Saturday, January 31, 2015

Cousin Visit!

My cousin, Drew, is currently deployed, but that doesn't mean I don't get to see his family!
Sorry dude, we miss you, I promise... But we got together without you.
Kirsten and Alden drove down yesterday and then spent the night!
 
 We seriously had so much fun! The kids played GREAT together!
 
   We did have some quiet moments, I promise! It was nice for both of us pregnant ladies to relax and snuggle with our kiddos! 
 But really - most of the time these guys were on the go! Dancing and running and playing games!
  See you again soon!

Saturday, January 24, 2015

Murphy's Law ...

I have decided Murphy's Law dictates that children will always wake up way too early on Saturdays.
Luckily, our backyard is made of fake grass so it drains (no mud or puddles) ... so we sent the kids outside.
They've been out there all morning - before the sun came up and still, even now.
Eric and I have enjoyed our morning lounging on the couch. These kids really play well together!
I love how these two really are great friends. They play fabulously well together!
Yesterday, I sat down on the floor tired and laid my head back on a chair. Aaron saw me and rushed over to give me a hug. Audrey watched and then followed suit. I told Aaron that I love him and he replied back that he loves me too. I then told Audrey, "I love you," and Aaron hollered, "I LOVE YOU TOO AUDREY! I can show you by sharing my cars! Come on Audrey, let's go play!" And off they went to play cars and baby dolls and read books ... They take great care of each other. 
I love how Aaron uses the soccer goals for what he calls a hang-glider. Haha! Extreme sports already! 
I love my kids, I love my backyard and I love my relaxing morning :)

Friday, January 23, 2015

How Are We?

I've had a lot of people ask recently, "how are you guys?"
well ...

We are good, all things considered. This last month has felt crazy long to me. Like, insanely long.
I can't believe it's still January. 

We've been pretty sick recently. Luckily, this week we had 2 families (my friends Jenna and Stephanie) offer to bring meals and Eric's mom took the kids all day on Wednesday so I could rest. My plan for that day was to secretly get tons done (yeah, I know, right?), but I get winded just going up (or down) the stairs these days. So, I made my bed and called it good. Then I laid back down in said bed and relaxed. It was such a nice break. Not that I normally do much more than that in a day - but I didn't have to entertain or feed 2 kids while I was laying down. I'm 22 weeks along now which feels like I have an eternity left to go, but we'll make it! I try to keep myself busy with lots of snuggles and a craft here and there like this wreath I made. :)

Aaron and Audrey are coping pretty well with having a mama who has to relax all the time. Though, they've been going a bit stir crazy recently given that they have been off and on sick (currently, Audrey is sick again and Aaron is feeling better) which is why it was so nice to have them gone for a day!

A common question is, "how long are you on bed rest?" 
well...
I don't know. And for that reason (and a few others) I'm switching doctors. I need to have more information about what's going on. So, for now, I am staying down simply because 1. I'm exhausted. 2. I definitely feel pain when I don't, and 3. It'll take a bit to get in to the new doctor so for now I'm on my own.

Other questions we've had:

"How is Eric doing?"
Aw, thanks for asking! He's doing pretty well actually. Work is very busy - he's heavily involved with not just his IT Systems Administrator work but with a complete restructure of the building layout. They've had lots of people get hired on and they are expanding to another floor. He's helping with the furniture selections and cubical design layouts and a whole slew of other stuff - plus his rush computer/phone fixes, network problems, etc. But when he gets home, he shakes off how busy he has been and focuses on us. He plays with the kids, puts them to bed, gets caught up on dishes, makes milkshakes (heartburn cure - lucky me!) and then spends time with me. I seriously couldn't have asked for anyone to love me more!

"What have you been up to?"
Well, not much, haha! We still have people over about once a week for food and games but that pretty much means I do minimal meal prep - they finish the meal when they arrive with Eric after work (or they bring the meal with them for us!) and then we play games on the couch. It's the only way I stay sane, really! And I don't have to do anything to make it happen other than open the door and say, "come in!"

We've also had friends come during the day so the kids don't get lonely!
Aaron's great friend Lily who moved further away came to visit earlier this month - how lucky!!!
We have really missed having them close!
 I've only babysat once twice this month ... that's it. Kinda crazy given that I used to have kids a few times a week. So it's a treat for Aaron when we watch his friends.
The kids have become ultra attached to Daddy recently. So much so that when he leaves in the morning, we have mega melt downs, they gaze out the window for hours waiting for him and rush to the car when he gets home. When Audrey wakes from her nap, she asks, "where daddy?" and "daddy go?" She'll bang on the front door screaming, "No! Car! Go! Daddy!" It's kind of extremely adorable.
No, I don't feel slighted in the least. That's how I feel when Daddy leaves and comes home too :)
 One of Eric's work friends, Patrick, was at Ikea and couldn't help but buy Aaron some more trains and tracks. Seriously, best . gift . ever! He loves his new additions!
 Aaron still falls asleep just about anywhere when he hits a wall and I still find it absolutely adorable.
I do have one Aaron quote for you, but it's a little creepy ... I am certain he doesn't know exactly what he said. At least, I hope not.
Aaron: Aah! Mama! There's a wolf!
Me: What should we do?
Aaron: I'll use my pliers!
Aaron raced off into the other room and I thought to myself, poor wolf...
Aaron then hollered from around the corner: "I got his eyes! And his mouth!"
yeah ... I don't even ... 

