Thursday, March 31, 2011

And the binging continues....

I've kept to my word and went on a spring cleaning binge every afternoon this week.

It felt good to sort through Reese's closet....



Afterwards, I was able to restock all three kids' closets with hangers!

I also worked on Everlee's towering corner.....



She "helped."



Meanwhile, next door.....



Uhh, I think I'll go back to my little angel.



I can't stop now.....it seems to be working......tomorrow is supposed to be sunny and 71!

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Sippin' chino with Papa

Let me preface this by saying one distinct memory I have of my Grandpa Reese was sitting on his lap and sippin' coffee. We would stir it and tap, tap, tap the spoon, then he would have us sip it off the spoon. The only problem, none of us liked it, except maybe Andrew?? Thus far Cru is like Andrew.....except there's no stirring and no coffee. Now it's fancy cups with lids and cappuccino.

When we go out to Papa's store, one of the first things Cru asks for (after cookies, of course) is drinks of Papa's cappuccino.



Yes, Papa complies (what are Papa's for, right?) even though the last thing this kid needs is caffeine.



Yesterday, Cru got his own cup of chino!



They sip and say, "That's some good chino!"

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Just words

We haven't had a lot to blog about lately. Seems like we've been spending our days getting healthy and staying healthy.

Everlee is the sick one now. Poor baby girl. She has Cru's nasty cough, which sounds terrible coming from her little body. It's had me in a panic for the past few days, so yesterday I called my friend, Melisa, who's a PA, and asked her if I should be concerned. She said to watch for fever and trouble breathing. She hasn't run a fever, but I have noticed some wheezing, so I'm keeping a close eye on that. Because Everlee's nasal passage is so full of mucus and there's really no where for it to go, Melisa also suggested I get this battery operated nasal aspirator instead of just using the little blue one every baby gets in the hospital; it just doesn't get the job done. This new high tech one is made by Graco, and you can find them at Walmart for $20. This morning, it worked like a dream! Mucus be gone!

Cru is doing MUCH better! Still has a runny nose, a cough, and looks pretty skinny, but the stronger antibiotic seemed to do the trick for his ear infection. His attitude is well, back to normal, which actually isn't necessarily a good thing, but at least we know he's getting back to his old self.

With everyone not feeling well and the time change, the kids and I haven't been getting up until 8:30! So I figured getting Reese up for school today would be a struggle, not just for her, but me as well. I had my alarm set, but luckily Everlee's schedule already had me up because my alarm was still one hour behind. Reese pretty much got right out of bed, but while eating breakfast, she told me she was tired and going to take a nap on the couch this afternoon. That's my girl! She also has dance today, which she hasn't been to since Christmas break because of sickness and Everlee's birth. Glad we are getting her back on schedule!

Tax season has been in full swing for quite some time now. Chet's exhausted, but handling it all very well, and thankfully for him he hasn't had to go in at 3 am, yet. Did you know the deadline isn't until April 18th this year? We are already looking forward to our family zoo trip on the 19th!

I've decided to go on a spring cleaning binge this week to hopefully bring on SPRING! I'm going to pick one room/closet a day, and once Cru and Everlee go down for their afternoon naps, watch out!! Yesterday, Reese and I tackled my closet. All maternity clothes were SHIPPED OUT! All winter boots were moved to the bottom shelves/cubbies, but not before Reese pranced around the room in every pair. When I was pregnant, in order to make room for my maternity clothes, I packed up some of my t's and tanks, so I brought them back up from the basement, sorted through them for Goodwill, then hung the ones I kept back up. I also sorted through all my other clothes for Goodwill. And I dusted all my shelves and cubbies. Felt good! Felt like I was nesting again ;) Today, I am going to tackle Reese's room, mainly her closet.

In another attempt to bring on spring, Bows & Bands will be having a giveaway soon! Be watching for that!

See, not much going on. Hopefully, we'll all be feeling better soon and spring will be here and it'll be happier times and happier things to blog about!

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Feeling better

It's good to see his ornery side again.



And her's....



well, I don't think it ever left.

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

6 weeks

Everlee had her 6 week well child check on Monday. She really wasn't all that into it.....



Doesn't she look big?!

Since I'm already so far behind on documenting in her baby book, I figured I better post her stats here for when I finally do get caught up.

Everlee at 6 weeks:
10 lbs. 6 oz.
23 in.

Compared to her siblings:

Reese at 6 weeks:
11 lbs. 2 oz.
22 1/2 in.

Cru at 6 weeks:
12 lbs. 5 oz.
22 3/4 in.

What BIG healthy babies we have!

On a different note, this week is spring break. My poor Cru-Cru is still so sick so thus far our days have stayed busy with trips to the doctor (two already this week (it's only Tuesday) and three trips last week.....needless to say, I've had enough!). But in the midst of all of this sickness, little Miss Everlee Brooke has been an angel.



Yes, she ties me down with all of her eating and only wanting to sleep in someone's arms, but she's truly been a blessing to our family.



