Naming Baby Boy... Cutler it is!

Before we had Kinley, I posted about naming her. When we were naming Kinley, I thought a boy name would've been easier. Now that it was time for us to actually name a boy, I think a girl name would've been easier! If we would've had a girl, we would've more than likely named her Callie. We just decided for sure on the first name for baby boy a few weeks ago. I think we've known for longer than that, but just didn't want to make it definite. I think we've decided on the middle name too. I've kept my list of names in my planner forever. Most of them are C and K names. The plan was since Kinley's name was a K, our boy name would be a C. Also, Colt's real name is Clinton Charles Smithson III. We've known all along that we didn't want to continue the trend and have a Clinton Charles Smithson IV. However, Colt did want to try to keep the initials, CCS, going. Finding 2 C names that go together is pretty hard. When we had Kinley, our boy name was going to be Cutler. During this pregnancy we weren't so sure about it anymore. The main names that were in the running were Cutler, Cade and Case. Colt also liked Cain, although now he says he really didn't. I never liked it. It sounds evil to me. We also liked the name Blaine even though it wasn't a C. Colt at one time had mentioned the name Sloane too. I actually originally bought two names for baby boy's wall, Cutler and Case, to try and make Colt decide. For a while, we were leaning towards Case Cutler. However, Colt didn't like the way Case looked and sounded after a while. Then Cade Cutler became the second option. I know a couple of Cade's and think it's more common. In the end, we went back to our original name, Cutler. We like it because it's more unique. There is a story behind it. At one time, Colt's name was actually Colt Cutler Loughmiller. He had it legally changed when he was in high school to the first name that he'd always went by and to his stepdad's last name that had raised him for about 16 years. I think the Cutler he just chose because he liked it. However, after some messy family issues, pretty much right after Colt had his name changed legally to Colt Cutler, his stepdad was no longer in the picture and still isn't in the picture. Before we got married, Colt changed his name back legally to Clinton Charles Smithson III. Although, he doesn't have a relationship with his biological dad, he does have one with his grandparents. Since the Loughmiller family really had no ties anymore, it made sense to change it back. Crazy, I know! We had never heard of another Cutler before until recently. My parents neighbor actually just named their little boy Cutler. He was born in the last year or so. I'm not sure where they got it from! My mom talked to the wife and they actually almost named their little boy Colt. Great minds think alike I guess?! Now for the middle name... Colt doesn't like the fact that his legal name is not what he goes by. It makes it just a little more difficult having to correct everyone at school, work, legal documents, etc. Colt wanted our little boy to go by his legal first name, not his middle name or something else entirely. We had thought about using Cutler Cade but Colt likes Cutler Colt better so that his middle name will have a little more meaning. His name as of right now is Cutler Colt Smithson! Colt Cutler probably sounds a little better, but again, we don't want him to go by his middle name! Cutler is a done deal though. We have the name on the wall, and I've taken the other letters back. We also have a quilt that Colt's grandma made and embroidered for him, along with other personalized items on the way! Although, I have a feeling that some people might not like the name Cutler, we like it! I also think it will continue to sound good as he gets older. My mom liked it originally but the other day on the phone, I feel like she was trying to convince me to name him Cade Cutler again! Haha. 

To go with his name, here's a sneak peak of his room so far. We wanted it to be very big boy/manly looking and grow with him. Colt also liked the industrial look. I think we're succeeding so far. More pics to come when we get further along on it. Colt still has some stuff to build for me for the other walls. Then we'll be almost done! I actually bought some more decorations for his room today while Kinley and I were out. I'm ready to get it finished. I want it to be done before he gets here. I'm hoping he holds on longer, but if he was his sister, he would be arriving within the week. Although my actual  due date is 6 weeks away, I feel like we're running out of time!

Oh...and Kinley still has a little trouble saying Cutler. She can say Cade and Case, but Cutler is a little harder for her. We've been working on it!

Kinley 2 1/2 Year Update

I think that the last update that I did on Kinley was when she turned 2. She turned 2 1/2 on December 12th. Before I keep posting about our day to day and before the new baby gets here and I really don't have a lot of free time, I want to be sure I get a little update on here on what is going one with her at 2 1/2 years old! 

We had her well check on December 14th with her new pediatrician here in Tyler, Dr. Barret. She did great. He even asked me if she was always as good as she was acting. That answer would be no! We just got lucky! These were her stats at her appointment. Her weight was 32 lbs. 6.4 oz. (85%). Her height was 3 ft. 0.61" (79%). Her head circumference was 50.3 cm. or 19.8" (93%). She's staying consistent in her growth charts from prior appointments and still on the larger side compared to others her age. 

