Posts filed under 'Carlee'
Dear Carlee,
I really can’t believe you are 3 years old. THREE. And yet, I look back at pictures of you from this time last year and I think of how much you’ve grown. You got rid of your “dinky” a long long time ago, and ever since then, you’ve been working hard on speaking just like your older brother and sister. Really I should be counting the words that you still say like a baby, instead of the words you say clearly.
When you count, you like to skip 13 and 15. Colby did this too and now he’s a pro at math, so don’t worry. You’re still not a good sleeper. I’m hoping that one day I’ll snap my fingers correctly and you’ll love and adore sleep as much as your poor ol’ mom. 
I cannot wait to see you with this little sister of yours. I know you’re going to take such great care of her and help me with her. You can’t stop kissing my belly and talking to her. (*not sure if that’s because my belly hits you in the head sometimes – so sorry about that!*)
I LOVE that you are starting to do things for yourself – like brushing your teeth (even though we still help you half the time – we still help Colby & Kennedy too), getting dressed, helping to put away dishes, and going potty. All of those really help your pregnant mom get out of the house with some sanity. Now if I can only get you to wear shoes when we leave the house… And up until this week, it was okay to leave the house barefooted because it was 100 degrees outside for the longest time.
You love to argue with me and tell me NO. But I figure that comes with being 3. I don’t like being told NO any more than you do. You love to draw and color pictures, especially on Colby’s homework or important papers that you’re not supposed to be able to reach – even though the drawing paper is within your fingertip reach.
Since your daddy has started playing drums again, you have taken to listening to him at the beginning of church and then when the sermon starts, he will take you to Sunday school. Correction – you want to run to him up on the stage so he can take you to Sunday school. You act as if you haven’t seen your daddy for days at a time! But your daddy really does love it. And you love love your daddy.
The thing I’m most proud of is your love for books. I love that you love reading and memorizing those sing-song patterns (like in Brown Bear Brown Bear, What Do You See?). Of course, when you read a book 100 times, it’s no wonder that it gets stuck in your brain. I am only kidding, of course.
I know it’s not supposed to be so evident at a young age, but I am beginning to see that your love language is quality time. Because you don’t want to be away from me or your daddy or your siblings. And that hasn’t changed since you were born. I’m happy to oblige in this. That’s why you get to do some special things that your siblings haven’t – because you know what privileges are and how to work them in your favor. You’re no dummy. Except when you decided to cut your own hair a few weeks ago. Thankfully I walked in before you did much damage, and admittedly, your daddy really likes what you did with your hair – but don’t tell him I told you.
I could write and write for days about the things I love about you, especially your laugh, your beautiful blue eyes and your red hair. I know I’ve written this before, but I wasn’t sure if I could love a second little girl in our family. Now I can’t imagine not loving you. You are still very strong-willed, and there’s things that you do that I don’t like – at all. But I do love you and will always love you, no matter what.
Be a sweet girl, Carlee.
Love, Mom.
December 8th, 2011
One of the best things about living in our college town is having access to college sports. If you know me well, you know I’m a born & raised Aggie, but now that I have kids of my own, I’ve been enjoying getting to expose my kiddos to the Aggie culture.
This football season Colby and I went to one game (Kansas), and Kevin went to 2 games (OSU & Texas). Kevin’s company also had a big tailgate for the Idaho State game back in September. So, the 5 of us rode the Aggie buses to the Quad and then walked to Kyle Field so we could eat barbeque at 4 pm. Because tailgates can last all day, but not really with kids. (We didn’t stay for the game.) It was a lot of fun because it turned out to be in the Aggie practice field, so while the kids weren’t technically allowed to play with the equipment, there was nothing our kids could really “destroy” out there.
I took the stroller with us, but that turned out to be a big mistake because the kids ended up fighting over it more than using it. Other than that, it was a great day in Aggieland.
December 7th, 2011
Since Colby & Kennedy have started school, Carlee and I get to be pals three mornings a week (most weeks). I have thoroughly enjoyed only taking ONE child to the grocery store, to run errands, and to otherwise spend some great quality time with only Carlee. Especially since the baby will be here in less than 8 weeks.
This is in the welcome area of Kennedy’s preschool. I have been so used to “hurry-up and let’s go to the next thing”, but one morning Carlee asked to stop and play here. Without hesitation, I said yes. And then she told me to take her picture. So I did.
