be where he is and work with the people he works with!

I suppose I better stop procrastinating and get to work. I need to get some cleaning done before she comes this afternoon. With Kaelyn running around, cleaning is not an easy task....it could easily take me until the time she gets here. :)

I just wanted to keep everyone updated on the house search.....Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Finding Ways to Save Money

2009-02-23T07:38:00.000-08:00

Before having Kaelyn, I wasn't aware of how expensive having a little one can be. Between diapers, toys and other "Mommy and Baby Must-haves"...it can get quite expensive. I'm sure every parents knows this and is figuring it out as their children get older. It's eye opening, and has really caused me to search for ways to save money (especially with the economy the way it is these days). Through coupons, consignment shopping, and even finding websites with great deals...I have been able to save us quite a bit of money. Everything helps, right?!

I like to pass along things I come across when possible, as I'm sure there are more parents out there than just me who like to save money when they can. I know I've mentioned the consignment sales we love, as well as the coupon savings we utilize, but I recently came across a great site with outstanding deals for Moms and Babies that I couldn't not share. Mama's Daily Deal is the name of the site, and daily (or until the item sells out) they offer one item for sale! I'm not talking a little sale...I'm talking BIG deals! For instance, today I headed over there and found a brand name stroller for 55.00 (one that was originally 139.00)!

It wasn't only the discounts I was impressed with though. Diapers are SO expensive, so whenever I have the chance to save money on them I take it. This site makes that possible too for all us mom's who spend hundreds of dollars on diapers a year. Everyday they give away one free bag of diapers to someone on their list of e-mail subscribers. Having a chance to win a bag of diapers for free definitely caught my attention! As an e-mail subscriber you can also receive information on discounts and contests for Moms and Babies which I have found useful so far as well.

Anyways...I just wanted to pass this site along, as I know many parents (especially new ones) might appreciate it as much as I have!

A Week Away

2009-02-22T19:27:00.000-08:00

Once again I have not been the best about updating. Kaelyn and I were visiting my parents last week while Scott was gone for work and had a great time! I found myself relaxing much of the time and getting much of what I needed to, done...especially on my blog. Sorry about that...I guess we all need times once in a while just to be lazy...haha. :)

Anyways...As Kaelyn gets older she is adding more and more words to her vocabulary. We always say that she learns a word a day, and that really is no exaggeration. Each day it seems she is saying something new. One of her most recent words is "bubble". While spending some time at my parents house last week Kaelyn got to do some really fun things! For instance, she was thrilled when Grammy got out her bubble blower. She had never played with bubbles so this was an exciting and new experience for her. She enjoyed watching them float in the air, as well as chase after them and try to catch them. It was so cute to watch her! After seeing how much she enjoyed this, I definitely think we'll have to get ourselves a bubble blower as well....especially this summer when it's nicer outside...she will have a lot of fun with something like that.

Other than that her new favorite thing to say is "hi mom" and "hi dad". It's really neat to see her putting together words and it's so helpful to us too. We find it's much easier to know what she is needing when she can communicate it to us in a way we can understand.

We're now home from our fun week away and I suppose I better get unpacking and doing some laundry. Hope everyone has a wonderful night!

It's been a while....

2009-02-15T12:05:00.000-08:00

I haven't been the best about blogging lately. Between getting things together to get our taxes done and now getting the house ready for our Realtor to come look at and see if it's ready to list on the market....we've been pretty busy. I did want to take a moment though and update everyone. Last week I found that Kaelyn showed an immense interest in coloring and using a pen on paper. We had fun doing this many times throughout the week. It's neat to see her learning new things...each is such a vital stage in her development. :)

Kaelyn has also been talking like crazy...as usual...however, she recently learned that animal sounds are pretty fun to say and make. She knows several...but her favorites are making bear, bird, kitty, and monkey sounds. Anyone with kids knows how hard it can be to catch something on video. It seems they're doing something one minute, but the next when the camera is on they absolutely won't. We had been trying for quite some time to get some of her animal sounds on video, and finally got that chance!! It has been pretty fun to listen to her little voice and the new things she has been saying. Her new favorites are "shaw" and "pup" (aka....straw and cup ;)).

