3 months ALREADY!

Happy 3 month birthday baby girl! Natalee is such a wonderful and adorable baby. We couldnot have hand-picked a more perfect angel to add to our family. In 3 months, she has learned to smile, laugh, coo and she can even roll on to her side. She loves her bouncer and smiles so big when she see the little red frog that moves up and down when it is turned on. She is starting to sleep a little better at night (now that we layed her on her tummy- I know it's a big no-no but both boys were tummy sleepers too!)

Happy Halloween

The boys had another fun Halloween. Nathan was so excited to dress up as "Jeff Gordon" and Austin loved being "Barry the Bee" from the Bee movie. Mom got off easy this year since the boys chose costumes that could be store bought and not handmade. I definitely enjoy making their costumes but with the addition of Natalee this year, time was short and life is busy! Natalee was a skeleton- a costume chosen by her brothers. Mom dressed it up a bit with her fancy headband and bow. We all piled into the van and trick-or-treated at some of Rah-Rah's friends homes and then some of our friends. It was a fun time!

Natalee is laughing

Natalee has learned to laugh. Here is a short clip of her new precious sound.

(First laugh- Saturday, October 11, 2009)

Aside from laughing, she is such a smiley baby. Happy. Content. Sweet. Such a doll!

Big Brother Joy

Both boys are loving every moment of being big brothers.

6 weeks

Natalee is officially 6 weeks old today! She has learned two new tricks this month. The first is a really cool one- she can poop up her back! Isn't that neat?? I don't know how she does it, but it truly is a talent. The second is my favorite- she is now a smiler! Her little toothless smile is adorable and catches those heart strings.

Adjusting to life with Natalee has been tiring but awesome! She is a great baby and we all love her! By the way, her eyes haven't changed- they are big and blue and her hair is taking on a copper red/ blonde color. We will keep you posted as to what color her eyes and hair end up- they seem to change slightly day to day.

Nathan starts preschool

Well, the day has come... Nathan is officially a preschooler. Granted, he only goes two days a week for an hour and a half each- he is still in school. He was so excited to go too! I on the other hand was very emotional- it was hard for me to leave him. For the last 3 years, Nathan has been my buddy as we dropped off Austin for all of his activities. I've left him with Grandma and Rah-Rah- but... this was different. He's growing up and it is hard for me to accept! I can't imagine how tough it will be when Natalee goes- atleast I have 3 more years to adjust to the idea!

First Coach-Pitched Baseball Game

It seems like Austin just finished t-ball but, we are on to coach-pitched baseball now. The awesome thing is that all of the practices and games are at the park right behind our house so we can walk back and forth. After a few weeks of practice, they had their first game. Austin was so cute in his oversized team shirt- can you believe his team name is the Owlz? (Our high school mascot was the Owls). The night before the game, Brandon worked with Austin on really hitting that ball and it payed off! During his game, Austin got 2 hits and even scored a run! It was especially touching, because Brandon got to do the pitching for the game and of course he then pitched to our son, Austin! Here's a little video of the action:

Just a little tired

We are transitioning Nathan out of naps and he doesn't always have the steam to get all of the way through the day. But, if we nap him he is up for hours in his bed at night. We have to take each day as it comes and gauge whether he is going to need a nap or not. Here is a cute video of him drifting off in the chair:

A new love begins

Nathan LOVES Natalee! When I was pregnant, Nathan was always wanting to rub my belly and "see" the baby. Now that Natalee is here, Nathan's infatuation continues. He absolutely adores Natalee! He is always wanting to hold her and see her. He nurtures her and talks to her- "Hi baby, I am playing golf." He even tends to her by wiping the drool and spits from the corners of her mouth and covering her with her blankies when she has kicked them off or pulling them from her face when she has pushed them up. It is so sweet to see the bond that is forming!

Thank you to an awesome husband!

Brandon and the boys have had alot of bonding this last month. Brandon has really taken alot of time to play with them, as I spend most of the time with baby Natalee. They play golf and baseball in the backyard, hide and seek and just horse around. He has been super helpful in transitioning our family to life with a newborn, not just with the boys with the household in general- shopping, cleaning, making meals, running errands, and even deliveries and pick-ups for the business. I could not have gotten through this last month without him!

I love you babe!

Austin's first day of kindergarten

Can you believe it? Austin started kindergarten this year. He's at a great school and has an awesome teacher. So far, Austin is doing great- he's making friends, following the rules and doing well on his school work. Oh... but let me tell you about his first day! So, Brandon stayed home from work so that we could all take Austin to school as a family (of 5!!- thought I would throw that in there :)). So, Natalee was up alot the night before and so in the morning Brandon took the boys downstairs and let me stay in bed and sleep. For some reason, I jolted out of bed at 8:15 and expected to see the kids dressed and getting ready to go- they weren't... Brandon thought school started at 10:00! What school starts at 10:00? Anyway- it starts at 9:00 and we all needed to get ready and into the car. At 8:45 we all buckle into the van and... it won't start! Are you kidding me?? (There's an "I-told-you-so" story in there but I'll keep that one to myself). So, I get Austin and him and I jump in Brandon's truck and drive down the road to the school, where we make it through the gates 2 minutes before the bell rings. What a crazy morning! Needless to say, after I got home, Brandon ran up to the auto parts store and picked up a new battery, threw it in the van and we were ready to go when it was time to pick Austin up. He had a great day and Nathan was glad to see him!