It’s also really nice not having to drag more than 1 kiddo to the OB for check-ups. One day Carlee decided it was her mission to clean up the doctor’s office with the tub of baby wipes on the counter. And my doctor didn’t even blink an eye when he saw all the wipes in the trash. Carlee has always been a helper in wanting to clean up, and I’m so thankful for her willingness to help.
November 3rd, 2011
Carlee, taking care of her baby [doll]. She has already claimed that the baby in my belly is “hers”.
How far along: 30 weeks in pic, 31 weeks now. I really should stop taking pictures at the end of the day, when I look exhausted! I promise that I put on make-up every day and actual clothes, most days.
Size of baby: 3.3 pounds & 16.25 inches, or the size of 4 navel oranges (according to my app. shaking my head.) Although, yesterday I measured at 36 weeks – my ob says if the baby keeps growing at this rate, I’ll have a 9 pounder, a month early. Stay tuned.
Maternity clothes: I really thought I was going to get to break out my cute winter stuff – we had approximately 2.2 days of cooler weather, followed by consistent 90 degree temps. Again. I think maybe another cold front might be coming through tonight, although I won’t hold my breath. I’ll survive with whatever I’m wearing, it’s just hard to dress my kiddos appropriately.
Movement: Yes, still lots. My doctor told me to watch and make sure I have 10 kicks in an hour, and I told him it wasn’t uncommon for this baby to have 10 kicks in 10 minutes. But the movements are definitely slowing down a bit – not the jerky movements anymore. I’m also having quite a few Braxton-Hicks, which is exciting and very painful, all at the same time.
Sleep: Getting more and more uncomfortable. I am still snoring, I am still tossing and turning, and I am still in need of regular chiropractic adjustments and prenatal massages.
Cravings: Not too many now that I’ve been cutting down on sugar and grains. I do like HEB’s vegetable crackers (which actually have like 0 vegetables?) and HEB’s honey wheat pretzels. Both of those I could probably eat the entire box or bag, but I do limit myself. I also still like milk and will drink a small glass each night before bed.
Symptoms: HOT. Mostly due to the weather, but I have to have my fans on all the time. Kevin has started growing his hair out, instead of buzzing it, mostly because I think I’m freezing him out. [I'm reminded of that scene in Father of the Bride 2, when Steve Martin's wife AND daughter are pregnant in the middle of summer. They've cranked the a/c on full blast, and Steve Martin runs around wearing blankets and mittens...]
What I miss: Other than sleep? Really, nothing. I am in the phase of realizing how little time is left of this pregnancy, knowing it will be our last, and enjoying being a punching bag for this baby’s kicking. I am truly wondering how much more my belly is going to grow, but in the end, it will all be worth it.
Favorite Moments: I think we have decided on her name! It’s a very recent discovery (as in, the past day or so?) and like all our girls, we don’t have a middle name yet. We’ll take suggestions, other than Faith & Joy, which Kennedy & Carlee already have. So far, I have thought of “tax deduction”, “Christmas gift”, and “the grand finale”. Colby has suggested “Judges” or “Ruth” – because of course in the Bible those come after Joshua, which is his middle name.
October 27th, 2011
I went in for my 3-hour glucose test on Thursday, and I was really nervous, considering I “flunked’ my 1-hour test… by 71 points… So, after all the help you all gave me, I could see that I needed a major diet change. My goal was not to try and trick the test (if that was even possible), but to make sure that I was eating the absolute right foods for me.
When I went in, my baseline glucose reading (after fasting) was an 88. A normal reading is somewhere between 90 & 100, and if I had had between 90 & 100 in the 1-hour test, then I wouldn’t have had to take the 3-hour test. Then I drank the lemon-lime-sugar-coma-inducer… Last week I chose the orange-crush-of-death… and after an hour, my glucose level was at 151, which was better than the 165 level I needed to stay under. And after 2 hours, my reading was down to 130, and they were looking for me to be under 145. So, I passed, with flying colors.[insert big sigh of relief]
So, what was my ’secret’ for eating better? I majorly cut back on sugars & grains in my diet. That little step was so much harder than I ever thought it would be. Don’t get me wrong, I still ate 1-2 things per day that I considered “no-nos”, but for the most part, cutting back on those 2 things was my secret. And the best part? I had more energy than most days when I was pregnant. I didn’t snap at the kids as much, because I wasn’t always crashing on sugar highs or lows.
