Bump Watch 2013: Week 23/24

I'm pretty sure that "Bump Watch" is going to become an every 2 week post since the weeks are flying by and we always forget to take a picture until it's almost the next week!

 

We spent weeks 23 & 24 getting ready for Christmas and made tons of fun memories!

 

I pulled this picture from my last bump watch posts as a reference from my 1st pregnancy to 2nd.  I hadn't compared yet but O.M.G., I need to start choosing salads over Mexican, yikes!  My abs were a lot tighter the first time around so they were good at holding everything in and I guess my belly knows what it's doing this time around (that makes me nervous)!

 

Pregnancy Highlights:

 

How far along: 24 weeks

 

Size of baby: 12 inches & between 1 & 2
pounds

 

Total weight gain/loss:  I have been avoiding the scale lately but I would guess around 13 pounds.

 

Maternity clothes: I've switched to mostly maternity and a few normal tops.

 

Gender: It's a GIRL!! 

 

Movement:  Her head was down at my last appointment and I'm getting plenty of kicks in my ribs.  Scott loves getting to feel her move, too!

 

Sleep:  Same as every other week.  The past 2 nights have been great since Kinley is healthier again.

 

What I miss:  Getting up and down off the floor with ease.  Playing with Kinley is already getting more difficult. 

 

Cravings: I didn't need to crave anything, we had every sort of food imaginable at Christmas!

 

Symptoms: My back/tailbone is bothering me when I stand too long and sometimes at night.  Acid reflux has returned and I'm just worn out.  I'm not so sure that I'm going to be the happy preggo that I was at the end of summer 2011.

 

Memorable moment for the week:   Seeing Baby #2 again at my 24 week appointment!  I got another sonogram to look at baby girl's heart and everything looked great!

From the looks of this picture, Kinley is getting to be Miss Independent. I don't totally buy it, she still wants to be held all.the.time! And that's wearing on mommy!  But seriously, how can I say no to this cheeser!?!

Kylie's 13th Birthday!

We celebrated my niece Kylie's 13th birthday the weekend before Christmas.  I'm not sure how 2 of our nieces can be teenagers already! 

 

Kylie was born the year that Scott & I started dating (1999).  I still remember him walking up to me in the hall at high school saying "Kylie Marie."  I was just as "blond" then and totally didn't get it for a minute but then I realized what he was talking about and couldn't wait to meet her!

 

Kylie has grown into a super sweet, organized, beautiful, athletic 13 year old and we couldn't be more proud of her!  She is such a great babysitter and cousin to Kinley - we are VERY lucky to have her around!

 

Anyway, enough bragging, onto the party!  Sue threw a Mexican fiesta themed party and we had a blast celebrating!

 

Our 2 sweet K girls:

 

Delaney & Kinley being crazy girls

Sue's mom, Sharon, and Kinley chowing on chips & salsa.

It's totally normal for everyone to gather in the kitchen at parties, right?

 

A sassy little 1 year old didn't want to be stopped for a picture with Abby & Laney.

This same sassy 1 year old loves playing with Christmas decor...

What, I'm not supposed to play with this??

The girls at the party gathering for present time!

 

Kylie got some great b-day gifts!

Dance Moms!  (I was a little jealous) :)

 

Kylie must have been really good this year because she got an iPhone 5 from mom & dad!  Lucky!!

She has been begging for an iPhone so this was major!

 

Posing with her chocolate cheesecake, yum!

And we couldn't forget the sombrero!

 

And what post is complete without some nakey baby pictures!  Kinley has reached the stage where she doesn't want her diaper or clothes changed so it's usually done in stages.  Example #1:

And #2 - trying to wrestle away her jammies.  Crazy girls!

 

We had so much fun celebrating but everyone needs to stop growing up!  I want to keep them little forever!

 

We hope you had an awesome birthday, KyKy!

15 Months Old

You are a walking machine!
 

In November you saw someone mowing the grass and said "mow, mow" - "da da."  It's official, you're a genius!  (haha).

You babble non-stop and are still cracking us up by disciplining the dogs.

I think you have the softest, sweetest voice and love to hear you talk.  You've learned to say "Dowa" for Aunt Cora and "bubbles" when you take a bath.  You also love telling us things that are "hot" and you blow on them.
 

