The Bignell Family

Callie - 10 Months

2012-02-14T20:45:00.004-06:00

Callie has been a busy girl the past few weeks, learning all kinds of new things.
I love this age so much, she is so much fun right now!

*Clapping
*So big
*Waves
*Gives kisses (with tongue) :)
*Loves listening to music
*Starting to stand a little bit by herself
*Favorite foods: crackers and bananas
*Loves taking baths
*Says Dada and Mama
*Has 2 teeth

Day 34 {2-3-12} Teeth! :)

Just Keep Swimming...

2012-02-09T21:40:00.000-06:00

After taking the summer off from swim lessons, Alexa has been back at the pool the past few months. She was SO happy to get back in the water and started right where she left off. They are moving her up to level 3 next week. She is going to be half the age of most of the other kids in her class! Maybe we have a future Olympian?? :)

This fall Braden started swim lessons too. We had no idea how it was going to go...he is nothing like his sister when it comes to water! The first day he barely put his feet in the water. And by the end of the first session (2 weeks long) he would get half his body in the water as long as he had a death grip on the side of the wall. Baby steps. He will now let go of the wall and get in with his instructors. And more importantly...he actually likes going!

Day 33 {2-2-12}

Project 365: Days 30-32

2012-02-09T20:45:00.000-06:00

Day 30 {1-30-12} Last Friday Alexa had a 100 day of school party and had to bring a bag of 100 little things. I'm not even sure what they did with them. I love that they are always doing fun things like that for them!

Day 31 {1-31-12} We had a lunch guest. :)

(I also took this picture that day. Last day of January and it was 45 degrees out. LOVE it!)

Day 32 {2-1-12} Braden will hate me for this someday but I think it's so cute! :)

Project 365: Days 16-29

2012-01-29T21:45:00.000-06:00

Day 16 {1-16-12} My kids LOVE yogurt. This won't even last them a week.

Day 17 {1-17-12} Being silly before swim lessons.

Day 18 {1-18-12} I was off doing something with Callie and came back into the kitchen and found Alexa and Braden holding hands while they were eating a snack. <3

Day 19 {1-19-12} One of Callie's favorite pastimes. Licking the patio door. Or windows. Or the front of the stove...

Day 20 {1-20-12} Friday night...homemade pizza and movies.

Day 21 {1-21-12} Saturday morning I started reading The Hunger Games and this was basically my view the rest of the day. I couldn't put it down.

Day 22 {1-22-12} The kids love all the extra Daddy time they get on weekends!

Day 23 {1-23-12} Bath time!

Day 24 {1-24-12} I love their relationship. I'm not saying they don't have their moments, because they definitely do! But most of the time they having having each other around. It melts my heart!

Day 25 {1-25-12} 5 days later I finished all 3 books. SO GOOD!! I can't wait for the movies to come out!

Day 26 {1-26-12} He cracks me up...

Day 27 {1-27-12} I saw this idea on Pinterest. You have 2 glasses...one with marbles for the pounds you want to lose and one for the pounds you have already lost. I like having a visual, it helps you see what you're working towards AND it's a great feeling moving a marble from one to the other. :) 1 month in and 13 pounds down!

Day 28 {1-28-12} My handsome husband. <3

Day 29 {1-29-12} Mmmmm, marshmallows. :)

Project 365: Days 10-15

2012-01-16T20:20:00.001-06:00

Day 10 {1-10-12} 50 degrees on January 10th in Wisconsin. LOVE it! We spent the afternoon at the park.

Day 11 {1-11-12} Day 1 of the Shred.

Day 12 {1-12-12} This picture turned out kind of blurry but I still love it. Braden and Callie have such a sweet bond and it melts my heart. He (most of the time, as long as she isn't trying to take his toys) is so sweet to her and nobody can make her laugh the way he does. He is going to be such a protective big brother.

Day 13 {1-13-12}

Day 14 {1-14-12} We can't go to the mall without riding the carousel.

Day 15 {1-15-12} Life with a baby. :)

My Boys

2012-01-12T21:02:00.000-06:00

Callie - 9 Months

2012-01-09T21:45:00.000-06:00

Our little peanut had her 9 month check today.
Besides finding out she had a double ear infection :( everything else looks great. I feel horrible for not knowing about the ears, but she hasn't been complaining about them. She must be a tough little girl!
And if that didn't make me feel like mother of the year, I didn't even know that she got her second tooth! Thanks to our pediatrician, we now know.

Weight: 25 pounds (99%)
Length: 28.5 inches (79%)
Head Circumference: 18 inches (90%)

Hip Update:
We went back into Gillette at the end of October for our first post harness check-up. They did x-rays and everything is growing exactly like it should be! We are SO thankful! We go in again when she turns one.
We were prepared for some developmental delays due to the time spent in her harness, but that wasn't going to stop this girl! I think she was our quickest to catch onto things. Army crawling before 5 months, pulling herself up by 6 months, and now she is trying her hardest to start walking. She will crawl into the closet to get a laundry basket so she can walk around pushing it. :)

Before we were ever even pregnant with Callie, I had friends with 3 or more kids say how different it is once you have your third and now I totally understand what they were talking about. I don't even know how to explain it or what it even is, but it has been awesome. We are enjoying every second of this sweet girl! Now if only time could slow down a tiny bit...

Day 9 {1-9-12} One of her favorite pastimes...the dishwasher. She LOVES the thing!

Little Diva

2012-01-09T21:43:00.000-06:00

Day 8 {1-8-12}

Resolutions

2012-01-08T21:15:00.001-06:00

Happy New Year!!
Long time no see, huh!? Apparently I needed a {long} {totally not planned} blogging break. However, one of my new years resolutions (I don't really make resolutions, so let's say "goals") is to get back into blogging. I miss it and it's my own little way of documenting our lives as our children grow up. So yeah...day 8, first post, not too bad, right!? :)

I am also starting over on Project 365.
New year. New start. Here we go...

Day 1 {1-1-12} The kids rang in the New Year with Grampa and Gramma and Matt and I actually got to go out with friends. Not sure who had more fun. :) AND it was Callie's first night away from home! My mom my disagree, but I think I did pretty well. ;)

Day 2 {1-2-12} Matt took the week between Christmas and New Years off so we had TEN whole days together. It was awesome! We spent almost the entire last day playing the new games that the kids got from Christmas.

Day 3 {1-3-12} I LOVE my planner. I would be lost without it.

Day 4 {1-4-12} My view while trying to prepare dinner. (Similar to breakfast, lunch and snacks.) I'm not gonna lie, I love it.

Day 5 {1-5-12} We grill all winter long anyway, but it is SO much better when it's mid 40s. (In January!)

Day 6 {1-6-12} I took a bunch of pictures of Braden this day and didn't realize until I sat down and started looking at them on my computer how grown up he is looking. :( WHERE did my baby boy go!?

Day 7 {1-7-12} My "studio" for taking Callie's 9 month pictures. (That would be my kitchen...)

Wordless Wednesday

2011-07-20T20:53:00.000-05:00

SHE'S OUT!!

2011-06-30T14:12:00.000-05:00

Notice anything missing???

No more harness!!!

We had another doctor appointment for her hips today and we were totally shocked when they told us she was done!
DONE!
Ahhhhh, I'm so excited!!
I will write more later but I just wanted to share our exciting news.
Thank you God for healing our baby girl so quickly!
Now it's time for some harness free snuggles. :)

Chopped

2011-06-29T21:45:00.000-05:00

Today my baby boy doesn't look so much like a baby anymore. :(

We talked a little bit about getting his hair cut short last week because he gets so sweaty and now with it getting hot out it's even worse. I called my sister in law and told her we had to come over and do it now otherwise I would probably change my mind. I really really didn't want to cut it but I knew he would be more comfortable with it shorter. Besides, it's just hair, it will grow back...right!?

