Friday, November 7, 2014
Monday, November 3, 2014
Oh Kenna girl......
The things you say.....
I've been so lax in keeping up with blogging about Makenna on here so I thought I'd take a quick minute to jot down what she has been up to...
-This was earlier this summer but she went through a phase where she would use the word "soaking" all the time in the completely wrong context.....as in: "Mama, these books sure are soaking heavy" or "Because my bike is soaking fast" or my favorite while trying to help me pull weeds "it is soaking heavy". Brad and I would laugh every time because if you didn't know any better it was as if she was using soaking as a curse word.
-It is almost as though she is a teenager with her phone. I gave her my old cell phone since it had music on it so that she could listen to her songs. She figured out how to turn on the wi-fi and now she is on it non-stop trying to watch You Tube videos and play her favorite Veggie Tales songs on it. She knows how to work Pandora, You Tube and the music on it pretty well. She is even smart enough to search for Veggie Tales on You Tube using the search history. There are no pictures or anything, just the words "veggie tales" but she recognizes it and knows that if she hits it her Veggie Tales videos pop up.
-She is still obsessed with the IPad. She always wants to watch her shows in the morning on the Ipad instead of the TV while she eats breakfast and she is constantly switching it over to Spanish speaking Disney Jr. She will just sit and listen to it as if she understands it all. She's convinced she knows Spanish and she will remind us all the time that the Spanish word for October is Octobre.
-Alex is always into her toys but she has the old bait and switch down quite well. "Alex, look at this fun toy over here" - and then she grabs whatever he had.
-She is loving school. She is learning all sorts of things and loves to put it into practice. She is starting to want to write more and more words and will grab her notebook and ask me how to spell all sorts of things. She is working on patterns and learning about attributes. She has mastered her upper case letters but is still working on writing her lower case letters.
-She does not love after school care. She always asks us to pick her up early although every time I pick her up she is having lots of fun there. I think she just likes to ride the bus home and see us at lunch on my days off so she gets a little sad when she has to stay at school all day.
-She is currently in ballet and has a recital coming up in a few weeks. I'm not sure how much she is actually learning there, but I'm sure the recital will be fun.
-She's having less and less meltdowns..... or at least when she does have a meltdown they are easier to snap her out of. Most of the time it is fake crying and in no time at all I can get her to laugh at something and snap out of it.
-She loves morning snuggle time with daddy on Saturday mornings.
-She LOVES her bedtime routine with daddy. I am still nursing Alex at night so daddy is in charge of Makenna. He reads her a few stories, her bible stories, prays with her and then I get to go in and sing to her. Every night it is the same 2 - hush little baby and nigh nigh Kenna. She goes to bed great and doesn't ever get up in the middle of the night anymore. She does often get up before we do and gets mad when she comes in our room and we aren't ready to get up yet. The rule is she can't get up before the clock says 7 and if she comes in our room before that she needs to be quiet or go back in her room.
-She rarely naps. Her favorite excuse - "I don't know how to sleep!"
-We had our first pea up the nose experience. I was a little worried when she came to me and said "mommy we have a little problem." I laid her on the changing table and got out the flashlight and sure enough there was a pea lodged WAY up her nose. Thankfully she was able to blow hard enough and it came flying out.
-She is currently on a huge "game" kick - she likes to play Candyland and her match games. She is really good at the match games and has a crazy good memory.
.
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I've been so lax in keeping up with blogging about Makenna on here so I thought I'd take a quick minute to jot down what she has been up to...
-This was earlier this summer but she went through a phase where she would use the word "soaking" all the time in the completely wrong context.....as in: "Mama, these books sure are soaking heavy" or "Because my bike is soaking fast" or my favorite while trying to help me pull weeds "it is soaking heavy". Brad and I would laugh every time because if you didn't know any better it was as if she was using soaking as a curse word.