Anyone who knows Kaelyn, or who has seen pictures of her for that matter, knows that she doesn't have a whole lot of hair yet. Although, it has grown quite a bit from the time she was first born. In fact.....it has gotten so long that we got what is as close to pigtails as we have had up until this point and got some pictures of it. They stick straight up and were so cute. haha :) We loved it. Kaelyn enjoyed looking in the mirror and staring at them too.

Our weekend was wonderful! Scott had taken me out for Valentine's Day last weekend to the Olive Garden, so this weekend we just had the chance to spend time together as a family here at home. Friday night we went out to eat with my parents and spent some time with them which was fun too. :) Tonight and Tomorrow we finish laundry and get Scott packed up to go on his business trip this week. He gets to go golfing which he's very excited about. Kaelyn and I will be visiting my parents for some of that time, as it's always nice to have company and some help when Scott has to be gone. It should be a good week! :)

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Valentine's weekend and I will try to be better about updating over the coming weeks!

Then and Now

2009-02-10T19:45:00.000-08:00

I can't believe how fast babies grow!! About every three months or so, Scott and I find ourselves going through Kaelyn's closet and dresser, putting away clothes that she's grown out of already. She now has 5 big tubs full of clothes that don't fit her anymore....some of which she only had the chance to wear a few times. Recently we were putting away some of her things again, and I happened to come across a dress that I had worn when I was Kaelyn's age. My Grandma Sankey had made my twin brother and I outfits with our initials on them. Once we had children, my mom gave them to us to have. I have had it hanging in Kaelyn's closet for quite some time, waiting for the day when she could fit in it so I could get pictures. That time has come (and almost gone) and I almost completely forgot about it. I'm SO glad I happened to come across it, because it is obviously the only time Kaelyn will fit in it and for me to get pictures. It may sound a little silly, but I thought it would be fun! :)

We put it on her Sunday afternoon and took lots of pictures. She loves being in dresses, so she was super excited (as you can see in some of the pictures). :) Obviously she didn't understand the reason for getting all dressed up, but one day when she's older I hope to get some of these printed and give them to her. It's a special thing that I am sure she'll appreciate. I enjoyed seeing an outfit that was worn 25 years ago by me (which if you hadn't guessed already, that's me around 13 1/2 months up in the right corner), on our little girl. It was pretty special. :)

I'm a Big Girl Now

2009-02-07T18:12:00.000-08:00

Every new thing Kaelyn does is pretty exciting for us. It seems with everything she learns, she becomes more independent. It's kind of bitter sweet...our little girl is literally growing right before our eyes! For about a month now I've been debating when to introduce her to a "big girl" cup. She's been drinking out of a sippy cup since she was 5 months old....and I knew it was about time that we made the transition...at least slowly anyways. I have to admit I was a bit apprehensive thinking it was going to be more work than it was worth as far as the mess was concerned. I finally decided to do it yesterday though, as I've learned that messes are a part of learning and a part of being a parent. To my surprise she did great!! I thought it would take her a while to understand how far to tip it and what not....but she did fantastic! I was so proud of her, and you could tell she was proud of herself too. She spilled a little, but nothing compared to what I expected. It went great. She still drinks from a sippy cup, but slowly we are transitioning her to her big girl cup (the John Deere one Uncle Jake gave her is her favorite!). She's also started to use a spoon every once in a while and has gotten quite good at it. Picking the food up with her fingers is obviously still easier, not to mention way more fun :)...but with time the spoon will be fun for her too I'm sure.

Other than that, Kaelyn has a new word of the day, "stop", which has been fun to hear her say too. When we saw her Doctor on Tuesday she was amazed with Kaelyn's vocabulary at 15 months of age and the fact that she can say nearly 30 words. She enjoyed observing and having fun little conversations with her. I'm not quite sure if I can pin point exactly what has caused her to be such a talker...but ever since she was really little her communication skills were evident. She first learned to motion for the things she wanted, then to sign (which I think helped with her language development some), and finally we have come to the point where she can use words to let us know what she needs or wants. I think her love of reading and for books has also helped to enhance her vocabulary tremendously.