The day of my glucose test, I made these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies with the kids (they were super yummy!) and had no regrets about eating a few. I could definitely tell, after not eating things with flour and sugar all week, that I didn’t want to eat too many, for fear of the sugar high. ”Everything in moderation”, right?
And what do I eat the most of? Meat. Veggies. Nuts. Cheese and plain milk, even though most people who follow this plan might cut dairy out completely. I’m not even tired of salad, and we’ll have an entire garden bed of lettuces, spinaches (sp?), and swiss chard in a month.
Now, I think my challenge is convincing the kiddos that this change is a good thing… that we can eat healthy foods that don’t have sugars and still enjoy them. Any tips?
October 17th, 2011
Here’s yet another “summer” outside activity that we are not getting tired of. Nor are we tired of wearing our sleeveless seersucker summer dresses. Well, I don’t have one, but if I did, you can bet I’d be wearing it.
October 13th, 2011
It’s the middle of October, and yes, we’re still swimming in Texas. These pics are from our weekly swimming date with Doc & Belle; I think it’s the last time we’ll be swimming because the water temperature is finally getting cooler after a very very Very hot summer. And, the reason I got pics is because I didn’t get in the pool.
I also got some great video of Carlee swimming. She’s quite the little squirming tadpole. I can’t keep her out of the pool, and she swims so fast and so far that I have to watch her all the time. Doc & Belle aren’t just “back-up”. They’re vital swimming companions.
Dear Summer of 2011, you treated us well in the pool. I’m still tan from my water aerobics classes (which ended just last week) and subsequent swims with Doc & Belle & the kids. however, I’m a little tired of all the heat. Fall on the calendar started 3 weeks ago, which actually means nothing in Texas, but this pregnant woman is really ready to have some relief from all this heat.
October 12th, 2011
Last weekend my cousin Jesse got married. They had one-time use cameras on each table at the reception, so Colby took this as his mission to take pics of everyone… many times over. So, I gave him my iPhone and told him to have at it. I deleted a lot, but I thought these were really cute. (Obviously he didnt take the ones he was in, but he did have everyone posing. I see a budding photographer in the works, just like his dad.)
October 11th, 2011
Yesterday Kevin and I attended a fantastic one-day parenting conference at our church called Extreme Home Parenting, led by Mark Holmen of Faith @Home. Kevin and I have always been proponents of teaching our kids at home first before taking them to church, and Mark Holmen talked a lot about how a lot of families “do church” rather than give to the church – we should come to church filled rather than needing to be filled.
Yesterday morning, he preached on Deuteronomy 6, especially verses 5-12. (I’m linking to NIV because that’s the version he read from that morning, but he did talk about using different versions of the Bible for study.) If you were unable to hear this message, it will be on KBTX this Sunday morning at 10 am cst, if you’d like to set your DVRs. Or, FBC has copies of the cd that you can get from the church office. I loved his emphasis on praying blessings over your children. For his child, he used Numbers 6:24-26 -
May the Lord bless you
and protect you.
25 May the Lord smile on you
and be gracious to you.
26 May the Lord show you his favor
and give you his peace. (NLT)
Last night I sang a version of this to our kids before bed, and Kennedy kept asking me to sing it over and over again. So I did!
In the Extreme Home Makeover, Mark mentioned that not every family’s faith walk would look exactly the same. Some families do devotions in the morning (which is clearly not us – we like lunch time devos) and some parents get on their knees in front of the bed to pray, some families keep prayer jars or boxes and some families do prayer journals or prayer trees. Kevin immediately elbowed me when he said “prayer journals”, because we know how much all of our kids love to write and draw, and while the other options seem a little foreign to us, this is one that we could keep up. And, my mom is a huge fan of prayer journaling – I have learned my journaling/writing skills from her and am all too thrilled to be able to pass them down to my kids.
So, here’s our first attempt at prayer journaling with the kids. I gave each of the kids a spiral notebook that I got for 5 cents each at Office Depot last month. We introduced it today slowly; the kids got to decorate the front and back covers of their journal this afternoon, and tonight we had Colby write some prayer requests down (tomorrow we’ll have the girls draw pictures and write). Then we all took turns praying out loud individually for these requests. The advantage of journaling is being able to look back and review, to see what still needs prayer and what God has done in answering these requests.
