A few of my favorite people......

they really are.....ya know!

Xander, Haylie and Dylan.....my beautiful nephews and niece.....they make me laugh. they make me smile. they make me happy. and sometimes....they make me a little crazy but I still love them like crazy!!!!

 

 

Haylie was my first baby.....I guess you could call her my practice kid (you know.....before I had my own) and I like to think that I am one of her most favorite people ever (that could just be in my head though)! She is a tomboy to the core.....soccer, basketball, she even gave boxing a try.....she might be the next quarterback for her school, never know with this girl!

 

The little brown bear next to Haylie in the above picture.....that would be Dylan! He is the root to a lot of my craziness.....he has spunk. attitude. imagination. He doesn't always listen to me so well and I worry about the trouble he may get Owen in as they grow older. But he also has a HUGE heart, a very adventurous side, he is a funny little sh*t (there is just really no better way to put it) and he has a way of putting a smile on anyones face!

 

Then we have little Xander and I mean little. He is 4 months older than Evan but a full head shorter and probably 10 lbs lighter. Him and Evan are just the best little buddies you have ever seen. They play. they laugh. they just have fun. Xander was our families unexpected little surprise. Natalie brought him home at 4 days old when a family member wasn't quite able to take care of him at the time and he has never left and if all goes as it looks like it will.....he will forever be in our family! He is no different to us than any of the other kids.....we sure do love our Xan man!!!!

 

I'm pretty fond of their mama too! She is one of my closest friends, she's been there for the birth of all my kiddos and i've been there for hers (at least the 2 she birthed). I know she will always be there for me just like I will for her! The guy in the picture. Well that would be my brother. We aren't close. At all. He just doesn't have much interest in me or my family. It is what it is. I wish it were different but it is not. I wish him well in his life, he has an amazing family and I hope he never forgets it!!!!

 

I hope these kids know that I am always always here for them and I have their backs if they ever need anything. Haylie, Dylan and Xander......I Love you more than words can say!!!!!

On the last day of summer break......

we got out the old playdoh and made some masterpieces.....

 

I took some pics of the kids working with the playdoh and I cannot look at this series of pics without laughing out loud, just look at Evan in the following pics......

 

 



 

 

 

Do I have him trained to smile for the camera or what?

 

He finally got tired of posing!

 

Rylie made a gorgeous flower! 

 

Evan made himself a sandwich! 

 

And Katelin made a very colorful ball! 

 

And one more that my darling "ladylike" first born made.....

yes...it is poop, she wanted to try to trick someone with it!!!

 

34 Weeks!

 

At this point i'm really not feeling to bad.....just really really tired and pretty much like I am in a sauna all the time! I cannot wait to actually be cold again! Every once in a while I think Kinley will get on a nerve and my lower back hurts but it's nothing like when I was pregnant with Evan....I could hardly walk most of the time!

 

Last week Jeane was gone delivering a baby during my appointment so Stephanie (her nurse) just copied my book that I write my levels in and let me know Jeane would call me. She called the next day and as expected she said I needed to see the perinatologist so they could determine the best course of action with my GD. I saw the perinatologist yesterday and he moved my meds to 3 times a day and so far so good....my levels seem to be doing pretty good. I see them again in a week.

 

I saw Jeane today and had another sono where they checked for growth. 4 weeks ago when they checked she was measuring a little small and her guessed weight was 3 lbs 2 oz (though i'm not too sure that weight is real accurate with sonos). Today she is weighing in about 4 lbs 12 oz. Her measurements are measuring her small for her gestational age and I guess her head is teeny tiny. In 4 weeks time she has grown like it's only been 2 weeks and 5 days instead of 4 weeks. I had Katelin, Brianna (a little girl i'm watching a couple days a week) and Evan with me so it was a bit distracting so I may have missed a few details....they won't be with me next week so it will be easier to talk to Jeane. I think she said her head is about 2 weeks behind on growth. Even my belly is measuring at 33 weeks not 34.

 

Like Jeane said she isn't overly concerned but with the GD we are kinda walking a fine line here. If we deliver to early we are risking her lungs not being developed enough (they can develop slower with GD) but if we don't deliver early enough than we worry about the placenta beginning to deteriorate (which it can do earlier with GD). So we will do the regular quick sonos the next 2 weeks and then another growth check in 3 weeks instead of waiting 4 and if she still isn't growing like she should than she will have to be delivered then. If she is growing better than we will deliver at 39 weeks. Like I said, I has some distractions but I either stayed the same weight from 2 weeks ago or lost a pound (since I didn't actually see Jeane last week, I didn't have to be weighed!)

 

Since I am VBAC I cannot be induced unless my cervix is favorable but Jeane said with this being baby #5 she would expect my cervix to be dialating at 37 weeks but like she said.....we will cross that bridge when we get there.

