Tuesday, May 14, 2013

And We're Back In The Game

I've decided to give blogging another shot. I have a few friends that have recently started blogging & others that have been going strong for years & it's caused me to miss my own blog entries...so we're back at it! It's been more than a year since I wrote my last post & I'm definitely not one to sit & catch you up on all you missed...I'd probably lose you around "we just had our 15th blizzard of the season". So, let's start with a few highlights, the month of May & the glorious-ness that is SUNSHINE! For Christmas, we bought Mackenzie a puppy...again. We tried a puppy a few years ago & it didn't go so well & we had to find a farm with lots of space for him to run & play. This time around we opted for something MUCH smaller. A Cav-a-malt named Annie. She's a fun addition to our family but a lot of work & tends to drive me batty. Although she is Mackenzie's dog, Alyssa seems to be the most involved (thank goodness!) This picture was taken after we had all her hair cut off. She used to be super fluffy & super cute...definitely letting it grow back. Our sweet little Brooklyn turned ONE in February. I've said it with every single one of the kids but I can't believe it's already been a year since she was born. Time really does go much too quickly. She's learning a few new words here & there, started really walking about a month ago & has mastered the art of climbing the stairs. She loves her swaddle blanket which is something new & different as none of the other kids ever had a "lovey". She's an excellent sleeper/napper/car traveler & enjoys trying any type of food you put in front of her (with only 4 teeth!) Very blessed by this little love bug. The end of April brought Alyssa's 4th birthday. She chose to have Strawberry Shortcake as her theme & even though she only has 4 little friends her own age, the party was a success. I even managed to whip up some sweet little aprons the night before as one of their goody bag gifts. Aren't they cute?! We chose not to send her to preschool this year but rather do a homeschool curriculum. Although I'm a bit of a slacker, she has learned a ton & I was glad to have the extra time each day to spend with her. She knows all her colors, letters & can write her first name. We're working on counting to 50 & what sound each letter makes. In the fall she will be starting a 4 day preschool program just down the street from our house & she's very excited. I think it will be good for her to be in a school environment with other kids so she'll be ready for Kindergarten the following year. It will definitely be strange to spend most of the afternoon with only one of my kiddos! Not sure I even remember how to go about daily activities with only one child. LOL. Mackenzie turned 9 on Sunday & we celebrated her special day along with Mother's Day by having Chris' parents & 2 of his brothers and their families over for lunch & cookie cake. She also had a slumber party with 9 of her friends from school which went surprisingly well...they were all asleep by 11:45! Preston's birthday is next & the plan is to have an Army or snowmobile party. I'm leaning towards the Army party because I've had just about all I can take of anything winter related. Only 11 more days & he's officially done with Kindergarten. It's been a great year & he has done an amazing job. We went to a program at his school a few days ago & the little stinker didn't even tell us that he had a solo to sing. Definitely a fun surprise & he did great! Must get his singing voice from daddy :) That about wraps it up. Hoping to blog a little more often & even if I don't have time to write much, I promise to post photos!

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Duggar Giveaway

Check out this giveaway! http://duggarsblog.blogspot.com/2012/06/giveaway-prize-your-choice.html

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Feeling Better!

A quick little update. The kidney stone surgery was not as wonderful as I'd hoped it would be. The anesthesia made me sick & it took me a long time before it completely went out of my system. They had to place a stent from my kidney to my bladder to make sure the ureter would remain open & it ended up being the most painful week of my life. I was doped up on Hydrocodone, Motrin & antibiotics and eventually ended up in the ER for even stronger pain medication. Needless to say, I slept A LOT. The stent was removed yesterday & I feel SO much better. I honestly don't remember a whole lot of last week. Kenzie had dance competition on Saturday & did an amazing job. Her group had 3 dances & she had her first solo. They received "high gold" for each dance & she took 1st place & received a "high gold" for her solo as well. My in-laws & bro & sis-in-law came to visit that day too but I spent most of my time in bed. They were awesome & helped clean my house while Chris, Keith & Mark spent time working on the swingset. Another exciting event was the birth of my new niece! Abby & Shane had their little girl, Delaney Alexandra, on Friday. She is so precious & I can't wait to meet her. I hate that we live so far away from one another. Hopefully life will be a little more normal now that I'm feeling better. I'm having some withdrawl issues from the narcotics (i think) so I'm still very sleepy but hopefully I can nap when the little girls are napping. Thanks for your prayers! Here are a few dance competition pics...

