Ryan turned 3 (July 2016)

In July our little man turned three. It's hard for me to believe three years has already passed by. We had a fun day with family, and he got a cool cake. We also celebrated Caroline's 1/2 birthday. Since her birthday falls in December, we felt like it would be fair to help split her birthday and Christmas gifts up.

First off, I wanted to share a few photos that Kari Bruck Photography took of the kids. She always does an amazing job. The moments she captures in an hour photo shoot are amazing. Especially the third photo here! Ryan will love this photo when he's older I'm sure!

Prepping for baby chicks - Feb. 22, 2016

This week we are getting baby chicks, so we are getting their home ready. Don't worry, we won't be putting them in our backyard or anything. We are getting them so the kids can get their Easter photos taken by Kari Bruck Photography on March 5. We plan on getting six of them. A nice sized plastic tote will work perfect for a week.

The kids are super excited to get them, but we keep telling R-man that he needs to be gentle when picking them up and putting them down. After the photos, we will be taking them back to my sister's farm so she can raise them.

Kids Update (January 2016)

Here’s a quick update from the past few months. I've been slacking in the kids bi-monthly updates, but people always ask me what they are up to lately so I wanted to share.


Both kids are on the go at all times and they absolutely love each other. Dave and I are hoping that continues as they age.
 

Age:
R-man is 2 years 5 months months 
Little-C is 4 years

Stats:
R-man is Weight: 27 lbs. (49%), Height: 33.75" (51%), Head Circumference: 18.5"
Little-C is 37 lbs.

Our son is 2 - Where did the time go?

A week ago, we had R-man's 2nd birthday party. Dave and I are seriously wondering where the last two years went. I can remember when I was pregnant with him and wondering when he was going to arrive after my due date came and went!

His actual birthday was July 30. We celebrated by getting his photos taken in the morning by Kari Bruck Photography, and then donuts at Main Street Cafe & Bakery because they both smiled good.

R-man's 2nd birthday - his sister got a photo opportunity too!

Kids Update (January and mid-February 2015)

Here’s a quick update from this past month.

Both of the kids have become very independent and often play together in their room so they don't have to hang around Dave and I. In a way this is nice because we can get things done, but when they turn quiet it's usually not a good sign.

Age:
R-man is 18 months 
Little-C is 3 yrs. 1 month

Kids Update (November)

Here’s a quick update from this past month.

R-man is growing up right before our eyes. The kid is becoming very independent and absolutely loves the outdoors. Although, he isn't fond of the snow!

Thanks to Kari Bruck Photography for the great work!

Age:
R-man is 16 months 
Little-C is 2 yrs. 11 months

Stats:
R-man is:

• Weight: 22 lbs. 14 oz. (51%)
• Height: 32" (78%)
• Head: 19" (86%)

Little-C is 32 lbs.

Weekend Wrap Up (11.7-11.9)

This past weekend was about ME! I love spending time with my husband and kids on the weekends, but once in a while a Mama needs a day to herself!

I woke up bright and early on Saturday morning (5:40 a.m.) to get ready to head to Underwood to meet my lil' sister for a day of shopping. On my way home, I noticed the skies were absolutely beautiful so I pulled over for some quick photos. I had to capture the beautiful sunrise that was visible in my rear view mirror and the beautiful clouds as I headed west. I made sure to pull over where I knew I could capture a corn field in the background.

Weekend Wrap Up (10.3-10.5)

This past weekend was spent with our kids and we both absolutely loved it. Today marks the last day at home before we head back to work this week. Being on vacation this past week was great,  but we did have a lot do do with the house so it didn't feel quite like vacation. I'm looking forward to a staycation in the near future with a little R & R at home!

Friday evening we spent some quality time in the basement as we were building shelves for all of our holiday totes and kids clothes, toys, etc... I've said it before, but kids accumulate a lot of stuff. I look at their totes of clothes and get sad because of all the outfits they outgrew!

As we were building the shelves, the kids loved crawling on them and running from one side to the other. R-man has just learned how to walk so he's a bit unstable and kind of freaks us out when he steps down off of things onto the cement. He tends to be very careful, but when his sister runs up behind him acting like she's going to get him he tries to hurry and nearly falls. I love how excited he get's when someone is chasing him though! I once read that children laugh about 400 times a day, while adults on average only laugh 15 times per day. To be a child again would be great!  They have so much fun with life with little worries. Sometimes I think I need to take some advice from the kids!

My awesome storage shelves!

Kids Update (July)

Here’s a quick update from this past month.

R-man is officially 1-year and Little-C is 2 yrs. and 7 mths. This past year has went by so quick. It makes me sad when I reflect back on how our lives have changed. I no longer have a little boy, I almost have a toddler that can walk.

A special thanks to Kari Bruck Photography for the awesome photos!

Age:
R-man is 12 months (I can't believe this past year went by so quick.) 
Little-C is 2 yrs. 7 mths.

Stats:

• R-man 
• Weight: 22.4 lbs. (66%)
• Height: 30.8" (85%)
• Head Circumference: 18 (40%)
• Little-C is 31 lbs.

Weekend Wrap Up (July 26 & 27)

Now that the weekend is almost over, I'm wishing I had another day to relax before going to work because frankly, I'm exhausted.

On Friday evening, Dave and I hired a babysitter and went on a date night. Our night consisted of going over to our friends house in our new neighborhood to meet a few of our new neighbors. We chatted for a bit and then we headed for dinner. It's nice to enjoy dinner without the kiddos and without our cell phones. It's funny how many times we go out to eat and we see people on their phones. Dave and I really try to make a point to not have it near us at the dinner table.  Afterwards, we went grocery shopping since we needed to assure we had everything for R-man's 1-year birthday this weekend.

On Saturday morning, we woke up bright and early at 5:30 so that I could decorate R-man's smash cake for his cake smash since his photos were at 8:30. Kari Bruck Photography took his photos again and did an awesome job!  After his photos, we came home and cleaned up the house, took naps, did laundry, decorated his cakes and went to bed early in preparation for Sunday!

R-man's cake for his smash session.

 

Weekend Wrap Up

This weekend was an extremely busy, yet productive. On Friday night, we took the kids for a walk as soon as we got home. R-man usually falls asleep on the way home from daycare but that didn't happen on Friday. Although, he did take a good snooze on our way to the park. Little-C loves the park and she has discovered the bar above the slide so she thinks she can swing on it. It's all fine and dandy until there is a line of kids behind her but she doesn't seem to mind.