Baby Natalee Alise

On July 31st at 8:49 pm we welcomed our baby girl into this world and our family. We had finally decided on a beautiful name that was full of meaning- Natalee. We loved that it contained a little part of our boy's names meshed into it- Nat like Nathan and Lee is Brandon and Austin's middle name. We also chose to spell it with the "Lee" on the end in memory of 'papa' who we lost to cancer in December of 2007. I have said that since I became pregnant and then Carin, too- that these babies were sent from heaven to help heal Arlene's heart. As the day approached- I also noticed similarities to my sister, Belinda who was killed in a car accident when I was in grade school. For example, the birthday- Lee was born July 4th and Belinda was born May 31st and Natalee was born on a combination of their birthdays- July 31st. We are in love with our little angel. When she came out, my first words were "She looks just like Nathan!" I couldn't believe the similarities- although she has the same lips as Austin and is starting to fill in like Austin did. She is a beautiful baby and completes our family. I was so worried going into all of this and now that she is here- life is just life and life is good!

Welcome, our love- Natalee Alise

Say What??

Be sure to check the new column I added on the side where I am going to try and capture all of the cute things the kids say! Just another way to diary our daily life...

Updated pics of the room

Brandon did a great job painting and putting the finishing touches on the baby's room this weekend.

Getting Ready for Baby Girl

Everything is going well with the baby, aside from minor pregnancy annoyances... back pain, fatigue, grouchiness. But, we are getting more and more ready everyday. We have finally decided on a first name.... drum roll please... Britney! Yay- that only took forever to come up with. I don't know why we have had so much trouble with the name thing this time... oh well, I am glad the name is finally decided. We are getting the nursery together, and it is pink, pink, pink everywhere. Brandon still needs to paint, but I feel better knowing the bedding and stuff are ready. All we have left to do is pack the hospital bag- which is on my list for this week. Then, if things go as planned, we head to the hospital on July 31st at 4:00 am for our induction and can soon welcome baby Britney home.

**Update 7/20/09: Well, we decided against the name Britney afterall. This week's name is Natalee Alise. Be sure to check back after the birth, for the final decision... although every time we pick a name we think it is the final one.

Ohio

Well, Ohio came and went! Don't all anticipated vacations go that way? Brandon's cousin graduated from high school this year and his family threw him a grand graduation party, which all of the family took as an opportunity to reunite! It was great! The boys were great, no let me say that again... the boys were GREAT on the airplane, both to and from. And staying with Arnie, Kim, Matt and Chris was fun. Some of the highlights of the trip were the awaited Cedar Point trip, a pink baby shower for Carin and I, the graduation party, and just having the family together. This was the first opportunity for all of the cousins to meet and play together and it was neat to see some of the bonds that were created. Now, we only have 2 years to wait to do it again for Chris' high school graduation. By the way- Go Ohio State!! (We are rooting for your college Mr. Matt)

Happy Fourth of July

We have been waiting all year for 4th of July.... When we bought this house last year, we couldn't wait to have our friends over for a July 4th BBQ. Our house backs up to the city park where they put the annual fireworks display on. So, from our backyard we had unobstructed views of a great firework show. The kids had a great time playing with each other on the trampoline, t-ball and just running around. While the adults entertained themselves with some ladder golf and bocce ball. All in all, it was a great BBQ and we can't wait to do it again next year!

(Here's a great shot of my mondo 35 week prego belly and my tent shirt... hee hee :) )

For some reason, the city puts the fireworks show on a few days before July 4th, actually Thursday, July 2nd this year. So, after the BBQ on Thursday we loaded up the motor home and rhino and took off for Duck Creek again. What a wise decision- the weather was so beautiful! And this time, we took a short drive over to Bryce Canyon- what an amazing place to see. Saturday night we heard there was going to be a parade and fireworks down in Duck Creek Village, so we went into to town. The parade was super cute and made us want to live in a small rural community. But, I have to say the fireworks were.... not what we were expecting. I guess we are used to the fireworks that shoot up into the sky, but with the fire dangers in the forest area they only set off the little fireworks that you can buy on the corners of Vegas. Oh well, at least the parade was fun! Then, Sunday came and it was home again!

Happy Father's Day

I think these shots are hilarious... a little bored camping fun! Brandon was chopping up some wood and I made him pose with the ax, pretending he was playing lots of sports.

All joking aside though, Brandon is a wonderful father. He is so kind and caring. He makes sure his boys are taken care of and more. He plays so well with the kids... teaching them, rough-housing, and sporting them up! He is an exceptional provider for his family and pridefully does so.

We love you Daddy and hope you had a great father's day!

More Camping

Grandma brought our nephews, Christopher and Ryan up for another fun weekend of camping. We all had a great time up at Mount Charleston. All of the boys had fun performing for us, scavenger hunting, and wood collecting. Christopher was the "fire" man and took his role very seriously- gathering kindling, poking the logs, and keeping the campfire a blaze. All together, it was great to have all of the boys together. As cousins, they are great friends and play well together despite the 5 year age gap.

More great news- Carin found out she is having a girl also! We couldn't be more thrilled... especially because neither of us plan on having any more kids so our two baby girls will have each other as cousins!

Austin graduates pre-school

Got to love that smile! It's half smile/ half shocked- he was amazed at how many people were watching them. It was very cute. They began the graduation with the kids marching into the auditorium to "Pomp and Circumstance"- I only teared up for a moment! Then the kids sat at the front and sang several songs before their names were each individually announced. The kids each received a binder full of work their teacher had collected for them and a certificate. Short and sweet! Our son is now ready for kindergarten and a new chapter begins...