We had her very first dentist appointment on December 13th. Can you tell I'm trying to knock out all my to-do's before the new baby gets here?!? We went to Dr. Massey at Boozier Dental. She did great at that appointment as well. She was happy as can be and let the dentist look her over. It probably didn't hurt that there was rocket ships in the waiting room with games, a TV overhead while she was getting examined, and she got a prize from a toy machine afterwards! Evidently they don't do x-rays or anything until kids are 3 so we probably really could've waited on getting her into the dentist. She has her two upper molars already and her bottom two are still coming in. I noticed her top left molar around the first week of August. It was right before she turned 26 months. I wrote down that I first noticed her second molar on the top right on September 21st. 

Like I've done on previous updates, here are some little facts about Kinley at 2 1/2:

• Still wearing a size 5 diaper during the day and a size 6 at night. She doesn't really have a big interest in potty training. She has pooped and peed in the potty but not consistently or even a lot.  She won't tell me that she's pooped normally until afterwards. Even then, she will tell me she hasn't even though she has. We were trying to push her at first because we really wanted her potty trained before we added another baby to the mix. However, I've heard even if they are potty trained, they usually regress when a new baby joins the family so I'm not too worried about it. She will when she's ready I guess. She will spend a lot of 30 minute sessions sitting on the potty but normally just reading her books. Then she'll get up, put her diaper back on and proceed to pee or poop in it. They also say she'll try at school. One time that she did pee in the potty, she stood up and peed in floor right afterwards. Another time she said poop and went on to squat and poop in the middle of the bathroom floor. She did try to tell me, but I was already wet and in the shower and she acted too fast for me! 
• She can still wear some size 7 shoes, but I would say she's a size 8. I definitely wouldn't buy anything less than an 8 now.
• She is still wearing a size 2T or 3T. 
• She is a good eater here at home. When we are away from home and especially at restaurants, she doesn't eat as good, but here at home, she eats! She loves chicken, corn dogs,  bologna, cheese, yogurt, apples (probably our current fav fruit), bananas, blueberries, crackers, carrots if cooked with a roast, green beans, chicken and rice, my baked pork chops, my mom's fried pork chops, macaroni, and spaghetti. She loves quacamole and will eat it by the spoonful. Just in the last couple of days, she has ate up some taco soup too... although, she doesn't like the hominy in it. For breakfast, she loves blueberry muffins and pancakes. She doesn't like eggs anymore and hasn't in a while. She also loves bacon. She had a stomach bug and went a few days without eating. When she started eating again, she started eating a ton. The other day at lunch, she ate a corndog, half an apple and some cheese slices. Then she asked for more corn dog, more cheese, and more apple. She finished that plate off too so by the time she was done, she had ate two corn dogs, a whole apple and some cheese. Needless to say, she didn't get milk before her nap that day because I was afraid her belly would explode.
• She loves cookies and candy (specifically Reese's and M&M's) but doesn't get either too often. One day when I asked her if she wanted a cookie, she said "Giggy and Pa's cookies?" I guess she associates cookies with Giggy and Pa's house! Haha. 
• She LOVES sweet tea. I can't go through a drive thru or let her see a cup with a straw or she thinks it's sweet tea and wants it!
• She also loves apple juice and orange juice. She usually gets one or the other once a day with her breakfast. Other than that, it's usually water the rest of the day and maybe a Capri Sun in her lunch on days that she's at school. 
• She loves her Pa, Giggy, Grandma and Papa. She also loves Pistol. If you mention Pa and Giggy's house, you can't forget Pistol! 
• We were just sleeping with Tigey and my old pink bear but that has changed drastically. She has been sleeping with 5 stuffed animals and tells them night night every night... so do I. The 5 were Tigey, my old Pink bear, baby pink bear, Minnie Mouse and a bunny blanket that was a gift when she was a newborn. However, after Christmas and the tons of stuffed animals that Blake added to her collection, she's added two more puppies to her bed! Now she sleeps with 7 things! I have to tell every one of them good night!
• She will not sleep in socks at all. She has to have them off for naps too. 
• She was still napping 1.5-2 hours a day until the last 3 days. The last 3 days she hasn't napped at all, and has acted pretty good until bedtime. I've tried to get her to nap, she just won't. I'm really hoping it's not the end of her napping! 
• On September 22nd, she slept in her big girl bed for the first time. She made it until 5am and then came and got in our bed and went back to sleep. I think she woke up scared. The next night, I took her and tried to put her in her big girl bed and she looked at me and said "Mommy please." She wanted her crib so I was a softie and moved her back. We didn't try again for a while. Around Thanksgiving when Colt was working a few nights in a row, I just took her crib down completely and moved it into the baby's room. I figured cold turkey was the only way to go and it was. The first night when I took her to bed, I went to lay her down and she said "No" and looked for her crib. When she didn't see it, she immediately laid down in her big girl bed and went to sleep. She slept all night and has been there ever since. It was much easier than we had planned on it being. Her big girl bed is a queen size bed because we had it as an extra so it was a big change. She had been sleeping in her crib with the rail off like a toddler bed pretty much since we moved here and she had jumped out of her crib. 
• She usually goes to bed for the night around 8:30-9:30. We let her watch a show with us before bed. Then she gives Daddy a kiss, Alex a kiss, Lucky a kiss and tells all three "Night Night" individually before I take her to her room. 
• Every night, she takes her gummy vitamin and she HAS to take Daddy his two gummy vitamins too. It's their thing and she doesn't forget! 
• She loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Everything is Mouse here lately! She has recently started liking a show called Henry Hugglemonster. Don't ask me what that even is. It came on after Mickey Mouse on Hulu one day and now she wants to watch it! Before Christmas she always wanted to watch "the other mouse." This meant the old Mickey Mouse Once Upon a Christmas and Twice Upon a Christmas that were playing on Netflix. She loved them too!
• She LOVES school. She only goes on Tuesday and Thursday from 9:30-2:30. One day when we pulled in, she said "School" and pumped her arm. After Thanksgiving break, on her first day back, we pulled in and as soon as she saw the school, she said, "Kinley's coming!!" She also has to carry her own backpack, even if it is just to the car to take it off again.
• She's starting to get into singing. The other day she was singing into the salt shaker. Then yesterday, she was singing into the lamp for her brother's room when I was putting it together. She likes dancing to "Head, shoulders, knees and toes" and "I'm a little teapot."
• She's still a pro at puzzles. I've had two people recently tell me how good she is. A lady from MOPS that was picking up her little girl told me and then someone that watched her in the childcare room at the gym. 
