Carly says, 17 days left!

How many times can a kid see Santa, really? Well, for Carly it's at least 3. So far! The cool thing is not only is it the same Santa every time, but he has remembered Carly each time, and things she has told him. How cool is that? Especially considering home many kids he sees each day. Maybe he is the real Santa?!
I'm pretty excited for Christmas day. I know she is going to love her presents, and I know Wesley is going to love his... wrapping paper? Carly wants to make gingerbread cookies this year, and I happened to get a mix at Disneyland, with a cool Mickey Mouse Gingerbread man cookie cutter. She is also gung-ho about making sure Rudolph has something, too.
I think we are done shopping for the kids for Christmas. We had to rearrange a few things after Carly changed her likes, but we did it. I even finished stocking stuffers for both. Of course, that isn't going to prevent me from picking up a little something here and there when I am out!
I should take some pictures of our tree and stockings, they are pretty cute. It's funny how excited for Christmas morning you get- even as an adult!

Tis the Season...

Christmas pictures didn't go as well as I would have liked... Lately, Carly has been a bit of a terror, and today proved no different. Asking her to change out of her Christmas skirt and into some birthday clothes ended up with her in the dressing room for 30 minutes screaming. The portrait place was busy, and it was quite embarrassing. I'm calling her doctor tomorrow... something has to give and his last solution wasn't the solution.
Wesley did pretty good though, but didn't give his big smiles. I think our photographer was annoyed with Carly, and she hurried us along. Oh well, always next time, right? Those pictures can be seen here.We'll be sending off cards soon!
I hope none of the family minds, but Christmas presents are all mainly homemade this year. I'm actually kind of excited/proud of a few of them. I just need to put some finishing touches on them.
Short post, but will update more later!

Turkey, the number 7, and all in between!

Gobble, gobble! It was pretty cute how Carly gobbled, and Wesley giggled. The two are quite a pair! I have the pictures to prove it!

Seriously- adorable, right? Yeah. I agree. Anyways, onward!
Thanksgiving was good. We went to my mom's house where my mother, Jeff, Jordan, and one of my mom's friends were there. The kids wore their matching Turkey shirts I made, and they looked so cute. Wesley, sadly, took a bottle shortly before dinner, and had no interest in any other food. He wouldn't even suck on a bit of turkey, that little turkey! But Carly chowed down. Carly's dad came and got her for his Thanksgiving, and then we traded off the next day.
She's seven. Wow. How did that even happen? I really feel like I blinked and here you are. Ray and I took her to Build A Bear in the mall (On black Friday! We're nuts, yes!!!) But it wasn't too bad. We let her stuff a cute little bear we bought her that reflects her birthstone. Carly was so stoked that they had a Rapunzel outfit, as Rapunzel is her new favorite thing. She has a cute little Rapunzel bear now. We took her to Red Robin for dinner, where mom and Jordan met us. I worked for a few hours Thursday night on a cake for her, and was pretty impressed with myself with how it came out. Carly was beyond spoiled for her birthday, and now is eagerly awaiting Christmas to become more spoiled. Ah, kids!

We think we finally found a place to live in Bowling Green. It sounds like this guy is going to hold the house for us until we get there, and judging by the pictures it's gorgeous! We put our house up for Rent today, and already had some interest. Hopefully we get it rented soon! We are moving a couple of days after Christmas, so that we can spend Christmas with my family this year.
As always, pictures can be seen on Facebook via this link, including ones from Carly's Birthday and Thanksgiving. But until then, I leave you with these!

Overdue!

