It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Well, it's my favorite time of the year-Christmas time! We have the house all decorated and have already started doing fun Christmas activities with the girls. I LOVE doing things as a family-it is so nice to be with the girls and Seth and go do stuff. I was always doing something with my family when I was growing up, and I loved it, so I'm hoping I can keep that tradition alive! Lately, we have gone and looked at Christmas lights in Nixa, went to the Springfield Christmas Parade, and went to Silver Dollar City. The girls have seen Santa 3 times now! The first time, K cried and wouldn't stop. The second time K cried for a minute, and then Maddie held her hand and she stopped crying-it was soooo precious! The third time, no crying at all! The girls are so sweet together. It makes me so happy that they love each other so much already and are just so good together!

making cookies

our fireplace

in KC MO the weekend after Thanksgiving

my whole fam

at the parade-it was reallly sunny!

Santa at Bass Pro

Silver Dollar City 2011

loves the presents!

K is almost 14 months now, I cannot believe it. She is still running around like crazy, and talking more than ever. She loves to stand on anything and everything. She thinks the Christmas presents under the  tree are awesome because she can stand on all the boxes! I also had to put away all of her little ride-on toys because she stands on the all the time. She is such a little rascal! K is really starting to get an attitude and is a little bossy pants-she gets Maddie upset sometimes, and we have to remind M that she is bigger and doesn't have to let Kinley take everything from her. Kinley loves salad, chips and salsa, and anything with beef in it-she is definitely Daddy's girl in that aspect! She still loves to read all her books, and gets all of them out any chance she gets.

I hope you and your family have a very Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year!

A Thankful November

Well, Kinley is 13 months old as of yesterday, and I just can't believe it! We got asked the other day how old she was and I said a year, and Seth quickly corrected me that she is actually 13 months. I can barely keep up with how fast time is going by! She had her 12 month check up today, and is 21lbs, 14oz, and 30 inches long-60% and 70% respectively. She pushed all the chairs around in the exam room, and chatted a lot with the doctor. Dr. Shauer said she is just perfect!

K is still such a little daredevil- not afraid of anything! She spent some time with her Nana yesterday, who helped her up and down on a little stool-when Nana left, Kinley was still trying to do it! She could get up just fine, but got stuck every time because she couldn't get down. She is so hilarious! She is saying lots of words and phrases, and is just a little Chatty Cathy. She is getting better about playing with other little kids-she doesn't steal their toys as much anymore! Haha. She is just so independent and has a very strong personality, and I love it all-good and bad!

Kinley and her friend Blair

She loves to read her books!

Gangster in her pink sweat suit, with graham cracker.

She's up there and she can't get down!

For Halloween Kinley was a little lady bug-she was so stinking cute! We went to a local church event where she got to play some games, and then we went trick-or-treating on our street. We should have just gone up and down our whole street earlier-she LOVED trick-or-treating! She was practically running from house to house, and then she knew to reach into the candy bucket and put them in her little pumpkin-it was so adorable! Then at each house she tried to go inside! She is definitely not shy.

playing games at the church

her candy stash from 4 houses!

My little ladybug and me!

 Things I am thankful for this season: my little baby girl, my wonderful husband Seth and step-daughter Maddie, my amazing parents and siblings, my incredible in-laws, my great group of friends, my co-workers who keep me laughing at work, our house and cars, and our health and happiness. I am also thankful for being able to go back to school in two months so I will be able to start my career! Sometimes it is hard to be thankful all the time because sometimes it seems that life isn't fair, or things should be going a little better, but after all the great things I have written about, how could life get any better? I am truly blessed in my life, and am so thankful. I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and get to spend it with your families!

Kinley is ONE!

Wow. I CANNOT believe my baby girl is already one year old. The time has gone by so quickly! It is such a bittersweet time for me. My little baby is growing up into a toddler-she is walking, talking, climbing, and has a huge personality. It is an exciting time of growth for her, but I miss my little baby too. I want her to stay tiny, but I also love to watch her grow! I wish time would go by a little bit slower. The older she gets, the more I am trying to just enjoy my time with her and really try to create fun memories; I don't want to miss a moment with her!

Updates on Kinley- there are a lot! She is walking, and practically running everywhere! She loves to climb on top of things, and she can already do stairs like crazy and she climbs up on Maddie's little stool, and on the fireplace, and on anything else she can hike her foot up on. She has even climbed on to a few chairs at this point! She makes me so nervous because she is so fearless! She is talking and yelling like crazy too-she definitely already has an attitude!  She does not like to share anything, and thinks everything belongs to her. It is interesting to see Maddie and Kinley interact because Kinley doesn't understand sharing, and Maddie doesn't understand why Kinley doesn't share. Life is always very interesting around here. Kinley loves to play outside and LOVES to read books. She gets her books out all the time, brings them to me, and then crawls up in my lap so I can read to her-she gets to turn the pages. She is so much fun and brings so much joy to our lives!

