Kylee is Two!!!

Kylee celebrated her 2nd birthday on Sunday!  We had a birthday party that afternoon with all of our families.



At two years old, Kylee:

• is talking up a storm!!!  Her favorite phrases are  - Kylee too * cookie-head * No! * Do it again
• loves to climb!!!  She climbs on anything and everything she can. 
• is wearing size 3t clothing and size 6 shoes. 
• has 15 teeth. She's waiting on her 2 year molars and one of her canines. 
• tries her best to keep up with her sister. If Kaitlyn can do it, she's sure that she can too. 
• Screams!  When things don't go her way, she just starts screaming. We started timeouts for screaming and that has seemed to help. 
• is not interested in potty training quite yet. She'll only sit every 9 out of 10 times asked. My plan is to start in the fall when we're not outside for hours at a time. 
• can put on her shoes!!!  (If she can find where she put them last.)
• gets bored while playing and then gets into trouble.......that girl goes from happy playing to trying to jump off the couch in seconds. My eyes are constantly open. 

Kylee Rae, it's hard to fathom that two years have passed by already. You're growing and changing so much!  It's amazing to watch!

2 years ago

Kylee Rae , on the eve of your 2nd birthday, I sit and think about two years ago while we were waiting to meet you. I was scheduled for induction on July 1st, but was called off as they were too busy for inductions. Daddy and I spent the day pretty disappointed that we weren't gonna be able to meet you. Kaitlyn had spent the night at grandma and grandpas since we were supposed to be headed to the hospital, but since we weren't, I went to pick her up.

I went to bed that night feeling uncomfortable and feeling contractions. I wasn't able to sleep much......contractions woke me up at 2am. I took a bath, bounced on an exercise ball, and walked until 4:20am when contractions were consistently 5 minutes apart and my doctor said to head to the hospital!!

I woke up daddy, made a quick phone call to my mom, asking her to come pick up Kaitlyn, packed a few last things, and daddy and I hit the road. Once we got to the hospital, things moved very slow. Daddy and I walked the halls, around and around, to keep things moving, but they weren't. Dr Amie decided to break my water around noon. Things didn't pick up much though!!!  She then started pitocin around 3. Daddy and I were able to hang out and just wait for things to happen.

Finally, at 6:23pm, you made your entrance into the world. Dr Amie placed you right on my chest and daddy and I spent the next 5 minutes just in awe while snuggling you.

Grandma and Grandpa brought Kaitlyn down to meet you and she was your first visitor. Daddy brought her in to meet you and she climbed right up on my bed and said "I love her. She's so pretty."  She was in love at first sight.

Grandma and Grandpa Smith came in to meet you, as well as Uncle Travis and Grandma and Grandpa Reineke. Uncle Nathan and Aunt Chelsea came to see you too!

8 months

At 8 months, Kylee:

• Has her 1st tooth! 
• wears 9-12 month clothing.
• is moving everywhere! She's mastered crawling and is pulling up on things. Also, she's started to climb......
• is such a happy girl!
• babbles a lot!  It's wonderful to here her voice. 
• takes a long morning nap and a shorter afternoon nap......most of the time. 
• tries her best to keep up with big sis!
• loves to eat. She eats 3 meals a day and is always hungry. If she sees someone eating something, she wants some. She eats anything and everything, except baby food,
• nurses 5-7 times a day. She's been waking in the night for a feeding, so no more solid sleep for mom!
• puts everything in her mouth. Going outside is tough....all she wants to do is eat grass.
• loves Buster! He lets her grab and pull and slobber, all for the attention. Poor dog!
• is starting on the separation anxiety front. She wants me in eyesight at all times. 
• loves to empty out all the toy bins and shelves she can reach. Our house is a disaster when she's awake. 
• has captured all of our hearts completely!

Life Musings

My poor neglected blog!  And my poor 2nd child who doesn't get regular update like her sister did......Oops!

In daycare news, I decided to close the rented daycare house, stop being licensed, and move daycare home at the end of March. At the old daycare house, I wasn't making much money and knew that after our little bundle arrived I would be paying out of our pockets to do daycare. Being unlicensed allowed me to watch 3 kids in addition to my own. The move home went very smoothly! Also, my daycare parents were crazy flexible about baby bean appointments. I was able to take the month of July off thanks to that flexibility!