Before

After

Doesn't he look like a totally different kid??
People keep asking what HE thinks about it and honestly...he really didn't care at all. I'm not sure he even knows we cut it. Such a boy. :)

They Make Me Smile :)

2011-06-17T22:20:00.009-05:00

Callie Update

2011-06-15T13:20:00.002-05:00

Last Thursday we had Callie's 2 month check-up.
(How is she two months old already!?!)
Anyway, the doctor said everything looks great and that she's perfect. We agree. :)
She also experienced her very first crying episode with real tears. He was looking in her ears and apparently she did not like that and started bawling. :( And then as soon as the poor little thing stopped the nurse came in to give her shots. Thankfully Matt came with (actually I always make him come with when there are shots involved) and stayed in the room with her while I stood out in the hall covering my ears.

Here's the stats on our sweet girl at 2 months (and 1 week) old.

Weight: 15 pounds (99 percentile)
Height: 23 inches (68 percentile) - Although I think our pediatrician's nurse was a little nervous to push or pull on her legs too much because the next day at Gillette they measured her at almost 24 inches.
Head Circumference: 16 inches (87 percentile)

Perfect indeed!!

And now the hip update...

Friday Matt and I took Callie back to Gillette for our first check since getting her harness. When we got there we went straight to the ultrasound room. It always seems to take such a long time but I'm sure they need to get very accurate pictures of the joints while they are moving them around. Callie did great though, at one point the girl doing the ultrasound stopped and said she needed her to not be moving around so much. Hello lady, you just took her harness off, of course she wants to be kicking her legs! They eventually got what they needed and then started looking and measuring and whispering. I told Matt that I hated them standing right in front of us whispering about all these numbers. He said even if they weren't whispering I would have no idea what they were talking about. Good point...but still. After more discussion they left to go talk to the radiologist. Waiting, waiting, pacing, waiting. It was probably only a few minutes but I was so nervous and anxious to hear what they found. Even though it had only been 3 weeks we have been praying that there would be progress, any progress. Just something to let us know that things were going in the right direction.

They came back in and one of the girls said she was making amazing progress.
Amazing progress!!
I instantly teared up and I think I almost hugged them. This was more than we were expecting! Her measurements (not exactly sure what that is, I think the angle of the bones???) are in the normal range on both sides! There is still some movement in the socket when they push down on her hips but even that is so much better than it was.
Amazing.
Progress.

So for now we keep doing what we have been doing and we will go back in another 3 weeks. I am trying really hard to not get my hopes up after such a great visit but I keep thinking that just maybe she will be out of this thing before Summer is over and she can wear cute little dresses and swimsuits and be able to put her little toes in the sand and sit in the pool. If not, it will be fine because we need to do what we need to do to get this fixed, but if so...how wonderful would that be!! :)

Then & Now

2011-06-14T13:05:00.000-05:00

April 6th, 2011

June 6th, 2011

Wordless Wednesday

2011-06-08T08:25:00.000-05:00

My Little Monkeys

2011-06-07T20:15:00.001-05:00

Callie - 2 Months

2011-06-06T13:55:00.002-05:00

Thank you for all the sweet comments on my last post! I feel like I came off a little bitter and I really didn't mean to, I usually try to have a much better attitude about the whole thing. I know people mean well when they talk about Callie in her harness and I definitely know I have said the same thing to other people in similar situations. I guess some days I just have a harder time than others. (I will have to remember to blog more on the better days.) :) Not that I don't want to share my honest feelings, I plan to continue doing that but I just don't want to sound ungrateful when people are just trying to be supportive. We are very thankful for all the support!!

On to the fun stuff...

Callie's first bottle.
Since Braden never took a bottle we wonder if we missed our opportunity with him because we didn't try to give him one until he was almost 3 months. So we decided we would try a little earlier with Callie and see what she would do. I pumped and put it in a bottle and Matt fed her. She had absolutely no problems with it! She finished the whole thing in just a couple minutes. We were laughing so hard because she finished, Matt burped her and she instantly fell asleep on his shoulder. It must have been hard work! :)

I really wasn't too worried if she would use a bottle or not since I am home, but now that she has the harness on and isn't suppose to be in her car seat for long periods of time it's nice to be able to run to the grocery store or wherever by myself and know that if she gets hungry Matt will be able to give her a bottle. I'm also happy to know that all the milk I have pumped will get used!

Callie has also become quite the smiley girl! She started giving little smiles around a month but they were so random. Now we can actually sit and talk to her and she will smile at us. I forgot how much fun it is when they start doing all this new stuff! Is there anything better than a cute little baby giving you big huge smiles!?

2 Months

*Still loves baths (Probably even more now that that is the only time she is out of her harness!)
*Loves to be held. Thank goodness for slings and Baby Bjorns!
*Has been sleeping GREAT! She slept through the night (9pm-6am) last week (May 30th) and has done a few 8 hour stretches since then too.
*Usually naps in the swing or on the couch...or in my arms. :)
*Loves watching Alexa and Braden talk to her.
*Just moved up to size 2 diapers (after a few too many blowouts it was time!)
*Likes to be rocked.
*Is trying to be a thumb sucker, but thankfully she is not very good at it. :) (I think it's adorable when babies suck their thumbs but not so much a 3 year old and since I can't take her thumbs away I'm just hoping it doesn't become a habit.)

We go in for her 2 month check this Thursday and back to Gillette for an ultrasound on Friday...hoping for some good news!!

2 Weeks Down...

2011-05-31T22:35:00.003-05:00

Hip Dysplasia: The abnormal formation of the hip joint in which the ball at the top of the thighbone (the femoral head) is not stable within the socket (the acetabulum).

We went into Gillette Children's 2 weeks ago to get information and figure out what we needed to do to fix Callie's hips and all the sudden there was several people in the room talking to us and putting her in a harness. I honestly don't even remember what was said because I was concentrating on not crying or grabbing her and running out of the room. Thankfully it wasn't a complete surprise. We had (mentally) prepared that she would be leaving with this thing on, just in case. It didn't make it any easier though.

So we are taking things one day at a time and figuring out life with a baby in a harness. The first couple days were the hardest. Callie did not like being confined and just wanted to be held. I felt so bad for her, we could tell she was just trying to get comfortable but couldn't. She has been a lot better the past week or so.

We were told that she could be out of the harness for about 30 minutes a day, basically long enough to change her onesie in the morning and give her a bath at night. Some nights I skip a bath and just cuddle her harness-free for a few minutes. I miss being able to do that.

I thought I would take every chance I could to get her out of it but usually at night I put on a cute onesie she can wear the next day because I hate taking it off her. Not so much taking it off but putting it back on. When we take it off she always stretches so big and will get a cute little smile. It breaks my heart putting it back on after that. (I usually make Matt do it.) :)

I am getting better at doing our "normal stuff" and getting out of the house. I am not doing as well with people staring and asking about it. Before she was even in it I was already sick of hearing that she will be okay and that it could be worse.
I know that.
I tell myself that every day.
But right now this is what we are going through and no matter how severe or not something is, it is still heartbreaking watching your kids go through it. Yes, I am so thankful that she WILL be okay and that it COULD be worse but I'm still sad that she is going through all this. I just hate seeing her in this thing.

I am also very thankful for a friend whose son had hip dysplasia. It has been so nice having someone else understand what's going on and know how I feel, not to mention I have asked her a million questions.
Thank you Sonya!! :)

So for now we are making sure we follow all the "rules" and do everything the doctors told us to do because we want this to be done as soon as possible. As of right now we have no idea how long she will need to be in it, all we know is that is will be at least a couple months. We go back every 3 weeks for ultrasounds and adjustments and hopefully good news each time. There is a very high success rate with this harness so we are praying for complete healing!!

I Love It

2011-05-26T10:02:00.000-05:00

Yesterday while Alexa and I were having our daily conversation about how she is growing up too fast she says to me, "Mooooooom, stoooooop! I have told you for months and months and months that I will still be your baby girl even when I am a wife and a mommy and a doctor."
:) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)

A Quick Hello

2011-05-25T14:20:00.000-05:00

I have so much to say and lots of updates but just don't have much time these days, and the time I do have I am busy holding my baby...or my little man...or my 4 AND A HALF year old. (yes, we are in the stage in life where the half really matters.) :)

Anyway, I am working on an update post about Callie...for only being 7 weeks old she sure has had a busy life. Thank you for the emails/texts/calls asking about how she is doing, she sure is loved!

