Election Day 2008

Whatever the outcome was Tuesday, Nov. 4th will be something Kendall and Kaden will read about in textbooks. Keith and I brought them w/ us to the voting poll so they could say they were there! The outcome....president elect Barack Obama.

Kaden wants to turn 4!

When do you stop counting the 1/2 birthdays? Keith and I were just talking about how when we were kids we were always obsessed w/ turning a year older. As we have celebrated Saige, my niece, and Maddie, Kaden's friend, 4th bdays this past week he has become more and more interested in turning a year older. Before we know it our little man will be 4, then 5, then 16, then 21, then 30 and so on. As we looked through albums of the last 4 years last night it is crazy to us that so much time has passed before our eyes. I now totally get the saying that 'they grow up overnight.' I just want to keep my boy a baby just a little longer...I dread the day he stops asking to play w/ my hair and to hold him even though I seem to busy for it at times lately.

Kendall @ 12 weeks

Our girl is now 12 weeks old! She is quite the squirmy worm. She can now roll over to each side from her back and has really started to swat her arms in an effort to touch or grab at an object. Her obsession is to get her hand to her mouth. She has also discovered her feet, which keeps her entertained in her carseat. We have also started to use more of her toys as she is able to hold her head up. Her bumpo seat, pictured, is great and the baby einstein exersaucer offers much needed entertainment so I'm able to check email finally!

Tourists in Atlanta

Kaden has been begging us to go to the aquarium so we decided to go to downtown Atlanta at the last minute yesterday and we all of the sudden became tourists in our own city. We went to the Georgia Aquarium, the World of Coke, played soccer in Centennial Park and met my friend Shay for dinner at Maggianos in the Vinings. We all had a great day! Kendall was wide eyed as she was surrounded by the fish and she wiggled in delight, but it wasn't to long that it was all too much and she nodded off to sleep for awhile. The best part of the day was trying all the different Cokes from around the world. We all got a bit of a caffeine rush, but it was well worth it. Dinner was not to bad either. We topped it all off w/ three desserts: Creme Brulee, Tiramusu, and vanilla ice cream!

A long weekend comes to a close....

Keith has been out of town since Thursday morning and it is weekends like this that I can truly sympathize with single moms. Having two kids w/ 3 1/2 years in b/w them has its pros and cons, but I would say the biggest negative is the inability to nap w/ the baby. Kaden no longer takes naps during the day so there is no real time for me to unwind when Kendall goes down for her brief naps. However, I do take this time to go on turbo mode and get laundry done, clean, check emails, or play w/ Kaden & tend to his needs. There is just no real down time for me to just turn off as Mommy or even enjoy a nice hot shower. We did accomplish a few musts this weekend like finalizing plans for Kendalls upcoming baptism and reception. I booked the restaurant, ordered the invites and confirmed the church w/ the Deacon. We also made it to church this morning and Kendall stayed in the nursery for the first time. It took every ounce of me to sit through that hour w/out going to check on her. She was fine though & they said she slept for about 30 mins and showed her 'gums' a lot while smiling and wiggling in delight.
Keith will be home in about 2 hours and I will welcome him back w/ open arms and a kid or two to watch as I take part in my Sunday evening shows...Desperate Housewives and Brothers and Sisters!

Let them eat Cake!

Keith loves to bake sweets w/ Kaden. However, he tends to do this as he is about to go out of town leaving all the goodies w/ a woman on a diet w/ no will power when it comes to warm, chewy brownies!

My Favorite Photo

This pic was taken after our day on the town in Louisville KY. After all that activity they both still had smiles on their faces. It is my favorite photo of them to date.

Kendalls first mini vacation

We took our first trip out of town this past weekend. We started off the trip a little later than we hoped on Friday, but Kaden & Keith made pancakes for breakfast so it was a good trade off. It took a while to get on the road as we stopped at 4 different gas stations to fill up on gas b/c of the current shortage and rationing of fuel. We actually took a picture of Kendall in the car as we were waiting in line to get gas at our final stop. The lines were so long that we would let the kids out of the car seats while we waited!!! The trip there was perfect. We stopped for lunch and the kids and I slept for almost two hours. When we arrived at the hotel, the Hilton Seelbach, Kendall woke up and was crying as we checked in as she was starving, but that was the worst of it.