-It is almost as though she is a teenager with her phone. I gave her my old cell phone since it had music on it so that she could listen to her songs. She figured out how to turn on the wi-fi and now she is on it non-stop trying to watch You Tube videos and play her favorite Veggie Tales songs on it. She knows how to work Pandora, You Tube and the music on it pretty well. She is even smart enough to search for Veggie Tales on You Tube using the search history. There are no pictures or anything, just the words "veggie tales" but she recognizes it and knows that if she hits it her Veggie Tales videos pop up.
-She is still obsessed with the IPad. She always wants to watch her shows in the morning on the Ipad instead of the TV while she eats breakfast and she is constantly switching it over to Spanish speaking Disney Jr. She will just sit and listen to it as if she understands it all. She's convinced she knows Spanish and she will remind us all the time that the Spanish word for October is Octobre.
-Alex is always into her toys but she has the old bait and switch down quite well. "Alex, look at this fun toy over here" - and then she grabs whatever he had.
Working on her patterns
-She does not love after school care. She always asks us to pick her up early although every time I pick her up she is having lots of fun there. I think she just likes to ride the bus home and see us at lunch on my days off so she gets a little sad when she has to stay at school all day.
-She is currently in ballet and has a recital coming up in a few weeks. I'm not sure how much she is actually learning there, but I'm sure the recital will be fun.
-She's having less and less meltdowns..... or at least when she does have a meltdown they are easier to snap her out of. Most of the time it is fake crying and in no time at all I can get her to laugh at something and snap out of it.
-She loves morning snuggle time with daddy on Saturday mornings.
-She rarely naps. Her favorite excuse - "I don't know how to sleep!"
-We had our first pea up the nose experience. I was a little worried when she came to me and said "mommy we have a little problem." I laid her on the changing table and got out the flashlight and sure enough there was a pea lodged WAY up her nose. Thankfully she was able to blow hard enough and it came flying out.
She is, well, beautiful - inside and out:)
She LOVES arts and crafts and to color. She is getting really good at staying in the lines and always comes home from school with markers all over her fingers.
That chin..... I just love her little chin
I even got to chaperone her fieldtrip a few weeks ago.....
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We went to the pumpkin farm
It was so fun getting to meet her classmates and to spend some good one on one time with my Kenna girl
LOVE this picture of her with daddy!
We love you Kenna girl!!
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Sunrise
This morning I woke up bright and early (courtesy of Alex of course - thank you daylight savings time) to the most beautiful sunrise out our hallway window. It was the prettiest shades of red and yellow and it was one of those moments you look out and can't help but praise God for it's beauty. I wandered down to Alex's room, nursed him for a few minutes and by the time I got back down the hallway the sun was up, the colors had all been eaten up by the bright sun and morning was here. I hoped to take a picture so I could use it for this blog post that has been swirling around in my head but it was too late - the pretty colors were gone and the picture would have never done the sunrise justice.
As I sit here typing I realize that this perfectly epitomizes the blog post I've had in my head the last few days. You see, lately I've realized that these are the best days of my life - my kids are at such fun ages. Makenna is finally through the three-nage years and having less and less meltdowns (don't worry they are still there) and is such a silly little 4 year old. I'm pretty sure Alex is the cutest kid I've ever met and his little personality matches it.
But just like that sunrise, in a blink they will grow up. And no matter how many pictures I try to take to capture the moments, they just won't do them justice.
I taped and edited this video last night of him learning to walk. I'm going to be honest I think I watched it 25 times and my smile got bigger each time. It reminds me of a commercial - one that in my infertile years would have made me cry like a baby. THIS is what I wanted. These are the memories I wanted to make. And last night it hit me as I watched it over and over - this IS my life now. And yes, it is SO hard sometimes to juggle being a mom and a wife and then throw in working 3/4 time for your husband's firm and well - it just gets a little crazy sometimes. But you know what, I wouldn't trade it for ANYTHING. I love my life. I love it. This is what I prayed for and God has answered those prayers in AMAZING ways. I am living in the beauty of His sunrise.....right NOW. His mercies are new every day. He makes the difficult times - the BIG ones like infertility AND the little ones - like your 4 year old waking you up at 5:30am even though you are SO not ready to start your day - absolutely beautiful. But I know that the sunrise will be gone too soon. I'll turn around and they'll both be in school, the house will be empty and quiet.