In this age of self-comparison and “keeping up with the Joneses” (love you, Joneses!), I won’t pretend to think that this will work perfectly, nor do I think it’s the best way to do prayer for every family. But, I am blessed to live in a nation where we have the freedom to worship God in the way that is best for each family, and to be able to teach our kids at home before we drop them off anywhere else.
What works best for your family – how does your family do “faith at home”?
October 10th, 2011
I made a few trips to Walgreens last week – there seems to be one one every corner in this town, and not every one had the pads that were free after RR. I figured I’d stock up for when Baby Lightning Jesus (or whatever her name is) gets here.
I spent a little over $3 out of pocket for all of these items, and I still have $2 RR left over. My kids were excited about the gummi worms, and I loved that they were free!
(Anybody else besides Tiffany get paid for the Brita pitcher? By Friday, I couldn’t find one. Carlee also pulled the [empty] shopping cart over on top of her, so I was a little distracted that day.)
October 5th, 2011
It’s 10/4, good buddy, and here’s my 4 kids.
October 4th, 2011
The girls watched me paint my nails one day, so they asked they could have their nails painted. I had no idea they’d want their daddy to paint!
pic taken April 2011.
He did such a good job, I’m booking him when I can’t see my toes anymore. Which might be tomorrow…
September 28th, 2011
I have 3 kids. This means I have a wide variety of appetites to please. If I try a new recipe for dinner, it’s a pretty good bet that none of the kids will like it but Kevin and I will love it.
This recipe, all the kids loved, except Colby didn’t want the tortilla. Here’s what I did.
I used these spices on top of about 1 lb. of tilapia filets.
Then I wrapped each piece in foil.
And put it in the oven at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
It turned out super yummy on top of flour tortillas, with shredded cabbage and sour cream mixed with guacamole. Wish I had taken a pic of that too!
September 25th, 2011
All the kids were given little Bibles when we had their baby dedication service at church. Now I think our church/preschool ministry gives a full-size preschool Bible to the little one and his/her family. I can’t believe these kiddos will be reading stories to our newest little one very soon.
Pic taken January 2011. When Carlee still had a “dinky”…. so glad we are rid of that thing.
September 21st, 2011
Told you I got bigger. And wow, my hair is getting long.
How far along: 23 weeks in that pic, at time of posting 24, almost 25 weeks.
Size of baby: 1.3 pounds, “about the size of a small melon” according to my Pregnancy app on my iPhone. I look like I’m carrying a small melon, don’t I?
Maternity clothes: My XS shirts are starting to show my belly! I have started wearing some of my M (bigger) maternity shirts because they’re really cute and I’m tired of the XS stuff anyway. It’s been so hot that I’ve been sweating buckets, which means I get to change clothes a lot.
Movement: Tonight Colby felt the baby kick his hand a couple of times. I thought the look on his face was so precious because he realized what was happening! I’ll have to get it on video… he is so sweet.
Sleep: Eh. Not so good. I’ve been using a couple of different pregnancy pillows and have finally just settled on my 2 king pillows – one in front, one in back. I have no idea if Kevin is still sleeping in the same bed as I am.
What I miss: being able to run, bike, & otherwise exercise like a non-pregnant person. I saw a billboard advertising the first-ever B/CS Marathon & 1/2 Marathon. It will be on Dec. 11th. There’s always next year.
Cravings: still don’t like sweets all that much, but (again) since it’s been so hot I can’t drink enough water. Iced tea is a possible craving. I got a new(to me) bread machine for my birthday and I made 2 loaves of homemade bread last week. Guess I should lay off since my glucose test is in 3 weeks?
Symptoms: Heartburn! Started taking medicine daily (just 10 mg.) and it’s definitely worse when I go to sleep at night. I’m trying to go to the bathroom twice before I get in the bed, so I can save myself a trip in the middle of the night. And tired. Very tired.
Best moments of the month: I hinted at this last week, but we are excited to share IT’S A GIRL! Colby was pretty crushed he wasn’t having a baby brother, but I am not worried at all about him loving this baby. Plus, Carlee has already laid claim to this baby (“MY baby”). Kennedy is having too much fun at dance and pre-K. :)
We don’t have a name picked out yet, although I’m trying to convince Kevin of a name I really like. He has turned down pretty much every name except for this one, so I’m holding out for it…
September 12th, 2011
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