Sunday, September 16, 2012

1 YEAR WITH MISS KATE


Dear Kate,

At this time a year ago, I was holding you in my arms for the very first time.
Your daddy, and your Gogga were with me in the delivery room, and we were all feeling very blessed to meet such a new, sweet little girl and have you as part of our family.
You were so alert, and just taking in all of your surroundings with those beautiful big eyes.


The past year has been wonderful. You've brought so much joy and laughter into our home.
You're a fiesty, but sweet little girl. You REALLY LOVE your daddy... a complete daddy's girl. And your daddy thrives on every minute that he is wrapped around your tiny little fingers. You get so ridiculously excited when he comes home from work everyday... no matter how hard his day has been, those excited giggles and 'longing' for him to come pick you up, seems to always make him smile.
You've recently learned to walk, and there has been no stopping you. You are on the go, and into everything, but so far you've been pretty good at listening when I tell you not to touch something. I am sure eventually you'll test the limits, but for now you're just a little cutie investigating the big world around her :)

You make us laugh so often with your sweet giggles, and silly faces, and your 'growl'...we're yet to catch the growl on camera... and I just LOVE your sweet, open mouth, wet kisses.

This year has gone by so quickly, and you're growing up 'too' fast... each stage is so exciting and although I wish you could be my 'baby' a little longer, I am enjoying watching you grow and develop into a beautiful little girl.

I love you so much sweetheart.
Happy Birthday

Love Mommy

Monday, August 27, 2012

KATES FIRST STEPS

Miss Kate took her first steps worthy of blogging about yesterday.
For the last couple weeks, she's periodically taken a step or two almost 'by accident', when she was distracted and didn't realize she was moving her feet. LOL. Any time she focused on moving, she'd chicken out and drop to her knees rather than take a step.

Yesterday however, she took multiple steps in a row and has been doing it again today.
I can't believe she's going to be a walker soon. She was a newborn just the other day. This first year really does go by quickly.

In just a few weeks, we'll be celebrating her 1st birthday.



Monday, July 30, 2012

JUST AN UPDATE

It's been a while since I've blogged, so I thought I'd post about a few recent events in the kids lives.
Kate turned 10 months old earlier this month, (she'll be 1 in just 7 weeks... CRAZY).
She also got her first 2 teeth a little while ago with the next few trying to make their way through.
She's standing on her own, and continuing to cruise furniture around the house. I borrowed a walker toy from a friend this past week, and she's loving it. She's like a little grandma walking around with her walker. She hasn't quite mastered turning it yet though. LOL, so once she hits whatever is in front of her, then thats it... she doesn't go anywhere with it until you turn it around and face her in another clear path. LOL. Silly girl.
She's so funny. She is a real babbler these days, with LOTS to say, and if you don't give her enough attention, then she growls at you. Literally GROWLS. haha.
She cracks us up.
She's still the ultimate daddy's girl. (I think Luke is more of a mommy's boy right now)
She's also realized that she can let out a high pitched screech which we mostly hear when Luke is bothering her. It's not the most pleasant sound, and brings a whole new meaning to the term 'screams like a girl' lol

Luke just amazes me so much lately.
He's continuing to learn more and more words all the time and his language skills are improving at a very good speed.
We bought him a bicycle a little while ago and he's mastered it. In fact he's a bit of a danger boy on it. LOL
Because its been so hot, the bike hasn't yet been outside, so while it's still clean, we've been allowing him to ride it up and down the hall way. Our floors are all laminate wood, so they're smooth, and he's discovered the ability to do sharp sudden turns, or go round and round in small sharp circles until he falls off. BOYS! :)
He's getting to be so smart. He knows all of his colours, and he's learning his numbers too.
We're really enjoying how much more we can communicate with him now too.
About a month ago he started telling us when he was done having a melt down. haha.
If he gets mad about something, he starts to cry and have a tantrum, and then a few minutes later he'll come to us and say, "all done crying", and then he stops. It definitely works for us, that he realizes the need to stop, and actually does it. LOL.
He's sooooo bossy. A real BIG brother. He bosses Kate around all the time. lol. That's usually when her 'girly scream' comes out.
He's been doing so well in nursery at church, and 4 weeks ago I started taking him to the childcare facility at the gym we go to, so that I could work out a few days a week. I thought for sure he'd go crazy if I left him there. Day 1, was a bit rocky, but by the 2nd day he was Mr Cool and Calm... now he loves going and walks right in and finds some toys or kids to play with. I've been going 3-4 times a week, so its become sort of routine for the kids I guess. Kate is taking a bit longer to learn to 'like' going. She still cries when I leave her, but she's getting better and better everyday.
It's been a great break in the week where I can take an hour out for myself, and get a good workout in. I've been doing classes, because that way the instructors can kick my butt into shape, and I don't have to rely on my own motivation (which I have little of)... it's been a great feeling pushing myself in the classes to keep up. The downside is that I feel like I spend more time in sweaty work out clothes, than I do showered and 'looking good'. lol. I've even started to just run my errands straight after a work out to save time and gas money, so I'm a sweaty mess out in public. LOL. Lets hope that in a few months, the results of my hard work will show. :)
10 months old and BEAUTIFUL
Little trouble maker...always into something. lol
My Cuties.
Look, NO HANDS :)

