5 months

Dear Camdyn,

5 months. Wow, is that even possible? On Sunday, you will be 5 months old. My little Beanie Bear.

You are SUCH a happy girl. I am just in love with your personality. I think you will grow up to be a lot like me. You seem to be very emotional and sensitive. You are definitely not a baby who likes her own space. :) If it were up to you, you would be held all day long....by your mommy. I'm so glad we have formed such a special bond. I love seeing your eyes get big when you hear my voice, especially when we have been apart, even if we were only apart for a couple of hours while you nap. I love watching your neck crank all the way around when you hear your big brother. I'm sure he annoys the heck out of you but I am even more sure that you already love him like crazy.

You are just getting to the point where I don't have to feed you every 2 hours. It is more like every 3 or 4. However, when you are at daycare you only eat 2 bottles all day long (7.5 oz each). Why 7.5? Because I went a little crazy freezing 5 ounce bags of milk (I should have known you would only eat 5 ounces for a few weeks) so we have to defrost 3 5oz bags at a time). :) Right now you are wearing size 1 diapers, although the next time I buy you more I will buy you size 2. Depending on the brand, you are wearing either size 3-6 months or 6 months.

You have changed our lives in so many ways and you will never know exactly how much we love you. I am so excited to watch you grow into the sweet little girl that I know you will be.

I love you Beanie!!!!

Chicken Enchiladas recipe!

Here is a YUMMY recipe! I just made it tonight! My friend Jenna made it for me after we had Parker! :)

Saute 2 T butter
1 Cup chopped onion
1/2 Cup green pepper

In same pan, blend
1/4 Cup flour
1/2 or more enchilada sauce mix (comes in a envelope)
2 1/2 Cups chicken broth

Cook and stir the mixture until thick and bubbly.
Remove from heat and add
1 C sour cream
1 C shredded Monterey Jack Cheese (I accidntally bough the Mexican blend this time and it worked well).
4 oz can of chopped green chili peppers

Take half of the mixture and add 2 C chopped chicken (I just use the kind that comes in a can).
Stir

Put a little of the remaining sauce without chicken in the bottom of a 9x13 pan.

Take 12 6 inch tortillas and place about 1/3 C of the mixture in each one and roll up.

Pour the remaining sauce over the top and sprinkle about 1/2 C of the Monterey Jack cheese on top.

Bake at 350 for 25 minutes or until bubbly.

Here is a picture. It's not the best quality (I took it with my camera phone) but this is what it looks like! :)

It won't be like this for long...

Today I stayed home with Camdyn, as she was 'banned' from daycare. :) (She was sent home yesterday with a fever; she couldn't go back until she is fever free for 24 hours). I'm happy to report that the day and a half at home sure did seem to do wonders for her! She is hardly coughing at all and her runny nose is really starting to clear up!

I took Parker to day care around 9am so Camdyn could just relax, otherwise I knew he would be pestering her all day. :) Today made me sad, though, because we had our normal maternity leave schedule. Ellen at 9, The View at 10, a nap, and then the Doctors at 2pm, Dr. Phil at 3pm. I - of course - fit in a session on the elliptical as well! I sure wasn't going to let the extra time go wasted!

It made me think that Sunday will mean a couple of things. First of all - the most exciting part - Camdyn will be 5 months old already! How is that even possible? Sometimes it seems like she has been here for years, other days I feel like I was just walking into work with my flowy maternity dresses, feeling those little knees move around inside my belly! Sunday also marks 2 months that I have been back at work. This DOES NOT seem possible, as I feel like I have been back for 2 years! :)

It is crazy to think that in a month Camdyn will be halfway to her first birthday. As the newborn days seem more and more like a distant memory, it makes me soooo sad! But I think I am also really becoming comfortable with the idea of being done with babies. Partly because I already have two perfect ones (I'm already 2 for 2 and I'm happy with that :) ) and partly because our little family of 4 just feels right. Yeah, we have a boy and a girl and they won't necessarily love playing together at each stage of their childhood, but I think they are going to be VERY close. Parker can't get enough of his little sister and with each day it seems like she loves her big brother more and more. :)

I wanted to post this video, too. I feel like this song is forever in my head.....totally describes our life right now! :)

Ready for a vacation.....don't mind if I do! (In 3 months....)

I sure do hope someone is reading these posts....because I feel like I have to post something every day! I'm sure the novelty will wear off soon.... :)

Well, last week Parker had ear infection followed by pink eye. Today I took Camdyn to the doctor and found out she has RSV. It was weird because the doctor was like, eh, she might have it, if you want to have her tested you can, but we won't do anything with the information, it would just be so you know. Umm, ok, I guess since we are here we might as well find out?