You are constantly on the move and into everything, especially things that you know you aren't supposed to touch.  You're pretty good at listening and will usually stop when we ask.

You love playing in the dogs' water bowl so most nights I have to put it on the counter, poor puppies!  Sometimes you will crawl over to it and I'll say "Kinley..." and you shake your head and say "no-no" as you splash your hand into it - stinker!
 

Everything else is holding steady.  You weigh 20 pounds 10 ounces, wear size 18 month clothes, size 4 shoes, and are __ inches tall.  You have 8 teeth in front and all 4 of your molars popped through this month!
 

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse & Chuggington are your favorite tv shows.  You aren't into watching tv much except right after you wake up in the mornings and sometimes right before bed.

You certainly keep us on our toes!  When I'm getting ready in the bathroom, you want to open all the cabinets and throw everything out.  When I'm eating dinner, you want to hold my utensil and push the food around on my plate.  If I'm turning off the lights at night, you want to turn them on and off yourself.  Let's not even talk about loading the dishwasher, YOU must always be involved somehow.  It may sound like I'm complaining but I absolutely love that you are so interested in trying to do everything that we're doing.  You're exploring and sometimes pushing our limits but that just means you're growing and learning new things everyday and for that, I'm so thankful.

We love you, big sis!

Christmas Card 2012

We hope everyone had an amazing Christmas surrounded by friends & family. 

 

We're looking forward to another eventful year!

 



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Sniffles

Our family has been sick on and off since Thanksgiving and it doesn't seem to be going away anytime soon.  Kinley had a virus the weekend after Thanksgiving for 2 days and once her fever went away she got fussy again.  I took her to the doctor at the end of November and both ears were infected.  Around that time I got a head cold that lingered for a few days. 
 

Kinley fought the ear infection for the first week of December but finally felt better.  Then last weekend Scott & I woke up Saturday morning with sore throats.  I was sneezing and coughing and just felt off but neither of us had a temp.  Then Kinley woke up with a temp on Tuesday morning and her nose started running, too.

Scott felt better but Kinley and I have been a mess for the past few days.  I finally took her to see Dr. Dolan this morning and her poor ears were infected again!

Miserable cuddly baby yesterday

This has led to many sleepless nights and made me wonder if we would ever catch a break!  We had made it through Kinley's 1st year with only one virus so I guess I was pretty spoiled.  Now that I'm done documenting our crappy past few weeks, I almost can't click publish.

My "problems" seem so ridiculous compared to what is going on everywhere else.  Families in Connecticut won't ever get to celebrate another Christmas with their babies/loved ones.  Some families have been struggling to keep their sick babies alive since birth.  It just hurts me to the core to even try to imagine what those parents and families are going through. 

I guess it all puts it in perspective for me.  Even though we've had a few rough weeks, I still feel so blessed to be able to cuddle my sick baby girl through a minor illness.

I have been saying lots of extra prayers lately and counting all my blessings.

Last week we...

...had our first run in with the brick wall.  (Buffett accidentally tripped Kinley & she scuffed up her cheek & knuckles, poor sweetie).

 

...met our Auntie's (Sue, Beth, & Cora) at Cafe Moxo for lunch.  Kinley had to show off her new walking skills!

 

...figured out that pushing the doll stroller in the kitchen is lots of fun!

 

...went to the Doctor AGAIN but just to get her ears re-checked from her ear infection.  She was feeling great and we got out of the office without a tear!  (That's a first in my book).

 

...loved rocking our Santa outfit!

 

...finally developed a love for my old rocking horse!!

 

...read books by the Christmas tree - our Friday nights get crazier and crazier!

...decided to explore the kitchen counter in our Christmas PJ's.

...shopped at the mall on Sunday morning.

...and played peekaboo

while daddy tried on jeans.  What a GOOD helper!!

 

I LIVE for these little everyday moments with my family!

 

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Bump Watch 2013: Week 22

I think it's finally starting to sink in that we're going to have 2 girls.  Whenever I'm shopping, I find myself justifying purchases because it will get worn by 2 different people!  Yikes, this could be worse on the bank account than I expected.

I don't have much to report - I feel like an old pro at this point.

Now that Kinley is a walker, she doesn't want to stand still for our pictures.  I think we'll take what we can get from here on out.

Pregnancy Highlights:
 

How far along: 22 weeks

Size of baby: 11 inches & around 1 pound!
 