It's been awhile since I posted, but it's been a long month! We spent out week at Disneyland, and it was great! Carly, Wesley, Nana, Ray, and I spent so much time at the park that we were all walking zombies in the end. Here we were worried about Carly and the roller coasters and characters, but she LOVED it all! She met every princess, and rode every roller coaster. Even the super scary one she was barely tall enough for at California Adventure! Wesley was a trooper too, but insisted on someone holding him most of the time, so he could see the action as well. Carly even got to participate in the Jedi Training Academy, and they dubbed her a Jedi Padawan. She was too cute, and loved it! Pictures can be seen here.It was a great time for all!
Carly got home and immediately went on vacation with her dad. She just got home today after being gone a week! He took her to Phoenix to see her Paternal Grandma, and then BACK to Disneyland. Spoiled kid! During the time she was gone, Ray and I did some Christmas shopping, saw Harry Potter, and tried to finalize moving plans. It's been hard to find a house to live in, because we are still over a month away, and no one wants to hold a house that long. But it's looking as if I will be flying the kids in around the 28/29th, and Ray and Mark will follow suit, but by car, a couple days later. I'm nervous about moving away from mom, and sad about it, but excited about being somewhere new.

Nothing too new to report on the kids. Carly doesn't go back to school until Monday, but she is excited. She needs something to work her mind. I can't believe she is almost 7... Blows my mind! Wesley is almost 6 months old, and sits in the shopping carts and high chairs as well now. He isn't crawling yet, but is scooting with determination! He hasn't quite realized that getting on his knees would be easier... haha!

We are spending Thanksgiving at my mom's this year, but before dinner we are taking Carly to see "Tangled." She got to meet Rapunzel at Disneyland, and is now REALLY excited to see her movie. Then on Friday (Her Birthday!) we will take her to Build A Bear as a treat, and I am making a really detailed cake. (Pictures will be here!)

Anyway, I hope all is well with everyone. I will be back after Carly's Birthday and Thanksgiving with pictures. (I hope!) And Wesley has his 6 month appointment on Tuesday, so I will have stats soon!

Happy Halloween!

Well, it's almost Halloween, anyway! (And didn't I use that same blog title for last year's Halloween blog post?)
Carly's last day of school was on Thursday. She is now officially off-track until November 29th (I think!) On Thursday, they also had their Halloween party, at which they could wear their costumes. This was weird to me, because ever since she has been in daycare/school, this has never been allowed. But okay! More fun for the kids, right? Well, Carly decided to dress up as Jessie the Cowgirl from Toy Story 2/3, and so we dressed Wesley up as Woody the Cowboy. Since Carly was already in her costume, we put Wesley in his and snuck a few pictures through,

I know, super cute, right? Here is a link to some more of them. (This is the same link as the pumpkin patch pictures! Oh, and if for some reason those of you without Facebook can't see them, let me know please!)

Anyhoo, Carly is at her dad's until Sunday, and then we will take the kidlets trick or treating. I'm sure Wesley will sleep through the majority of it, but it should be fun anyway. Carly is dying to use the glow-stick wand that Grandma Dawn sent her, but we told her to wait until Halloween to make it more fun!

I want to thank everyone for all the birthday wishes and more than you sent my way. Thank you very much! It was a relaxing day, after being up in the middle of the night from 3 am - 6:30 with a baby! Ray let me sleep in until around 10 (Glorious!) and then we went to dinner with the kids and my friend Amber. It was nice! The night before, my mom had taken us to dinner as well. I feel very spoiled! I can now also drive the rental car in 2 weeks, because I am older enough to go on the agreement! (Priorities, right!)

I will be back with a Post Trick or Treating update on Sunday night/ Monday morning! (If not sooner, I want to show off some of my recent sewing accomplishments!)

You want me to put my hand in WHAT?!

That was basically what Carly asked me tonight when I told her she needed to clean out her pumpkin. It was a BIG to do.
But, let's rewind...