And of course I can't post without at least one picture, so here's one of Braden rocking Callie while he sang to her one morning. A moment that melts a mommy's heart for sure! :)

Project 365: Days 66 - 72

2011-05-12T13:32:00.000-05:00

Day 66

Day 67 - MN Zoo

Day 68 - Braden's first time at Lowe's Build and Grow workshop. He loved it!

Day 69

Day 70 - My mom got me a strawberry plant for Mother's Day. Isn't it cool!?

So the kids were all excited about growing strawberries but my mom told them that that first red one was suppose to be mine and after that they could eat the other ones that grew. They did really well not touching it the first day but then the next day they were out playing on the deck and all the sudden I hear Alexa yelling something about the strawberry. I went out to see what was going on and Braden looked right at me with the biggest grin on his face and says, "I ate that strawberry. HA HA HA" No remorse whatsoever. :)

Day 71 - 5 weeks

Day 72

My Best Mother's Day Yet

2011-05-10T15:40:00.000-05:00

I can barely look at that picture without getting tears in my eyes, I can't believe I get to be the Mommy to these 3 amazing little people. (I still can't believe we have three babies...I LOVE it!)

Callie gave me my first Mother's Day gift by sleeping for 7 hours again the night before. She's too good to me. ;) Then Matt let me and her sleep in while he got up and watched a movie with the big kids. I think I got almost too much sleep because I felt more tired than usual. HA It's crazy how you get used to such little sleep.

When I came upstairs I was greeted with lots of hugs and kisses and "I love you Mommy"s - it was awesome. And I even got flowers that Alexa picked out all by herself. :)

We hung out at home all morning and then went to my Grandparents house for lunch and relaxed some more.
It was the perfect day.

Here's my Mom...isn't she beautiful!?
We love you Mom!!

And my Grandma and Mom with Callie. So sweet!

I hope all you mommies out there had a wonderful and relaxing day also!!

Hip Update

2011-05-05T22:00:00.001-05:00

Yesterday we took Callie to her hip appointment at Children's. They did an ultrasound on both sides and she was so good during it. At one point she even fell asleep. The lady said she didn't think that she had ever had that happen before...that's our sleep lovin girl!

We found out that she does have Hip Dysplasia in both hips. Basically that means there is a problem in the formation of the hip joint. On a mild-moderate-severe scale, we were told she is mild to moderate on both sides. Of course this is not the news we were hoping to hear, however we are very thankful that this is something that can be fixed.

Today we heard from our pediatrician who referred us to a Center for Pediatric Orthopedics. We called them and should be hearing back tomorrow to let us know the soonest we can get her in. She will be fitted for a Pavlik Harness that she will need to wear to help properly position her hip joints. All the details on that (how long she will be in it, how often she will need to wear it, etc.) we won't know until we meet with the ortho.

Like I said before, we are so thankful that this is something that is treatable and that she is young enough that she won't even remember going through it. I will document her progress here as we move forward with everything. Thank you for the prayers, emails and phone calls the past couple days.

Day 65

Project 365: Days 61-64

2011-05-05T21:55:00.000-05:00

Day 61 - She's official!

Day 62

Day 63 - Alexa making sure Callie looks "fancy"

Day 64

Callie - 1 Month

2011-05-03T20:30:00.002-05:00

Our little peanut is already a month old today!
She is still such a sweet, content baby.
Barely cries, sleeps great...we couldn't ask for more.

At 1 month:
*Starting to coo and "talk"
*Sleeps 3-4 hours at night
(although last Friday night she threw us for a loop and slept for 7 hours straight...we haven't had it happen since, but it's nice to know she can do it)
*We have seen a couple little smiles in the past week :)
*Loves napping in the swing
*Enjoys baths
*Starting to stay awake a little longer during the day
*Still doesn't really use a nuk
*Mama's girl :)
*Loves the Moby wrap
*Nurses about every 3 hours
*Is holding her head up pretty well

Tomorrow we will be going to Children's Hospital for her hip check. I will try to post something after we get home about how it goes for those of you who have been asking about it. Would you keep her in your prayers? And maybe her Mommy too...I am feeling a little anxious about going. Thanks!

Happy 1 month, Sweetie Pie.
We love you!!

A Real Life Princess

2011-05-02T21:25:00.000-05:00

The Royal Wedding of William and Kate will definitely be one of those 'I remember where I was' moments. Although we didn't get up at 4am, we were up in time to see the end of the wedding (and then watched all the reruns throughout the day.) Alexa was completely infatuated with the whole thing. She kept asking me if Kate was a real life princess and if this was really happening or if it was just a movie. As a 4 year old who is very into her princess movies, it took a little bit for her to understand that this was a real prince and princess getting married...but once she did, she was hooked. The only time she pulled herself away from the TV was to run to her room and put her dress and "veil" on. Adorable.

Day 60

The rest of the day was spent being royalty around our house. Alexa made Braden be her prince and I must say, she was kind of a bossy princess. At one point I heard her telling him, "I'm sorry but that's how it goes when you're married."
He's such a good sport. :)

I'm glad I can say that I watched the Royal Wedding with my girls...and Braden. :)

Project 365: Days 56-59

2011-04-29T10:43:00.000-05:00

Day 56

Day 57

Day 58

Day 59

There's something about this picture...

2011-04-28T13:15:00.001-05:00

that makes me want to cry.

Probably because I know I'm going to blink and she will be wearing her own cap and gown.
Walking up on stage.
Graduating.
Growing up...

Easter 2011

2011-04-27T14:00:00.000-05:00

I love Easter.
I love filling baskets for my kids.
I love dying eggs.
I love the that He has Risen!
I love spending the day with family.
I love that it (usually) finally feels like Spring.
I love Easter Sunday Church service. Which I so happened to miss this year because I was busy in the bathroom giving Callie a mini bath because she had been busy having a major blowout. Her first Easter dress lasted a whole hour AND I didn't even get a picture of her in it first. Actually I didn't get a picture of either of my girls in their cute little dresses. {sigh} Maybe we'll have to do an Easter dress-up redo this weekend. :)

I think I get more excited about filling Easter baskets than I do Christmas stockings. I usually go a little overboard but really a lot of what I put in them is Summer stuff that we would be getting anyway. Is that cheating? :)

The kids woke up and went through their baskets and played with some of their new things. Actually, Braden (our OCD child) wouldn't let us take his stuff out...he took one thing out at a time and put it back where it was before looking at something else. He cracks me up.

After that we headed to church and then up to my parents house to eat lunch and then the kids had an Easter Egg Hunt. It's was so much fun watching them run around like little crazy people. Alexa kept telling everyone else where their eggs were and Braden would just grab any eggs he could find. :)

Alexa has such a sweet little heart, I just love that about her. On Friday we were talking about how that was the day Jesus died on the cross and she looked at me so seriously and said how sad she was that He had to do that every year. haha She is such a sweetie! (and we got that cleared up for her)

Alexa and Auntie Alaina

Day 55

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter!! :)

Project 365: Days 49-54

2011-04-25T14:30:00.001-05:00

Day 49

Day 50

Day 51

Day 52

Day 53

Day 54

Callie - 2 Weeks

2011-04-18T15:55:00.001-05:00

I love her. I love her. I love her. I love her!
I seriously can't say it enough so I'm sorry if it gets annoying. Just think about how Matt feels, I can't tell you how many times a day he gets to hear it. :)

I don't know how 2 weeks have already passed since Callie was born. I swear I was just wishing away the weeks waiting for her to get here, now I would do almost anything to just stop time for awhile. I am trying to soak up every second with her that I can because I have a feeling the weeks are just going to fly by even faster.

Here's our little sweetie waiting for the doctor at her 2 week check.