Total weight gain/loss:  9 pounds

Maternity clothes:  Dresses, tunics, and leggings with a few pairs of work pants with the bella band.  Normal tops.
 

Gender: It's a GIRL!! 
 

Movement: She has been tap dancing on my bladder this week since her feet are down at the moment.  Lots of wiggles!
 

Sleep: Last week was pretty rough in the sleep department but that's because Kinley was sick.  This week hasn't been as bad unless my hips are bothering me.

What I miss: I'm settling into pregnancy pretty well so I don't miss much right now.

 

Cravings: Mexican.  Must have it every week.
 

Symptoms: My growing belly and the lower back pain has already started. :(

Home for the Holidays

I can't believe I'm saying this but I think I'm actually caught up on blogging and don't have a lot to blog about!  It's probably due to the fact that our lives have slowed down a lot in the past few weeks which is crazy considering the time of year.

 

We have one possible Christmas party this year.  My work doesn't have one anymore and Scott's work just does a lunch.  I've heard that a lot of companies are choosing not to have parties for financial reasons which is kind of a bummer.  Oh well, that means we'll be having a lot more nights at home to share with our family and I'm so thankful for that.

 

I have to share one of my "Pinspiration" projects that I did for my sis-in-law (auntie-sitter) because I thought it turned out pretty cute!

"Pinspiration"

 

And here's a funny video of Kinley doing her booty shake dance.

Last Wednesday we went to watch Scott skate in the "Hockey with Paprocki" game.  It's a fundraiser for Catholic Charities and the Bishop is one of the goalies!  Here's a picture from last year:

Kinley was a lot more into the game this year!

I'll have to get a picture from my MIL of all 3 (4) of us after the game.

 

Since Kinley has been sick this week she has developed a new love of medicine (amoxicillin) and the little syringes.  She would walk around with one in her mouth all day if we let her but that's obviously not safe.  Here's our little nurse in training playing with her "toys."

And our little sick baby was having major sleep issues last week so she finally gave in & fell asleep on daddy at 10pm one night.  That's one major snuggle fest!   Friday night we went to Lake Pointe for dinner and Kinley was really interested in watching the other kids, not posing for pictures.   We had a super lazy day on Saturday and one of us didn't get out of our comfy clothes all day...  She took an awesome 2 hour nap that morning & woke up happy!  She even "cheesed" for the camera for me!   Mckenzie and Mia came over for a play date on Sunday and Reg brought Mackenzie over so he could help Scott split wood.  We had a fun afternoon coloring pictures, decorating the windows, and watching the little girls play. I almost forgot to get a picture of Mia & Kinley but remembered right before they left!  Kinley was ready for a nap by then and did NOT want to stand for a picture.  The girls are at the age where they could care less about playing with each other so it will be fun to get them together more and see how their interactions change - (they're only a few weeks apart!)  Thanks for coming girls! Kenz hung out for a while after they left so we played teacher, ate snacks, and colored.  I feel like Kenz was just Kinley's age...time flies!   And last night Kinley decided to show off her gymnastics skills.  Cousin Delaney taught her how to do a forward bridge and then I rolled her over.  Future olympian!?

I love relaxing but fun weekends at home with friends!

Tis the Season

I'm not sure what has gotten into me this year but I am SO excited for Christmas! I even started decorating the week before Thanksgiving - yes, I agree that's a little extreme. 

 

I decided to go bright outside: 

and had a little done in our dining room before turkey day hit.

 

The day after Thanksgiving, it was on!  It was pretty cold late Saturday afternoon so we bundled up and headed to the Apple Barn to pick out the perfect tree.

The hot apple cider warmed us up but I think we made record time that day!

Sunday was dedicated to tree decorating and we had a good little elf helper this year.

Of course we had to take a snuggle/nap break.

Have I mentioned that this little girl is a dare devil?  Yeah, I think I have...  She actually got to the 2nd step!

Here's the finished tree!  I used deco mesh for the first time and love how it turned out.  It sparkles off the lights and adds lots of fun color!

I had a cheerleader most of the time:

I just love when our house is all decorated.  It feels so cozy and bright!  Makes me happy!

Most importantly, our stocking are hung and ready for treats!

Now time to finish up ordering a few gifts and we'll be ready to kick back by the fire and enjoy the season!