Today, we took the kids to a pumpkin patch. The pumpkin patch was really cute, and had a bounce house for Carly to play in. So I made her stand for pictures and then let her jump to her heart's content. She did really well for the camera, and Wesley hammed it up, too. After she was done bounced, we went into their giant Corn Stalk maze. Well, that was a bit disappointing. We never found the end, and had to turn around because it was SO muddy, that Carly had mud all over her feet. You couldn't avoid it. So, we went and picked out four nice pumpkins, and took them home. Carly hates the inside of pumpkins. When she was four, we did pumpkins for the first time and I made her stick her hand in it, and she has been scarred since. Well, today was the day to get over that fear! It took about 15 minutes, but she did it and she liked it. We haven't finished the pumpkins, but we will tomorrow.

Anyways, pictures are located HERE! Enjoy!

Carly's Graduation Video... Finally!

Ray finally finished Carly's Kindergarten Graduation video. It's pretty cute!
Here ya go! http://www.rayo3d.com/personal/carly/Carly_K-Grad_Large.swf

4 months!

Well, 4 and a half.
We had Wesley's four month check up and shots today, and so we started early. I love our doctor because our appointment was at 10, but we got there shortly after 9:30, and they took us back immediately. We were done before our appointment time. The doctor said he is doing amazing- everything looks good, and he is hitting his milestones amazingly fast. She said all of his motor skills are advanced, and she thinks he will be crawling by his six month appointment. Also, the tubes look really great, and are keeping his ears nice and clear. Dr. Diedrichsen also gave us the okay to feed him solids, but on whatever schedule we want. She said we don't have to do it now, but she thinks he'll be wanting some sort of solids routinely by 6 months. We give him solids probably 3 times a week with dinner, but nothing consistent yet.
Wesley is weighing in at 15 pounds 4 ounces (In the 50th percentile) And 24 1/4 inches tall (Only 25th percentile there.) But that is the same ratio he has been in since his 2 week appointment.
He took his shots really well (Got three) and napped great when we got home. He has been a bit fussier this evening, but he might just be tired from it all.
The only thing the doctor mentioned was that I need to stop nursing the baby to sleep, and let him fall asleep on his own. Easier said than done!!!

All in all, busy and productive day!

The kiddos.

So, let's start with Carly! Carly had her dentist appointment yesterday, and the dentist says everything looks fantastic! She says Carly is doing an amazing job on her brushing, and that she is getting a lot less fearful with the dentist. Next visit, we are going to talk Orthodontics for the little one. She also has had an okay week at school. We've been having a ton of thunderstorms here, and they get her pretty worked up. If the move to Kentucky goes through, she is going to have a hard time adjusting! Also, we've decided that if we do move, wherever we move, we are still going to bring her back to Reno for her dentist appointments. Good excuse to come visit! Here are a couple recent shots of her, one being her school pictures. My goodness she still has a baby face!

Wesley's turn! Wesley is finally back to normal. He has been so good the past 2 or 3 days. He has his fussy spell at night, but he fights sleep a lot. I think he is worried he will miss something if he succumbs to it.  His 4 month appointment and shots are on Monday, and I'm pretty interested to hear what the doctor has to say about everything. He is sitting up on his own, and also rolling over. They both pretty much happened at the same time. I can't believe how fast he is growing up! He is also taking steps when you let him stand. He holds onto your fingers of course, but is trying none the less. Carly can't wait til he walks, until I remind her that once he does he will be into all her toys. That calms that notion for a little while, at least. He tries to hold his own bottle too, it's pretty cute!

I think in the next week or two, I am going to get them both in their Halloween costumes and do a mini photoshoot with them, so look out for those to come! Also, I bought Wesley and Ray matching ties for Christmas pictures (yay! Can you hear Ray groaning?!) So much going on in the next few months, including our Disneyland trip. It should be a ton of fun! Hope everyone is well!

Another day!

Well, I hope this means the baby is feeling better. He napped in his crib for two whole hours, and has now been in his crib for almost 3 (Granted, he has woken up 3 times for his pacifier, but went right back to sleep all three times.) I should go to sleep, but I'm so afraid he is going to wake up the moment I fall asleep! He seems a bit happier sometimes, and then a bit crankier other times. Poor guy.
I went in for that interview at Best Buy, which was fine, but the position was seasonal with seasonal there is no requested time off between November 1st and January 1st. Disneyland falls right in there, and disqualified me for the job. Oooooh well. I'd actually rather go to Disneyland, haha!