So after about 30 minutes of entertaining her in the tiny patient room, we got the news. Yup, RSV. Anything they can do about it? Nope. I sure am ready for summer....we have had more sickness in the last couple of weeks than I think we had in the last year. Seriously.

Speaking of summer, I blocked an entire week on my calendar! June 13-17 = vacation!!! Woohoo! I can't wait! I think our plan is to head to the Omaha Zoo for a couple of days and then the rest of the time will just be a 'staycation.' Take the kiddos to the pool....and I guess I'm not sure what else! Don't worry, there are tons of things to do during the summer in CR, so I am sure we will come across something!

Who wants to change a diaper???

If you ever wonder what my weekends are like..... :)

How can someone so little be so scary?!

Another Monday in the books...almost.

Today on the way home from work our sitter called and she said that Camdyn had been throwing up for the last half hour. Then when I got there, she started again. Not just spit up, like full on puking. It scared the crap out of me. I didn't know if I should sit there until she felt better (afraid she would choke on puke in the car), if I should speed home to get her into warm, dry clothes. I felt like such a rookie mom, even though I have been a mom for nearly 3 years, and almost 1.5 years worth of first years are under my belt!

Luckily, I think she just had a upset tummy. She seems fine tonight. She ate like a champ and played with Parker (she even yanked his 'ba' out of his hands a couple of times). It makes me wonder if these little people ever stop scaring the crap out of us! If that tiny bit of puke scared me, what am I going to be like the first time one of them breaks a bone, needs stitches, or gets behind the wheel of a car!?

Here are a couple of new pictures that I uploaded last night. I don't know how we ever lucked out......we have some pretty attractive offspring. :) Now I just need to figure out how to keep them this size forever! :)

Life aint always beautiful....

We had a great day yesterday! Parker, Camdyn and I headed back to Toledo to see "Meema." :) As I headed back, I realized that I hadn't been home since the day after Christmas (which was my sister's birthday). Although it will always be "home" I feel like it feels less like a home to me....a home is where a mom and dad live. :(

Being an adult/mommy while going through my parents divorce has made me reflect on a few things:

• There are some things - that no matter how hard we try - we will never understand.
• I have felt feelings that I pray my babies never feel.
• I will never make my kids feel that anyone or anything is more important than they are.
• No matter how well you think you know someone, you never truly know them until you see them go through a divorce.
• Playing dirty just isn't worth it.
• Some things are better left unsaid; you can't take back your words, no matter how badly you want to.
• Actions speak louder than words.
• We don't have to support our family's actions, but sometimes it is better to just accept them.
• At the end of the day, my job is to worry about what goes on under my own roof.

You can speculate about what/who has lead me to draw some of these specific conclusions. Maybe you are right....maybe you are not.

As spring approaches, I am very excited to get outside with my own kids. I'm excited to make memories at the pool, parades, summer family vacation, and much more! Although the last few months have been difficult, I do have so many memories that no one can ever take away from me.

Life ain't always beautiful....but it's a beautiful ride.. :)

What we've been up to....

SO, I decided that I would actually write a real post since I have this site looking semi-cool. :)

So you may ask "What exactly is it like having a full time job (50+ hours a week), a partially trained husband, a toddler and an infant?" Hmmm, do you really have to ask? :)

Things have been insane lately!

Parker is just a couple of weeks awa from turning 3. How is it that our baby is almost 3??? It makes me sad that we can have real conversation with him these days. He can understand us and we can understand him. I guess that is what happens when your 'baby' turns 3. I can't even bear to think about how much of a little boy he will be a year from now. The other night he kept sneaking out of his room because he didn't want to sleep. He would say, "But mommy, it's loud in my room." We went back and forth for awhile and then it occured to me that he is finally old enough for me to debate about bed time with him!

Speaking of growing too fast, Camdyn is approaching the five month mark! A couple of nights ago we gave her oatmeal for the very first time. It went pretty well. About half of it slid out of her mouth and the she gobbled the other half off of her spoon. Pink and purple bib, purple spoon and purple bowl. Of course we had to be mindful of what we used. These items are going to be in pictures for years to come! If she follows Parker's lead, she will also be crawling in a couple of months. That seriously does NOT seem possible! But you can tell she is already thinking about it. The other night she was on her stomach, pushing up on her knees, digging her little face into the ground. :)

The pictures that I am adding are not necessarily the greatest (they are from my camera phone) but at least it gives you an idea of what the tiny little faces I am greeted by each morning look like these days. :)

My first post on my first blog!

I can't tell you how many times people tell me "I hope you are writing a book, Parker says the darndest things." I finally decided that they are right...I need to document all of the craziness of our family somewhere other than facebook. Please bear with me....I'm still new to this and - to be honest - I kind of feel like a confused old person.

I'm excited about sharing "The Adventures of Parker and Camdyn" with all of you!