In August, Kaitlyn started preschool along with another girl from daycare, so I only had 3 kids in the morning! Call me crazy, but it was too tame! I decided to get re-licensed in October and added another kiddo shortly after. Just after the new year, I added two more kids. I'm back up to eight!!!  Kaitlyn and Kylee have adjusted really well to our house being filled with kids 5 days a week. They both would be lost without all their friends.

With eight kiddos, my days are back up to crazy! We've slowing been following into a routine and getting into 'normal'. I cannot wait until the weather warms up and we can all go outside, get some fresh air, and run!





In other life news, Mitch accepted a new position as manager of the local lumber yard and store in April of last year. He started working there in the middle of July and absolutely loves it!  His hours are about the same as normal hours were out at Cargill, but there are no trains and no harvest!!!! We love having him home more.




Life with two kids sure is different! Getting out of the house on time takes an act of God. There are more toys everywhere. Laundry and dishes are never ending. And our hearts are bursting with love! It's amazing!!!!

6 Months

Kylee is 1/2 a year old already!!!  I can't believe that she's so big already!  So many things have changed in the last 3 months!  Poor second child......

At 6 months old, Kylee:

• weighs 16 lbs and 7 ounces. In the 50th percentile.
• is 26.5 inches long. In the 75th percentile. 
• has been working on getting her two bottom teeth in. They're just below the surface. 
• is wearing 6-9 month clothing and size 2 shoes.
•  nurses 5-7 times a day. 
• sleeps through the night. Bedtime is at 8 and I wake her up at 7:15 for daycare. There are a few nights that she's up to eat, but not many. 
• has been rolling around everywhere for the last two months. Nothing is safe!
• has been sitting up for the last month. She's so happy to be able to see everything. 
• is starting to rock on her knees.....she's a mover!
• just started baby food. She eats two meals a day with us now. She loves her fruits, sweet potatoes, and carrots. Not a fan of green beans and peas unless we hide them. 
• tries to feed herself. She likes finger foods and is trying to figure out how to use a spoon. 
• is such a talker! She's hit the g's, m's, d's, and l's. 
• is so ticklish, but doesn't like to be tickled. She gets a pained look on her face. 
• giggles all the time. She's such a happy, easy-going baby!
• is a home-body. She's happiest when we're at home. When we're out and about, she gets pretty moody and unhappy when other people talk to her. 
• had her 1st sleepover at Grandma's and Grandpa's on New Years. 
• chews on anything and everything she can get her hands on. My sink is always full of toys that need sanitized and my washer has dozens of slobbered on toys at the end of the day. 

Kylee Rae.....you complete our life!  I can't imagine life without you and I'm so happy God picked me to be your mama!  

She didn't even cry for Santa!

Hanging with Daddy!

Girl snuggles

First 4-wheeler ride

She rarely sleeps on/with me anymore. Have to cherish these snuggles!

Such a happy girl!

3 Months

This evening was one for the books!  Kylee took her first bath without screaming!  I climbed in with her and she loved it. She was kicking, talking, and even laughed (her first)! Afterwards, as I was feeding her a bottle, she grabbed a hold of my finger like she always does when she's eating.  It was evening I want to remember forever.  The pure love in her eyes as she stared up at me. The freshly bathed baby smell. Her little hand wrapped around my finger. I love those moments.

At 3 months, Kylee:

• wears some 0-3 month clothing and 3-6 month clothing.
• is up to 13 pounds.
• has been sleeping from 8pm to 6am. This past week, I've been waking her up at 7. 
• loves to talk and squeal and coo.
• constantly has her hands or whatever is in her hands in her mouth. She's always dripping with drool. 
• loves sitting up in the bumbo. Watching all the kids play is awesome!
• screams if left in a room alone. She has to be where the action is. If she and Kaitlyn are playing together and Kaitlyn leaves to grab a toy, she throws a fit!
• eats every 2.5-3 hours and eats about 6 ounces in the morning and 4-5 the rest of her feedings. 
• has started to 'sit' in the jumper. She lock-stares at the toys. 
• is completely adorable. We love her so much! It's hard to remember what our life was like before she was born. 

Preschool

My baby started preschool in August!  How is she old enough to do that?!?  She was super excited and has loved riding the bus!