Ray has customized the blog a little bit, and made it snazzier. About time! :) 
Maybe I will try to get some sleep in while I can. I will update when there is a bit more to update!

Exhaustion.

I am used to being sleep deprived, but this is a little much. Last night, we took Carly to spend the night at my mom's house, knowing it was going to be a long night. Because of the general anesthesia, Wesley was forbidden from milk after midnight, and clear liquids after 2 am. Ray and I woke him up a little before 12 and he ate four ounces, and then slept until 4 am. I was so paranoid I didn't fall asleep until after 2, then up at 4 while the little man cried, and cried. He was so hungry and so mad I wouldn't feed him. Ray got up and helped, and we got ready and got to the hospital at about 5:30. Wesley was such a trooper, was all smiles and so happy up until about 15 minutes before 7. The doctor finally came and got him at about 7:15, and 20 minutes later I could hear the baby screaming. We got back there and Wesley was crying cries I've never heard before, it was so sad! It took us an hour to get out of recovery, and he has been pretty fussy all day. Hopefully tomorrow he will be back to his sweet self!
Carly was very concerned for her brother, and wanted to make sure he was going to be okay. She is the only one who can make him smile without even trying. Such a sweet big sister!

The other night I applied for a job at Best Buy. Why? I don't know, honestly. They called me today and want me to come in for an interview tomorrow. It would be nice to have some extra money around the holidays, but I'm not sure how I feel about leaving the baby. I like being able to put him to bed, and like being able to just devote time to him, Carly, and the house. Nothing is for sure, of course, but I will know more after the interview tomorrow.

I am too tired to think of anything else to write. I am just hanging in so I can watch the new Grey's Anatomy, and then I am off to bed!

Goodnight!

1 year ago..

Well, good-ish news from the pediatrician today. Wesley's infection is finally gone, yay! He does still, however, have a build up of fluid behind both ears which is causing him pain, and making him susceptible to getting another infection. She gave us one more antibiotic to hold us over until we see the ear doc, just to make sure he doesn't get re-infected. She also called a different Ear doctor for us, who can see us tomorrow instead of in 3 weeks. It makes me kind of sad, because Carly's ear doctor is awesome, but this one is supposed to be great, and he REALLY needs to be seen. He does seem SO much happier though, and is giggling daily now.

Today has been one year since the Wedding. So much has happened in this one year... House, Baby, and everything in between. My mother is watching the kids tonight so Ray and I can go to dinner. This will be the first time we've been alone since Wesley graced us with his presence. It should be interesting... haha.

The air races ended yesterday, but I heard planes flying over the house this morning. Hopefully that is just the last of them leaving, and tomorrow will be quiet. Carly NEEDS it to be quiet! I miss my sweet girl, too! We bought her a Jessie the Cowgirl costume for Halloween, but it's a little small. So if anyone is going to a Disney Store, please be on the look out for Jessie outfit size 7/8 and Jessie cowgirl boots size 13/1. Thanks! Carly is stoked because Wesley is going to be Woody the cowboy. So cute!

-------------------------------------------------------------------
I wrote that yesterday (9/20/10) And never got a chance to post it. So here is an update:
Wesley's appointment is in 2 hours, and hopefully we will get good news. He has been a pretty happy baby today.
Carly had a GREAT day yesterday, and we are hoping for the same today. She was in an amazing mood when we got home.
We took both kids to my mom's so that Ray and I could go to dinner. It was nice being alone, but we missed the kids. Also, we had just pulled up to where we were eating when a driver flagged us down- our tire was flat! So, we had to call AAA to come out and change the tire for us (Our jack isn't a good jack, and the spare tire was under the middle of the van!) but it was pretty quick. Ray and I took it today and just replaced both of those back tires. Turns out we had run over a nail. Third one in 2 months, haha. I think we have magnetic tires!