• Her vocabulary has exploded and I can't really keep track of her words anymore. She can say pretty much everything and repeat pretty much everything. Sometimes only I can understand her since I'm around her everyday and some of her letters aren't as clear as others... but she knows what she's saying all the time! 
• Her counting has gotten pretty good. She can count to 10 with some help. She has 1-4 down, but sometimes skips 5 and goes straight to 6, etc. She also sometimes starts saying the wrong thing but changes mid-word as she hears you say the right number. She's getting better everyday at it!
• At the end of September, she started calling me mom all of a sudden instead of Mommy. She started saying "Ok Mom" and "Sorry Mom." I didn't like it so luckily it hasn't really stuck yet. For the most part, she called me Mama or Mommy. Colt is always Daddy. 
• Although she will tell you when asked that she is a "Daddy's Girl," I would say she's a Mommy's girl and definitely prefers me most of the time, although she loves her Daddy too. When he gets home from work, she runs to the door. Colt says she acts better when I'm not around. When he's been gone out of town for a few days for work, he says that she has to reset and start behaving better when he gets back. My mom says she is better and not as clingy when I'm not around too. When I'm there, she doesn't really want anyone to do things but me. Also, when we had family pictures the other day, she didn't want to leave my side and wouldn't cooperate for pictures. However, when we were done, the photographer gave it one last shot and took her outside by herself and said she cooperated and did great! I guess the key is for me to not be around!
• She still loves her Minnie Mouse house shoes. We actually had to get her another pair the other day because she had worn a hole in the bottom of her old ones. She loves all shoes in general! 
• She ALWAYS wants a bow in her hair. I LOVE this. I'm not going to lie, I would be sad if she refused to wear bows. 
• Her imagination is growing. You here her having conversations between her little figurines or dolls. Just the other day, she asked me to come in her room. When I went in, by her kitchen, she had our plates made with food on them, silverware, the works! She also has started making her dad and I coffee in the mornings in her kitchen. Yesterday I made Colt a cup of coffee before work and when I mentioned it, she ran in her room and brought him out a cup of coffee. 
• She has started getting into helping me cook in the kitchen. She'll help me mix the pancakes or the muffins. I'll usually sit her on the counter and let her stir and help. The last couple of mornings, she's brought her in a step stool. 
• When she sees something sweet or sees baby animals, she says "Aww" and put her hands up by the side of her face like she's praying. She also likes to say "Got me, Mommy" or "Got me, Daddy."
• One of Grandma and Giggy's favorite things for her to say is "Okay." 
• If Colt or I ever get an ouchie, she also says "Okay, Mommy?" or "Okay, Daddy?" It's pretty cute. If anyone has an ouchie, she has to kiss it. She also has to have kisses on all her duchies and boo boos. 
• When she gets tired, she says, "I sleepy."
• She loved playing "soccer ball" and going to that weekly. She was 3/13 kids or so that lasted until the end, and she was probably the only one by the end of it that was still into it. Just the other day, she did her soccer cheer out of nowhere. It's been a month since we ended soccer so I'm not sure what made her think of it! She put her hands on mine and then raised them up and said "soccer ball!"
• She loves hitting the baseball off her tee. 
• She got a new big girl bike for Christmas from Santa. We almost asked for a tricycle but assumed she wouldn't have an interest since the neighbor kids have big bikes and she wanted nothing to do with them at the store. She got on the big girl bike Christmas morning and picked it up super fast. It's been cold out, but she has been moving around the kitchen on it and has the pedaling and steering at the same time down now! I was impressed and took tons of video of course!
• She loves her blocks, both MegaBlocks and Lego Duplos. She also got magnetic building blocks for Christmas and those have already been a hit. She just likes to build! She loves playing house with her Little People. She has gotten into playing with her babies lately. She got a new one (a boy baby from Joe and Nadine to represent baby brother) for Christmas. You feed it and change it's diaper and she has played with it daily since we've got it. Her FAVORITE toy of all right now is her Mickey Mouse figurines that Colt bought her off of Facebook Market place. We've had to take them in the car and limit her to two at a time on trips. For Christmas, he found her a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and more figurines on Ebay and they quickly became an added FAVORITE! The new figurines included Pete and Clarabelle, which for some reason are two of her favorites out of all of them. Is it bad that she loves Pete and he's the troublemaker?!? Grandma and Papa also got her a Minnie and Daisy house for Christmas, and it now included in her favorites too. When she gets one out to play with, they all get setup at the same time. It's like a little village she plays with, and she will play with it FOREVER!
• She is still fearless. She isn't scared of anything. Just the other day, I was getting out of the shower and I hear her start crying. She was in the bedroom with Colt and she did a full superman off the end of the bed. She landed flat on her stomach. I'm not sure what she was thinking! I walked into Colt consoling her and trying to calm her down. He said he was sitting on the end of the bed and just saw her flying by! 
• Her memory shocks me sometimes. Just yesterday at the grocery store, she cried at the checkout because the lady a the checkout didn't offer her a sticker. They'd only given her a sticker like twice before but she remembered.
• She is getting manipulative and figuring out how to pout and try to get her way. She also can give a look. The other day, she was mad at me and gave me the worst look. Colt said, "Did you just see that look she gave you when she walked by?" I'm sure it's just a glimpse of what is to come in our future! 
• Every once in a while out of nowhere she will just rare back and land a kiss on me.
• Driving in the car now, she talks so much. When the car stops, she says "Go Mommy Go." She's also started saying "Green light" and "Red light."
• She absolutely loved all the Christmas lights this past month. She would say "Look Mommy, more lights, more lights." I'm pretty sure we caught her voice and reaction on video. Her reaction was definitely pure joy!
• She is a cuddler, hugger and a kisser. I love it. It may be harder cuddling when the baby comes, but I still love it and wouldn't want it any other way!
• Her favorite color is evidently purple hear lately. At the store, she wanted a purple toothbrush over a pink one. She wanted purple kinetic sand instead of pink. Grandma took her to get her nails painted for the first time while we were there for Christmas while Colt and I ran around for a bit. I told Colt that she would probably pick purple nail polish. Guess what?!? She did! She was proud of her purple toenails and fingernails. 
• She liked Santa from a distance this Christmas and liked to talk about him, but didn't like him up close. 
• I'm interested to see how she does as a big sister. So far, she'll say that baby brother is in Mommy's belly and she'll give him a kiss on my belly. She also knows where baby brother's room is. Right now, she puts her baby dolls in his carseat and swing. I have a feeling when it's a real baby that doesn't leave, we may have a few issues and she won't do so well adjusting, but maybe she'll surprise me.

