Update Via Pictures

I'm in a major writers block so I took the easy way out:) Here is our goings on in a nutshell.

For the love of soccer

A very proud moment for me!!! My little girl playing soccer. Buying her equipment, showing her how I laced my cleats, teaching her skills. The nostalgia was flooding. Luckily I am able to co coach her team and lend some of my knowledge and love for the sport. Our first game is this Saturday and I am beyond excited! I can't wait to see the progress of all the girls over the next few weeks.

Diesel

Meet our handsome new baby boy, Diesel. He is a sealed brindle(black) boxer. He has been such a joy so far and the kids are learning responsibility real quick,he's a chewer:) its fun training a new pup and watching his budding personality form. He makes me miss OZZY and I'm often reminded of our early days with him. I know he would have enjoyed him! Gracie seems to like him. They just started snuggling and doing the weird boxer straddle, sleeping positions. She's 9.5yrs old so keeping up with him is impossible but it definitely hasn't slowed her butt from wagging!!

Back 2 School 2012

Well, it's crept up on us again. Summer just seems to get shorter and shorter every year. This year however I greeted it with open arms. The girls were ready to go back and I was just as eager to let them:)
We started off with quite a snag in Ava's kindergarten class. She had originally been signed up for 1/2 days and the day of "meet the teacher" I received a call saying they had to add an extra class due to the overflow of students and that Ava was now without a teacher(they were in talks of hiring one at the moment). I was beyond upset. How can they just spring that on us like that? So we went up to the school anyways and met the principal. He then informed us that she would be in a room in the basement of the school on the complete opposite side from the other kindergartners. This really fired me up. So A. She has no teacher at the moment. And B. your going to stick them in the basement of the school where they will miss all the other kindergartners and the designated kindergarten hallway. We were not happy. We came home and decided to enroll her in full day class. We had Elise go 1/2 day and due to the fact it's $300/month we were hesitant. The school left us no option. I want Ava to have the same great experience Elise did. So now Ava's class is actually right next door to her big sis El!! I couldn't be happier, except the fact that we are now dealing with a "mean" teacher. It's been 3 days so before I investigate further I'll give it a few more days. Stay tuned...
Elise walked into her class like she's been going to school all her life. She talked right away with a few other students and proceeded to introduce herself to some she didn't know. I'm glad she is so outgoing! I am looking forward to this school year and all the fun activities we will be involved in!!

Blue

We had been planning a trip out to the Berry Patch for a few weeks now. Things kept coming up and we kept postponing. Finally we made it out there. Of course we picked the hottest day of the year thus far:/ we left earl and were out there by 9am but by 10 it was all ready 93 degrees! We picked our berries and filled our buckets all while drenched in sweat and longing for the a/c. Worth it? You bet! I came away with almost 6lbs of blueberries for under $13! Can't wait to continue this tradition next year!

Pool Rats

It's official, summer has begun!! The girls just completed their swim lessons. They both passed with flying colors! I'm not surprised but due to missing 2 days from illness I was a tad worried. The final day of lessons was "fun day". Elise's class began on the giant slide while Ava played with the water features in the shallow end. They would then rotate. Elise's class made it over to the diving boards. Now, she can swim but never has been in 13 feet of water, let alone off a diving board. As I walked up I saw her sitting on the side and watching all her friends run and jump off the board. Broke my heart. I told her to go get up there. Her instructor got in the water but was about 6 ft away holding onto the side. She cautiously walked to end and JUMPED! I was sooooo proud! She came up and slowly tread water to the the side. She immediately got back in line. What's next is nothing short of amazing. She ran down the board jumped on the end and did a complete FLIP into the pool. As the instructor and I were picking our jaws up off the floor she paddled over to the side and got out. She ran right over and gave me the biggest hug. That was literally one of my most proud moment thus far with her!! What an amazing kid!!


We generally get to the pool 3 days a week and while the girls swim I am kept busy chasing after my little guy. He is so busy! He's up then down, in then out. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Here's to hoping the rest of summer will be just as awesome!!

Black thumb

Every year I pride myself with my beautiful flowers. This season started as any other, hit the city market up and bought the most gorgeous flowers. Everything was blooming and thriving. I was quite pleased.

Fast forward 3 weeks.

My wonderful "helpers" decided that they would miracle grow all my flowers. No problem, right? Well they filled the watering can with about 3-4 cups of the miracle granules and just enough water to make it into a slushy. They then proceeded to "feed" my plants to their death. I believe I was mowing the lawn when this happened. So now I am left with wilted, brown, decrepit looking flowers:( one planter was salvaged, but to say I am sad is an understatement. I know they were trying to help but at the same time I'm frustrated. I flooded the soil to try to flush the fertilizer. Hopefully i can save them.My veggie garden is thriving so I will focus my energy on that! Here are some pics of my flowers.

Schools out for Summer

We survived our first year of school!! We are so very proud of Elise and her accomplishments this year, she has done amazing! It's bittersweet as we enter the summer months for she will miss her teacher immensely. Here's is her first day and last day photos!!