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Kidney Stones

What an exciting post this is going to be! :) It's almost midnight & I should be sleeping since I have to be at same day surgery by 5:45am but my anxiety has me wide awake. That...and baby Brooklyn (she's a night owl). For those of you that don't know, I have 2 giant kidney stones that have to be removed. I had this exact situation when Mackenzie was a baby but it was more of an emergency surgery since I was in so much pain. Although I'm thankful that we found the stones before they started to pass, I'm in total panic about having the surgery/procedure done. General anesthesia totally freaks me out so I'm praying that it's not as scary as I'm thinking it will be. The best part about it is that Chris has to stay home with me for 24 hours while the anesthesia wears off. I'm sure I'll be asleep for most of the day but I'm sure the kids will have a great day with him too :) If you could say a little prayer for me, I'd appreciate it!

Saturday, April 7, 2012

A Few Milestones!

Preston is learning to ride his bike without training wheels. He's really excited about it & Kenzie keeps telling him how much faster he can go without them. So far, he's sticking to the grass in the backyard but I'm sure he'll be riding around the neighborhood with Kenzie in no time.

Brooklyn has started smiling! Just little tiny smirks here & there but I'm lovin' it! This smile was for big sis, Kenzie.

Our kids LOVE sleeping in our bed. It seems that there isn't a night that at least one of them doesn't end up crawling into bed with us during the night. Chris was out of town so I let Kenzie & Alyssa fall asleep in our bed. Preston must have snuck in after I went downstairs with Brooklyn. Awhile later, I went to lay Brooklyn down & found them all sleeping in our bed. There was a spot in between Kenzie & Alyssa so I laid Brooklyn down & took this sweet picture. They really are asleep...not pretending!

Kenzie lost a top tooth! She's WAY behind the other kids in her class & has only lost 4 teeth so far & this was her first top tooth to fall out. The tooth fairy forgot to get change & she ended up with $20 under her pillow...lucky girl.

So, there's a little recap of what's been going on in our home. Happy Spring!

Friday, March 23, 2012

A Quick Update!

The past month has been a whirlwind. It seems like any quiet time that I get is spent napping or attempting to clean the house. I finally got around to uploading pictures from the past few weeks & thought I'd share them! Hopefully I can get this done before baby B wakes up.

I took the three youngest to open gym at our local gymnastic building. For only $5, they can run & jump & get out some of their energy. I wore Brooklyn in the Moby & she slept almost the entire time. SO worth it!





Last weekend we took a trip to Minneapolis for Mackenzie's first dance competition. We decided to turn it into a little family vacation at the same time & the kids had a blast. Pretty much all day Saturday was spent at the competition. Her group placed 1st & 2nd with both dances receiving "High Gold".



Fun at the hotel!

On Sunday we hit up the Mall of America. Didn't shop much but we took turns going on rides with the kids & they each made a bear at Build A Bear. I haven't been on rides in a few years & it was such a blast. We're thinking a trip to Valleyfair is in order! :)





And last but not least...a few pictures of Brooklyn :)



Friday, March 2, 2012

5 Question Friday

I'm sure you'd much rather have a Brooklyn post but I don't have much time & feel guilty about not posting in a few weeks...so this is what you get for now. Pictures & an update will be coming soon!

1. Where is your favorite vacation spot and why?
Well, anywhere warm is always nice. I don't really have a specific state...as long as it's sunny & has water. I also love Colorado. Everything about it is perfect & my big sister lives there which makes it even better!

2. What is your biggest guilty pleasure?
Hmm. McDonalds fountain Coke. Seriously addicting & so bad for you. I haven't had it in a few weeks since baby Brooklyn is gassy & I feel bad drinking/eating anything that would make it worse. *sigh*


3. What is your favorite fashion trend right now? Or, in the past?
Now that I'm back in normal clothes (mostly), I'm loving my longer shirts with leggings & a pair of tall boots. Super cozy & cute.

4. What are your spring break plans?
No plans. The kids had spring break this week & we've been lounging at home with awful colds. Basically it's been a lot of napping, watching movies & being lazy.

5. What baby names do you hate?
Ha! Chris & I just debated baby names for the past 9 months & I'm totally not in the mood to discuss it anymore. Off the top of my head would be Henry, George...not a fan of old fashioned names either.

AND just because I know you want to see our precious girl, here's a pic for ya!

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