I LOVE being a mom and am truly having the time of my life. K is the biggest joy and I am so thankful every day for having such a blessing in my life. Here are a few recent pictures for you to enjoy!

Little Ladybug at Pets and Pumpkins 2011

She crawled into the shower fully dressed with the water on!

Hey-look what I can get into!

Climbing on her shopping cart that she should be pushing around.

What a ham! Posing for birthday cake pictures.

On her new chair her Mimi got her for her birthday.

Seth, me, and Kinley on her first birthday-10.20.2011

My Awesome Choice- Being a Parent

     So I have been reading (sort of by accident ) several blogs by "child-free" people (aka CF and that is what I will call them from here on out, and this is who "you" is throughout this post) I am pretty much shocked and amazed and extremely sad and disappointed. All I have read so far is how horrible children are, how much we (parents) suck, and how much better CF people are than us.
      I never knew such hatred existed for little people. Do these CF people realize that they were once children? That they screamed and cried and threw fits once upon a time? The world will always have children, just like it will always have old people and middle aged people and bad people and good people. Deal with it. If you weren't a baby or a child, then guess what-you wouldn't be here! I respect people who don't want to have kids, until you disrespect me for being a parent. I honestly don't give a damn if you want kids or not, but don't diss my decision to have kids. If someone asks a newly married couple when they are going to have kids, it's just a question or conversation piece. Don't be offended-most people genuinely do not care what your answer is, no matter what their response is. It's just something to talk about. (Only your mother, grandmother, sister, or mother in law probably actually REALLLY cares.)
     Kids cry. Kids throw tantrums. It's part of them growing up and communicating. I cannot make my 4 month old stop crying because guess what-I more than likely have no idea why they are crying. I can't force them to instantly go to sleep. Just like I can't force an adult to stop talking or being obnoxious. I have been to the mall or Walmart and seen lots of babies and children who were acting perfectly fine, just enjoying being out. I have seen many adults who were talking loudly and being obnoxious or running around. If I want to go out in public, I have to expect to deal with the public and all the behaviors a person can display. I understand that yes, there are some places you shouldn't bring your children, like a bar or a nice restaurant. I get it. But if I want to bring my kids to a "family restaurant" or a grocery store, don't I have a right to? They don't ban elderly people or rude people or loud people, so why should they ban children? I might have to walk behind a reallllllllly slow person at the mall, or get behind someone who uses a million coupons and takes forever at checkout. Should those people be banned because they made my experience less than enjoyable? I don't think so. I am not a "shitty parent" because my baby cried in the shopping cart. Are you a "shitty person" because you were talking loudly in the aisle or taking too long to pick out your wine?  
     Yes, there are some bad parents out there. But the majority are great parents. You don't know why their child is upset-there could be a million things wrong. Who are you to judge me or my child? I'm sorry you have nothing better to do than sit there and judge all the parents and their children. I'm too busy living my life and raising my children to care what you are doing.
     I chose to become a parent; most people do. Yes, anyone can have a baby. But if no one had children, then where would we be?! No where. We would cease to exist. Is that what needs to happen? Because I must have missed that memo. I chose to be a parent because I wanted to bring life into this world, and help create a little person to bring something great to the world. I wanted to experience all the emotions that come with being a parent, including joy, frustration, sympathy, and excitement. I wanted to give someone the opportunity to succeed in life and become everything I couldn't.
    I am overjoyed with my awesome choice to become a parent and can't wait to have another child. Is this selfish? No. Is you not wanting children selfish? No. It's a choice, and I've made mine. Respect mine and I will respect yours.

10 Months Old!

Well, it's been awhile (to say the least!) Kinley Grace is already 10 months old! Wow, how time flies! She already developed into her own person so much. She has so much personality for a 10 month old, and is very social. My little social butterfly! She loves going shopping just so she can look at all the people and talk to them and wave and smile and laugh. She is such a little ham and loves attention! She is crawling like crazy, and standing up to anything and everything. Kinley also loves to use her Activity Walker to walk up and down the hallway! Check out the video from today!