Kinley is full of energy and has a fun, spunky personality that's for sure. She also has a little mind of her own. She is funny and I literally laugh at her every few minutes. It's fun to see how her little mind works.  I don't even know where or how she comes up with some of the stuff that she does! Some days I can't wait for her to nap so I can get a few things done or have a little me time. Other days, I can't wait for her to wake up so I can see her! She definitely makes our lives better. I want everything for her in life and can't imagine not having her as our little girl! It's definitely a little bittersweet knowing that she's about to lose her role as only child and lose our undivided attention, but I'm excited to watch her grow into her role as a big sister (and also a little nervous too)!

Baby Boy Pregnancy Update

With sickness and me just being tired all the time, plus Kinley not going to school as much while we were sick and the holidays, my free time has been a little limited. Plus, when I have had it, I've been trying to get stuff for Baby Boy ready. Jennifer and Heath gave me a ton of Tenison and Heston's old stuff at Thanksgiving.  I've been going through it and deciding what I want to keep and donate. Plus, I've been trying to order all the necessities that we need for when he gets here and get his room ready so we are a little more prepared than we were with Kinley! I don't think I'll have him as early as I did Kinley, but if I did, we would only be about a couple weeks away from meeting him. While I don't think it'll be as early as Kinley, Colt looks at me often and says he doesn't see me making it all the way to February 11th. We kinda think we'll have a January baby, but who knows! I do know that I'm a couple days away from being 33 weeks, and I look and feel about like I did when I had Kinley. I actually looked and felt like I did when I had her weeks ago!