Little Granny with her Walker
Mr Smarty pants showing us that he knows his colours (note how the cups are colour matched with the letters in them...all his doing)

Sunday, July 8, 2012

WASHINGTON DC WHIRLWIND TRIP

Jake has never been to see all the sights in Washington DC (I went back in 2007), so we decided that it was something we should together while we live in North Carolina, because DC is only a 4hr drive from here.
We decided to plan the trip for this past week, because every year around 4th July, Jakes company shuts down for a week, so he has the time off.
We headed out on Thursday morning, and stayed until Saturday. It was definitely a whirlwind trip, but it was fun. I'd been watching the weather daily, building up to the trip... and every time I checked, it was forecast to be hotter and hotter than the previous time I looked.
By time we actually headed to DC, the temperatures for the 3 days we were there, were between 100-106'F (37-41'C)..it was HOT...
I was so worried about the kids not handling the heat very well, because we'd be doing A LOT of walking and be outdoors for hours at a time, so I bought a clip on umbrella for Luke's side of the stroller where he doesn't usually have a sun shade, and I bought both kids battery operated fans to keep them a bit cooler (Kates was taped with packaging tape to the snack tray in front of her. lol.. it looked pretty ghetto, but it did the trick.)
We also went through A LOT of water... all 4 of us... I packed in a cooler of both frozen and refrigerated bottled water so that we had COLD water at all times. Maybe I'm just overly cautious and paranoid, but I was quite shocked at how many people were out in that heat with young kids in strollers, without sun hats OR umbrellas/stroller shades etc...
Both Jake and I were amazed at how well our two children did on the trip. It was so hot, and they were tired because naps were missed, and most of the time they were confined to the stroller while we walked, and yet we didn't hear a peep out of either of them. They were little stars.
We tried to include some kid friendly things to do, like splashing out feet in the fountain at the WWII memorial, playing in the many sprinklers that DC so graciously had set up in that hot weather, and we took Luke to the Museum of Natural History to see the dinosaurs, even though that was a fast paced tour because it was time to head back to our hotel.

We took lots and lots of pictures (well Jake took most of them)
Far too many to post to one blog post, so here are some of them, and then there are about 60 more in addition to these posted to my Facebook page if you want to see those too :)











This was Kates favourite part of the trip... splashing in the fountain at the WWII Memorial.
 



Riding the Metro





Lukes favourite part was playing in the sprinkler outside the Lincoln Memorial.. it was sooo hot!






Chocolate pudding cup after lunch at the Museum of Natural History.

Sharing with Daddy.. Kate wants some too. lol


I found this really cool.. it's the actual capsule used in the Chilean mine rescue last year... I watched the rescue live on tv, so it was awesome.
He just couldn't make it home after day two of walking. LOL

Friday, June 22, 2012

FAMILY PICTURES 2012


Ever since Kate was born, I have wanted to get an updated family picture for my portrait frame.
Up until about 6 weeks ago, the only picture I had of all 4 of us, was one from the day she was blessed, where you couldn't even see her face. LOL.
It was time to get an updated photo for my family portrait frame... the one in the frame was taken back in Novemeber 2010. haha

While we were in Utah earlier this month, we got Jakes dad, Spence to take the pictures for us, while Grandma Kim jumped around like a clown behind him to get the kids attention. LOL. Thanks Kim :)

The pictures came out great, and I'm really happy with how well our outfits co-ordinated.
I've finally got my portrait frame updated.

I had 2 favourites. One was vertical and perfect for my portrait frame (already hanging vertically on the wall), but I also loved the horizontal  wagon one, so I went out and bought an 8x10 table top frame so I could have both on display.

Here are my favourites from the little photo shoot we had.
Call me a biased snob, but I have a seriously good looking family. LOL
My portrait frame picture
My 8x10 table top favourite :)
Cutie pie
Double trouble :)
Two Cutest children EVER :)
Baby Kate and Me

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

9 MONTHS OLD

Little Miss Kate turned 9 months old this past Saturday (16th)
What a little sassy pants she is turning out to be. LOL.
I'm pretty sure she knows she cute, and she uses it to her advantage... don't underestimate those cute chubby cheeks.
She's developing quite the personality, and a bit of attitude to. LOL
We love her so much. She keeps us in smiles, and is so sweet.

Yesterday was her 9 month check-up.

Her stats are:

WEIGHT: 16lb 3oz  ~ 7.34kg (5th-10th percentile)
HEIGHT: 26 1/4 inches ~ 66.65cm (5th-10th percentile)
HEAD: 17 inches (25th percentile)

She remains a petite little girl, with big cheeks. :)

Just 3 more months until she's 1 year old.
Crazy how quickly this first year is going by.