2 Months

At 2 months, Kylee:

• Is on a schedule!  Daycare really has put us back into the swing of normal. 
• Is going to bed at 8pm and waking between 2am-3am, then snuggles in our bed to sleep until 5am-6am. 
• weighs 10lbs, 12oz which puts her in the 25%. Way different than her sister! Her height puts her in the 50%.
• Is wearing 0-3 month clothes. They are finally starting to fit well. 
• really likes bath time!  She likes to kick and splash. 
• eats every 3 hours during the day and takes 3-4 ounces at a time. 
• likes to talk! She loves to sit and chat with mom and dad. 
• loves tummy time!  She's started to roll herself over though, so she may not get much! She gets the biggest smile when she rolls herself over! :)
• likes to watch everything! There's always something going on in our house. She really likes to watch what the daycare kids are doing. When she can't see someone she gets upset. 
• is so interested in things. She's started to turn her head to follow things. She loves to watch Buster run around!
• loves to look in the mirror. She just stares!
• is so loved!!!  Kaitlyn loves to hold her; daddy loves to chat; mommy loves to snuggle!

Kylee @ 1 month

Our lives have been pretty crazy since Kylee's arrival!  We started life with two children by trying to keep Kaitlyn away from Kylee....she had mono. Not quite what we had planned, but Kaitlyn is not contagious anymore and Kylee didn't catch it, so all was well.

One month!  I didn't know that my heart would be able to expand so much!  Kylee has filled our home with even more love.  Kaitlyn has been a great big sister and loves to help.  She likes to hold Kylee often for short periods of time and every night has to give her a hug and kiss and cuddles.

The transition from one kiddo to two has been rough. Getting out of the house seems to be an act of God.. I now understand why everyone with kids always runs late.....it really shouldn't take 1/2 an hour to get 4 people out of the house! Slowly, we're getting the hang of it though. On the upside though, Kylee seems much more portable that Kaitlyn did. I'm sure it's just the fact that we have things to do and can't stop or slow down life as much as we did with Kaitlyn.

Daycare has started back up also, so that adds to the craziness. We love it though. Kaitlyn was lost for a month without all of her friends.  It's really nice to get back on a schedule too! I was really missing that order in our lives.  Kylee has settled into having lots of kids in the house and is used to all the noise. She loves that all of the daycare kids pay so much attention to her.  As soon as she starts crying, they all pipe up and ask me to help her.

At one month, Kylee:

• Weighs 8lbs 7oz. She was still at 7lbs 13ozs (her discharge weight) last week. Her pediatrician told me that she's lazy. (She was sleeping 7 hrs at night and I had to wake her up to eat 2/3 of the time.) Now I'm waking her every 3 hours during the day and every 4 hours at night to hopefully pack on the pounds!
• Hasn't started on schedule. It's much tougher to have bedtime when you're trying not to wake the 3 yr old. She sleeps in the rock n' play right next to my side of the bed. 
• Loves the swing, the rock and play and the car. If it moves, she loves it!
• Likes to hear us talking. She'll snuggle as long as we're talking to her.....she's not a fan of quiet. 
• Likes tummy time. She'll lay for about 5 minutes before she starts to get mad. 
• Doesn't like to lay on flat surfaces. She's really gassy and as soon as you lay her flat, she scrunches her legs up and starts screaming and tooting. Her tummy really hurts, so I've been doing tummy massages at least twice a day in hopes that it'll give her some relief. 
• Loves to be carried in the Moby. She's had to be a lot more portable than Kaitlyn, so we can keep up with Kaitlyn. 

It's hard to believe our little angel has been here for a month already! I can't imagine life without her!

New Addition

Kaitlyn's little sister has arrived!!!  We welcomed Kylee Rae to our family on July 2nd! She was 8lbs 6ozs and 20 3/4 inches long. We are in love!!!

3 Years!

It's hard to believe that three years have flown by!!!  My baby girl is 3!

At three years old, Kaitlyn:

• is wearing 4t & 5/6 clothes.  We get to shop in the big girls section! 

• is wearing size 11 shoes.  She's got her daddy's feet. 

• is over the moon that she's a big sister.  She has a name picked out for baby and can tell you all the things they're going to do after baby is born. 

• is still off the charts height wise. She's on the top of the charts weight wise. 

• loves to dress up.  She got some dress up clothes for Christmas and her birthday and she loves to be a princess....complete with shoes and jewelry. 

• is a negotiator. Lately, it takes 5 minutes of her trying to convince you why she should have to.......go to bed, do her chores, change her clothes, wear socks, etc. 

• likes to get her way.  She's starting to not go along with what her friends at daycare want to do and sticking to what she wants to play. 

• would live as a kitty if possible.  If she's playing, she's a baby baby baby kitty and throughout the day she randomly will drop to all fours and meows!

• has been wearing a dress everyday for the past month.  She is no longer interested in shirts and skirts. Needless to say, I've been doing a lot of laundry. 