Weight: 9 pounds 12 ounces (93 percentile)
Length: 21 inches (82 percentile)
Head Circumference: 14.25 inches (63 percentile)

We also had to go back to the audiologist to have her ears rechecked because one of them failed when they tested them in the hospital...she passed. Yay!

And since she was breech for so long we will be taking her to Children's Hospital in a couple weeks to have her hips checked. (Apparently hip problems are more common in breech babies.) Our pediatrician said he wasn't too concerned about it but they did seem a little off so we want to make sure everything is okay.

Callie is the sweetest little baby. She LOVES her sleep. She is awake for a couple hours in the morning and we try to keep her awake for a couple hours at night and other than that (and waking up to eat) she is snoozing away. We thought that all her day sleeping might interfere with our night sleeping, but nope. She wakes up about 2 (sometimes 3) times a night to eat and goes right back to sleep. Just today I have noticed her staying awake a little bit more which has been fun, but I have to admit one of my absolute favorite things right now is having her all cuddled up on my chest sleeping (like she is doing right now.) :)

She is such a content little baby. Someone is always wanting to hold her and she tolerates all the love quite well. (Although I think she is already a little Mama's girl...it probably has nothing to do with her food source.) :) We have been blessed with another (3 out of 3!) baby that hardly ever cries. She is definitely our biggest crier at about a whole 90 seconds worth a day...usually when she is hungry and sometimes when she is being changed.

We are relearning what it is like to change a newborn. Aka: we are going through a massive amount of diapers. Why is it that babies feel the need to poop and pee when a cold wet wipe touches them OR right after getting a nice new clean diaper on?

Alexa and Braden absolutely adore their little sister!
Alexa is constantly giving her kisses and wanting to hold her. She is such an awesome big sister and I am so excited to watch them grow up together. Braden loves giving her kisses too and always holds her hand. I can see him being such a sweet, protective big brother.

I thought this picture was funny. She was completely asleep with her hands up like this because the other two were running around the house like little crazy people. The poor thing has learned to stay on guard even when she's sleeping.

Here is Miss Callie getting her first real bath.
Yeah, she slept through most of it.

We are definitely in love with this little girl!

Day 48

Project 365: Days 42-47

2011-04-17T12:25:00.000-05:00

Day 42

Day 43 - Tummy time with Daddy

Day 44 - Gramma came over and brought stuff to make bunny cupcakes. Only a couple survived. :)

Day 45 - My girls. <3

Day 46 - Look who found her thumb!

Day 47 - Sorting through (and eating) all the goods from the Easter Egg Hunt.

Project 365: Days 30 - 41

2011-04-10T20:45:00.002-05:00

Today was Callie's due date.
I'm so happy she is already here with us, we barely remember life without her. She is the sweetest little baby and has fit into this family perfectly, we all love her so much!

I just want to say thank you for all the sweet comments! We are so blessed with the people in our lives. I have been trying to go through emails, write thank you notes, and return phone calls but honestly all I want to do right now is cuddle our sweet baby girl and spend time with my family. Matt was off from work all last week and it has been so nice having him here while we all adjust to having a baby in the house again.
I'm so in love my little family!!

I am trying to work on a birth story and more pictures of Callie's arrival but I wanted to post my photos for Project 365 before I got too far behind. Thank you again to everyone who has sent gifts, brought food or just called to check in on us. We appreciate everything so much!

Day 30 - Our neighbors brought us over dinner. I don't know why I never thought to bring people dinner before they had a baby but I will definitely start doing it. I think a lot women have less energy and ambition right before having a baby then after...at least I did!

Day 31

Day 32

Day 33 - Right before we left for the hospital. My very last picture with only two kids.

Day 34 - Little Miss Callie's Birth Day.

Day 35

Day 36 - Dressed and ready to go home.

Day 37

Day 38

Day 39

Day 40

Day 41

Wordless Wednesday

2011-04-06T18:54:00.000-05:00

It's a GIRL!!

2011-04-03T21:37:00.001-05:00

Callie Linn Bignell
April 3, 2011
2:54am
9 pounds 8 ounces
21 inches

This and That

2011-03-30T11:25:00.001-05:00

Still no baby.
I had a doctors appointment yesterday though and things look good. Baby is still head down, SO happy to hear that! I am at a "good 2" and the head is "right there" - which basically doesn't mean much, but I guess it's some progress so I'll take it. I was kind of hoping for a 5 but beggers can't be choosers, right!?
(Sorry, probably TMI but for all the people who keep calling and emailing...there's the info.) :)
So now we just wait and see what happens.
Until then I am going to enjoy my last few days/weeks of being a Mommy of these two...

Braden has been sick the past few days. Not sure what exactly is going on...runny nose, cough, fever and just run down and tired. He has been getting all his molars in the past few weeks so maybe it has something to do with that. I told him he needs to get better before the baby comes and he said, "yeah, no coughing on the baby." :) Last night he crawled up on my lap and fell asleep. As much as it sucks seeing your kids sick I have to admit I loved having him sleeping curled up with me.

Alexa is as busy as ever. She is finishing her last day of swim lessons this week and then we are going to take a little break until the baby is here and settled. I took her to Junior Kindergarten round-up last week. We got all her paper work filled out and met with some of the teachers and she is now all ready for school in the Fall. I can't believe she is already going to school and will be gone every day! I am excited for her because she is so excited about it but I am also sad she is growing up so fast. She is going to do so well though and I know she will love it!

Potty training update: Nothing to report.
Although like I said before we aren't even really trying right now since he isn't interested at all and with the baby coming anytime it's just not a good time to start. Apparently though it looks like Alexa has been more successful than we have because she got him to wear his big boy underwear the other day. :)

Day 27

(This is what happens when your personal stylist is your 4 year old sister.)

Day 28

Day 29

(What one will it be???)

Project 365: Days 20-26

2011-03-26T22:50:00.000-05:00

Day 20 - Stories with Daddy before bed. <3

Day 21 - I'm surprised there's any room for Alexa in her bed some nights. She has to have all her "stuff" in there with her.

Day 22 - Drawing Bob and Larry. (from VeggieTales)

Day 23 - After most of the snow had melted in our yard we got a fresh new batch. Happens every Spring. So ready for this stuff to be gone!

Day 24 - Time for a haircut! (Before)

Day 25 - Girls shopping day with Alexa and my mom.

Day 26 - A friend and I went and got pedicures today. The last important detail before having a baby. :)

It Worked!!

2011-03-21T20:45:00.000-05:00

Just a quick update to let everyone know the external version worked today, Baby Bignell is now pointed in the right direction!!
I am so thankful and happy and relieved and excited.
Now we just need to make sure it stays there until he/she decides to come out.
Thank you so much for all the thoughts and prayers!
~Laura

Baby #3 - 37 Weeks

2011-03-20T21:55:00.000-05:00

Full term!!
After months and months (and months) of being pregnant I finally hit that point where you go, "Oh my gosh, WE'RE HAVING A BABY...soon!" I am so unbelievably excited to hold this new little one in my arms and of course to finally find out if our family will have more pink or blue in it. One last call, who's going to take the lead...boys or girls? :)

I think we might actually be ready for the arrival, if that's even ever possible. The room is all set up, clothes are washed and waiting, and the car seat is ready to go. I decided today will be the day I pack my bag as much as possible. I have never actually packed our hospital bag before the night before we have gone in but I have been having lots of false labor and I decided I would really rather do it myself versus Matt doing it. He would do his best but who knows what I would end up with. :) Last weekend I spent hours in the kitchen cooking and baking and stocking up our freezer. I have never done this before either. (What's going on, it's so not like me to be this prepared! HA) I just want to be extra ready this time around, especially if we have to have a c-section. We have already had family and friends ask us what they can bring over after the baby comes. I am so thankful for the wonderful people in our lives, we are truly very blessed!!