The last pregnancy update that I did, I was only 20 weeks and we had just had our ultrasound. With the exception of my 30 week photo when we were so sick, I've been taking my weekly pregnancy photos (some just a few days late). Obviously, they haven't made it on here yet though! Sorry Baby Boy! It'll happen eventually.

I haven't been as good about jotting things down as with Kinley. I blame it on chasing a toddler around and time in general.  Here's a few little updates of what has happened since my last update: 

• We had our 24 week follow-up ultrasound. Both cyst had resolved and went away on their own! I assumed they would, but it was definitely still a relief to see that they weren't there anymore! It made for a good ultrasound appointment. We basically just got to look him over and listen to him again!
• At my 27 week appointment, I had my glucose test. I passed! My bloodwork that they did came back and said I was slightly anemic though so they have me taking an iron supplement now. I weighed 147 pounds at that appointment... so up 25 pounds. My blood pressure was good. 
• At my 30 week appointment, my weight was 148. It would have been more than that, but I lost a couple pounds when I was so sick last week. My blood pressure was 114/60. This is definitely good news!  I think it was already high and we had preeclampsia worries by this time with Kinley. His heart rate was 130, and he was measuring right on track. After that appointment, I started my appointment every 2 weeks. Does that seem crazy or what?! It seems fast and that I shouldn't already be at this point yet!
• I had my 32 week appointment this past Tuesday. My weight was 152, up 30 pounds already from my pre-pregnancy weight. My blood pressure was 114/84. His heart rate and measurements were right on track. 
• Colt gets to quit giving me my weekly shots to try and prevent me from having him early at 36 weeks. Only a few more shots left! We've been bad about giving these every week and have a tendency to be a couple days late. We are actually out of town now for Christmas and I'm due for this weeks shot. We left it at home by accident! Oops. 
• At the end of week 26, my lower back/upper butt started hurting. I remember my tailbone hurt with Kinley, but this is different. I noticed it initially when I would pick up Kinley. At week 27, it started to hurt all day long. I mentioned it to the doctor at my 27 week appointment. He said it's my sciatic nerve and not an uncommon issue. He said to use a heating pad and take tylenol if I ever need it. I have a few days where I don't have pain, but this is still going on. It's always worse at night too. 
• We did go to Dallas a month or so ago because Colt had a bachelor party to go to. He just went for the dinner part of the party so we made it a day trip. We visited his grandparents in Wylie and his parents in Tom Bean during the day. Then while he was at dinner, Dede, Davallen, Kinley and I had dinner at another spot in Dallas before I picked him up and we headed back to Tyler late. I think overall, I was in the car about 7 hours. I was super swollen by the time we got home and it took me a couple days to get back to normal! I drove to my parents last weekend, and by the time I got there, my feet were tingly feeling even with me trying to stretch out. We drove to Colt's mom's house yesterday and I was more aware of how I was sitting in the car. I sat on the passenger side and propped my feet up most of the way. I think after these Christmas holidays, my traveling is probably over. 
• I had been working out and still doing CrossFit. I was only doing it 2-3 days a week. However, at 30 weeks, I threw in the towel. I asked the owner if he would freeze my membership until after I have the baby. I probably should be still going. I know I still need to do some type of exercise, but I have excuses! After the stomach bug took over and the fact that I was modifying quite a bit when I did go or felt like I needed to go to the bathroom... I just decided to save our money and call it quits for the time being. I will say the last workout I did, I still felt good. However, we had a running workout when I was like 29 weeks, and I kinda felt like a whale running! It was a little uncomfortable. Now I just have to make myself get out and walk or do some mini workouts on my own! 
• Overall, I feel best in the mornings. By the end of the day, my belly is feeling heavy and my feet usually are hurting from being on them all day. My swelling in my feet is still pretty limited though. I'm also getting up even more to go to the bathroom and my hips are starting to hurt when I sleep. I wouldn't say I feel "bad." I just feel pregnant is all! It's definitely getting uncomfortable sitting in the floor and playing with Kinley, giving her baths, etc.  
• Just this past week, at 32 weeks, I started having some round ligament pain in my belly. It actually started the day of my 32 week appointment.

I will say parts of pregnancy I love... like feeling him move... yes it's amazing. For the most part though, I'm just not really enjoying being pregnant this time round. I'm just not a glowing pregnant lady! I don't see how some moms have 5 kids and go through 5 pregnancies. I know it's a blessing though. This also may be my last pregnancy so I'm trying to enjoy it as much as possible! 