 

I am trying not to worry and I know everything will be fine, there is absolutely nobody that I trust more than Jeane to get Kinley here safe and sound. But....this is all new to me..... i've experienced some drama with my deliveries before but i've just never really had problems like this with any of my other pregnancies so it's hard not to worry about her. The small head size is probably my biggest concern but again I know it will be fine. Just want to get my sweet baby girl here healthy and happy!!!! My due date is Oct. 9 but it looks like we can narrow things down approximately sometime between Sept. 19 and Oct. 2.  

 

Here is me at 33 weeks (haven't got the 34 week pic off the camera yet)

 

 

And Kinley's little corner of the world, her and Katelin will be sharing a room so hopefully that works out okay! I am still needing to get her bed set and waiting on letters to spell out her name, that will go above her crib on the pink wall. I looked and looked for some and they were all like $17 a letter and that seemed ridiculous to me so I finally found some on ebay that a lady will custom make for less than $4 a letter.....any color, any font and she will put any color ribbons on it. So I am still trying to decide if I should go with white to match furniture or go with creme. And the little ribbons.....should I do green to add a touch of a cool color or stick with pink and purple....i'm happy to hear any and all opinions!!!! So we are pretty much ready for her whenever she makes her appearance.....just need to buy some itty bitty diapers!!!! 

 

Evan's 2nd Birthday: Under Construction!

We went with a construction theme this year and it turned out pretty cute!

Here are the invites:

My Birthday boy.....



how cute is he?!?!?!

We had good foods and snacks and thanks to pinterest I got ideas to turn the trucks to serving platters....it turned out super cute!

Of course there were presents and Evie got lots of trucks.....and he LOVES trucks!!!

He really liked his cake.....

of course, all he wanted to do was drive the truck down the road of icing!

And then there was the toughest pinata we have ever had, usually our pinatas don't make it through all the big kids....well I think everyone got at least seconds if not third turns with this one!

It was a great day with great friends and great food.....we appreciate everyone who came to help us celebrate our amazing little boy turning 2!!!

Happy 2nd Birthday Evan!!!

Is it really possible???? My little boy is 2....crazy! I love seeing his personality grow as he grows, i'm also a little sad.....my last little boy is growing up:(

Today was pretty laid back, still trying to get into the back to school routine but we did go out for a little birthday celebration. Evan LOVES trains so we went to Fritz's for dinner!



He loves watching the trains at Fritz's!

And....we of course had to let him ride the little train, Katelin and Owen each went for a ride with him and Rylie just played with the train whistle she talked us into buying!

When we got home we let him open a few presents and since his favorite place is outside we just did it there!

And it was a school night so we had to get everyone ready for bed but we let him play with his new toys for just a little bit and of course......whenever one of the kids gets new toys....all the kids want to check them out!!!!

Happy Birthday baby boy.....you bring so much joy and so much laughter to our lives....we love you more than you will ever ever know!!!!

We are having his party this weekend so stay tuned!

First Days of School!!!

Stress, anxiety, fear....that pretty much sums up how I felt about back to school! This was a big year in our house.....Rylie starting middle school as a 5th grader, Owen being the oldest Farage kid at the elementary school and Katelin starting preschool this year.....all this had my stomach in knots and there is not a lot of room in there for knots because Kinley is pretty much taking up all the space!

We had gotten our back to school shopping done, I try to buy the kids decent book bags so they don't fall apart so they had gotten 2 years out of their old ones so this year everybody got a new book bag......i'm sure you can figure out who's is who's!


Rylie and Owen started on Monday with a half day.....don't they look beautiful and so grown up?!?!?

Rylie had a little trouble going to sleep on Sunday but she got up on her own at 6:30 Monday morning and if you know Ry that is so not like her. She was nervous but got up and ready for her day and Daddy took her to Abby's so they could ride to school together. I picked her up and she liked school but hated her teacher. Tuesday morning she asked me if she could just skip school for one day.....uh...NO! So back to her normal self, I had to push her to get up and ready but she did and off to Abby's she went. Oh how happy was I when I picked her up today to hear.....I like my teacher now but the lunch was disgusting. That's an easy fix....I will make her lunch along with Owen's in the mornings! She is still struggling with opening her locker but I guess she has a girl near by who helps her. I really hope to see her blossom and grow with middle school....open up to new people and not be so shy. I really think she will do really well!!!! She also decided against playing the cello and is going with the viola which will be easier to carry and to keep away from all the little ones in our home!

My O man....the big kid at the school now! He was so scared to go to school. He kept saying i'm scared and I would ask him why? He wanted his teacher from last year not a new teacher. I assured him that once he went and got comfortable that he would be fine. Owen doesn't talk at school, he does to his friends but not in class and not to adults unless they prompt him to say something. He also shows no emotions at school....he is just that type of guy! So of course, as his mama.....I worry about him but he is also quick to adapt and he already has. When I picked him up Monday and asked how is day was, he says....horrible! O...why was it horrible? I got beat up.........and then he grins! Okay really....how was your day? Good and  he likes his teacher and that's about all I got out of him. Tuesday he was fine with me dropping him off in the circle drive and walking in himself and all his anxietys seemed to be gone......whew....big relief for me!

