Educated Evan

Evan started Awanas last week and will be in Cubbies this year and next. I was asking him randomly if he remembered what the 'A' was for that they had learned about. With no reply, I peaked in from the kitchen to ask again. He was sitting on the floor with his aquadoodle mat and had already written ALL and was writing the 'H' and asked, "How do you spell HAVE?". Once we sounded it all out, he had not only remembered, but also written his verse. He's just getting so big and so smart. I love watching him as he learns and grows, and now memorizes God's Word. It's awesome!

Last month Kaylee received the book "Hop On Pop" as a gift. I let Evan look at it and he read almost the whole thing without help. I'm itching to see what this not-quite 3 1/2 year old will do next... besides giving us one more good reason to consider homeschooling :)

So big!

Today Kaylee weighed 10 lbs. at the doctor.
She's cooing and smiling all the time, holding her head up well, trying to constantly sit up (she lunges forward on a whim), and makes the occassional effort to roll. She's getting so big, so fast. These weeks fly by and she changes so quickly. Some days I wonder if I'm catching enough of these sweet memories on camera... and then I look at my computer files and realize I must be getting enough :)

We had visitors last week and look forward to them being here for another three days this week. Bryan's sister and her 4 kids from Washington just adore Kaylee and Evan. It's so fun to have them in our home- sharing meals, playtime, and even going to Awanas together.

Cuteness

Need I say more???

Two Month Check-Up

Kaylee was 9 lbs. 2 oz and 23 inches long today. She remains our little string bean. She was cranky during her appointment and needed to be fed at one point while the doctor and I discussed things. Daddy came along for moral support while Kaylee got her 3 shots and one oral shot (liquid she had to drink). She seemed to like the oral one and then cried for a quick little bit when she got the three regular shots, but had stopped before the nurse could finish putting on her Garfield band-aids. She's a trooper.

We're home now and resting before we say farewell to Daddy and Evan for the weekend. They are taking a special trip to the coast to go fishing with Papa (Evan's first fishing trip) and spend some time with Daddy's best friend, James.

I'm Two Months Old Today!

8 Weeks Old

Kaylee is 8 weeks old today!
She spends her days eating, sleeping in her swing, cooing, smiling, and just hanging out inside where it's cool. She is growing slowly but surely and smiles more every day. She holds her head up so well and loves to look around at the lights on her swing, the ceiling fans, shadows, and such.
Mommy still likes to cuddle and nurse her in bed at night, but she's spent the last few nights asleep in her glider or swing beside the bed as she's taken to sleeping a good 7-hour stretch. We love to watch her personality change as she explores her world in different ways.
She's often called "Kaylee Bear", "Baby Love" and "Pretty Girl".

Happy girl
Sucking on her arm. Evan did the same thing when he was a baby.

On the defense

Oooo... lights!

Just woke up

Trapped

I was outside with Evan and noticed the neighbor's garden was spilling over our fence. I then noticed this odd looking thing, which I feared was a wasp nest, hanging out too. I went to investigate and found a cantaloupe growing between the chain-link and wood fence on our side. So I asked the neighbor if she had cantaloupe on her side and the story got funnier...

She fertilized their garden with some "special fertilizer" from her pig Fiona that lives at her parents' house. Little did she know that they fed Fiona all kinds of stuff, like pumpkins, tomatoes, cantaloupe, etc. One day she went out in her yard to check the flowers and then asked her husband, "Bryce, did we plant a pumpkin? Or any of this stuff? No." So now she has a big orange pumpkin in her flower garden and we have cantaloupe.

Go figure!! LOL.

A Trip To The Coast

We got away for a quick visit in Santa Cruz this past weekend. We took the kids to see Bryan's grandparents before his work schedule gets crazy again and we're unable to see them. They were thrilled to see us all and meet our newest addition. We were also able to see some friends for a BBQ at the beach, go out for a movie date night, and hang out with Bryan's parents as well. It was a wonderful weekend and a perfect way to beat the 100+ degree weather in the Valley.

The Friday before we left we had Kaylee's weight checked again. Her doctor seemed to think she wasn't gaining enough, but once he realized that she's grown almost 4 inches in 6 weeks his fears were no more. She's just long and lean... in the 25% for weight and 75% for height.
She checked in at 8 lbs. 4 oz. and 22 1/4 inches long.

Where's Kaylee?

SHE still thinks she is in utero!

She was sleeping propped up nicely on the Boppy and I came back to find her like this... and she seemed happiest this way. I guess somebody failed to inform her that she lives outside of the womb now :)

Beating The Heat

It's been HOT in the Valley, to say the least, and Evan is loving his new wading pool.

(And looking at pictures of himself in his wading pool. LOL.)

One Month

Kaylee was one month old yesterday. How did this happen so fast? She's such a good baby and sweet too. Here's a few new photos.