Sickness Hit our House

Well sickness took over our house the last week. Last year, November was our month of sickness. This year, hopefully it was just a week of December and doesn't continue! It was pretty miserable, especially being pregnant. For Colt and I, I would say it was worse than last year. For Kinley, she never really acted like she felt too bad. She was throwing up and had diarrhea, but she kept going and playing. She started on Friday throwing up. She threw up in bed. It scared her more than anything. She was worried about her bed and clothes being dirty! After I got her and her bed cleaned up, she went right back to bed. She acted better the next day. She actually acted so good that I went ahead and took her to the Whitehouse Christmas parade, and she had a blast. I also went ahead and gave her milk that night before bed. That was a bad idea because she threw it up all over Colt and all over her bedroom! Then her diarrhea started and continued for a few days. I know one day we went through 3 pairs of pajama pants by mid-day. I don't think I've ever done so much laundry ever! She also didn't eat for about 6 whole days almost. She kept drinking, but I was so happy when she finally got her appetite back. I kept her home from school on both Tuesday and Thursday. She probably could've went on Thursday, but I was still scared since she didn't have her appetite back. 

I came down with what she had a day after she did, on late Saturday night. I was bathing Kinley, and I yelled at Colt that he needed to come take over. I immediately started throwing up. I threw up several times. At one point, I was actually on the toilet and throwing up in the bathroom trashcan at the same time. It was awful. This was the same night that Colt put Kinley to bed for me and she threw up on him. I'm sure we were quite a sight! My body started aching so bad during the night Saturday night that I couldn't sleep. Sunday Colt went into work and Kinley and I spent a lot of time just watching TV in bed. Actually, she was entertained by watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse while I dozed in and out and tried to recover. I was more weak than anything. It took me a few attempts to finish shampooing her carpet in her room because I had to sit down and rest! I would feel ok and then start laundry or something and have to take a break. Colt made a trip to the store for us when he got off to stock up on Pedialyte, chicken noodle soup, jello and all that good stuff. I was lucky mine only lasted about 24 hours. 

I thought Colt had missed out on getting sick. Then he came down with it too. He was sicker than I think I've ever seen him. He kept telling me how achy he was. I was like yes, I know. However, he had had a cold prior to coming down with the stomach bug so I think it hit him harder than it hit me. His lasted a few days longer than mine did. He was off on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, and he basically spent the whole time being sick. We had plans to go to SantaLand with his family. We went ahead and went since he thought he was getting better. Right before it was time for our family Santa picture, we turned around and he was running out the door to throw up. He was obviously still not over it. He had to go to Sulphur Springs and work on Thursday night. He didn't feel like it, but he didn't really have a choice. I sent him with all kinds of soft food and juices to try to get him through. When I talked to him on Friday, he sounded awful. While his stomach was finally better, his cold that he had had before he got sick, was 10 times worse. He had woke up with fever and sounded pretty miserable. He thinks he developed pneumonia or something. He started an antibiotic and made it through his two nights of work in Sulphur Springs. I think he told a patient or two that he was sicker than they were! He's home and getting better but still not over it. On top of a lot of laundry, I've used a lot of bleach... so much so that my hands are all dried and cracked. I'm hoping that Kinley and I don't get whatever else he had now, and that we stay healthy the rest of the holiday season!

Father's Day 2017

Like I mentioned in my last post, since Kinley wouldn't get to see Colt on Father's Day, we celebrated early while we were in Temple. After we celebrated Kinley's birthday and got her showered and ready for bed, she gave Colt his Father's Day present. We made him a cube that has pictures of just the two of them on every side. It's all pictures from her 2 year photo shoot. It turned out super cute and wasn't hard to make. 

His present is now on his nightstand in our room. 

Here is the video of her giving her Daddy his present. He tells her that it's pretty and she repeats him in her cute little voice!

We didn't know then that before Father's Day even truly got there, we would be finding out we were having Baby #2! Father's Day was on the 18th, and we found out we were having Baby #2 on the 14th. Happy Father's Day to Colt!

Kinley's 2nd birthday - Just the Three of Us

• After celebrating with friends, Kinley and I went back to Anna's to nap along with Colt. Later that night to continue birthday celebrations, the three of us went to BJ's for dinner. I'm pretty sure she didn't eat a single thing. 

• After we got back to Anna's, we sang Happy Birthday to her and let her blow out candles on one of her cupcakes. I think she was a fan of being the center of attention and being sung too! These pictures are the cutest!

This video is super cute too. It shows how happy she was. She tried to blow out her candles, but Colt had to help her. She claps when he blows them out and gives him a high five. 

• Even though we ended up having to have her actual birthday party a couple weeks late when Colt joined us in Tyler, I think she had a fun and busy day celebrating the day of too! I'm so glad it worked out so that Colt could be with Kinley on her actual birthday. I know he would've been very disappointed if he hadn't got to see her on her day.

Kinley and I headed back home the next day on the 13th. In just a couple short days, I had to make a trip back to Temple for Colt's graduation on the 15th, and Kinley was staying with Giggy and Pa while I made that trip. Father's Day was that weekend on the 18th. Since Kinley wasn't going to be able to see Colt on Father's Day, we ended up giving him his present while we were both there the night of her birthday... More of that on the next post. 