After Keith set up at his show we went to an area of town called Fourth Street Live and ate at Hard Rock. Kaden had a great time and was dancing in the streets to the hum of the music from all the surrounding clubs. We went back to the hotel where we enjoyed dessert in the concierge lounge.

Keith had work on Saturday so the kids and I dropped him off at his show and we were off to explore the town of Louisville. There was a hot air balloon festival in town so we stopped there first. Kaden had a great time participating in games and going on all the big inflatable slides and mazes. Kendall fell asleep as we walked around in her baby bjorn. It was a chilly morning, but it was neat to see all the hot air balloons floating up above.

Our next stop was the the Science Center and Museum. They had a kid zone w/ great interactive play and it was like pulling teeth to get Kaden to leave. Kendall slept almost the whole time only waking up to eat. I lucked out as the Kid Zone actually had a quiet reading room w/ a rocker for nursing moms!

Kaden and I were starving so we then visited a local pizzeria and enjoyed lunch on the sidewalks of downtown. After a stop at a coffee shop for chocolate chip cookies we went into the Louisville Slugger Baseball museum where Kaden was thrilled to buy a baseball and bat. We went back to the room for some down time before we picked Keith up that evening. For dinner we went to Joes Crab Shack at the wharf on the Ohio River. Both kids slept through dinner so Keith and I were able to feel like we were on a date and enjoyed a couple of drinks. After dinner we crossed the Ohio River and took the kids to Indiana for dessert at a local bakery. At this point both kids were getting cranky and I must admit I was exhausted so we headed back to the hotel. Keith stayed up to watch the LSU game w/ Kaden and Kendall and I fell fast asleep. At about 2:45 am we were all woken up by an irate drunk girl in the hallway....the downfall of an historic hotel downtown w/ very thin walls!

On Sunday I took the kids to the zoo!! I had my work cut out for me pushing Kendall around and carrying Kaden on my back or shoulders part of the time. Kaden loves to visit the zoos at each town we visit so it has become a tradition that I hope Kendall will love too. She of course slept the majority of the time and payed no attention to the few animals that I showed her. I again found another low key spot w/ a rocker to feed her during our 3 hour visit to the zoo so it worked out good.

The trip home was not as smooth as the way there. The last two hours included quite a few stops for feeding and diaper changes, but all in all it was a successful trip and I'm looking forward to our next destination!

Kendall's 1st time to church

We attended Sam Jones Methodist Church this morning and really enjoyed ourselves. Kaden seen his teacher and a few of his friends and went to children's church, which was taught by our good friends Kim and Brandon Thompson this week, so he was thrilled. When we got in the car to go to lunch he said..."Mommy that was fun I want to do that every Sunday."

Kendall surprisingly slept all through service and lunch. I was so nervous she would wake up and start screaming, but it worked out well.

Yeah for the Pacifier!

At 7 weeks Kendall has taken the pacifier, which is something we are thankful for. Kaden had the paci until he was 18 months. This was a little longer than I would have liked, but I think it is a god send. Especially for a baby that nurses as it soothes them. Yeah!!!!

Endless Night

Keith & I went on our first date post baby Kendall. We had an amazing dinner on Friday night at the Aviation Chophouse & Skybar in Kennesaw. It was nice to just sit and talk without the constant interruption of the kids and to realize that you have so much to just catch up on. My mom was babysitting so I didn't have to worry much about the baby as she is great w/ infants, but I was still anxious to get home. Upon arrival we found that Kaden had thrown up all over himself in our bed! He must have eaten something bad as he was not running a fever or in bad spirits, but just constant vomiting occurred all night long. Kendall, of course, slept very well for a change. It is so hard to see your child sick and know there is nothing you can do but continue to offer him fluids, which I knew was just going to make him throw up again. Finally by 7am he stopped and then he slept...for five hours during the day. The best part of this endless night, besides dinner, was getting to baby my little man. He is getting so big that he very rarely lets me hold him for very long anymore and I just adore and laugh at the kid he has become, but you always miss the baby stage.