We also picked up the pictures from the other day, and I will be mailing them out shortly.

That is all for now, because we have to go pick up Carly from school. Hope everyone is well!

Airplanes in the night sky...

Cause anxiety amongst little girls. It is that time of year. The Reno Air Races are back. This is our first year living in our house during them and, hey! they fly right over our house. Carly is scared of them, and they have been keeping her awake at night, and then they start practicing at around 5 am! So, she is running off no sleep, and has a terrible week at school. Hopefully, once they are gone we can get back to where we were. Poor girl. She had an GREAT week last week, and this one is off to a bad start.

We got a call from Wesley's ear doctor. They want to see him October 7th, and at that time they will more than likely schedule surgery to put in tubes. The downside to all of this is, our insurance for Wesley just went into affect Monday, so they may try to say this is a preexisting condition, and we will be paying for it out of pocket. Whatever we need to do. We just want the little man to feel better.

I just made our reservations for Lunch with the Princesses in Disneyland. I am so excited to go! I am even more excited that both our mothers are going! It will be such a fun trip for everyone, and I'm really glad we decided to fly instead of drive!

I don't have much more to say tonight, but I will leave a few of Wesley's newest pictures. I don't have any of Carly so far this week, but she has picture day at school on Thursday, so she will have more soon, I'm sure!

Family Pictures

So, we finally went and had pictures done. The kids did REALLY well. Wesley needed a break in between to take a 30 minute nap, but other than that they went smoothly. Carly's pictures turned out adorable without any fake smiles. We ordered a bunch and we will have them on the 23rd to start to give out amongst the family.
You can preview them all here though,

Wesley is still sick. We took him back to the doctor on Friday to see if his ear infections had cleared up. Nope. The left side looks better, with just some fluid left, but the right side is still badly infected and encased in pus. Yummy! Poor man got a new antibiotic and will now have to be seen by Carly's ENT to evaluate what to do next. He is in good spirits though. He is very close to sitting on his own. He hates to be reclined, and uses those abdominal muscles to get himself into the sitting position. (Sometimes, he works them too hard and flings himself forward!)

Carly had an amazing week at school. She didn't have any bad days at all, and she even got her homework done early. Her handwriting is improving so much, which I know is hard for my little left-handed wonder. We took her to the store the other day and watched her dance to the music. It was hilarious! Did I mention Ray finally finished her graduation video? He did. I wonder if he uploaded it...

I receive the rest of my cloth diapers Monday, and I have to say- I really am in love with it. The only downside is the extra bulkiness. But Wesley doesn't mind, so I don't either! My favorites by far are the BumGenius and the FuzziBunz. I ordered a bunch of both, but realized I don't really like the velcro, and I ordered quite a few with it. Boo. I've found my groove with washing them, and they are so cute on his little tush. If I could do it again, I'd cloth diaper from the start, and recommend it to anyone and every one!

I'm currently making Carly's weighted blanket, to see if that helps her sleep any better. But so far I have finished:

• Pacifier Clips
• A Taggy Blanket for Wesley
• Wesley's shopping cart cover

I also had to fix Carly's shirt the other day, which I did successfully. I was quite proud of myself!

I have a few new pictures to post, and I will a little bit later tonight.
Hope everyone is well!

Ka-boom in Cloth.

Let me first start off with, Ray thinks I am doing my homework. Shhhh...