So in the meantime I will take way too many pictures.....I will record way too many videos in the hopes that I can actually freeze time. I will try to cherish every day. I will work to praise God and give him the glory for this life He has given me. I know these days will go by too fast. And I know the next stages will be a different type of rewarding, but these are the days that I love and these are the days that I want to hold on to forever.
Yesterday I woke up first to Alex so very excited to see me he was jumping up and down in his crib with the biggest smile on his face. I was tempted to get out my phone to get a picture of it but decided not to ruin the moment (because we all know that as soon as I got out my phone, he would have tried to reach for it and not only would the great picture been not so great anymore but the child would have been in tears at my "no" response to him getting my phone).
I jumped in the shower to be "interrupted" by Makenna coming in and out of the bathroom several times bringing me "presents". I know what a feat writing MOM is for a 4 year old - she asks me to spell things and I quickly spell them out, quickly remembering that each letter takes some time. I need to tell her one letter at a time and very slowly. So to see several notes with "MOM" written on them, I know took her a little time. And as I sat there soaking wet when I jumped out, it hit me again - I was a mom. These little moments I had dreamed about were here. Yes, it meant an uninterrupted shower and Makenna getting up too early (yup, that darn daylight savings time again) which resulted in meltdown city when I tried to get her dressed for church but you know what, I'll take it. I am a mom. And it was sooooo worth the wait. I do love that the first little present she brought me was her little snowflake bear - when she got it (in a happy meal) we both got so excited it had little snowflakes all over it and it has always been kind of a special bear to her. What a perfect little present from her:)
I'm pretty sure Brad realizes this too, because while we never really talk about it, the man measures everything in life in "dad cost" - if I do this, how much time am I sacrificing with my kids? What is the "dad cost"? He's gone out of his way to make it home from work in time for dinner every night, he loves playing with the kids, it's just been such a great season. I often sit at the dinner table and just want someone to come and take a picture of our whole family sitting there so I don't forget - Makenna getting up every 2 minutes to pick a new song on You Tube, Daddy belting out the latest Veggie Tales song, Alex just smiling and laughing at it all - yelling every few minutes (I'm pretty sure he thinks he is singing along). Don't get me wrong - on good days I remember to take it all in. On most days I am still yelling at Makenna every 2 minutes to get back in her seat and eat her dinner. And most days I can't shovel the food in Alex's mouth fast enough or get it on his tray fast enough so he ends up being a big fuss by the end of dinner. But you know what, I'll take it. Because these days are my beautiful sunrise.
Part of getting this all out and on paper is to remind ME that I need to embrace each day. Yes, I am a typical woman and there are always things I know I should be doing a better job at - I should eat better, work out, spend more time taking care of me, keep the house cleaner, cook more, bake more, the list goes on. But you know what, the only things that matter are spending time with God, spending time with my husband and spending time with my kids. These really are the best days of my life.
So for today, I am going to enjoy that sunrise....especially since my sitter has sick kids and I'm "stuck" home with Alex today. And I'm going to keep taking a million pictures and videos so that I never forget the sunrise. As Makenna and I like to say..... "Thank you Jesus for the BEAUTIFUL day!"
As I sit here typing I realize that this perfectly epitomizes the blog post I've had in my head the last few days. You see, lately I've realized that these are the best days of my life - my kids are at such fun ages. Makenna is finally through the three-nage years and having less and less meltdowns (don't worry they are still there) and is such a silly little 4 year old. I'm pretty sure Alex is the cutest kid I've ever met and his little personality matches it.
But just like that sunrise, in a blink they will grow up. And no matter how many pictures I try to take to capture the moments, they just won't do them justice.