She has also become very fond of our piano. She is now constantly saying "up" whenever she's near it so that we can set her up on the bench. She likes to press all the keys and play us songs. She gets so excited and you can see how she feels like such a big girl doing it. I enjoy seeing her sit there....she's so tiny next to that big piano. :)

Well...I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend. We have been relaxing and spending time at home for the most part which is great! It's nice to bum around once in a while. :)

Growing Like a Weed

2009-02-05T08:58:00.000-08:00

Tuesday was Kaelyn's 15 month Drs Appointment and everything went great! I always enjoy hearing how much she's grown...that's the best part! It's also fun to see where she is developmentally and what the Dr has to say about everything too. Her progress report was fantastic....she grew almost 2 inches and gained about 1 1/2 pounds since we were there last for her 1 year appointment. She's walking around and talking all the time which was something the Dr liked hearing as well. She's a healthy little girl who is right where she needs to be developmentally, and is growing like a weed....we are truly blessed! As the Dr said goodbye, she said she'd be seeing us at Kaelyn's 18 month appointment, then after that we just meet with her once a year. That was completely fine with me, however caught me a little off guard, as it's weird to think that she is already that old. Wow!

In other news...As many probably know, Kevin Costner was in Leland, IA recently. To my surprise, he is in a band and actually sings a song about this little town. Being a town, minutes from where I grew up, as well as one in which Scott works frequently.....we were pretty excited about the ordeal and the interview we saw of him on the news.

Someone that Scott works with, sent him this clip. It's pretty neat, especially for Scott as Kevin was wearing one of the FC caps that Scott's coworker gave to him at the concert. For those who don't know, Farmer's Cooperative is where Scott works as an Agronomy Sales Specialist, so that was fun to see. Isn't it funny how the little things in a small town are such a big deal. We all thought it was pretty special to have such a big star right there in northern Iowa.

You Know You're a Parent When....

2009-02-02T11:02:00.000-08:00

As I'm sure was the same with many of you last night, Scott and I were sitting in our living room watching the Super Bowl. I have to admit, football is typically something I could take or leave, but when a game is as close as this one was....I find it to be quite interesting, even if I don't have a "favorite" team I'm cheering for. Scott on the other hand has always loved football. He played in high school, college, and ever since has always enjoyed watching it on TV when he has the time. So, needless to say...the Super Bowl is a big deal for him and he was hoping for a big win for the Cardinals! He was his typical football watching energetic self until 8:00pm, when Kaelyn went to bed. Her bedroom wall is shared with that of our family room where we were watching the game....so Scott knew that he now had to cheer in silence. If I had known this was going to be such an entertaining and amusing thing to witness, I would have definitely had my camera ready. However, I was too late. As the game neared the end, anyone who watched it knows that it was a close one. Scott was on the edge of his seat the whole time. When the Cardinals made their last touch down, he was sure they had won the game, as did I. He immediately hopped off the couch, throwing his arms in the air and silently yelling "YEAH!!" as he did his victory dance. You may have had to be there to appreciate the humor as he did this, but it was HILARIOUS! We laughed as we joked how "You know you're a parent when you have to do a silent celebration as you jump up and down during the Super Bowl because your baby is sleeping". :) Parenting has changed our life and in only positive ways. It's so wonderful and fun!

Today I had another moment like this, when I wish I had the camera by my side. As I sat on the computer checking my email Kaelyn was playing with her toys and running all over the place as usual. I peeked over the screen to check on her, and found her walking around the family room with her pants around her little ankles. :) I realized that they were a bit long, and each time she had stood up from the ground they got caught under her feet and were slowly being pulled down. :) It was pretty funny and cute...she and I both laughed and laughed about it. I didn't have the camera by my side right away, but did grab it in time to get a picture of her standing in front of the TV dancing....it was like she didn't even realize or care that they were off....hehe.

I often tell Scott it would be nice to have a camera with us in every room so that we're always sure to capture these fun moments. I guess these two instances have caused me to be more aware of where the camera is at all times and to make sure that it's within arms reach. :)

Kaelyn is 15 Months Old....