Aaron went to preschool again today. Bring a friend to school day.
 Seriously, what a stud! I love how he is so excited to go in but when I come to pick him up, he is excited to see me! He says, "Mama, can I show you something?" after racing to me to give me a hug. He then takes me around to show me all the things he played with and what he learned. He is also excited to come home with me. It's magical. I hope he still feels this way in a year and a half when he's going to school every day.

So, in response to the question, "How are you?" ... We are well enough given the circumstances.
And we love you for asking!

Thursday, January 22, 2015

#tbt

Feeling nostalgic today looking through old photos ...
So here's a throw-back-thursday to the happiest moments of my life!
I'm excited to add another photo to this collage later this year!

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

There's No Kill Like Overkill!

I asked Eric to kill a spider last night and he took out a Katana Sword.
I'll admit -- it's so silly that it's sexy, haha. 
I love this man!

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

18 Month Stats

Audrey had her 18 month doctor's appointment today.
As always, she did fantastic. She is always so well behaved and lets them poke and prod her without complaint - even the ears and teeth! You go girl!

Weight: 24 lbs 2 oz - 11th percentile
Height: 32.5 in - 80th percentile
Head circumference: 10th percentile
Eye color: Blue/Green

I sat Audrey down to get a picture of her after the doctor had said we were done.

Audrey, knowing we were supposed to be done, gave me a scowl.
Not her mega scowl - just a little one to let me know she was displeased and was ready to leave...
What a drama queen! I love it!

She is tall and thin and healthy as a clam - except that she is sick ... but otherwise she's great!
Aaron got sick a week and a half ago and has a lingering cough. I caught it at the end of last week and Audrey caught it yesterday :( It's a cold/fever thing. Aaron threw up but none of us have had the misfortune to follow suit. They are both troopers though - they are in good spirits :)

Keep growing strong, baby princess!

Sunday, January 18, 2015

Audrey is 18 Months!

Audrey turned 18-months-old today!
I can and I can't believe it ... I can believe it because she has SO much personality!
I can't believe it because I have a hard time wrapping my head around how FAST the last 18 months have gone!
 She loves to get her picture taken. She sees my phone or the camera and instantly says, "cheese!"
 It produces the cheesiest smile and I adore it!
Today would have been Audrey's first day in Nursery, but we were all way too sick to go to church - we'll try next week. For now, you can entertain yourselves with some fun photos and videos that show Audrey's personality pretty well :)

Obviously, Audrey has her moments where she is truly upset (though they are pretty rare), but this is generally how she reacts when something doesn't go her way. To us, it's pretty hysterical.
I was doing laundry and discovered that Audrey had come across a cucumber in their room - Aaron must have brought it up a while back for a snack. She was trying to eat it - ew. So I extracted the cucmber and she was ... unhappy. Haha!
As you'll see depicted in EVERYTHING, Audrey is a diva. She is a drama drama drama queen.
She also loves to look like a diva. She is obsessed with accessories.
She puts on her own headbands and necklaces and bracelets and then will bring me sweaters and coats and socks that she wants me to help her wear. Adorable!
Audrey has a TON of words that she says now and she's great at putting together 2 word phrases. 

 Audrey loves to bring me things and organize!

Music and Dancing? Nothing better!
We still LOVE to be outside! Especially when it's in the 50's for weather!
Here are a few more adorable videos!
I started this video because everytime Audrey "leaves" she blows 800 kisses, waves, and says "bye bye." I got my camera out a little late to get her entire routine, but then she comes back for some awesome dancing!
Audrey is incredible at letting me know what she wants/needs.
Audrey loves shows that ask for audience involvement! She really gets into it!
These pictures throw me for a loop! I can't believe how old she looks! She's turning into quite a beauty!
Some days, when Audrey wakes up from her nap, she is less than happy... Luckily, she has a brother who knows what to do! Each time, I sit in the rocking chair and Aaron scales the bunk bed to do his impression of the opening part of The Circle of Life from The Lion King.
Once she is happy, she entertains herself reading books in her little chair.
Audrey has decided she likes the toilet. She'll start pulling at her clothes and say "potty." She'll sit on there, do nothing, wipe herself, flush, and use sanitizer. This makes her soooooo happy, haha! I think she likes the idea of being a big girl and doing what we do.
Two of Audrey's favorite activities are Dancing and Peek-a-Boo!

I love how much Audrey loves to show her love! She shows it in lots of ways, but two of my favorites are by snuggling up to watch a movie (she'll sit with us for a LONG time, I love it!) and she shows it as she leaves to head off to bed.
 I also love how Audrey has a desire to climb everything and get as high as she possibly can.
Here's something she loves to do - all by herself...

I have been following Audrey around LIKE A HAWK trying to get a picture of her scowl! I still haven't gotten it. Check back soon though, I'm DETERMINED!

I absolutely love this little girl. She is so kind hearted. Aaron fell and got hurt the other day - it wasn't serious, but he was also sick so he was pretty upset. I was rocking him in the rocking chair when Audrey saw he was sad. She raced over and stroked his hair. Then she reached up, hugged his face, and then noticed his tears. She gently and carefully wiped each one away.
What a sweetheart! She is a treasured member of our family and we are grateful every day for her!