I taped and edited this video last night of him learning to walk. I'm going to be honest I think I watched it 25 times and my smile got bigger each time. It reminds me of a commercial - one that in my infertile years would have made me cry like a baby. THIS is what I wanted. These are the memories I wanted to make. And last night it hit me as I watched it over and over - this IS my life now. And yes, it is SO hard sometimes to juggle being a mom and a wife and then throw in working 3/4 time for your husband's firm and well - it just gets a little crazy sometimes. But you know what, I wouldn't trade it for ANYTHING. I love my life. I love it. This is what I prayed for and God has answered those prayers in AMAZING ways. I am living in the beauty of His sunrise.....right NOW. His mercies are new every day. He makes the difficult times - the BIG ones like infertility AND the little ones - like your 4 year old waking you up at 5:30am even though you are SO not ready to start your day - absolutely beautiful. But I know that the sunrise will be gone too soon. I'll turn around and they'll both be in school, the house will be empty and quiet.
So in the meantime I will take way too many pictures.....I will record way too many videos in the hopes that I can actually freeze time. I will try to cherish every day. I will work to praise God and give him the glory for this life He has given me. I know these days will go by too fast. And I know the next stages will be a different type of rewarding, but these are the days that I love and these are the days that I want to hold on to forever.
Yesterday I woke up first to Alex so very excited to see me he was jumping up and down in his crib with the biggest smile on his face. I was tempted to get out my phone to get a picture of it but decided not to ruin the moment (because we all know that as soon as I got out my phone, he would have tried to reach for it and not only would the great picture been not so great anymore but the child would have been in tears at my "no" response to him getting my phone).
I jumped in the shower to be "interrupted" by Makenna coming in and out of the bathroom several times bringing me "presents". I know what a feat writing MOM is for a 4 year old - she asks me to spell things and I quickly spell them out, quickly remembering that each letter takes some time. I need to tell her one letter at a time and very slowly. So to see several notes with "MOM" written on them, I know took her a little time. And as I sat there soaking wet when I jumped out, it hit me again - I was a mom. These little moments I had dreamed about were here. Yes, it meant an uninterrupted shower and Makenna getting up too early (yup, that darn daylight savings time again) which resulted in meltdown city when I tried to get her dressed for church but you know what, I'll take it. I am a mom. And it was sooooo worth the wait. I do love that the first little present she brought me was her little snowflake bear - when she got it (in a happy meal) we both got so excited it had little snowflakes all over it and it has always been kind of a special bear to her. What a perfect little present from her:)
I'm pretty sure Brad realizes this too, because while we never really talk about it, the man measures everything in life in "dad cost" - if I do this, how much time am I sacrificing with my kids? What is the "dad cost"? He's gone out of his way to make it home from work in time for dinner every night, he loves playing with the kids, it's just been such a great season. I often sit at the dinner table and just want someone to come and take a picture of our whole family sitting there so I don't forget - Makenna getting up every 2 minutes to pick a new song on You Tube, Daddy belting out the latest Veggie Tales song, Alex just smiling and laughing at it all - yelling every few minutes (I'm pretty sure he thinks he is singing along). Don't get me wrong - on good days I remember to take it all in. On most days I am still yelling at Makenna every 2 minutes to get back in her seat and eat her dinner. And most days I can't shovel the food in Alex's mouth fast enough or get it on his tray fast enough so he ends up being a big fuss by the end of dinner. But you know what, I'll take it. Because these days are my beautiful sunrise.
Part of getting this all out and on paper is to remind ME that I need to embrace each day. Yes, I am a typical woman and there are always things I know I should be doing a better job at - I should eat better, work out, spend more time taking care of me, keep the house cleaner, cook more, bake more, the list goes on. But you know what, the only things that matter are spending time with God, spending time with my husband and spending time with my kids. These really are the best days of my life.
So for today, I am going to enjoy that sunrise....especially since my sitter has sick kids and I'm "stuck" home with Alex today. And I'm going to keep taking a million pictures and videos so that I never forget the sunrise. As Makenna and I like to say..... "Thank you Jesus for the BEAUTIFUL day!"