Kinley's 2nd birthday with Sprag Friends

Since Colt was working nights, he got off and got to Anna's house about the time we were getting up and ready on the day of Kinley's birthday.  He was going to try and take a nap while I took Kinley to her doctor's appointment at 9. Then he was going to meet me at the title company to sign papers and close on the house at 10. He ended up getting woke up by our realtor though because the new owners were at the house and couldn't get either the water or electric to work, I can't remember which. He got up and headed over there to help. Come to find out, the new owners had forgot to get utilities set up and turned on in their name. Colt made some calls and got some extra days extended on our bill to help them out. Needless to say, he didn't get to sleep much! After we closed on the house that morning, Colt went back to Anna's to try and get some more sleep while I took cupcakes to CrossFit Sprag so that we could celebrate Kinley's day with gym friends.  

I previously posted her 2 year stats from her doctor's appointment. I thought she was due for shots but she was up-to-date from her previous visit and didn't have to get any on her birthday!

When we got to the gym, Megan, Jules and their kids had gotten Kinley gifts. Megan got her a little outfit. Jules got her a LeapFrog toy that her boys had liked at Kinley's age. After we shared cupcakes with all the kids, the three of us and our kids went to Chick-fil-a for lunch. I'm glad that we got to be in town and celebrate her birthday with old friends on the actual day!

Kinley's Last Night as a 1 Year Old

Kinley's birthday was on June 12th. Colt was still working and staying in Temple. Kinley and I had to be in Temple the morning of her birthday too for her 2 year doctor's appointment and also to close on the sale of our house in Temple. We drove down the night before and stayed the night at Anna Raines house so we would be there early on the 12th. Colt was working that night and Anna wasn't home so I grabbed us a quick dinner at McDonald's and Kinley some fruit at a nearby gas station. Evidently she became a fan of McDonald's, at least that night. She had never liked it until then but she ate more than me! She almost finished off a 10 piece McNugget along with a ton of blueberries. 

Here is a cute little video of her telling me what she thinks of her dinner... Love her and her personality!

Because this was her last night as a 1 year old, I had to take a couple of pics of her asleep in the pack 'n play.

Kinley's Trampoline

Our present to Kinley for her 2nd birthday was a mini trampoline for the backyard. Since Colt was in Temple most of the month of June, his schedule was limited on when he could put it together. He wasn't going to have time to put it together before her birthday party so we decided to go ahead and put it together when he was here at the beginning of June and give it to her a few days early. We ended up giving it to her on June 8th. Dede, David and Davallen were actually here visiting so David helped Colt put it together while Kinley was napping. 

As you can tell from this video, she was more interested in the little basketball that came with the trampoline than the actual trampoline. She wanted no part in jumping on it that first day that she got it. She just sat down and cried. It didn't take her long to warm up to it though. Now she loves it! However,  she doesn't ever want to jump by herself. Mommy always has to jump with her.

Just eating her an apple with no interest in jumping. Davallen got to jump on it instead.

Here's another little video from that day of her playing ball with Daddy, David and Davallen in the yard. Unfortunately due to Alex, that little basketball didn't last very long. 

Like I said above, it didn't take her long to warm up to the trampoline. This was the next day and she was ready to play on it...along with her baby doll.

Remainder May in Photos

With closing on our Tyler house at the beginning of May and moving at the end of May, May was a busy month. Here's a recap of our month of May in photos and videos.

May 1st

Kinley was so tired she went in her room, got her pillow, grabbed a blanket and just laid down in the living room floor. 

May 3rd

The day we closed on our house in Tyler, it was storming and hailing there. Colt got this from the backyard while we were in Tyler that day. 

We should've saw it as a sign. Our A/C wasn't working that day and none of the electric on the kitchen island was working either. The electric was an easy fix, but the A/C we JUST NOW got resolved 6 months later! After months of issues, we now have a whole new unit. It just took 6 months! Frustrated would be an understatement...especially considering we bought a brand new house. We were so sick of having to go outside to the unit and rig and reset our unit every few hours. Surprisingly, Colt stayed really calm throughout the whole process. We're much more comfortable now that our house will cool below a certain temperature and work properly.

May 4th

Kinley playing at the park

She loved outside and loved trying to keep up with the big kids at the park. She still does.

May 6th

A short little video of Miss Bossy telling her Daddy to get in bed

May 7th

In her rubber boots of course

This is a longer video, but it's a video of Kinley squealing and playing fetch with Alex before bedtime.

May 8th

Sweet girl with her nose in the corner

May 13th

We had our garage sale that day. Colt was moonlighting out of town so my parents came to help me. It was big and we sold almost everything. We even put Kinley's plastic swimming pool in the front yard and put a free sign on it. A family loaded it up on top of their car and took it home. It was a sight Hopefully they actually made it home with it. All we had left by the end of the day fit in a couple of tiny boxes that my parents took to donate. We made a lot of money, but I'm still not sure garage sales are worth it. I ended up with a sunburn and exhausted by the end of it.