A little update on how things are going:
At our last appointment baby was still breech. I'm pretty sure it still is at this point also. I have been trying everything I can to get this little babe flipped the past few weeks. I have been going to the chiropractor, swimming, and hanging out upside down...which, by the way, is really hard to do when you're 8-9 months pregnant! We will be going in tomorrow and as long as things look okay my doctor will probably try an external version. I am feeling kind of anxious and nervous about everything but I really feel like I need to try it. I would be more than grateful for any prayers.
Thank you!!

Project 365: Days 13-19

2011-03-19T22:10:00.003-05:00

Day 13 - Alexa cuddling her baby brother or sister. <3

Day 14 - Washed and ready to go!

Day 15 - 36 weeks and 3 days

Day 16 - Alexa ready for her Princess Class. This is a class offered through our gym and she goes once a week. They can come dressed up and they do all kinds of girly stuff and projects and learn how to act like a princess. (Being kind, sharing, etc.) She loves it...of course.

Day 17 - We spent St. Patrick's Day at the zoo with some friends. Braden loved the ducks. :)

Day 18 - Grass!!

Day 19 - "Say cheese, Mommy!"

Wordless Wednesday

2011-03-16T21:25:00.000-05:00

Big Boy Bed Update

2011-03-14T13:00:00.001-05:00

Braden has been in his big boy bed for 2 weeks now and it is going great! We had absolutely no problems with the transition. He didn't even really say anything about it the first night, it was like he had been in it forever. Silly me for worrying about it...go figure.

The first night he crawled in and this is where he slept. He just really loves that closed in feeling I guess.

(First night in big boy bed - 2/26/11)

I went in several times throughout the night and he slowly moved his way around the bed and the last time I checked he was getting close to the end. So I piled up some pillows and blankets on the floor just in case. Then all the sudden at about 6am I hear *thump* and his door goes flying open and he looks at me and says, "I fall out Mama!" It was so sad and funny at the same time. Funny only because he was fine (and the look on his face.) The entire day whenever anyone asked him about his big boy bed all he would tell them was "I fall out." I kept thinking: great, I bet tonight won't go so well now. But it went fine, climbed right in and curled up again. Hallelujah! He won't even get out by himself, in the morning he will just lay in there and talk until we go get him. (Alexa was the same way...how lucky are we!?) :)

He has since ventured out a little bit and will sometimes even lay the long way.

He loves his big boy bed! YAY!

Project 365: Days 8-12

2011-03-13T14:10:00.001-05:00

Day 8 - Date night!

Day 9 - The boy loves his boots.

Day 10 - Dinner. (This Mama is losing energy and ambition these days.)

Day 11 - Lunch after my doctor appt.

Day 12 - What's better than new shoes? New shoes found on clearance!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-03-09T07:15:00.003-06:00

Project 365: Day 7

2011-03-07T21:10:00.000-06:00

Project 365: Days 4-6

2011-03-06T21:15:00.000-06:00

Day 4: I went to a chiropractor for the first time ever. I was kind of freaked out but it went really well! I'm hoping they can maybe help with getting little Baby Bignell to flip around.

Day 5: I don't think Braden was a fan of the car wash...

Day 6: Alexa on our mommy/daughter day out. (More about that coming later!)

Project 365: Day 3

2011-03-03T20:45:00.000-06:00

Alexa trying to stay warm while she waits her turn to show everyone what she learned in this session of swimming lessons.

I have to say, this girl loves the water!
She has been in all kinds of "sports" and activities the past few years but swimming is by far the one thing she continually does really well in and wants to keep doing. She's already a couple of levels above the other kids her age. Maybe we have a future Olympian on our hands? :)

Project 365: Day 2

2011-03-02T20:45:00.003-06:00

This is where I spent an hour and a half this afternoon, apparently the baby business is hopping these days. Might as well get used to it since I'll be there lots this last month.
Last month.
I can't believe we're just over a month away!

I told my doctor that I had a feeling the baby was still breech so we walked down to one of the ultrasound rooms to take a peek. Sure enough, there was a little head up in my ribs. I know there is still plenty of time for the baby to flip but I really don't like cutting it close. This is something that I would like to have done sooner rather than later. You hear that little Baby Bignell??

Has anyone else had a stubborn little one? Any tricks that worked?
My doctor gave me a few ideas and I have been looking up some stuff too so I am hoping we get him/her flipped around before my next appointment otherwise my doc said he would try. (Which I have heard isn't that pleasant.) But honestly I don't care, I'll let him try. I'm willing to try just about anything! I would be so bummed if we had to have a c-section on the third one. The surgery and recovery itself doesn't bother me much but the thought of not being the first one to hold my baby makes me really sad.
So operation get baby flipped is on!

Project 365: Day 1

2011-03-01T21:05:00.002-06:00

Today I am starting Project 365.

I have seen so many bloggers doing this lately and I really love the idea. Basically you take a photo every day for a year. Seems simple, right? Well I have been majorly slacking on getting out the camera on a daily basis so I am hoping that I can keep on top of things by doing this. I'm not sure if I'll actually post the pictures each day or once a week or a combination of the two but either way they will make their way on here! (I'm staying optimistic that I can do this.) :)

Day 1: I know I have a sick little man on my hands when he falls asleep on the couch just a couple of hours after getting up in the morning. Poor guy!

Why We Might Not Be Sleeping This Weekend

2011-02-23T21:30:00.001-06:00

Last week we ordered Braden's new Big Boy furniture for his room. I was secretly hoping it would take a month or two (or six) to come, but nope, lucky us it's in and ready to be picked up. I am dreading this transition for so many reasons.

First of all, HE'S MY BABY! I just feel like I'm not ready for him to get bigger and somehow if he stays in the crib he will stay little.
(It should totally work that way. I would have 3 cribs in this house if it did.)

Second, I don't think he's going to be all that excited about the move. He has been very anti-big boy lately and has even told us he likes his crib and doesn't want a big bed. Yeah, that was our first clue.

But alas, all good things must come to an end. A lot of people have commented that we need to do it before the next one comes so he doesn't feel like the baby is taking it away from him and all that kind of logical stuff. That's definitely a good reason but really, our kids are in our room for a good six months or more so keeping him in the crib for awhile after the baby is born is not a big deal.

I think this might be a better reason to upgrade...

(Please ignore the chewed up railings, that would be from our sweet little girl who had a major fascination with eating the crib.)

Seriously this is where he sleep every single night. Most nights he's on his tummy with his legs all squished up under him but he is almost always laying the short way and all the way to one side. The boy needs to be forced to stretch out a little bit!

This weekend is the weekend. Wish us luck.

The Big Cut

2011-02-21T10:15:00.000-06:00

She did it.
Alexa finally convinced me to get her hair chopped off.

I told her we were going to get our bangs trimmed and she said she wanted to get all her hair cut...short. Part of me was like 'No way!' and another part of me (the part that has to brush her hair everyday, usually ending in blood, sweat and tears) was like 'YES!'

So two days and approximately 375 "are you really really really sure?"s later we were headed to my SIL's house. Alexa hopped up on the chair and was ready to go. I was actually kind of surprised that she never hesitated at all. (She must have been thinking about the side of brushing her hair everyday too.) Even more surprising: NO tears...from ME!

And she absolutely loves it and that's what matters the most!!

Before:

After:

I love it too, except for the fact that it makes her look like 2 years older. :(

(I just realized I never really got a good "after" picture, I'll have to do that today.)

Baby #3 - 31 Weeks

2011-02-07T21:25:00.000-06:00

I can't believe we only have 2 months to go. I finally feel like we can see the light at the end of the tunnel. The thought of actually holding our little babe soon makes me so happy!

How far along: 31 weeks 1 day

Size of baby: About 16 inches long and 3 1/2 pounds

Weight Gain: 24 pounds

Maternity Clothes: Jeans are all maternity and a few tops are too.

Gender: I am getting anxious to find out!

Movement: Lots of moving. Starting to feel little hands and/or feet up in my ribs. I'm hoping it's feet but at my appointment last week baby was still breech so I'm thinking it might be hands. There's still plenty of time to get turned around but he/she better start thinking about it soon.