Saturday, October 18, 2014
Party Time!
If you know me you know that I really enjoy party planning. I had to wait a REALLY long time to have kids and so when we finally had Makenna, her first birthday came and I decided I was going to go all out - we invited a TON of people and I had a blast making invitations, planning decorations, food and getting ready for it. Every year we say we are going to tone it down and every year the invite list is just as long and the party planning is just as crazy (though I admit I love it!). Soooo, for Alex's first birthday we decided we really were going to tone it down. I've feel like I've been crazy busy with life lately and part of me was a little relieved to not have to party plan for a ton of people but part of me just couldn't resist a little time on pinterest and some fun baking...... we trimmed down the invite list to just family and neighbors and we had a great time celebrating Alex's first birthday today! And yes, we still ended up with close to 40 people - ha!
I've had great luck with Vista.print in the past for pretty reasonable prices so I put together a fun little party invite and started planning a baseball themed party for our little slugger.
I've had great luck with Vista.print in the past for pretty reasonable prices so I put together a fun little party invite and started planning a baseball themed party for our little slugger.
I made cake pops for Makenna's 1st birthday party and they were quite a hit so I thought I'd try my luck with them again....
Let's just say this looks much better in the picture than in real life - thank you instagram! I forgot just how putsy and messy they can be to make, but after a bit of patience they actually turned out pretty cute.
I'm glad I made this birthday wreath for Makenna a few years ago because it is one of my favorite things to hang up when it get to be birthday week!
I intended to make another smash cake for the party today, but I tried frosting it last night and the entire thing just crumbled...... oops. It's a good thing Alex likes cake pops;)
No party is complete at our house without some of Great Great Grandma Busch's sugar cookies. Mmmmm, these turned out tasty as always.
Just a few fun mantle decorations..... thankfully I had most of these decorations laying around the house so I didn't have to buy much of anything. I saw the pumpkin baseball on pinterest and I thought it was cute:) The water bottles are just a thing I always do.....Brad always makes fun of me but it honestly only takes 20 minutes or so and I think they look cute. The A above the fireplace was a last minute add yesterday. I cut it out and pasted chevron on it to add a little something.
The "lil Brewer fan" was taken off the walls in Alex's room
Party favors
Just a few food signs...
I made this birthday banner for Makenna's 2nd birthday and have been able to reuse it every year. I added a few stars to the ends and voila - it kind of matches everything else:)
The sweets table....Mmmm
Some Brewer cake pops
My baseball cake pops
The neighbors have nut allergies so I went with the circus peanuts instead of the real ones.
The banner has Alex's monthly pictures on it
Lovely picture on the nasty old cookie tray, right?! Oops.
We just got a Chick Fil A in our area so I ordered a tray of nuggets from there, too - yummy!
This poster has monthly pictures of Alex on it, too
Ok, who is ready to party??
Watching for the guests to arrive...
Mom, look the neighbor kids are here!!
I love his little outfit. We got it as a gift from some friends when he came home from the hospital and I was excited the size matched up. It was a chilly day out but we didn't have to go outside so it was perfect.
He's ready for cake!!
Mmmmmmm
Happy Birthday Alex, we love you!!
Making Ms Elizabeth smile
Are all these presents for me mom?
He was getting a little tired during present opening so he wasn't quite his normal excited self but he did great and got SPOILED!! Lots of boy stuff - wheels, trucks, puppies and loud toys!
Daddy and his birthday boy
Never too tired for a BIG OLD smile with Cookie Beek!! Love this one!! When she got to our house this morning I set Alex down in front of her and the first thing she told me was how blessed we are to have 2 absolutely beautiful children. I couldn't agree more Cookie Beek - so thankful you stuck around to see them both!! They love you!!
After a good nap he was SUPER excited to try out all his new toys, especially this one!
Thanks everyone for coming! We had a blast and are so thankful to have such wonderful family and friends in our lives!!
Happy 1st birthday Alexander Brooks!!
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