2009-02-01T18:15:00.000-08:00

....and what a joy she has been in our lives!! She's an absolute blessing and we simply adore her. I can't believe that she is already 15 months old...walking around, talking and developing such a fun and outgoing little personality. We feel so blessed to have her as our daughter...how lucky we are!! She had quite the eventful day today too....

It began with church, which she loves because this is the time she gets to see all her friends in the nursery. She enjoys walking up to all of them saying "baby", regardless if they're younger or older than her. :) It's too cute for words. After church she had a visit from Aunt Kim who she wanted to show ALL of her toys in the playroom. We ate lunch at the Pizza Ranch with my parents and Kaelyn had a blast running around the mall with them while we went to the movie, Taken (very good movie by the way!!!). My mom and I also had the chance to catch some great deals at a local consignment store which carries racks and racks of baby clothes, and shelves of toys. I think Kaelyn is pretty well set for clothes...at least through Spring time. Isn't it crazy how quickly they grow out of things?!? That's why we find consignment shopping to be the best option....and it's so much fun!! I can't wait for the huge sale in April up in the cities!! Anyone who's never heard of the Just Between Friends Consignment Sale for baby clothes should check it out!! It goes on all over the United States and is wonderful for parents with children of all ages.

It was an eventful day and we all had a wonderful time getting to see family. It was nice to have a movie date with my hubby too. :) I am so thankful for the family we have living so close to us. It's great to see them often and to have babysitters who love our little girl as much as we do. :)

Putting Words Together

2009-01-29T08:34:00.000-08:00

One of the sweetest things to hear is Kaelyn putting words together. Of course hearing her say anything is wonderful, but when she says "Dada ByeBye" or something along those lines I just can't help but smile. It's fun to hear her putting words together because it helps us understand what she's needing or wanting. There's very little crying for things these days, as most times Kaelyn can either tell us with her words what she wants, or with the sign language she she has learned. Learning to communicate with a little one isn't always easy, but once the ball is rolling it makes the days go so much smoother! :)

One of the most recent phrases that Kaelyn has been saying, or trying I should say...is "where'd it go?" or "where's it at?" Although it kind of flows together (as I'm sure you'll hear in the video) as one long word, being around her enough, Scott and I know what she is saying. Her little hand gesture as she shrugs her tiny shoulders gives us insight as well. :) I still can't get over how much kids catch onto things, even gestures like a shoulder shrug or the tone of their voice to let us know she is asking a question not telling us something! Last night Scott was playing with Kaelyn and she began saying her new favorite phrase while hiding a ball in our shoes. She'd say "where's the ball?" and hold up the shoe and say "shoe". It was very cute to see her playing this little game and using her newly learned words.

I always knew that Kaelyn would be a talker, as she has jabbered non-stop since she was very young and has always enjoyed looking through books and being read to, however I had no idea that she'd love to talk so much that she'd be trying to say phrases like "where'd it go?" at the age of 15 months. It's so fun! I wonder what words and combinations we will hear next?!? Your guess is as good as ours...as she never ceases to amaze us and make us smile!

We'll keep you posted.....

Playful Toddler

2009-01-27T13:22:00.000-08:00

I remember graduating from college with my education degree and wondering if I had in fact learned all that I would need to know to be a successful teacher. There was just so much information thrown at me over those four years....the test was soon to come and I would quickly find out whether or not it had all sunk in. Shortly after graduating college, I took a position teaching two year olds, as well as a preschool class of four and five year olds. All that I had learned in school came back to me fairly quickly and was finally able to be applied. I remember thoroughly enjoying my job as I watched in amazement all the stages children go through. What was even more exciting for me though, was thinking how great it would be to watch my own children one day and all the stages they would go through. Well...almost 4 years later and here I am, loving every minute of it!! As I watch Kaelyn daily as she changes and grows, I am often reminded of many things I learned in college, and really appreciate all that I have taken from my past experience as a student and teacher.

