They Grow Up So Fast

There hasn't been a whole lot going on here lately. I did manage to work my schedule out so that I could take the kids to the beach with my mom and we had a great time. Joey had a blast playing in the sand as usual and Skylar did great! We managed to spend a couple days on the beach and go the pool a couple of times :) I can't believe miss Skylar is already 3 months old. Time goes by so fast now. Joey's going to be 3 soon and Cameron is in middle school. Wow! He was 3 years old when Frankie and I started dating. Now I really feel old ;) Lately we've just been working and spending time at the house. We went to the greek festival last weekend with some friends and had fun eating and listening to the music. Halloween is coming up soon and Skye is going to be Tinkerbell. It's so fun buying little girl costumes. We still haven't found anything for Joey. He's so picky, we have to find something that doesn't go on his head. Last year he was a vampire and we had to bribe him with doughnuts just to get the cape and necklace on him lol. I'm sure we'll find something soon. Below are a couple pics from the beach and of the kids. Enjoy! ~*~Beach~*~

~*~Kids~*~

2 Months Old Already... Where Does The Time Go

I can't believe our little girl will be 2 months old tomorrow! She is doing so much better now and has been sleeping through the night since Aug. 5... yay! We tried switching her to soy formula due to her fussiness and she became constipated within 24hrs which made things horrible! We immediately switched her back to her regular formula... poor thing. We decided she was just a colicky baby and found some colic relief drops that have been a lifesaver. She is a much happier baby now. No more screaming the whole time we're awake =o)
Joey is still a wonderful big brother and so is Cameron. They both help out as much as they can. We took Joey to the Zoo last month so that he could have some one on one time with Frankie and I. He really seemed to enjoy it, and so did my mom. Little did I know she had never been to the zoo either lol.
I decided to take the kids to West Virginia my last week of maternity leave. We took a trip up to Canaan to see Mawmaw and then Seebert so that Nanny could see them too. It was a nice trip. Skylar was fussy most of that week (hadn't started the drops yet) but I'm still glad that both great grandmothers were able to spend time with her.
I returned to work on Aug. 6th and must say the transition was much better than I'd anticipated. Having a break from the 24hr mommy role is nice. Don't get me wrong I love spending time with my kids but having some adult interaction is a must. Work has been good too; having 25lbs less to carry around makes the 12hr shift much more doable.
Other than that things have been pretty calm around here. We've learned to balance the needs of two small children and trade off who gets up during the night with Skylar. We recently switched Joey over to a toddler bed and it's like he hasn't noticed. We were worried about him getting out of bed by himself but so far he still seems to think he has to wait on us which is fine. I plan to go to the beach with the kids and Nana at the end of the month so hopefully they both behave so we can enjoy ourselves lol.
Below are some pics to catch up on this months activities!

~*~Zoo Pics~*~

~*~WV Trip~*~

~*~2 Month Pics~*~

Spoke Too Soon

Wow... what a couple of weeks. I think we spoke too soon about Miss Skylar. Her cute little cry has now turned in to an all out scream that is ear piercing. For the past week and a half she has been unconsolable every night from about 11-2. Occassionally the episode will occur earlier in the day but its still exhausting. On top of that Mr. Jo Jo is starting to regress rapidly. He wants to be held all the time, is getting real interested in her bottles, and only wants mommy or daddy to change his diapers. Needless to say we are all exhausted and running on fumes.
Fourth of July was fun. We went to Oakboro (a small town near us. We took the kids to the parade that morning and Joey really enjoyed it. He liked seeing the firetrucks, tractors and motorcycles. I think his favorite part was getting candy though. That night we went back out there to watch fireworks,
Not much else has been going on here. I feel like we're buried in dirty diapers and bottles and that's what occupies most of our days right now. Tomorrow we plan to have a day for Joey. We are taking him to the zoo for the first time but we won't have Skylar. This way he has a day to himself with mommy and daddy devoting all of our attention to him. Should be fun... fun but hot ;)

Skylar is Here

I've been trying for days to do this post but the computer kept messing up so I'm doing it on my phone now. Miss Skylar has arrived and she is an amazing baby!! The first night at the hospital was rough because the nurse advised us to only give so much formula so she kept waking up. Now she sleeps and we wake her every 4 hours to eat and during the day she lets us know every 4 hours. She hardly ever cries, even during diaper changes. She only seems to cry when she's cold or has gas. Her cry is so precious. She sounds like a squeak toy :)

The delivery went pretty good. We arrived at 7 for the induction. I had already been having contractions every 5-6 minutes on the way to the hospital. The pitocin was started around 7:45. It was then stopped about an hour later because I was contracting so often I was about to pull the bedrail off and the doctor had not arrived. Not to mention I didn't have my epidural yet. I received my epidural around 9 and was in heaven. I couldn't feel a thing, not even the pressure of a contraction. I began pushing around 10 and she arrived at 10:22. The cord was wrapped around her neck twice and when the Dr tried to unwrap it, the cord snapped and covered her in blood.It's a little unsettling to see your Dr get covered in blood while delivering your child. I knew something was going on when they were having me turn and gave me oxygen (and the Dr. suggested using the vacuum). But in the end we had a healthy baby girl. She was 8lbs 8oz and 21in. long with a 35cm head. Her measurments almost matched Joey's except for the weight (He was 7lbs 11oz, 21in and 36cm head).