Sleep: If I could actually get into my bed I think I would stay there for at least a couple of weeks. :)

What I miss: My bed. I haven't even tried to lay in it for the past few weeks, just hurts too much and is not worth it. I also miss having energy, I just feel so tired and worn out all the time and I hate that.

Cravings: Not much. The last few weeks I definitely hit the point where I just can't eat much anymore and if I do eat too much I feel sick. I have been trying to remember to eat a little bit here and there throughout the day. One thing I have been craving though is lots of different liquids. Usually I just drink water all day but lately I can't get enough flavored water, milk, crystal light, juice, whatever I can find. Yum!

Symptoms: Lots of cramping and Braxton Hicks. Swelling and headaches are back. :( And my favorite...nesting! I think Matt is nesting too because we have been doing some major Spring cleaning and organizing around the house. It feels good to be getting all this stuff done now. It's amazing how much better you feel when it's clean behind your washing machine and under your stove. ;)

Best moment this week: Realizing how close we're getting! Up until 30 weeks I just felt like this baby was never going to come but now I keep thinking, this baby is going to be here...soon!

What I'm looking forward to: Finishing up the nursery. Construction is almost done and we should be able to start priming and painting by this weekend and then hopefully we can get everything in there. This also means we will soon be moving Braden into a big boy bed. I hope it goes okay.

Potty Training Update

2011-02-04T14:00:00.000-06:00

The post that could also be titled...

"Becaaaaaaause, I don't want to."

or

"Never, ever!"

or maybe even

"I like big boy diapers."

Because these are all the things we hear when we try to have the potty talk with Braden. {sigh}

Seriously, the boy has zero desire. And really as of right now I don't care all that much. It is getting harder for me to constantly be up and down with him and with the baby coming soon I don't really want to get good progress just to have him revert anyway. Buuuuut, it would be nice to see some kind of interest. Just a teeny tiny little bit even.
O-well, it will happen someday. I think we were spoiled with Alexa who was a piece of cake to potty train. She pretty much did all the work herself, we never really had to deal with accidents at all and she was completely done before she was two. Because of that sometimes that makes it harder to remember that every kid is different, that's not really normal when potty training and he is only two.
As long as he's going in time for Kindergarten, right!? :)

Even though he won't actually go on his little chair, he does love to sit on it...especially if he has some good reading material.
Such a guy. :)

Beach Party

2011-02-01T21:15:00.002-06:00

What do you do when it's -25 degrees out?

If you're my kids you put on your swimsuits. Totally makes sense, right.
Silly kids.

They brought all the blankets and pillow and stuffed animals they own and made a "lake" with them in the living room and had their own little beach party. Love their creativity. :)

Surprise Daddy!

2011-01-26T21:35:00.004-06:00

I am trying to get all of last years pictures and videos organized and put into their folders and I came across these pictures of Matt finding out we were expecting again. It was the week of his birthday so he got an early present from the kids. :)

Wordless Wednesday

2011-01-19T22:58:00.000-06:00

Baby #3 - 28 Weeks

2011-01-17T21:45:00.002-06:00

So I finally know what is causing me so much pain...I have Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction. Ever heard of it? Yeah, me either. Apparently where the pubic bones meets in front there is a ligament and basically it becomes too relaxed and mobile due to hormones and starts to pull apart.
The good side is that I'm not crazy and actually have a legit problem. It's frustrating knowing something is wrong but not finding anyone else who has had it or finding out how or why it happens or what it's even called. It's also frustrating having everyone (including your doctor) tell you it's a normal ache and pain of pregnancy. It's not like this is the first time I have done this, I know what the "aches and pains" of pregnancy are...this is nothing like that.
The bad side: there's not much you can do about it. I really didn't think there would be though and more than anything I just hope it completely goes away after baby is born. (I have read that in more severe cases like this there is a chance it doesn't totally heal itself right away but many women were able to continue treatment and that helps.) Anyway, I am getting set up with Physical Therapy to see if they can help at all and we have also found a Chiropractor who has dealt with this, so maybe I can get a little relief for the next couple months.

How far along: 28 weeks 1 day

Size of baby: About 15 inches long and 2-3 pounds

Weight Gain: 22 pounds

Maternity Clothes: Jeans are all maternity and a few tops are too.

Gender: BOY! Just kidding, we still don't know, that's just my feeling this week. (Yes it changes weekly.)
We have been getting a lot of questions about names lately. Was the A and B of the first two planned? Are you going to use a C name this time? Are you just working your way through the alphabet?
The answers: No, No and Maybe. (Just kidding on that last one.) Alexa and Braden were completely a fluke. And it's not that we are against a C name for this one in fact I think it would be pretty cool if we could find something we like, but we aren't going to do it just for the sake of doing it. So if you have any name suggestions (especially girls, we pretty much don't have any of those) we are definitely still taking them! Bonus points for C names. :)

Movement: Lots of moving. I can tell baby is getting bigger, there is a lot more pushing and rolling versus kicking.

Sleep: What's that??? I try to lay in bed and get about 2-3 hours then (usually with Matt's help) I get up and move to the couch and try to get another hour or two reclined there. It's sad when you're looking forward to having the baby so you can actually get some sleep!

What I miss: Sleep.

Cravings: Milk. Before a couple weeks ago I can't even remember the last time I had a glass of milk, but now I have been having some almost every day. Baby wants calcium! :)
Oh and also raspberry sparkling water.

Symptoms: I have been feeling pretty crampy already, some have even been painful and will last for hours. I was checked today though at my appointment and they aren't doing anything thank goodness. This baby is just sitting really low which I'm sure is a part of the cramping and pain and pelvis thing.

Best moment this week: Construction was started on the baby's room! I can't wait to have it all done and start getting stuff in there and set up.
I also found a blanket that I have been looking for since we pretty much found out we were pregnant. It's the minty green version of the same blanket Alexa (pink) and Braden (blue) has. Only problem was that is was discontinued almost 2 years ago. Thank you Ebay! I was able to get an almost brand new one and it was delivered last weekend. It's perfect!

What I'm looking forward to: Getting the room set up and starting to get things all finished up and ready for the arrival. :)

What I Learned Over Christmas Break

2011-01-05T20:50:00.001-06:00

Sledding is much more work than I remember it being as a kid.

Putting together a 1000 piece puzzle takes 2 people approximately 3 days of nap time and nights to put together.

Going to the Childrens Museum while school is out means that there will be approximately one million other people there.

When painting with young kids, make sure the paint you are using is not permanent.

Tiny bowling shoes are one of the cutest things ever.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-01-05T12:28:00.000-06:00

Baby #3 - 26 Weeks

2011-01-02T22:10:00.001-06:00

Okay I have to start off saying that I don't want to sound like I am complaining at all, buuuut this is pretty much my main place to journal this pregnancy so I want to get it all in. Besides, Matt will need all the backup he can get once I start bugging him for another one. ;)

So where do I start...how about, I am so ready for this pregnancy to be over. Remember when I said that I loved being pregnant? Well I still do, it's definitely one of the coolest experiences a woman can have. I love the kicking and moving and knowing that a tiny little person is growing in there. It's such a miracle! (Here comes the part where it might sound like I am complaining, but for the record I'm not...just stating facts.) I am already so tired and achy...and tired...and achy. I hardly remember getting to that point with Alexa and I know it was only a month or two from the end with Braden. Is this how it works? Does it just get sooner and sooner each time?

My last appointment didn't go as great as I would have liked. I am already retaining way more water than I should be...as in, welcome to my daily life kankles. (I also had to take off my wedding ring. I just about cried. :( I can't remember ever taking it off for more than a couple minutes to have checked and cleaned.) My blood pressure is normally pretty low so even though it has gone up a little bit it's still in the good range so far. So basically I am going to start going in about every 2 weeks already so they can keep an eye on everything. I had to laugh when my doctor told me to try and get my feet up when I could. Yeah, try explaining that to my crazy children! :) Anyway, I think everything will be fine and it's reassuring to know that whatever pain or problems I am having that the baby is doing good...he/she looked wonderful, great heartbeat (144) and is moving around like crazy.

