Blessing day....

We blessed baby Grey yesterday. Joe gave a beautiful blessing. It was such a wonderful Testimony meeting and I came away with even more gratitude for the blessing of having a family and the knowledge that we will be together forever! Thank you everyone who came! We love you all!

why?

Sometimes I feel like such a weird-o. And it happened tonight. But let me start at the very beginning....

After I came home with baby Grey and a few weeks had passed I wondered why my "uterus" wasn't shrinking... hum. (Okay, this is going to get tad graphic and pretty gross--you were warned!) Everything else was shrinking down in its usual fashion but my "uterus." In fact it was beginning to look more and more like a softball just sitting right there on my incision line. As I was showing my Dr. at my 5 week visit the look on his face told me I was way off on my diagnosis...yeah, that would be an incisional (I think that's what it's called) hernia. Meaning when I lay down my intestines go back where they are supposed to go and when I stand up they try to sneak out. And they succeed. This isn't some "weakening of the abdominal lining" or any of that regular pregnancy stuff...this is full on insides coming out because what is supposed to be holding them in has been cut too many times that it wouldn't stay together. (And fixing it is a whole other issue because I'm not quite sure I'm finished with my family and blah blah blah....)

So now the story. I have to wear this abdominal binder to hold it in. Fine. Great. I'm glad they make them. But, when it's on it only raises my body temperature about 20 degrees and adds about 1/2 inch thickness where it is. Which is basically my whole torso and not what you want when you're only 8 weeks postpartum....more inches around the waist, no thank you!

So I go to this craft party/show tonight and I can't keep my mouth shut about it. Any time anyone commented on how I looked I didn't just say "thanks" (and they only commented because it is seriously a drastic difference from my humongous pregnant belly--anything would be...I was that big!) I start going on about how I'm wearing this binder and why and how it's SO thick and blah blah blah!!!I've got to get a grip! So that was good to go out and realize I can't be doing that for the next year. Do you ever do stuff like that? When you almost just have to laugh because look back and try to figure out who that girl was who kept talking about her hernia??? And why was she talking about it? Did she all of the sudden look thinner because they knew she was wearing a thick brace? Ha! Welcome to my world. Oh well...no worries...no more gross hernia talk I promise!

my how you've grown...

Remember how just two weeks ago you were like this?

and now you're full of this....

that's how we grow them,...fat and happy!

baby girl....

happy birthday !!!

Dear Baby Kate....

How did you get to be three so fast?

It just feels like you grew up overnight!

I am so thankful you are mine! I love that you are a girlie-girl and all things "girl" appeal to you! I love how each day you prove to me that you are from my genes! Did you know I watched Grandma put on make-up everyday too? That I loved painted/painting nails from the time I can remember? Did you know that dress up was a major part of my life...(kind of still is to some extent:)

Do you know how much your daddy and I love to watch you?!!! The way you spontaneously burst into song and dance! How you look up at us with those huge blue eyes and ask in your tiniest Tinker Bell voice for anything and everything and get it!!! Do you know that we love how you are "clingy?" We even love that the tiny Tinker Bell voice can become a roaring monster voice and shout "NO" louder than you'd think possible...when you've made up your mind. (We kind of don't know what to do when that happens...probably why you get whatever you want:)

But...you are the best girl! Those monster roars are few and far between (and really only come with exhaustion). You have such a little tender heart and have always been the sweetest! We are so blessed to have you in our family!

t-ball

When t-ball season first started Joe and I were...let's say "less enthused" about the whole thing. Two practices a week? Are you kidding...and then two games a week??? (Does that make us bad parents?) But...the tides have changed and t-ball has become something of a treat as of late. (And that mainly applies to Joe...my buddy has loved it the whole time.) And I was anxious to go to his game, it was my first...and it was awesome! Not so much because my buddy is competitive and aggressive and an all out sportsman...but because he's out there in his own world having a great time. And actually getting better....considering where we started. :)

AND...who doesn't love the Chuck Taylors??? He's the only kid who wears them but it reminds me of Sandlot and sooo adorable....and we can still take it seriously and wear Chuck's....

(who knows what he's doing here...but it still so so cute!)

We are now official t-ball fans....

It rocks!

nice...

do you like how I spelled it "black whole" instead of "hole"...I have no brain and need to remind myself to never post after 10pm...

two vs. three...

The Black Hole...

Seven days after my first c-section (Kate) I packed up what little we could, and flew to Vegas. It was Joe's summer internship that brought us out and since my mom's house wasn't finished yet (or started for that matter) and the condo seemed a bit tight without us there...we rented an apartment for those three months.

After sitting in a wheelchair at the airport for our three hour delay and sitting for three more hours on our flight, we arrived. Only to be escorted "home." After a short visit all said goodbye and left us there. Our little family of four.

The next day came and everyone was off to work but me and my newborn and two and a half year old. All of his friends and toys we left in Arkansas, along with mine too. That's when I entered the "Black Whole" stage of that experience...

I'm sad that those first few months of Kate's life are tucked away in some part of my brain that I don't visit often...Having a newborn has it's challenges (no sleep). But having those challenges exacerbated by 7-day-old major surgery no extra hands and a 2 1/2 year old wanting my attention the whole time and a newborn who had to be held 24-7...was not ideal.

If Joe would have said he only wanted two kids...we would only have two kids. My apprehension for this third one was not very subtle (just ask Joe) and I'm blessed to be able to say that the experience with this guy:

puts my black hole days to shame! My mom helped, my mother-in-law came, my husband took a week off...it's been fabulous! My kids' routine hasn't even skipped a beat! I didn't cook a meal for three weeks (I have the best friends and parents ever!!!) And he is such a great baby!

Plus...my two kids just play together!!! Imagine that!!!I found my big boy doing this the other day....he loves his little brother.

And speaking of my big boy...

We were totally rewarded for being slacker parents! One of his training wheels feel off so Joe just took the other one off...to motivate himself to get out and teach this boy! Low and behold he officially taught himself! It was awesome! (of course, he fell at the park and declared he wanted his training wheels back on...)

And this little princess...Lives in this dress. (You will get it back tonight Court!) And ever since I came home from the hospital...she only changes her clothes 5000 times a day and that is in between the time she is wearing this:

I just love my three! And this time it certainly has been a charm...