So, as most everyone knows, little Wesley has a nasty ear infection. Make that TWO nasty ear infections. We took him to the doctor on Friday because we wasn't himself, and there they were in all their red-ness. Dr D. says that if he has another one soon, or we can't get this one gone, we are going to assume he is like his sister and proceed with implanting tubes. I'm okay with that, tubes- He just caught me blogging, lol- I would rather have them done, and have Wesley feeling better. We are on full day 2 of the antibiotics, and he seems a bit better, but still a tad fussy. But one thing that can soothe him....
THE THUMB!
He has been kind of sucking on his thumb/whole hand on and off, but today he officially found his thumb. Just now, he was fussing, and the minute he got his thumb in his mouth- silence. He hits himself in the face, gets 3 fingers, then 2, then the thumb, and he's good. At the grocery store earlier, he fussed and fussed in my arms, and then next thing I know thumb is in, and he is asleep. That thumb is magic. Mind you, I wish he was dependent on the pacifier and not his thumb, but who am I to stand in the way of his happiness?

Yeah, he's pretty stinking cute.
We also just started cloth diapering. Just, as in Thursday. Oh, did I mention that on Friday he was prescribed an antibiotic that, erm, digests his food quickly? At first I was thinking, "Oh great... this mess I can't throw away." But he was in 2 disposables for 2 of the messes, and it ended up everywhere. All over his clothes, me, everything. The cloth diapers have kept about 6 of those messes contained! But really, I do like cloth diapering.

Carly is with her dad for the whole weekend, and it's pretty lonely around here. I am going to try and tackle her room tomorrow while she is gone. She cleaned it the other day, so that means I need to go in and really clean it! When I did her homework with her this week, I noticed her handwriting is getting to be so much better. It's legible, and neater than ever. Also, she is reading whole books to us now. My little reader :)

The baby is screaming, and Ray claims he is screaming for me. Sure. But really, I should go put him to bed.
Oh, and a picture of him in his cloth diaper- So far! (The diaper below is a BumGenius 4.0... and it's amazing!)

More another time!

The big mean car...

Oh man, take away his milk, his pacifier, his blanket, clothes- whatever! But do NOT put that little boy in the car! I cannot drive anywhere without Wesley screaming his little head off. If Carly is in the car with us, she is really good about making faces, and taking his mind off that obvious torture. But when it's just him and I... he screams until I think his head my pop. I'm really hoping it's something that will pass. If not, I'm going to become home-bound!
Classes started for me again today, and hopefully this semester will be smooth. Poor Ray already has his students ignoring his due dates and sending sad emails. Poor guy gets a new pestering email every day. He's a patient person though, and a good teacher. We were looking into the programs his school offers in Bowling Green, KY, and one of them is Sonography. If we end up moving, that's what I want to do. I think being an ultrasound technician would be very interesting, and a growing field.
Ray finally finished Carly's kindergarten graduation video, and is supposed to put it up. Hopefully he will get around to doing that soon!
I am so close to finishing my shopping cart cover, and then I am going to work on making a blanket/vest for Carly. I will post pictures of the cart cover when it's all done. If anyone has any sewing ideas, let me know!

New Blog Address

I recently received an email from our blog, telling me it was time to renew. I realized how little we post, and decided to get back on the horse! However, I like blogspot a bit better than wordpress, so I moved all of our former posts on over here, and will be posting here instead. 

So, an update is due, I suppose.

So, let's see. 

Ray- Ray is working, spending time on his brand new computer, up-keeping the maintenance on the home, and perfecting his fatherly techniques. He does pretty well at all.

Carly- Carly is Carly. She is loving first grade, and mastering her reading skills. For her birthday this year, we are taking her to Disneyland. We are spending November 11-16 at the Happiest Place on Earth. We are also going to arrange a lunch with the princesses, and make it as special as possible!

Wesley- Wesley is getting big! I stuck him on the scale the other day, and he was weighing in at 12 1/2 pounds! He is finally fitting his 0-3 months clothes, and is figuring out his hands. He giggled last night in his sleep, and we are patiently waiting the REAL giggles. 

Me- I start back to school on Monday, still trying to decide what I want to do. I recently talked Ray into buying me a sewing machine, and I am trying to relearn what I knew 10 years ago.