Recently I was having one of these moments as I observed Kaelyn playing in her playroom. I remembered my days as a college student, learning all about the stages of play in children...especially "pretend play". It's the most fun stage of "play" to witness in young children because right before your eyes you're seeing that they are making sense of the world around them. As I watched Kaelyn playing that day in her playroom, I realized that even though she's only 15 months old, she's making sense of her environment and watching the things we do all the time. She's modeling our behaviors and applying them in her playtime. For instance, the other day she walked over to her toy crib and pulled out her favorite baby. As she pulled her baby out, she said "baby", gave her a hug, and sat her in the play swing. She began pushing it back and forth. It was absolutely adorable to see her playing in this way. While her baby swang, she walked over to her kitchen set, pulled out the cup, put it up to the fridge (where there's a play water dispenser) and then put it up to her mouth.

When Kaelyn was young she enjoyed batting at toys, looking at them, squeezing them, and of course the ever so popular....chewing them. However, over time she developed the understanding to use toys correctly and even engage in a little "pretend play" of her own. This was the first I had seen of it with her, and I have to say, I really look forward to more opportunities in the future. It's so fun to see her learning new things and growing into such a smart and fun little toddler. ;)

I'm leaving you with a few photos of Kaelyn over the past year and the stages of play we have witnessed. It's fun to see how she went from being an observant newborn to an interactive toddler. :)

2 Months-Grabbing For Toys

5 Months-Chewing on Toys

7 Months-Up and About

10 Months-Exploration

12 Months-Interactive Play

Weekend Wrap-up

2009-01-25T22:31:00.000-08:00

Isn't it something what babies go through when it comes to teething?!? It's quite the ordeal for most. I know with Kaelyn that it didn't start out too bad, but once she got to her molars, we had quite the sad baby. :( Thankfully her one year molars are in, but is still working on a few teeth. One of them is almost in....It's right there waiting to poke through and we couldn't be happier! She's been having so much pain with it that it will be nice to relieve the pressure once it pokes through. Poor baby...the teething seems neverending. At least we're nearing the end and soon enough she will have all 16 teeth until it's time for the two year molars.

Aside from that exciting news...we had a fairly busy weekend. It was fun, but as always went by way too fast!! Friday I had a dentist appointment, so Kaelyn got to go spend some time with Grammy Sankey. That night Scott wanted to take me to the movie Marley and Me. It was a GREAT movie, but what a tear jerker! It was so nice to have a date. We don't get to do that very often, but when we do it's wonderful! :) Kaelyn had a fun time with Grandma Annie while we were out. It sounds like she was very entertaining and sure enjoyed all of her fun toys! Saturday was one of our more relaxing days...aside from cleaning and doing some things around the house, the three of us had the chance to relax some and spend time together. Today, we went to church and then Scott's Dad and step mom stopped by. It was nice to visit with them, and kaelyn enjoyed it as well! She was showing off her walking skills...as they hadn't seen her racing all around like that yet. Tonight Scott surprised me by renting a redbox movie (we love 1 dollar rentals :))...PS I Love You. It wasn't quite what we expected, but it was a good movie and we both really enjoyed it.

Well, it's off to bed...another week is upon us and I need to rest up.... :)

You Never Know...

2009-01-22T07:29:00.000-08:00

...until you try. Every time we have gone out to eat since Kaelyn was very young...she has always enjoyed playing with the straws....or so I thought. I realized this weekend though, as we were out to eat with my brother Jake, that maybe it wasn't so much that she liked to play with them as it was that she was trying to be like Mommy and Daddy and actually use it like a big girl?! Hmmm.... Today my curiosity got the best of me, and I decided to get out some fun colored straws that we had to see how she'd react to using one with a cup.

To my surprise, the moment the straw was in her mouth, she began sucking and using it correctly! Wow!! I guess you never know until try something. I had NO idea she could use a straw. This would have come in handy so many times when we were out to eat in the past. I thought she'd begin to chew on it, or suck and get way too much in her mouth. Neither of those things happened though and I was pleasantly surprised. :)

Anyone who is a parent can relate to getting excited, even with the little things. Although small...Kaelyn using a straw made me so happy and proud of her! I could tell she felt like such a big girl too. It was so cute!

