This too shall pass...

Forgive me, for this blog entry is simply therapeutic for me.  Keira is 8.5 months old.  It has been a long 8.5 months.  I have been the ONLY one who has been able to feed her.  I do not say that in a boastful way.  I say that with much fatigue and much frustration.  Two weeks ago I hit my limit.   After much discussion with Kevin, we came up with a plan.  I packed my bags for one night and Keegan and I went to my parent's house.  Kevin graciously agreed to stay with Keira and help her learn to drink from a bottle.  With much emotion, I drove away and my heart ached.  No mother ever wants to take away any type of comfort from their child, but I needed my life back.  Kevin needed his wife back.  Keegan needed his happy momma back.  I knew it was the right decision, but man did it hurt. 

I am happy to report that over the course of 5 days Keira finally took to the bottle!  It was such a victory and such a relief.  I can now have babysitters and family watch her without me having to watch the clock and race home to feed her.  The best part...we are all much happier.  I feed her a bottle at night and feel closer to her than I ever have.  It is hard knowing that I will never nurse a baby again, but I look forward to making new memories with my children.  I have the first steps, the first day of school, and loosing the first tooth to look forward to. 

Although it has been a trying time, I did learn that I have amazing people in my life.  Because of my husband, friends, and family, I was able to tackle this most recent parenting challenge. I know there will be many more challenges ahead, but I feel so safe knowing that my support system is strong and supportive. 

Life is good. 

It feels good to say that again..

Fire Truck!!!

The moms group I belong to scheduled a trip to the Copley Fire Department today.  We had the pleasure of meeting Fireman Jeff, who gave us a tour of the facility and then let all the kids get in the fire truck and the ambulance.  We even had a Copley Police cruiser stop over for the kids to play in!  

Keegan and his best friend, Charley!

Looking good buddy!

Fireman Jeff getting ready to climb the ladder!

How cool is that!!!

This better be the last time I see my kid in the back of a cruiser!!

Then, these guys showed up....

So, we just had to get in and give it a try!!!

We had a great day and feel so privileged to have had a day filled with firetrucks, police cars, and construction vehicles! What a lucky little boy!

Happy Easter!!

Happy Easter! We had a fabulous day!  The day started off with Keegan and I going to church where there was an Easter egg hunt for the children.  He had his basket and filled it up with tons of candy.  We then headed to a wonderful brunch buffet with Kevin's parents.  The kids behaved well and we had a wonderful meal.  The day ended with opening up Easter baskets and playing with all of the kids' new toys.  It was a great day!

My sweet Keira!

Hanging out at the restaurant.

Keegan giving Grammy her Easter gift.

Being silly with Grampy!

Keira at 4 months old!

Keira just had her 4 month check up.  She weighed in at 13# 13 ounces!!  She continues to eat well and is sleeping about 6-8 straight at night.  Her favorite toy is Keegan!  She always smiles anytime she sees Keegan.  And to be honest, Keegan smiles too when he makes her smile.  I think their relationship will soon change when she starts crawling and taking his toys!  Here are some recent pictures.

Disney World 2012

We just got back from a fabulous time in Florida.  Kevin was traveling to Orlando for business, so we decided to tag along with him!  Kevin did not have any meetings on Monday, so we went to Disney World.  We both agreed to have no expectations and just take the day as it came.  You never know what to expect with a 2 year old and a 4 month old!  Well, we were amazed with how great of a time we had!  The kids did great!  Keira took her naps while in the baby carrier and in the stroller.  Keegan got to go on several different rides and most importantly meet Mickey and Minnie Mouse.
Kevin and I both agreed that we will be back in about 3-4 years and we better start saving money now!  It is so expensive to go on a Disney vacation. 
I did not take near the amount of pictures I wanted to, but my main goal was to keep calm and keep the kids happy!  Enjoy the pictures!





As we walked into the Magic Kingdom, we got to see a fabulous parade.  This was my favorite part of the day!



Keegan taking a peek at Mickey!!

It's a Small World ride!

Keegan was amazed at all the dancing figurines!

Keegan riding on the carousel..his first ride at the park!

Keegan driving a race car!  This was his favorite ride!-

The boys!!

The girls!

Keegan finally smiling for the camera!!

My Busy Day Gourmet

I love to cook.  I love showing my friends and family my love through my cooking.  I get this trait from my mom.  Growing up we always had dinner together no matter how late it might be for all of us to eat togetheer.  My mom makes the most wonderful food.  I wish I could say I spent hours in the kitchen with her as a child learning all her techniques, but I did not.  I chose to sit on the couch and watch television.  Silly girl!  So now I am trying to learn all her fabuolous tricks of the trade so I can one day cook as well as she can. 

Keegan also loves to cook.  Everyday he is in the kitchen with me helping me make dinner.  He would rather be baking cupcakes but he will agree to helping with chopping up zuchinni and throwing in some dry ingredients.

I was lucky to have stumbled upon a wonderful establishement called My Busy Day Gourmet.  The premise of the business is to come and assemble meals and then place them in your freezer for future meals.  My "mommy" friends and I did this for my baby shower in August.  It was wonderful.  I walked out with 12 meals...the most wonderful gift a mother with a newborn could recieve!  We all decided to return to My Busy Day Gourmet with our toddlers.  We went a few weeks ago and had a great time.  Here are some pictures of the event.

Keegan's girlfriend, Charley, with baby Carson and baby Keira!

And last but not least, here are some recent Keira pictures....

I recently talked to a good friend about some friends in her life who are struggling with some rough pregnancies.  The conversation really made me realize that even though my days are sometimes filled with whining, crying, and overall chaos, that I am doing just fine!  I am blessed to have two healthy children and need to be grateful for this fact.  I also realized that I need to take more pictures of Keira!!  The poor kid has so few pictures compared to when Keegan was her age. 



Keira at 2 months.



An update on Miss Keira: She is now 3 months old and sleeping in her crib sans a swaddle!  She was a baby who loved to be swaddled and then recently she found her hands and fell in love with them.  She continues to nurse well and sleeps well throughout the day and sleeps great through the night!  Yes, she sleeps through the night!  However, she is a night owl.  She stays up until 11:30 pm each night and will wake up around 8:00 am.  I would love for her to go to bed a couple hours earlier, but she sleeps through the night so I can not complain! She also loves her brother.  Anytime Keegan enters the room, she lights up and smiles so big.  Keegan continues to be gentle with her and loves making her smile.

 Update on Keegan:  There is HUGE news in Mr. Keegan's world!  He is using the potty and only wearing a diaper for his naps and at night.  It happened just like the other moms told me it would; he woke up one morning and decided to use the potty.  Okay...cool!  It was such a relief to make it through this milestone with him because you just never think your child will ever get out of a diaper! 
He is also enjoying his preschool.  He goes once a week and I attend the class with him.  He has learned how to sit and enjoy reading books and is trying to learn how to share.  We still have to keep a very close eye on  him when he is playing with his friends because he still struggles with the concept of sharing. 
He will be turning 3 in February and he gets to go to Florida for his birthday!!  Kevin has a training in Orlando, so we decided to join him.  We plan on spending one day at The Magic Kingdom and then the rest of the time visiting with my aunts and grandparents. 

Enjoying his Christmas present!

Listening to his MP3 player!