Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween Everyone! This year was especially special becuase it was Mason and Summer's first Halloween and we were able to spend it together along with our families! It was so fun dressing up the kiddos, eating homemade chili and spider bread as well as trick or treating the neighborhood during the only dry part of the day! Kylie was a vampire witch and Mason was a pumpkin.

What a SUPER fun Halloween we had! It was SO fun celebrating Mason's and Summer's first Halloween together! We enjoyed having our family over to celebrate this fun holiday over chili and spiderbread. Kylie and Emma enjoyed trick or treating while us parents tried to stay warm. Thankfully it was a dry Halloween, but a cold one!

Cheer!

The 2012 cheer season has come to an end, but what a fun season it was! Kylie learned several new cheers, made new friends and enjoyed stunting the most. She was also awarded "most creative cheers!" We are very thankful for the hard working coaches whom volunteered every moment of their time so that our kids could enjoy something that they love. Thank you! Go Eagles!

Rolling over

I had just set Mason down to play on his activity mat to play when he grabbed his feet and rolled over for the FIRST time!! I was SUPER happy to be able to witness this milestone first hand as I was home!! I took SEVERAL pictures and also took a video! Once he realized what he had mastered, he kept doing it over and over. It was SO neat to watch! But, also sad because this marks the beginning of his mobility...watch out! 

My buddy!

I am SO in love with my Mason's smile and laugh! Here we are at my sister's enjoying cousin time!

Pumpkin Patch

One of our favorite things to do this time of year is to visit a local pumpkin patch. It has been a tradition of ours since Kylie was born. The past 4 years we have gone to the Plant Farm which isn't a traditional pumpkin patch, but the proceeds benefit local literacy programs. We enjoyed walking around picking out the perfect pumpkins, but didn't stay too long because it was a REALLY cold day!!

Daddy Time

My boys!! These boys were buddies from the start! Watching them interact is so much fun as a father's love is so precious to his little boy. Love them both SOOO much!

Family Time!

I love that everyone can enjoy the joy that Mason brings to our lives!

Sleeping Babies

What fun do my sister and I have playing real babies these days! I can't emphasize enough all of the joy and happiness I feel sharing parenthood with my sister. We are so blessed and lucky to be able to share this experience together as well as our babies being only 14 weeks a part! Kylie actually took these pictures in the back seat while we were all on our way home from Babies R Us. They were done!

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Life as a working mom of 2!

 I LOVE my mornings with my kiddos- Kylie is pretty self-sufficient, but I still enjoy helping her with her hair and making her a fun breakfast such as Mickey Mouse pancakes or a fresh fruit yogurt parfait. Mason is FULL of smiles and always enjoys a bottle in my arms before heading to daycare. I really enjoy the little bit of quality time I get with my babies before dropping them off. It makes for a GREAT start to the day.  However, it also breaks my heart that I have to leave them in the care of others as I miss them SO much; however, I do play spy and utilize the daycare cameras in each room so I can see at ANY time during the day what they are doing (Mason is there all day, Kylie is there before and after school). It is really neat, but can become even more bothersome knowing that your baby is in a swing or bouncy chair and not being held. But, I also understand the ratio of teachers to babies and they cannot possible hold, love and give every baby all the attention they need and deserve. Still doesn’t make it easy.

Thankfully, work flies by (for the most part) and then off to pick up my kids. I also LOVE picking my kiddos up because they are always so happy to see me: full of hugs and smiles! We come home to greet daddy and dinner in the works. I prepare lunches and bottles for the next day, have dinner together as a family (we always eat together and talk about what our day entailed) Next, Jesse and I work as a team (most evenings, haha) and help with homework, bath time and end the evening snuggling in bed with a good book. Once I get to my bed I either catch up on FB or read my book and magazines that I am always behind on. The week days are so busy and crazy, but I know that working mom’s do it all of the time with no complaints! WAY TO GO!!

Returning to work now of a mother of two, has definitely been a transition and adjustment for me. Because the week nights are so busy, I sometimes feel overwhelmed and frustrated that I spend my evenings checking off my to do list and not getting enough quality time with my babies! But, like everything else I make the most of it. For instance, after Mason has his morning bottle I sing to him (he enjoys my out of tune songs) and play with him until it is time to leave. In the evenings I cuddle with Kylie and read or we do a craft or play a game. Jesse is also great as he always plays with the kids; making them smile and laugh. Not every night is perfect or goes as planned, but life is always about making adjustments and it is important to make the ones that work best to meet your family’s needs. We are always trying to do better!

This time has provided me with a greater appreciation for full time working moms as I have been so lucky to reduce my hours to part time. I cannot emphasize enough how thankful I am to have this opportunity and thus spend MORE valuable time with my kids! I am NOT going to miss those rushed evenings! I am going to enjoy my time with my kids because there is going to come a day where they are not going to want to spend as much time with me. These are long days, but short years and I want to enjoy them the best that I can!

Feel free to share with me what works best for you! What keeps your home running smoothly? What are the best time savers? I appreciate all of your feedback and ideas! Thanks!

How could you leave these precious faces?? LOVE them!!

Happy 4 Months Mason!

We have enjoyed this past month SO much! Mason is growing so big and doing so much! He is ALWAYS smiling, loves to eat his hands and is babbling all the time. It has been so fun hearing him discover his voice and I am eagerly waiting to hear "MA-MA"! Da-da would suffice too....haha!

We are so in love with our handsome guy!

Crib time...

I was so overjoyed when my new niece arrived that the fact that she was getting Mason's neutral basinet completely left my mind....After I learned of my sister's discharge date, I realized that it was official. Mason is now 3 1/2 months; most newborns stay in their basinet’s until 3 months, so I was already lucky he was still sleeping in this, but at the same time putting him in a crib, in his own room down the hallway seemed SOOO far away. Truly, he had been waking up intermittently throughout the night because he would turn into a slanted position and rub his head on the side causing him to wake up. It was proof that he needed more space, but I LOVE having my baby right next to me all night long that putting him into his room just down the hall seemed SOO far away.....but I did it and could tell immediately that he was ready for that change as he slept (and continues to) SOOO well!!