Fun Weekend

2009-01-19T06:41:00.000-08:00

It's always nice to have family visit. My younger brother Jake lives a couple of hours away...so we don't get to see him as much as we would like. He's great about coming to see us when he can though, and we always enjoy it...Kaelyn especially! She loves her Uncle Jake! :) He doesn't have to work today, so he decided he'd come up for the night and see us all! Kaelyn knows he has a kitty, so when he walked in the door yesterday, the first thing she said was "meow"...hehe. He didn't bring his kitty with him this time, but we thought it was pretty cute that she would think of that. She was following him around like a little puppy dog when he got here....continually saying "up" and giving him lots of hugs.

Kaelyn Saying "Jake" and "Meow"

The rest of our weekend was great as well! Friday and Saturday I have to admit we did a lot of relaxing and spending time together as a family, and not much else. :) Scott had been gone all week last week, so it was nice just to hang out. Sunday we went to church, cleaned the house and then spent the evening with Jake. As always the weekend went way too fast, but it's nice that this is a long weekend for most due to the holiday!

All Ready for Church

Spending time with Daddy!

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!

I am leaving you with a couple of pictures of Kaelyn....she has been walking all over, and I couldn't pass up the opportunity to get a picture of her all dressed up for church. :) When she was crawling more, we didn't get to see and appreciate her outfits as much, so it's been fun to watch her walk around in all her cute little clothes!

Walking Around

This is how she stands up from the floor :)

Surprise!!

2009-01-16T17:24:00.001-08:00

Wow was Scott surprised to see Kaelyn walking all around when he walked in the door today. :) He had been gone for a week for work, and over that time she started walking very well. The moment she saw him she walked across the room to him and gave him a big hug. It was adorable. I could tell she had missed her Daddy as much as I did! We finally got her walking around a bit on video tonight and I thought I'd share!! We are such proud parents....what a big milestone. Our little girl is no longer considered a 'baby', but now a 'toddler'.

As for Scott being home, both Kaelyn and I are very happy! We missed him a lot...a week was along time to be apart from each other. It was great to see him, and be greeted with beautiful flowers....he's so sweet! I'm very blessed to have him as my husband. I couldn't ask for a better guy...... :)

We're hoping to just relax this weekend and spend time together indoors where it's warm...those temps outside are bitter these days!

Getting the Hang of.....

2009-01-15T13:06:00.001-08:00

...this walking thing!! Just before Christmas, Kaelyn began walking some. She was a bit wobbly, but it was the first time she had taken more than just a few steps. Her confidence suddenly increased, and she was able to walk from one end of the room to the other. Unfortunately with the flu/cold combination that she got over the holidays, the walking thing was somewhat halted. Now though, a couple of weeks later she's back at it and better than ever. She's walking all over the place!! Slowly she's learning to stand from a seated position which has helped in her walking progression as well. Hopefully I will get her on video walking around very soon!

With each and every new stage Kaelyn goes through, Scott and I couldn't be more proud of her. I remember when she was just little and her cooing had us ooing and awwing :). Now our little girl is becoming more independent, saying new words and walking. I'm sure before we know it she'll be running around!!

Where does the time go?!?

A Trip to FC

2009-01-13T07:35:00.000-08:00

It's the first time since Scott and I have been married that he has had to go away on business for more than a few days....a week to be exact! Ugh....6 days is a long time and Kaelyn and I sure miss him. Thankfully my parents live fairly close to us...so I decided yesterday that Kaelyn and I would go visit them for a few days. It's nice to have family around and not be by ourselves the entire week. That would get very lonely I think.

We hadn't planned on making the trip to FC until later yesterday, but the weather had other plans for us. As the snow began to fall heavily yesterday morning, I thought it would be smart to try and venture out into the storm and get there before it started to blow and drift. Amazingly our drive was not too bad and we got here safely. I'm glad we came in the morning and not the afternoon, as the snow continued to fall and blow throughout the day...that would not have been fun. Now we're enjoying our time relaxing and enjoying the company of my parents, and Zoe of course ;). I'm happy to be in where it's warm...as the temps are absolutely freezing today.

We are so looking forward to seeing Scott in a few days, and are glad that we have been able to take this little trip in the mean time. :)

Stay Warm!

Our Family is Growing...