So far I've decided to make, or have made-

• A pacifier clip (To keep his paci off the floor!)
• A shopping cart cover (This pattern is getting the best of me!)
• Burp Clothes
• A dress for Carly
• A blanket for Carly

We have also decided to try cloth diapering for Wesley. We receive our trial pack next week. I'm so excited! Hopefully this helps minimize our leaky diapers, and cuts down on costs for us. 

Well, that's all for now, but hopefully I'll update on a semi-daily basis again! 

And on to First Grade!

Well, I feel old! Today was the last day of school for Carly, and she is no longer a kindergartener! (She is a first grader, as she keeps reminding us!) How time flies... She is now home for the summer, and school will start July 25th. She will also being going to her new school, the one that is right down the street from our house. Her graduation was on Monday, and it was a tear jerker watching her sing and dance. It seems like just yesterday she was asleep in my lap, and today it's a different  baby laying there instead! Carly has just overcome so many obstacles in her 6 years. I remember 3 years ago they told me she probably wouldn't go to a regular kindergarten class. But look at her now! She is not only probably one of the smartest first graders (I mean that, not just parent bias!) but also a great big sister, and an amazing little girl. She can be such a pain in the tush at times, but she makes up for it!
She is so excited to see all the grandparents this summer, and has many plans for all of you. (I hope you all are packing your swim suits! :D ) There are a few pictures of her graduation here, and Ray should be putting up the video any time!

Baby News Flash

But Flash because if you weren't careful you would have missed him arriving! Our baby Wesley finally came to see us today at 6:50am after we only got to the hospital somewhere between 5:45 and 6:00. When we got in they verified that Jacie's water had broken without a doubt but that she was only at "almost" 4cm dilated. But since we knew we were staying I ran to the car to get the bags and when I get back they were working on getting an IV for pain meds. However, during the course of trying to find a good vein to stick her with, Jacie told them she was starting to feel the urge to push. One nurse asked if she had checked recently and she kind of agreed to check again but it had only been about 15-20min at this point. Well the look on her face was pretty priceless as she started trying to grab the phone but keep checking Wesley because he was well on his way! The doctor arrived a few minutes later (after a short, flurry of activity completely changed the room to get ready for delivery) and he gave Jacie the go ahead to push. 4 Pushes later, little Wesley was out, getting cleaned up and crying. He got 8 out of 9 on his tests and weighed 6lbs 14oz and was 18in long. Both Jacie and Wesley are doing great (in fact Jacie said she barely even feels like she had a baby) and we are just in the hospital on the mandatory time frame for newborns but right now it looks like we are on track to head home tomorrow afternoon sometime. But enough with my typing.... on to pictures! Happy Birthday Wesley! Jacie, Carly, and I are so glad you are here with us!

Little Update

Been awhile since we posted, but I guess we both assumed because we were in Tennessee/Kentucky, you all don't need updates! But here's a few:
Carly started Ballet last week. She goes on Mondays for 45 minutes, and loves it. I don't have any pictures (yet) because she has only gone once. Our luck- her second week was their spring break! She loves getting all dressed up and feeling pretty. My mom will be taking her until after the baby is born, and then I will step in. I'm also thinking about enrolling her in swimming lessons for the summer. She is so close to being able to swim, that lessons would just perfect it!
Ray is starting the backyard this weekend. Mark will be up here Saturday, so hopefully he can offer a few pointers. As soon as we have established grass, we are going to get Carly a swing set. We took her to Toys R Us to look at them (When did they get to be in the $500 range?!) And let her pick out a few. She can't wait, but she also wants a trampoline, haha.
We are now less than two months out (A little over 7 weeks) until baby time. The baby is active all the time, and seems to love being awake between 10:00 pm and 11:00 pm. Ray and I have a class next week on taking care of infants. I'm looking forward to the refresher course.
The baby shower is somewhat in swing for two weeks from this weekend. I wish everyone who was out of state could come, but we will see you all shortly after the baby is here. We feel so unprepared for this baby supply-wise, but have been holding off on buying a lot of little stuff until the shower. It will be nice to be able to take a step back and figure out what we need.
All of us are well though... Carly has a slight ear and sinus infection (again) but is still in good spirits. Ray is just working, working, working, and loves every second of it! And I am just really, really tired. I feel like I can never get enough sleep!
I shall leave you with the one picture I have. I hope everyone is well!