She's actually sleeping better at night than the big kids.....praise the Lord!



I can't say enough good about her.....or her siblings. They both love her so much. Of course, they love her even more when they are sick and love to rub their germ filled hands all over her. But she just deals with it.



Thank you, Everlee!



We love you more than it probably feels right now (not like you really know), but we love you (and those chubby cheeks)!

Sunday, March 20, 2011

30

Well, it happened.....there was no stopping it.....I turned the big 3-0!

I appreciated all the calls, texts, and emails. And the gifts....you all are way too kind! My mom had a gift for me every day last week starting with Mary Kay make-up on Monday, a gift card for Mexican on Tuesday, a pedicure on Wednesday, jeans on Thursday, and a belt on Friday. She always goes that extra mile to make sure I feel special. Thanks Mom!

I received chocolates in the mail from a family friend.....some little boy literally tore into those (when I wasn't looking) before I could.



Thank you to my friend, Mindy, for the beautiful necklace!

And thanks to my bestie, Leann, for the flowers!


Photo courtesy of Reese.

And how do I ever begin to thank my husband for making me feel so loved. When I woke up, I walked out to the kitchen and found this.....



I called Chet and all I said was, "What is this?"

His response, "What every girl wants.....a money tree."

Is he good or what?



Yes, all hundreds :)

He planned for his mom to come over and watch the kids while we went to Wichita to spend the money and eat.

But before that, he brought home lunch from my favorite sandwich place and also had my parents join us for a little party since we were going to be gone all evening.

My cake :)



I was a little excited listening to Reese sing.



Lets all help Mommy!



Once Chet was able to leave work, we took off for Wichita. The first thing I planned to spend my money on was a new camera lens. I found what I wanted, but decided to save some money and order it online.

After that we headed to supper. I chose Sumo!



Yes, that is MY wine; my first drink in who knows how long. Probably why supper tasted so good.

After filling our bellies, we headed to the mall because that money was burning a whole in my pocket! One hour, one store, and $350 later, we decided we should probably head home (even though I still had money to spend :().

It was back to reality.....to my three little loves



Ahhh, reality - one had two fat lips, one was still really sick, and one was ready to nurse.

But what a great day!

So really, thirty schmirty.....I say bring it on! Bring on the best years of my life because I didn't know it could get much better than it's already been.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Birthday wish list

My birthday wish list is very simple:
  • No more 103+ fevers.
  • No more snot covered kleenexes covering my living room floor.
  • No more gloving up to clean out gunky pink eyes.
  • No more coughing til someone throws up.
  • No more using the counter as a pharmacy.
  • No more ear infections.
  • No more mastitis.
  • No more of THIS!


And the only other thing I ask is it all be served up with a big ol' margarita!

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Game time

Our week has not gotten off to a very good start so I'm going to back track to happier times - game times!

The weather was really nice last Friday, so once Cru was up from his nap we headed outside. Cru actually ended up going to Grandma Linda's when he woke up, so it was just us girls enjoying playtime. A neighbor girl was over, and she asked Reese if she wanted to play hop scotch. Reese has kinda played before, but this time it was for reals, and she thought it was THE.COOLEST.GAME.EVER!!!! The two girls played so well together - taking turns, laughing, and having fun.











I see a lot of hop scotchin' in our future.



More game playing continued on Saturday when we traveled to Topeka to watch Aunt Casyn at the state basketball tournament. Reese and Cru were battling nasty colds so Grandma Linda and Papa Dell offered to stay home with them so Chet and I could still go. THANK YOU GRANDMA AND GRANDPA!!! It felt weird just having one child with us. For the most part, Everlee did great during the trip - she slept the whole way there and only screamed for one feeding stop on the way home. This girl very much sticks to her 2 hour eating schedule! She loved every minute of being spoiled during the games by Grandma Cheryl, Aunt Cheyna, and Aunt Rhonda.





Congratulations to Aunt Casyn and the rest of her team on a third place finish! What a career Casyn has had at MHS! We are so proud her!

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Oh, my little man....

he keeps me on my toes....



he makes me pull my hair out....



but most of all....



he makes me smile!

Sunday, March 6, 2011

1 month

I'd like to act like I'm surprised Everlee's already a month old, but really, I'm not. Third time around, I already know time flies. Plus, she's so laid back, it feels like she's always been around.



She's still wearing newborn clothes and diapers, which I think is the longest any of our kids have worn that size.



She eats like a champ - nursing every 2 hours usually giving me at least one 4 hour stretch at night. Speaking of nights, they've been a little rough lately. She doesn't fuss that much, she's just wide awake for hours at a time, which makes for some long sleepy days.



Yesterday, she gave us her first smile! And hasn't stopped.



Our house is loud, crazy, and chaotic, but Everlee is working on making her presence known.



She is strong! She already has very good head and neck control.



This little angel may only be a month old, but she's already been the perfect addition and completion to our family. I think of her as this missing piece to our family's puzzle that we didn't even know we were missing. We love you, Everlee Brooke!