We've been home since Wednesday and things have been going well. Joey loves helping out with "Baby Skylar" as he calls her. She gets more kisses and I love yous than everyone else in the family combined. I'm really glad he has taken to her so well. We gave him a truck at the hospital to be from Skylar and he loves it. He lets you know that Baby Skylar gave it to him.

Below are some photos from the delivery and coming home. Enjoy!

Birthday... With a lil Blues

Yes... today is my birthday... I'm 29. I've decided I won't acknowledge anymore birthdays from this day forward because I don't want to put "3" in front of my age.

Had a Dr. appointment today and not a whole lot has changed since last week. I'm currently 2.5-3cm and still 60% effaced. I was really hoping to be further along than that. I didn't realize how "fortunate" I was to not work my first or third trimester with Joey. I'm so miserable at this point that the thought of going back to work in the morning is depressing. If I had the PTO time I would definitely be taking off this last week prior to my scheduled induction on the 18th.

A few weeks ago we had Cameron's 12th birthday party. He wanted a pool party so that's what we did. It didn't seem to phase him or his friends that the pool was radioactive green. Yuck. I just couldn't force myself to get in there but the kids had a good time so I guess that's all that matters.

Joey is currently a lil monsta!! Nothing makes the child happy. One minute he will be this sweet loving child and the next he is screaming at the top of his lungs. He'll ask for his bottle and then when you give it to him he says he doesn't want it. That phrase occurs with just about anything he asks for, anything you hand him, or anything you try to feed him gets the "I don't like it". It's very frustrating. Hopefully this phase will pass quickly!

Not much else is happening right now. We're just sitting back, waiting for this little girl to finally arrive. Below are my monthly belly pics. Enjoy!

~*~3 months~*~

~*~4 months~*~

~*~5 months~*~

~*~6 months~*~

~*~7 months~*~

~*~8 months~*~

~*~8.5 months~*~

~*~9 months~*~
~*~9.5 months~*~

Countdown to Skye's Arrival

Today I'm 35 weeks pregnant and had an appointment this morning. Apparently I'm already 1.5 centimeters and 50% effaced. That's a little scary considering with Joey I didn't dilate until 38 weeks and then he was born at 39. Guess I need to get my bag packed and do my belly cast soon if I want one. I'm supposed to be induced in June 18th but it sounds like miss Skye is going to determine her own birthday.
Today I became the proud owner of a mini van. I never thought that would happen at 28 years old. But when you've got 3 youngins, you gotta do whatcha gotta do.
The only other news is being on day shift now. I really enjoy seeing my family every night. Not to mention my days off feel so much longer and more productive. I'm gonna miss the extra income and my coworkers but overall the change will be good.

You Will Be Missed

I'm sad to report that a week ago today my uncle lost his battle with cancer. He fought so hard up until the very end but I'm glad he no longer has to suffer. He was an amazing person that always made those around him smile/laugh. Sometimes it still doesn't feel real. When I look back at important times in my life- graduations, birthdays, holidays, trips to camp- he was there. I will always treasure the bond that we had. I feel we were pretty close for an uncle and niece. I'm thankful I was able to hug him one last time and tell him that I loved him the night before he passed. It's been a tough week for the whole family/friends. I continue to pray for my aunt, cousins, grandmother, mother, and uncles as they try to deal with his loss as well. I can't imagine losing my husband/father/son/brother.

Looking back on the laughs is what helps get you through times like this. My memories of Pooh Pooh include- Barnard Bashes, the spray on hair running in his eyes, pee wee herman dance/laugh, weekly trips to Kristophers and the grilled cheese incident and sugar packets, being at my softball games but chanting football cheers (ie: push em back push em back waaaaaay back), the ride home in the camero when the "clutch" messed up, getting in the river when the water was up and he was holding richard and I b/c of the current and told us the water might get warm for a few seconds, the infamous cat call rrrreeeeaaaarrrr, always saying "what" while trying to look so innocent, the chuck taylors with budweiser shorts and fishing hat at camp, JD!, beer chime mugs, "clogging", hearing the story about roasting a large "marshmellow", James Taylor concerts, and so many other stories that brought a smile to our faces and will continue to do for years to come.

I love you and miss you dearly uncle Dick. But I know you are in a better place watching over and protecting all of us!
~*~ Years ago at Camp Clogging w/Elaine... Not sure What he did To Me~*~

~*~ Halloween '03~*~

~*~ Wish it wasn't so dark... Shows his Randomness~*~

~*~Halloween '06- Longhorns Fan Costume~*~

~*~ Our Bachelor/Bachelorette Party '07~*~