Sleeping on Nana
Bright Eyes

I love how much Evan adores her. He tells us everyday that he loves her, about 20 times :)

Kisses

Happy 4th of July!

God bless America!

Thank you to all of the brave men and women who serve our country. Looking forward to having my brother-in-law, Brandon, back from Iraq soon. And sending prayers my cousin Marc's way in Afghanistan.

She's Awake!

See! She doesn't sleep ALL the time :)

Changes

Four years ago, Bryan and I took on a ton of changes at once... and we survived to tell about it. We finished school, got married, found out we were pregnant, and moved to Texas all within two months. Well, it looks like once again we've decided to take on multiple changes at once. We had a baby, have two friends coming to live with us temporarily (a few months), and just bought a car today. I don't know how this new mommy will handle all of this postpartum, so please be praying. It's exciting and scary all at the same time!

Happy Father's Day

TIMES 2!!!

Happy Father's Day to my wonderful hubby and the daddy to both of my beautiful children. God truly outdid himself with you, Bryan. You are such an incredible father and our children are the luckiest kids in the world. Thanks for all of your hard work and dedication to our family today and all year long. WE LOVE YOU!

Pics... As Promised Below

Mommy and Kaylee sleeping
GG Idell holding Kaylee for the first time

GG Ransom and Kaylee

Sound Asleep

First Bath

All Clean

Cozy

Nana Ransom

Finally asleep... thanks Nana!

One Week Old

It's hard to believe, but our little girl is already one week old. So far she's done great! Here's a little about how things are going at home.

Bryan and I are camped out in the living room at night. I'm still healing from my c-section so sleeping in the recliner is easiest. Bryan sleeps on the couch so he can help with diaper changes, etc, and Kaylee sleeps in her soothing motions glider when she's not busy nursing.

Kaylee is a great eater and a great sleeper. She picked up on nursing easily and likes to eat :) Mommy loves how regular she is. She likes to eat and then sleep 3-4 hours at night, then eat and sleep another 3-4 hours. We pray she keeps this up!

During the day, she eats and stays awake awhile to check things out, then sleeps and eats... repeat. So far she's been an "easy" baby. It's nice to have so many family and friends close by to come visit and check in on us too. Thanks to all that have brought snacks, meals, and offered services. And thanks, Dad, for playing (and losing) so many games of Wii Sports with Evan while we had doctor appointments :)

Overall, we are adjusting well. Evan loves his baby sister and is helpful with getting things and tossing out diapers, etc. He's not fond of her cries though. He usually covers his ears or shushes her. But he's been keeping up his potty training too during all of this new chaos. We're just taking everything one day at a time and learning to be a family of four.

Kaylee is absolutely precious and so sweet. She's a perfect fit for our little family. I want to put up more pics soon, but my photo card reader is giving me fits... so more to come!

Our Newest Addition

Kaylee Marie Reich
Born 7:44am on Friday, June 12th.
7 lbs. 5 oz. and 19 in. long

We are home and adjusting well. We ask for your continued prayers as I heal and we all learn to function as a new family of four. More to come as days and time allow.

Baby Update

I saw the doctor again today for my last scheduled appointment. Everything looked great. I had dilated to a 2 or 2 1/2 and effaced a bit more. Kaylee has dropped into a lower position too. But, as planned, I am to be at the hospital on Friday morning at 5am for a scheduled c-section. If Kaylee wants to come on her own, she will need to do so either today or tomorrow!

We've been busy all week with last minute house, yard, and garage chores. Everything looks clean and tidy thanks to my wonderful hubby and mother-in-law. Kaylee's curtains are complete and everything is as set as it can be. Now... we wait.

We'll keep you posted on any developing news.

Less Than 10 Days To Go...

Yep, we're getting closer. I'm excited and anxious, yet I feel less prepared than I did with Evan. I guess I just know how much work it is and I'm also curious to see how the transition from one to two children will go. But I know God is in control and He knows how everything will go.

As for updates, I saw the doctor yesterday and was just slightly more dilated. I was at 1 1/2 cm. All else was looking great and we're still on for a c-section next Friday, June 12th.

Today I went for one last ultrasound to check Kaylee's size. Her due date came up as June 12th based on her measurements. The ultrasound tech said it looks like she's approximately 7 lbs. 12 oz. right now. So potentially she could gain another 1/2 lb. by next Friday. Evan was 7 lbs. 9 oz. when he was born so we'll see how close this estimate is and if Kaylee will outweigh her big brother at birth.

Overall I am feeling great and ready to see what this little girl looks like. I have yet to organize a bag for my hospital stay or get the carseat installed, etc. I guess we should get around to these things just in case she decides to come early.

On another note, potty training has been going well with Evan. He's getting the hang of it and has only had 3 accidents in an week. Going pee-pee is the easy part! I just pray he keeps up the good work in the midst of the chaos that will ensue with Mommy in the hospital and a new baby in the house.