Well. he survived!

Ray has officially survived his first (but certainly not last!) child vomiting epidemic. He handled it VERY well (And by very well, I  mean he didn't join in on the fun!) Carly must have taken a round of food poisoning somewhere, because she complained her tummy was hurting all day yesterday. She was a good girl anyway, and went miniature golfing with us, and then to lunch. But a stop in Babys R Us, she became cranky and wanted to just sit in a rocking chair. On the way home, she ended up being sick in the car, so I pulled over to clean her up. Ray pulled over and joined us, but admitted he was only there as comfort, and was trying not to look! But, he did well. He forfeited his spot on the bed so Carly could sleep in bed with me, and he help me clean her car seat and the van. He also ran and got her ice chips every time she called for them... I think this little girl has got him wrapped around her tiny fingers!
Carly is feeling much better today, and just inhaled lunch because she was so hungry. I think Ray is kind of realizing that this was just a prelude of what is to come!

The Last Gym Class

So last month saw the end of the gymnastics class that Carly was going to for the last year. She absolutely loved it and we kind of hated seeing them close (though Jacie and I will not miss the drive home from after right at 5:15 at all). Since it was the last performance, we decided it was a good time to break out the camera again and record it for everyone. She absolutely loved it and I think really enjoyed showing everyone what she could do. It sounds like she wants to find a tap class now instead of another gym but we will see. The video is around 98mb so it will take a little bit to download but definitely worth the wait!
And yes I will get the video from Christmas morning posted also.
Carly's Last Gym Class

Quick Update!

Ray was supposed to post some Christmas stuff, but apparently he has forgotten! I just reminded him, so hopefully he will have some time to get to it soon.
Carly had a wonderful Christmas. She is probably the most spoiled child I have ever met! She is now counting down the months until her birthday again, hehe. She is also counting down the days until the baby is here. She asked Ray the other day if she could rock him in his rocking bed (We looked at some bassinets with her a few days ago) and asked if she could sing to him. She is also helping my little sister, Jordan, make him a blanket. Carly loves referring to herself as "The Big Sister," and I think will do a pretty good job at it. We enrolled her in a Sibling Class at our hospital for May, which will show her how to hold the baby, help feed him, and etc. We also enrolled Ray and I into a similar class but for parents. I figured I can use the refresher and Ray... well, Ray is nervous as he can be. Hopefully this eases him a tad.
We had our anatomy ultrasound today. She says the baby is measuring perfectly, and weighing in at 9 oz. Almost to a pound! He was moving so much that she had trouble getting the measurements at first. She did confirm that, yes, he still is a boy. Although when she went to check that part he flashed it for about 2 second and then crossed his legs Indian style. She got another shot at the end and said he is definitely a boy! He also seems to have all his parts- the heart is fully developed, the umbilical cord is great, and he has all his body parts. Seems we are on time with a due date of June 10th. I'm feeling good for the most part, gained only 4 pounds (At almost 20 weeks, I am so proud of myself!) but still don't look anymore pregnant than I ever did. I have had a rough week, finally nausea has found me, and made me a little incapacitated for a few days. I am starting to feel better, and the doctor gave me some medicine to try and curb it. Ray has been taking care of me all week while I was bed ridden, and did a really good job of it! He also took care of Carly, getting her dressed, fed, off to school and back. He is definitely a good daddy to that kid!
I will pester him some more about the Christmas video/pictures when he is done working. And also, I will get the new ultrasound pictures scanned. Our doctor only gave us two, but we will get them up anyway!