• is a ball of energy!  I'm not sure if she's gaining energy or if her little sister is stealing some of mine. :)

I keep telling her to slow down and stay little, but she's adamant that she wants to keep growing so she can be a grown up and a mommy. :)  

Kaitlyn Grace, You light up my world!  You make each and every day interesting and I love seeing the joy and wonder of life on your face. I'm so proud of the big girl you've become and I can't wait to see what the next year will bring us!

Finally got it!

I finally got my tattoo in memory of Taylor!

2 years old!

At 2 years, Kaitlyn:

* is potty trained!  She's been out of diapers for a little over a month and loves to wear her big girl panties. Not gonna lie...her parents love it too!!!

* is talking up a storm! She's started asking 'why' and 'what's that for/do'. It's crazy how much she knows and can remember.

*wears 2t, 3t, and 4t clothes. We really just have too many clothes!  She has favorites that get worn all the time.

*keeps growing! At her 2 year checkup, her doctor said 'She just keeps getting bigger, doesn't she?'. She's off the growth charts and just keeps getting further above 95%.

* wears her pink cowgirl boots everyday.  She got them for her birthday and hasn't touched another pair of shoes.

*likes to help around the house. She helps unload the dishwasher,  set the table, and sort laundry.

*has perfected the toddler tantrum. When something doesn't go her way, she throws herself on the floor and kicks and screams. Getting dressed in the morning usually results in one.

* sleeps in her big girl bed with quite a few blankets and lots of stuffies. The number of each depends on her mood.

* is in love with babies. She likes to dress/undress, feed, burp, rock, and sing. She adores the babies at daycare until they start crying. She says crying babies scare her! :)

* asks for her favorite foods. Her most asked for supper?  Mac n cheese with hot dogs and blueberries.

* is working on her numbers and letters. She gets frustrated when we work on numbers,  so I have a feeling we'll continue to work on them for quite a while.

* loves her puppies! She talks about Ace and Buster all the time.  She doesn't really want to play with them.....just snuggle.

It's hard to believe that my baby is two already. I'm not sure how time had flown by so fast!!!!

Kaitlyn Grace, I love you! It's amazing to watch you grow and learn everyday.  I'm so blessed that God gave me such an awesome little girl!

21 Months

At 21 months, Kaitlyn is:

• taking one nap in the afternoon. 
• wearing 3t clothing with a little 4t mixed in. Wearing size 8 shoes.
• mastering her colors.  She names everything consistently except for gray.
• working on her numbers. (one, two, six, seven, ten!)
• going to bed with a few blankies and lots of stuffies.  She has 7 stuffies and 2 blankies tonight. 
• asking for favorites to eat.  Cheese is always the first thing she asks for!
• loves puzzles!  She could sit for hours. 
• is helping out around the house.  She helps sort laundry, unload the dishwasher, pickup toys, and put groceries away. 
• is very opinionated.  She'll tell you exactly what she thinks!
• is starting to make sentences.  She'll string 4-7 words together now. 
• is obsessed with the potty.  She likes to sit on the potty, but never goes.
• knows how to guilt her momma.  When tucking her in she says "need you momma' and cries.  Breaks my heart.
• miss independent.  She likes to do everything herself and will redo something if we don't let her do it the first time. If she can't do it she'll ask for help.
• learning more everyday.  Nothing gets past her!

Saturday morning Dora watching

Thanksgiving

Daddy's boots

Play-doh!!!!

18 months

At 18 months, Kaitlyn is:

• taking one nap in the afternoon.

• sleeping in a big girl bed. She was trying very hard to climb out of her crib, so we switched her over. She's been doing great!!!!

•is wearing 3t clothes.

•has been talking up a storm! It continually amazes me that she know so many words and is able to use them in the right context.

•can name all of her body parts. One of her favorites is to kiss her brain.

•would live outside if we'd let her. Her latest fascination is with sand. ......she's been putting it on her head.

•is using adult forks, spoons and cups for meals. We still use sippy cups for on the go.

•has 12 teeth and her canines are trying to pop through.

•is napping on a mat at daycare. Some days are good, others are a struggle....

• is in love with the new baby at daycare. She'll be a great big sister someday!

•loves puzzles,  books, and coloring. If we have to be inside, she's busy doing one of these.

•has no problem speaking her mind. I hear 'NO MOMMY!' at least 10 times a day.

•is growing and changing so fast!  I'm so fortunate that I'm able to be with her for everything!