Recap

I just realized I haven't updated or written in almost 8 months! I must be busy:) things have been great! The girls are chugging to the end of yet another school year and have both done exceptional in school. I can't believe that next year I'll have 2 kiddos in elementary school! Kellan is ever changing and making his mark on this family. He captures everyone's heart with the bat of an eye. He turned one in march and everyday since has been surprising me with his wit, charm and love for exploration. He is very busy, into everything. The girls were retry active but he is by far the busiest. I'm wondering if it's a "boy" thing?! The end of march also marked a very sad time for our family. We had to say good bye to our beloved Ozzy. He was 10 and barreling stage 4 kidney disease. Watching him suffer on a day to day basis really took its toll on me emotionally and finally Wes and I together had to make the horrible decision. I know in the end we gave him the greatest gift and that was eternal happiness and a life without pain. It certainly doesn't make me miss him any less. I really never realized what a integral part of this family he was until he was gone. Gracie his counterpart has been in a funk and his departure has changed her as well. It's sad to see her look for him every time the front door opens:(
We have been steadily making more improvements to the house. Flowers are planted, garden is growing. We are also getting ready to do a complete kitchen makeover. Lots going on. This summer is already filling up with swim lessons, camps, vbs, bbqs and visits from the grandparents! I look forward to a nice packed break with the kids! Leaving y'all with a few pics!

Weight

I know as a woman weight is such a personal and touchy subject. For most of my life I have maintained an active lifestyle that keeps me pretty fit and happy with my weight. After having Elise I gained about 10 extra lbs and carried that over to my pregnancy with Ava. After her birth I began working out and eating very healthy. I sustained a size 10 until I got pregnant with Kellan. I was so terribly sick with him that I lost weight in the beginning of the pregnancy and ultimately only gained a total of 7lbs. YES, I ate, I actually ate a lot! Wes kept saying, " next appt I bet you've gained 10 lbs...". This lasted the entiiire pregnancy. Once Kell was out I began breastfeeding, the weight just melted off like butter, and NO, I am in no way complaining. Since I only gained 7 lbs while pregnant I have proceeded to lose an extra 22lbs. I am so happy with my new body and have even ventured out and replaced most of my clothes. This is where it gets tricky...Since i am breastfeeding I eat like a horse. I get these crazy insatiable hunger pangs that don't leave unless I literally stuff my face like it's my last meal. We are going on 8months and I know once a year hits weaning him will be on the agenda. Im not only sad about that bond ending but also about the fear of the weight returning. I know everyone says "eat healthy" and "work out", and I will, but it's not easy with 3 kids. I also don't want to have to live my life constantly monitoring my caloric intake and exercise routines. This just kinda sucks. Wow Im whiny. I've had to battle baby weight after my other pregnancies and lost the weight the good ole fashioned way, but even with a 5 day gym work out routine I never got down to where I am at. Im just nervous that the moment I quit it will all come back.

Halloween

We only made it to a few houses this year due to sickness that struck the kids. They still made out like bandits and did so looking adorable!!

7 month update

Kellan is growing so fast, too fast. He cut his two bottom teeth this past week and also is starting to scoot. He has also realized (to my dismay) that he has boy parts... I guess it really doesn't matter the age of a man, they are all the same. ha. We have been enjoying some Indian summer days and also got to try out our new coat and hat when we got hit with 30 degree temps. He has been introduced now to sweet potatoes and green peas. Loves the potatoes, hates the peas. I blame my preparation, or lack there of, with the peas. I just couldn't get them smooth and silky. If anyone has a tip on how to do this, please tell me. We are also beginning to the first stages of separation anxiety. This is rough, I can't leave the room without him getting all worked up, I did find that if I continue to speak to him while roaming he is ok. I just can't believe we are now in the upward climb to turning 1. Unreal.

Fall 2011

This is by far my favorite season. I love crisp days and brightly colored leaves. We have been unseasonably warm so far but this week is supposed to bring that to an end! Hopefully the UGGs will be able to be thrown back into my everyday fashion routine!! Kellan is doing great. Still by far the most jubilant and pleasant baby to be around. He is changing every single day. He just cut his first tooth and unfortunately I found this out while nursing:( Little vampire drew blood. It took two days for me to feel relaxed while feeding him and then the little booger did it again. He is starting to scoot around and just learned how to scream. It's awesome (that was sarcasm)!
The girls are both doing great in school. We have our first Big school conference next week for Elise. I'm excited but nervous over it. Hoping she is right on par but hesitant to hear things that she needs to work on. No parent likes to hear about your child not doing well and for some reason I'm so concerned about this.
We all had a rough week of sickness last week and I think (fingers crossed) we are out of the woods. I had strep throat, Ava had a raging ear infection and Kellan ending up getting Impetigo which is a strain of my strep. Needless to say it was a long long week.
We are all excited for Halloween and the upcoming holiday's. We will once again be headed to the East coast to be with my family!! I CAN'T WAIT!!! I just hate waiting and waiting for it to get here and then it's over in a flash. Oh, well. Ill still count down!

Some pic's of Fall thus far...