Miss K is quite the adventurous baby. There is nothing she can't crawl through or on top of! And when she does find something that tries to defeat her, watch out! She is already throwing tantrums! I didn't know babies even knew how to do that! She is super super stubborn (don't know where she gets that!) Kinley is also super smart (which I know every parent thinks this!) and loves to read (Mommy is soooo proud of this one!) She has a little bookshelf and every day she goes to her books, pulls a few down, and then sits there and flips through the pages and points to things! And I swear she is already saying "Who's that?" and "What's that?" but there is no telling at this point I guess. She is quite the talker though! She is also a little girly-girl! She loves to crawl around with my wristlet! She seriously puts it around her wrist and just crawls all over the house with it!

I know there is much more probably to say, but as you know, I could go on forever about this little girl. She truly is a joy in our lives! Here are some pics for you to enjoy!

Kinley playing in her playhouse.

Kinley and Momma at the zoo!

Kinley playing with Daddy!

Kinley is accessorizing with Mom's Coach wristlet :)



8 months old!

Kinley  is 8 months old now! So hard to believe! She is finally crawling which is so adorable. She loves to chase after Macie, who apparently is no longer Kinley's friend. K is eating like crazy! I swear she would eat anything and everything you set down in front of her. She is talking like crazy too. Nothing we understand yet, but I'm sure that will happen soon enough. Just a quick update for now. Hopefully more later!

6 months old!

Wow, how time flies! I haven't updated in a long time and I'm sad that I haven't kept up with this blog as much as I would like to. However, since I haven't been blogging, I have been spending more time with my family, which I do feel is a little more important than being on here!

To start off, Kinley is 6 months old today! I honestly cannot believe she is that old. Time is literally flying by before my eyes. K is doing so well and developing so much! She is still just the happiest baby, always smiling and laughing. She is a little blabber-mouth, always babbling away. She has just recently started saying "da da da da da," which is her real first attempt at talking (other than just noises.) It is very exciting! Knowing Seth and I, she will be really talking any day now! :) K is sitting up like a big girl all by herself and she can lean way over and scoot around to reach her toys, and then pull her self back to her original spot. We like to put her down on her big circle mat in the middle of the living room and let her sit and play with her toys. She loves it!

Baby K went to her first birthday party on Sunday-her sister Maddie's 4th birthday. She swung in the swings with her friend Kahlen-they just kept looking at each other in the swings and it was so adorable!

Kahlen (left) and Kinley (right) swinging away at the park

Sitting like a big girl!

Seth and I got married March 12, 2011 and Kinley and Maddie were the flower girls. They were super adorable in their matching dresses! Maddie tossed out flowers and Kinley rode down the aisle in an old-fashioned baby carriage.

Kin-Kin also went to her first ballgame last Thursday to the Springfield Cardinals. She didn't get a lot of watching time because everyone wanted to hold her! She got to see the Clydesdale's horses, which is amazing! She just stared at them.

I am very proud to say that we are still nursing at 6 months. I read a statistic that only 35% of women who started breastfeeding are still nursing at 6 months. Yay for Kinley and I beating the odds! It is a subject I am very passionate about and I am so happy for the bond that we have because of it.

Well, that's a quick wrap of everything going on in our lives! I hope to update soon with more pictures.

K and L

Thankful

"Thankful" is the thought on my mind tonight. Even though as I type this it is after 11 pm on Sunday night, even though I'm super tired, even though I'm having to type this one handed because Kinley only wants to be held and cries every time I put her down, I'm still so thankful. I'm thankful for so many reasons. I'm so thankful so our parents, who are all wonderful grandparents. I am so glad they are so involved in her life, as she got to see both sets today! I'm so thankful she is growing up not just with her parents who love her, but also a tight circle of family (grandparents, great-grandparents, aunt and uncles) that adores her. It means the world to me. I am thankful for my friends who love her and spoil her and go out of their way to see her. It means a lot to me that she has so many "Aunties."
I'm thankful for my wonderful very-soon-to-be husband, Seth. He is not only my best friend, but also my confidant. He is the best father I could ask for for Kinley. I am thankful that after every article I read, every website I visit, and after every doctor's visit I can go to him with all my concerns and questions and comments. I am so thankful for all the love surrounding my precious daughter. I am thankful for our house and our cars and the ability to buy things we need for her. My life truly circles around Kinley.

Most of all I am thankful for the opportunity to be her mother. It has changed me in so many ways. I am thankful for every cry, for every poopy diaper, for every laugh and giggle, and every time she looks at me with those big "I want my mommy" blue eyes. I am thankful she is healthy and happy. I know so many people who are not as lucky as me, and all I can be is thankful for my wonderful world. I cannot imagine if I couldn't have children, or if she was really sick, or if I couldn't be with her all the time. Knowing how lucky I am really does make me thankful for all the experiences I have as a mother to K, good or bad.