Obsessed with Clothes

I knew we were in trouble the minute I heard Kendall was a girl. I have always dressed Kaden well, but having a girl to dress is a lot more fun! There are just so many cute clothes out there for girls. No matter where I go, online or in a store, there is something adorable for our little baby girl. However, I don't want to fall into the pattern of spending way more money on Kendall's wardrobe than Kaden's. Being a self professed shopaholic, which pains my husband, I'm so excited that I will have a shopping buddy for life in Kendall.
I'm feeling a little guilty over my current spending and of course trying to justify it!!!

Kendall @ 6 weeks

The infamous "my baby slept through the night at 6 weeks" does not pertain to my children. Kendall's sleeping habits seem to be getting worse instead of better. I have decided to give her a bottle of formula before bed time to see if that will keep her settled longer; although it did not help much last night.
I took her to the doctor on Wednesday for a rash on her face and head, which turned out to be prickly heat and baby acne, and for a swollen breast, which turned out to be hormones....well better to be safe than sorry. However, I did find out that our little girl is weighing in at 10lbs 2.8oz. A long way from her 6lbs 13oz birth weight in just 5 1/2 weeks!
We have come up w/ a variety of nicknames for our little girl including Kendall Bee, Boopy Girl, and Funny Face. Who knows where these names come from or how they stick as I still call Kaden 'Diddle'!

Kaden's love for everything Boy

Kaden's current obsession is for transformers. If any of you have ever purchased one of these for your child and tried to transform it you know how difficult it is....It's like trying to solve a mystery!

Kaden's other current favorites:

Band: Jonas Brothers, especially the song Burnin Up.

Color: Green

Number: 5

Movie: Camp Rock, TMNT (as in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Jurassic Park, Chicken little, Transformers, Spiderman

TV Shows: Hannah Montana (I think his first official crush is Miley Cyrus), Suite Life of Zack & Cody, Curious George, Cailou

He is obsessed w/ every boy toy including Power Rangers, TMNT, Spiderman, Batman, Dinosaurs, & of course transformers

A Day in the City

We attended the Yellow Daisy Festival in Stone Mountain yesterday. Kendall did really good up until the point it was time to eat and there was no way I was getting back to the car in time and I was not about to go sit in a porta-potty. So I found a children's clothing booth and asked the woman working if I could make a strange request. Next thing I knew I was behind her booth in a camping chair in the woods breast feeding....

I did buy an adorable dress from the woman in exchange for her hospitality!

We went w/ my parents, aka LaLa & Pops, so Kaden was happy to spend the day being spoiled.
We also made Kendall's first trip into Buckhead and stopped at a family friendly pizza place right off Peachtree Rd. All in all it was a great day, just a very long one.

Musical Beds

Now that Kendall is 5 weeks old and I have not slept for more than 3 hours at once I really need to establish a sleep pattern that works for all of us. Keith and I made the mistake of having Kaden in bed with us and now he is 3 1/2 and on a mattress on the floor of our bedroom as he is too scared to sleep in his own room. I'm hoping not to establish this same pattern w/ Kendall, but its hard when your kids are such great snugglers! I know its all my fault. So Keith has been staying w/ Kaden at night and I have been on baby duty as I'm nursing exclusively. So we have been rotating out beds at night. Good thing we have a few bedrooms to choose from!!! Don't worry I do have a plan, I just need to execute it....

To Be or Not to Be?...Becomming a Housewife

Before I became pregnant w/ Kendall I was a working woman. I thrived off having my career and being a Mom to Kaden. Not that it wasn't a struggle; always feeling like I did not have enough time. I hated even missing a haircut of Kaden's, but I felt that I was good at what I did and it gave me a sense of self. However, the company I was working for was a national builder and so there went my job as the housing market crashed. I then decided to take a step back and concentrate on my family. Thus, we became pregnant w/ Kendall. I'm now a soccer Mom, as I used to tease, and I couldn't be happier. I figured my children are only going to be small for this brief moment in time and I don't want to miss a thing. Not that it is easy on us financially, but it is important to both Keith and I for me to be at home full time right now. One day I will again broaden my horizons and possibly enter the working world or even go back to school and get my masters, but for now our children have become the primary focus.