2009-01-11T08:06:00.000-08:00

...with pets that is. ;) Scott and I do not have any pets, however my parents and siblings do. Mom and Dad have had Zoe for about 7 years now and she's a wonderful dog!! She's a sweet Bichon whose cuddly and very well trained. We enjoy dogsitting her when my parents are away. Kaelyn likes it too...as she and Zoe get along so well. Zoe is her "Pukitty" as Kaelyn would say. :)

Zoe

Then, a few months ago my little brother got a kitty. He lives on his own and Mylie has been a great addition to his household. She is very sweet and is wonderful company. I had never had much experience with cats before, but from the little time that we've gotten to see her and spend time with her she seems well behaved and quiet. She loves Jake and loves to cuddle him whenever she gets the chance! :) Kaelyn really likes Mylie too! She her "kitty, kitty, kitty".

Mylie

My twin brother and his wife have been wanting a dog for quite some time. They live in an apartment though, and had to get approval before getting one. Once they got the "ok" they did some searching and found the perfect match for their family....Wall.e! He is an adorable cocker spaniel and sounds like a sweetheart. (we haven't met him yet, but hopefully sometime soon we'll be able to!) Our little nephew, Emry, loves to play with him and give him lots of hugs and kisses.

Wall.e

It's fun to have new "additions" to our family. I don't think Scott and I will be getting a pet anytime soon, but it's fun to see the pets our family members have from time to time. :)

TGIF!

2009-01-09T07:49:00.000-08:00

Yeah, it's FRIDAY!!! It's been quite the week getting everything in order here at home after having been gone a week over the holidays, and then nursing Kaelyn back to health. I'm happy to say that starting yesterday she seemed to be completely back to her old self again...so i think this flu/cold and teething thing is finally behind us!! She's up playing, walking around and jabbering away as always! Thank the Lord!! :) It's good to see her up and about, as it was a rough past couple of weeks for her.

Of course Fridays are also great because that means Scott is done with the work week and will be able to spend the weekend with us girls!! Kaelyn and I always look forward to that! I'm not sure what our plans consist of this weekend...probably every day things around the house...but we may also head up to the cities one afternoon as we have some gift cards from Christmas that we'd like to use. Any excuse to go shopping is always welcomed. :) Whatever we do I know it will be great because we'll be able to spend it as a family. That's my idea of a terrific weekend!!

I Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend as well!!

Out and About

2009-01-07T19:31:00.000-08:00

With the cold and unpredictable weather of winter, Kaelyn and I are inside the house more than we are out. I guess that's the harsh reality of Minnesota winters. That's why I always enjoy any chance we get to venture out and do something fun. Today was one of those days. I had a Dentist appointment....not necessarily my idea of a "fun" day, but Kaelyn and I did get to go visit my mom for a while which was great. She has most Wednesday's off...so I dropped Kaelyn off while I was at my appointment so she could watch her. It sounds like they had a lot of fun together. After my appointment we got lunch and hung out a while Kaelyn napped. We always have such a nice time visiting my parents....I wish we could do it more often.

The day went by far too quickly though...and we headed home before it got dark (it gets dark WAY too early these days). It's nice to be home out of the cold and it was great to have a fun day outside of the house for a change. Kaelyn sure enjoyed it and so did I!

Quite the talker.....

2009-01-06T12:44:00.000-08:00

Before Kaelyn turned a year old she had learned the common words to say like "mama", "dada", "uh oh", "baby" and many signs. It wasn't until after she turned a year though, that we really heard her saying more. In between the jabbering that she does on a regular basis, we're now hearing more and more words and it's so much fun! :) She's making sense of the world around her and picking up on all kinds of words. Everything from names like Di, Josh, Jake, Ella, etc....to things and actions like apple, book, ball, kitty, up, tree, and more.

Kaelyn started out as more of a quiet baby, however over the past 4 months or so she's really picked up on her vocabulary skills. Scott and I could sit for hours just listening to her jabber and talk. It's nice that she can communicate to us some of the things she is wanting or needing without crying. We're even hearing her sing some, and can actually pick up the tune and some words as she does.

Oh...to be a parent...I love it!! :)