We recently started solid food-2 weeks ago I believe. Kinley is not a fan of cereal,  no matter bland or sweetened or thicker or thinner. After several rather unscuccessful attempt, I figured maybe she wasn't ready, even though she has been showing all the signs that she is! I finally tried applesauce last night, and what do you know, she really is ready! She opened her mouth wide and smiled and ate all that was in her little bowl! She did make that "tart" face every time it went in, which was hilarious and I actually captured on our camera! (Which I will have to post later!) But even so, she liked it! So now maybe we will just move on from there, or maybe try another type of cereal. It is so neat to get to watch her milestones! I love it!

We have been upping her tummy time a lot, but it doesn't seem to help. She rolled over many weeks ago, but hasn't in about 2 weeks now. Don't know what that's about. She did it a lot for a week or so, then it's like she's just given up since she "proved" to us she could do it! Little bugger! She is sitting up very well in her highchair and her Bumbo. Anytime I have her leaning back she tries so hard to sit up! So I'm thinking she will be sitting up on her own soon. We have been reading a lot of books she got for Christmas-she can usually make it through 2 or 3 before she loses interest. She seems to like it though. K is really fascinated by Macie, even more than before. It is so funny to watch her watch Macie. Watching anyone for matter is her new favorite hobby. She is just so aware of her environment and what is going on around her. She is also getting very good at picking up objects-she almost put her pacifier in her mouth all by herself tonight! (she got it in there backwards!)

Good night all, she's finally asleep! (which of course, I am thankful for!)

Lauren and Kinley

Valentine's Day

Ready for Snowmageddon 2011!

SO this is one of my favorite recent pics of Miss Kinley. She is the happiest baby ever, I swear. Just had to share this one!

As a mother now, I have so many thoughts and worries I never thought I would ever have-not in a million years! Today Seth picked K up from daycare, and she brought home 2 Valentine's Day cards. OMG I thought, why did I not get V-Day cards for her "class" if that's even what you want to call it!? I didn't even think about getting infants cards! LOL. I seriously beat myself up for a second, and then I realized-Oh wait, I couldn't have sent cards because I don't even know all the kids' names! I am a failure! But then I also thought, why the heck would I buy them cards, they don't care about cards at all! They are infants, for Pete's sake! But should I have been so thoughtful, like the other mothers? Seriously, I am sad to admit that I had this sort of internal conversation with myself! It makes you feel a little bit crazy. But then would I be a little bit crazy had I been the mom buying the V-Day cards for the infants?!

I really wish I could update more often. Although, I honestly wish I could get a lot more stuff done. Trying to plan a wedding with a 4 month old is much harder than I thought it would be! And not because of how much stuff there is to do, but hey-I'd honestly rather be playing with her than planning this thing! I have started having to make lists of things I need to do-not even just wedding related-like I did in college. I need to take an outfit back to the mall, I need to sort through K's pictures and get some out for her daycare poster-OMG she is the only baby without pictures on her poster over her crib! Fail again!-and I need to tidy up my house that is in total disarray. But I suppose it will just have to wait and get done another day. Everyone in the house is asleep, so that is where I am headed!

I don't know how mom's can work full time and keep everything together. It amazes me. I feel like I am always behind! And I'm only working 4 days a week. I would like to have dinner on the table at a decent time, and a good and healthy dinner at that. I would like to do all the laundry at once, and have time to put it all away. Someday, hopefully very soon, I will! More to come on that......

Updates on Miss Kinley-she loves to sit up! Anytime you lay her back at an angle, she tries her hardest to sit up! She likes to sit straight up in her stroller and high chair-which she still doesn't even eat in, but she loves to sit up and watch us eat while she plays with her toys on the tray. She is probably going to have a six-pack soon! She has almost rolled over from back to front a million times, but hasn't quite actually made it on her own. I'm thinking she will soon though! She can definitely roll from tummy to back, but only when she wants to! I swear she will do it 3 or 4 times, and then she won't do it again for like, a week or two! She laughs a lot now, and it is hilarious! Every time she laughs, I laugh, which makes her laugh, and on it goes! She is ticklish on her feet and in her armpits! But it's like, an uncomfortable laugh she gives us, much like the laugh you make when you as an adult are tickled! So funny. When she is nursing, I can't hardly look at her because if she catches my eye, she will just stop and turn and smile really big at me. So easily distracted! We went on a walk yesterday on a local trail and she seemed to really like it. She likes the vibration of the stroller on the trail, which put her right to sleep. Even while asleep she had a good grip on her toys.