And then there is my princess. Katelin has always been the more outgoing child not nearly as shy as the older two so I always thought things like dance class and preschool would be a piece of cake with her. I'm not sure what changed but for about the past year she has become real clingy with me.....wants to always be with me! So when I started having trouble with her wanting to go to dance (which she has always loved to go to no problem) I started worrying about leaving her places. She started afternoon preschool today so I imagined the worse knowing it probably wouldn't be as bad as I imagined. So she picked out a pretty new dress and we got her all ready and I may have bribed her with a new baby doll if she went to school like a big girl and then we headed for the school. In the car she ask if I was going to leave her there? Uh Oh....lump in my throat....yes but not for very long and Owen's classroom is right next door to yours. She ask if Owen can stay in her room with her and I explain that he can't and she ask if Ry Ry will be there and I explain that she is at a different school and then she tells me she wants someone from our family to stay with her. I assure her that I will not leave her unless she is okay and let's just see how it goes. We arrive and talk with her teacher and hang up her book bag, she picks chocolate milk to go with her snack and sits on her spot on the class rug. Sigh....okay this is going well.....until she stands up and runs to me clinging to my leg.....uh oh! Other parents are still there and Miss Rachel is singing a hello song for each kid, Katelin starts singing along and about 4 songs in she goes back to the rug. Okay another big sigh.....I didn't want to sneak out so I whisper to her that Evie and I are going but will be back shortly and she starts to whine a little and then Miss Rachel draws her picture to sing her song and that caught her attention so we left. I was nervous for 3 hours and then we get there to pick her up and she looks as happy as can be. Her teacher said she did great, she participated and sang songs! When she got in the car she was so excited, she got to play with play doh and she said she likes going to school! Big smile for Mama! And Monday thru Thursday Owen gets to meet her at the back of the school and I get to pick them up there instead of the big car line out front so......SCORE!!!!

Showing off her book bag!

Sitting on the rug in her classroom!

 

Photo Challenge Weeks 28, 29, 30, 31 and 32

No I have not forgotten about my photo challenge.....just been busy so i'm going to bombard you with pictures so I can be caught up!!!!

Week 28

7-09-2012
Dance Party


7-10-2012
Big sis playing connect 4 with Evie!

7-11-12
Dang it....missed this day!

7-12-2012
Dog sitting Hope.....Chet (Mr. anti little dogs) even took a liking to her!

7-13-2012
This is what I get when she doesn't want her picture taken.

7-14-2012
I wish more places had this.....it's nice not to have to waddle so far!

7-15-2012
Watching Daddy weed eat at big brother Matthews house!

Week 29

7-16-2012
Dang it....again!

7-17-2012
This kid loves to wear helmets....even while coloring!

7-18-2012
Only pic for the day.....28 weeks!

7-19-2012
Grrrrr....missed another one!

7-20-2012
My sweet boy....man I love him!!!!

7-21-2012
Evie and Xander being goof balls!

7-22-2012
Mommy's little sunshine were giving away free rompers and I got one....I bought a few hair accessories too!

Week 30

7-23-2012
Evan helping the big kids unload the dishwasher.

7-24-2012
Now he is fixing the vacuum....and yes he is in the same shirt as the picture from the day before.....one of those nights that he fell asleep before jammies were put on....it happens!

7-25-2012
Why she should let Mama comb her hair!

7-26-2012
Did it again!!!!

7-27-2012
My finger poker for my gestational diabetes!

7-28-2012
Katelin decorated my belly and then she asked me if i knew why she put hearts......she said it's because she loves baby Kinley *tear*!!!!

7-29-2012
Going from yellow to pink (at least 2 walls, the other 2 are purple now)

Week 31

7-30-2012
Cute little hair bows....love 'em!

7-31-2012
Happy Birthday Daddy.....he worked all day and we had a laid back night, the kids are hiding behind a rug because the birthday boy has a water bottle....such a big kid!!!

8-01-2012
My view!

8-02-2012
So sweet....love it when she cuddles with her daddy!

8-03-2012

First night in the bottom bunk of his new big boy bed....so proud of my boy!

8-04-2012

My beautiful kiddos.....the day of our family reunion....I LOVE them!

Week 32

Finally!

8-05-2012

Cousins coloring on the HUGE box from the bunk bed....just missing Dylan.

8-06-2012

Not sure what he is looking at but it must be intense!

8-07-2012

Have I mentioned this kid loves trains....we went to Fritz's for dinner and Oh. My. Goodness. He went crazy....Chet and I couldn't even look at the menu for about 10 minutes because he wouldn't calm down about seeing the train going around....too funny!

8-08-2012

Can't wait to see my baby girl in these hats....I highly recommend anyone with babies to check out l'il bits on FB.....some adorable stuff and she will often have stuff marked way down!

8-09-2012

Meet the teacher and supply drop off.....here are the kids' new backpacks.

8-10-2012

Fun with playdoh!

8-11-2012

The kids were playing with this walker so they dressed up as old people....please meet....Cousin Krista, Grandma Susie and Uncle Frank! Love their imaginations!!!!