How far along: 26 weeks - starting month 7!

Size of baby: 14 inches long and 1 2/3 pounds

Weight Gain: About 19 pounds. (UGH!) I just about died when my doc told me I had gained almost 10 pounds in 1 month but then after looking at my swelling I guess I could be carrying 5-10 pounds of water weight. Thank goodness! 5-10 pounds of water will be much easier to drop than 5-10 pound of Christmas goodies. :)

Maternity Clothes: Jeans are all maternity and a few tops are too.

Gender: Boy or Girl :) Speaking of...anyone have any good names? We are open to suggestions. Not finding out the gender makes it even harder!

Movement: Lots of moving. Love it!!

Sleep: Okay here we go again. So the pelvic pain I talked about last time is in full effect. I can't move while laying down without lots of pain. I usually don't get more than a couple hours of sleep at a time and I have already spent quite a few nights sleeping reclined on the couch. I remember complaining that I couldn't get comfortable in bed at the end with Alexa and now I would love to just be able to curl up in bed like that again, boy things change!

What I miss: Sleep. Normal breathing. My ankles. Diet Coke. (Okay, I have a few sips here and there but I have been doing good!) :)

Cravings: This is really weird but I seem to want chili cheese burritos from Taco Bell. Thankfully the closest one is 15+ minutes away so I have only indulged a few times. Also, pickles! Although I could sit and eat a half of jar not pregnant so it's not like one of those "crazy pregnancy pickle" things.

Symptoms: Aches, pains, lack of sleep, back hurts, blah blah blah.

Best moment this week: Having Matt home all last week. And while I was typing this I think I might have felt hiccups for the first time! I have been waiting for that feeling, I always loved it.

What I'm looking forward to: Ummm, can I put 'having the baby' yet or is it to early? :)

Christmas 2010

2011-01-01T23:10:00.000-06:00

It's only been a week since Christmas so I'm not too late getting these up, right!? :)

I have said this a billion times but everything is so much better with kids. It's so much fun watching them experience everything and see how excited they get about it all. This year was by far my favorite with the kids!

Christmas Eve...
My parents came down and went to church with us then we went back to our house for dinner and presents.

Matt putting together one of Braden's favorite new toys he got...a Thomas the Train set. He loves it!

Here's Alexa putting out cookies and milk for Santa and carrots for the reindeer. I have no idea what she was doing or saying here but I just thought this picture was hilarious. It's so her.

Christmas Day...
We woke up and opened more presents and played with all the new toys the kids got. It was so much fun just the 4 of us hanging out.

Alexa loved everything she got but this unicorn pillow pet was definitely one of her favorites. She had been talking about getting one for months so I went out and got her the lady bug one. It was wrapped and under the tree. I figured I would be mother of the year for getting her the pillow pet she had to have. About 2 days before Christmas she saw a commercial for them and kept saying how much she wanted the unicorn one. I was like, "But aren't they all so cute? It would be awesome to have any of them!" She flat out said, "No. Only the unicorn!" So being the sucker I am off to the store I went looking for the "right" one, unwrapped the "wrong" one, returned it, and wrapped the new one. After watching her open it, it was totally worth it. She has been carrying that thing around with her everywhere. (This picture is of her coming over to hug me right after she opened it...I love this girl!)

Braden on his new big boy bike. I can't believe how grown up he looks! He was pretty excited about his new hat (helmet) too. After he opened it he wore it while he played with his new stuff.

And of course he found the one piece of chocolate that was at the bottom of his stocking. :)

We spent the rest of the day at my mom and stepdad's house with my brothers and sisters.
And what would Christmas be without playing Wii in princess clothes. :)

A Little Late...

2010-12-27T13:11:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas from the Bignell family!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas filled with lots of family, food and fun!

We have one more get together at our house today and then we will be done.
I am trying to go through all our pictures and hope to post some soon. :)

They Did It!

2010-12-20T19:10:00.000-06:00

Saturday we went and had our annual Breakfast With Santa.
Annnnnnnd.....

Both kids sat on Santa's lap!!
Even though they both insisted that they would before we got there, I still wasn't totally buying it. It did take some convincing for both of them but eventually they did it. After a little bit we even got Alexa to tell Santa what she wanted for Christmas and she told him very quietly, "I need a new big bike" and then Braden (after giving the big man in red several high fives and because he copies everything Alexa does) said, "I want big bike too!"
(This was great news for him considering that's what he was planning on giving them anyway!) :)

Alexa and her new baby cousin Masen.

Flashback Friday

2010-12-10T14:29:00.000-06:00

Next weekend we are going to take the kids and have breakfast with Santa.

Here's Alexa last year...hiding under the table.

And even when we did convince her to come out there was no way she was sitting with him, talking to him or even looking at him.

Braden wasn't having anything to do with the big guy either, however instead of not looking at him he wasn't taking his eyes off of him. He stared Santa down for a good 20 minutes to make sure he wasn't coming anywhere near us.

Any guesses on how this year will go? :)

Our Christmas Secret

2010-12-08T13:25:00.001-06:00

Last weekend we finally got our Christmas tree up. I have to say, I am quite surprised at how well the kids (mostly Braden) have been doing with it considering before we even had any ornaments on the thing there was already blocks being thrown into it. Prime example on why someone incredibly smart invented the shatter proof balls, he or she clearly had little boys.

Anyway, here's our Christmas secret...we bought a fake tree this year.
I know millions of people have fake trees and it's not a big deal but ever since we bought our house we have gotten real trees. This was our thought, we would be the next Griswold family and make wonderful memories for our children while we sang Christmas songs and went out and searched for the perfect tree. Here's the thing, the first 2 or 3 years we ended up at the local hardware store picking out a tree. Ummm, yeah. Great Memories.

So after some discussion we agreed that we would get a fake tree as long as we still made memories by going to the tree farm and driving around to look at lights and going on sleigh rides and drinking hot cocoa all while our kids cry because we make them sit on Santa's lap. Combine that with the fact that I don't have to find pine needles in my house until April, perfect.

So here it is, our fake tree's debut.
We like it and that's what matters. :)

As we were out searching for our prefect (fake) tree I passed by this stocking and decided that little Baby Bignell needed it.

5 stockings.
I love it!

And a picture of our nativity scene because I think it's awesome.

Baby #3 - 22 Weeks

2010-12-05T16:00:00.004-06:00

I'm definitely starting to feel more and more pregnant each day. I have been getting really tired and achy a lot already. Looking at this picture, I don't look nearly as huge as I feel!

How far along: 22 weeks

Size of baby: 11 inches and 1 pound

Weight Gain: ?? At my last appointment a week ago I had gained about 9 pounds.

Maternity Clothes: All of my jeans are maternity, everything else is still regular clothes. Actually in this picture I am wearing my first maternity shirt...still just way too big though and looks kind of weird.

Gender: Unknown. It's kind of funny though, some people (people who obviously know me and my anal ways all too well) don't think I was able to stay strong and not find out the gender. Matt and I talked before the ultrasound and decided if we accidentally found out somehow we would still keep it a secret. We're so mean, aren't we!? :)

Movement: Lots of moving! It's fun that other people can feel him/her now too.

Sleep: It's alright. Sleep is always the first thing to go with all my pregnancies so it's no surprise how quickly my good sleeping nights are fading.

What I miss: Sleeping on my stomach.

Cravings: Not really. There's a lot of things that sound good but I don't think I would really call them cravings.

Symptoms: Some aches and pains, nothing too terrible though. When I was pregnant with Braden I started getting bad pains really low in my abdomen the last few months whenever I would move while I was laying down...they were bad enough where I spent the last 6-8 weeks "sleeping" sitting up in our living room chair. I don't want to jinx myself or anything but I have a feeling the same thing might happen this time around too, I am already waking up when I roll over because it hurts. I am just thankful that it only happens while laying down though and not all the time. No one says being pregnant is easy, right!? :)

Best moment this week: Our friends had their little girl and Matt's sister had a baby boy, all within a week! We have had all kinds of practice holding new babies. :) I am excited that Baby Bignell already has built in friends and cousins to play with.