On the trail by OTC on Hwy 14

Gosh, so much to say! I love talking to other mom's at work or when I'm out and about-none of my close friends have babies yet. I cannot wait until they do-it is so nice to be able to discuss different joys and trials of motherhood. It is wonderful to be able to give and receive advice from mom's who have babies who are still babies-not from mom's who have kids my age! Not that there is anything wrong, but times have changed and so have a lot of things regarding parenting. It's just nice to be around others who have the same ideas about parenting as me. I am excited that eventually my good friends will all have babies and finally understand how my life is now. I get asked if I miss going out, or being carefree, or miss having alone time. I honestly usually don't. I will miss going out with my girlfriends if something comes up and all my friends are going out but me, but at the same time I want to stay home with Kinley. I feel like I don't spend enough time with her as it is, even though I know to everyone it seems like I do. Having Knley has totally changed my life. I'm still me, but it's like I'm a complete person now. Before I had her, my life seemed complete-but now it's hard to say that it was back then. I can't even hardly imagine my life without her back then. It seems weird that she wasn't in my life before. I definitely can say that I feel I was born to be a mother.

Alright, it's past my bedtime now!  I could blab for hours......maybe another night after the laundry is folded, the dishes are all put away, and the house is picked up..........

Lauren

One Worried Mama!

Well, lots of updates on Miss K. Our most recent "happening" has been an allergic reaction to penicillin. The rash started out at the doctor's office and wasn't bad until the next day (of course.) We ended up in Urgent Care because I was so frantic-the rash had turned into hives and was covering her from head to toe, literally. After some Benadryl and many prayers, it seems to be getting better. Her ear infection really seems to be improving also. Thank you God for making my baby better! It is awful being such a worrisome mother. You just feel so helpless when you can't do anything to make your baby feel better. It is a horrible feeling.

In other news, Kinley is becoming so active and really paying attention to the world around her! She has always been a very alert baby, but she is finally really getting into textures and shapes and colors, and really paying attention to faces. She also is obsessed with her hands, which is the funniest thing. Even while nursing she will get distracted by her own hands! She loves to stick her whole hand in her mouth- it's her favorite toy! Her other favorite toy is her Sophie the Giraffe. I don't know what sort of magical power it has over babies, but she loves it and apparently so do many other babies! She has really been paying attention to Macie, our dog. She will smile really big when Macie comes up to her, and she pulls on her fur. Macie has been a great sport through it all!

After her 3 month pictures

Another favorite activity of Kinley's is reading! I try to read to her before we go to bed-Good Night Moon is our favorite. I pretty much have it memorized, so I can watch her face as I turn the pages and point out things. She really seems to be paying attention. She also likes the soft books that she can hold on to. I swear she can even turn the pages! It is too funny. I just got her another soft book today while we were out shopping, and she was reading it in her stroller. Kinley enjoys riding around in her stroller like a big girl, without the car seat portion snapped into the stroller. She likes to be able to sit up and look around! It is such a joy watching her development.

I bought some 18 month-24 months clothes the other day at Macy's. They look so big, like she shouldn't be able to wear them for several years! I can't believe that in a year she will be able to fit into those clothes. As much as I love watching her grow and become more playful, it also breaks my heart that she is growing up so fast. It really makes you feel very split between wanting them to grow up so you can teach them things and show them things in the world, and wanting to keep them tiny babies forever. But I know I can't keep her tiny forever, so I will just have to help her grow as much as I possibly can! It is so much fun each time she laughs, or rolls over, or plays with a toy. 2 months ago, she couldn't do all of those things, so that keeps me going! I am so proud of the littlest things too. She puts her hand in her mouth, and then tries to put it in my mouth! I am so proud she recognizes my mouth! lol. She just makes me so happy! Anyone who is a mother can understand!

-Lauren and Kinley-

I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart.........

I have been meaning to get around to starting a blog....back in my pregnancy days. Needless to say, I've been a little busy....

I've been busy with the greatest joy of my life, my baby girl Kinley. I honestly never knew I could love anything so much. I am madly in love with Seth, but it's different than my love for Kinley. It's impossible to describe. She is such miracle, when you think about it. We created a human being. I carried her for 9 months. I gave birth to her. Now I am raising a baby and watching her grow and develop so much, every day. I am so thankful.

Motherhood has been so wonderful. I could probably already write a novel about it, and K is only 3 months old. I'm pretty sure my novel would just be about how much fun she is and all the emotions and experiences I have with her. So that's what I'm going for on here. A continuously updated novel during her life.

I hope to let others into our little corner of the world, and to share my experiences with other mothers, and mothers-to-be. I am just so filled with joy and have to share it!