I'm not sure how I felt like taking Kinley to the park in our neighborhood at the end of that day, but I guess I did!

I also let her have Nutella and peanut butter with her dinner that night. I think this may have been the first time that she had ever tried it.

May 15th

Washing the truck with her Daddy

Every time he washes his truck, she wants to help.

This video is long and I'm sure boring for anyone but us. It's her and Colt playing ball. Colt actually just walked in the room and heard me watching the video and said she sounded like a little pterodactyl. What I didn't catch on video (and wished I would've) is right when I quit filming, Colt slid on the floor and busted it hard. He was flat on his back, and Kinley was just laughing at him.

Here's a short little trim of her just kicking the ball... maybe soccer in our future!?!

May 19th

I made the trip with Whitney and Alicia to Dallas to go to the Lululemon warehouse sale in Fair Park.  Alicia was in a separate car with Luke, but Whitney, Witten, Kinley and I all rode together. I don't know what I was thinking going?!? When we got there, the line was like this. This was just to get in the door. Then there was like a 2 hour line once you got in the building. Us and our three babies did not get in line! We got right back in the car.

Instead we made a trip to Target. I had a mom fail and forgot to bring Kinley any shoes so I had to buy her some to wear that day! After Target we met back up with Alicia on Knox to go to the Lululemon there instead since our warehouse sale didn't work out. While we were killing time, Whitney went in Weir's with me to look at couches since it was up the street. I didn't buy anything at Lululemon so I basically went for the car ride and lunch at On the Border! I did find several couches I loved at Weir's though so it was just a matter of bringing Colt back to look and make a decision. I also got to spend some time with Whitney and Alicia before our move to Tyler so it wasn't a wasted trip.

Our babies checking out the couches

May 20th

Kinley and I went to Lane Sirianni's 2nd birthday party at Extreme Cheer. She was sporting her Target shoes that I had to buy the day before! This coming summer, the Siriannis will actually live across the street from us here in Tyler. 

A couple of videos of her eating lunch that day

The first one she is eating apple and the second she is just drinking water. She was in a little kick of being dramatic when she ate and drank. When she would eat, she would say "yum" and rub her belly. When she would drink, she would say "agh" and act like she was so refreshed. It was pretty cute. She actually did this earlier today after she drank water and she hadn't done it in forever!

May 21st

Daddy playing with Snapchat

May 26th

Kinley "helping" after we got to Tyler.

Colt bought this to kill flies around the house. It shoots salt. It's painful too because he shot me with the dang thing!

May 29th

Playing "soccer ball" in the front yard

May 30th

We took Kinley to the Faulkner Park splash pad here in Tyler. She played for a bit on the splash pad but was more interested in going to the playground instead.

Nose in the corner at the new house... I swear she's not always in the corner! 

May 31st

Napping on the couch

Moving Days

The moving company that Colt's new job provided came to pack and pick up all of our things on the morning of May 22nd. I'm glad it was a moving company that did everything and not us! They started packing and loading us on the 22nd, finished loading on the 23rd and delivered everything to the new house in Tyler on the 24th. Colt wasn't there our last morning so Kinley and I had to say goodbye to our house on our own. It was definitely a little bittersweet. It was a good house the three years that we were there.

When we left the house, Kinley and I went to Meg's for a late breakfast and had our last Meg's pancakes before we left town. We went to China Springs and stayed the night with Matt and Whitney on the 22nd. Colt met us there when he got off work. That night we went to Waco and ate at On the Border. I think Witten was a little jealous of Kinley eating food. 

We headed from there to Forney to stay with Colt's parents the night of the 23rd since all of our things weren't going to be in Tyler until the next day. While Kinley was napping on the 23rd and Colt's parents were there to watch her, Colt and I went furniture shopping. We did a lot of furniture shopping in May. We went to Weir's in Dallas and ended up deciding on our living room couch. We had to order exactly what we wanted so it ended up not getting delivered until after we'd already been in Tyler for a while. We ended up going with this couch but in a sectional. We also ordered a coffee table from there too.

This was Lucky in Forney. He was already wore out from the move. 

My parents came to Tyler on the 24th and were there when the movers unloaded. My mom helped unpack boxes and tried to help keep Kinley out of the movers way. 

This was Kinley with her Giggy and Pa on May 25th after we grabbed lunch at Clear Springs before they headed back home. She's a fan of having them closer now that we are in Tyler. 

And just because I'm sentimental...here's a couple of last pictures of our house in Temple. Colt had to spend some time there after our stuff was moved out to tidy up a few things before we sold it to the new owners in June. He also had to let painters in because the new owners had the whole house repainted white...white walls with white trim. I didn't ever get to see it, but Colt said it looked like the house was primed and ready to be painted. Maybe it looks better than he described.

When moving, the way to go is definitely having movers not only move you but pack up the boxes too!