What I'm looking forward to: The holidays and spending lots of time with family the next few weeks!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-12-01T16:15:00.000-06:00

Our Sweet Little Baby

2010-11-24T21:46:00.000-06:00

We had our 20 week ultrasound today and everything looks perfect.
We are so blessed!!

Here's a few pictures of our little peanut...who's gender is still unknown.
I can't believe I stayed strong! :)

Baby #3 - 20 Weeks

2010-11-22T21:05:00.000-06:00

Half way there!! I can't believe how fast this pregnancy is going. I am excited it's going quick because I can't wait to meet our new little baby but I am also kind of sad. I love being pregnant and knowing that this is most likely the last one I want to cherish it as much as possible. (Someone remind me of this in about 16 weeks, ok!?) :)

How far along: 20 weeks, 2 days

Size of baby: 10 inches head to heel and about 10-11 ounces.

Weight Gain: No idea, I haven't had an appointment in a few weeks and I don't weigh myself at home.

Maternity Clothes: Some maternity jeans and that's about it.

Gender: ???

Movement: Lots and lots of moving! The only downfall of feeling the baby move a lot is that I tend to get a little stressed out when I don't think I feel it for awhile. Usually I can give him/her a little poke and it kicks back. :)

Sleep: Pretty good.

What I miss: Not much.

Cravings: Not really. There's a lot of things that sound good but I don't think I would really call them cravings. :)

Symptoms: I have been noticing how much more out of breath I am already. I usually run up the stairs and now when I do that I feel like I'm breathing heavy for like 5 minutes! Other than that (and the peeing lots) everything is pretty normal so far.

Best moment this week: Matt felt the baby kicking for the first time last week. I love that! Also, Alexa has been talking to my belly lately and when she does the it will usually start kicking, it's so cute.

What I'm looking forward to: The ultrasound on Wednesday!

Thanksgiving Week!!

2010-11-21T22:05:00.001-06:00

I can't even believe that Thanksgiving is already here, where the heck did November go!?
I'm happy it's here though...this week is going to be really busy but fun and exciting.

Of course there's Thanksgiving on Thursday. I can't decide what I am looking forward to the most, the French Silk Pie my mom is making or the stuffing. Oh and here's my Thanksgiving confession...I could care less about turkey, not a big fan of it. I would rather have leftover sandwiches the next day. :)

Wednesday we have our ultrasound! I am so excited to see the little guy (or girl.)

Friday is not only shopping day (YAY) but our neighbors and good friends are having their baby that morning! I am so excited for them and I can't wait to hold their sweet little girl.

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Okay so I posted this in January but I thought I would share it again in case you are having Thanksgiving at your house and need something to do with the carcass. (Carcass...ewww.) Anyway, throw it in your freezer and take it out when you are ready. We actually made a turkey a couple weeks ago solely to make this soup. Good thing Matt likes turkey more than me, I think he took it to work for lunch every day that week. :)

Original post:

Alright people, remember that turkey soup I was talking about last week? I thought I would post the recipe, because seriously, it's GOOD! My mom makes it every year after Thanksgiving and I think people get more excited about that than the actual Thanksgiving meal. (Okay, maybe not but close!) :) This recipe is actually made to use your leftover turkey carcass. I had NO idea there was so much meat left on those things...we ended up with a huge bowl of soup plus some.

My mom is a lot like me (or maybe it's me a lot like my mom...) and just kinda follows recipes. For this one we pretty much doubled most of the stuff and I think it turns out more like a stoup than a soup...ya know, super thick, more stewy than soupy. Yummy!

Leftover Turkey Soup
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning (or sage)
Bones and trimmings from 1 turkey or 2 chickens
3 cubes (or 3 teaspoons) chicken bouillon
1 bay leaf
1 1/2 quarts (6 cups) water
1/2 cup barley or rice or 1 cup noodles
3 medium carrots sliced
2 stalks celery sliced
2 medium onions chopped

(Now that I am typing out the recipe I am realizing how much I didn't follow it..but you can change, add, subtract whatever you want, it's just a good base. The recipe suggests other veggies to try too...corn, zucchini, tomatoes, potatoes, peas and mushrooms.)

In large pot/dutch oven (I used our big roaster since I had a 24 pound turkey carcass) combine the first 6 ingredients. Simmer covered about 1 1/2 hours. Cool then remove bones - cut off all meat and return to the broth.

Add remaining ingredients. (I totally forgot the onions, oops!) :)
Simmer covered about 30 minutes or until vegetables and noodles are tender.

Garnish with parsley if you want and serve with a thick hearty bread...that's a must! :) Also, we use Reames frozen noodles...SO good, I would suggest those over rice for sure!

Enjoy! :)

Love, Me

2010-11-19T13:05:00.005-06:00

Dear Matt,
Thank you for bringing in all the Christmas bins so I can decorate the house even though you don't think they should go up until after Thanksgiving. I'm so excited to get everything out and I think you will like it too. You're such an awesome husband!
Love,
Your Happy Wife

Dear lady at the gym,
Thank you for asking me when I was due this week. It's always nice to have that first person who doesn't know you're pregnant say something. I now feel a little more pregnant and a little less fat.
Love,
An Excited Pregnant Woman

Dear Alexa,
Thank you for having the kindest heart I have ever seen in a child. You amaze me with the passion you have and I love that you never go day without doing or saying something that melts my heart.
Love,
Your Very Proud Mama

(Here's one that I really loved from this week. Alexa has a children's read and learn Bible that she loves reading. She usually takes it with her to bed for rest time and at night and looks through it. There has been many times she will tell me a story from it just by looking through the pictures. This week she was looking at the end where they had Jesus' hands tied up and were bringing him to the cross. Alexa came running out of her room asking why they were doing that and then kept asking other questions like, "Do you think they were hurting Him?" and "Do you think Jesus cried?" and after we talked about what was happening she looks at me with the most serious face and says, "I do not like this one bit!" Such a sweet heart.)

Dear Braden,
Thank you for not getting sick or having any side effects after eating half of a pack of gum that you found in my purse. Oh, and thanks for not getting hurt after learning to crawl out of your crib this week. You sure do know how to freak your Mom out on a regular basis.
Love,
Your Thankful Mommy

Dear Carl,
Thank you for being my parent's neighbor, a great family friend and a doctor. I really appreciate that you don't mind getting calls because of a slightly panicked Mom and reassuring her that this isn't the first time a child has eaten a massive amount of gum.
Love,
A Mom You Will Probably Hear From Again

Dear Little Baby in my Belly,
Thank you for being so active and kicking hard enough that Daddy was able to feel you move for the first time last night. I was so excited and I think he was too. I can't wait for Alexa and Braden to be able to feel some of your kicks too.
Love,
Someone Who is Very Excited to Meet You

Winter Wonderland

2010-11-16T20:45:00.000-06:00

This past weekend we woke up to snow. Lots of snow.
And then it snowed more. All day long.
The kids were freaking out, they were so unbelievably excited. It was really fun watching Braden since he was so young last year and didn't really remember the whole Winter thing. At first he kept saying, "Mommy, mommy it's raining!" So cute. Alexa was getting her hat and mittens on at about 6:30am, she was so ready to get out there and "make snowmen and snowballs and snow angels..."
How could I say no to that!?
So after breakfast we bundled up and headed out.

They had so much fun...it was so fun just watching them!
A few years ago I would have woke up, saw the snow and crawled back in bed. Having kids makes everything so much more enjoyable, their excitement is so contagious.

I love this picture!!
Braden fell and Alexa ran right over to him to help him up and kept saying, "It's okay Buddy, I gotcha."

Happy Winter! :)

Potty Dance, Potty Dance

2010-11-13T21:15:00.000-06:00

This little guy is super excited

and we are too

because he went potty on the potty chair!!

There was a whole lot of potty dancing around here this past Thursday when Braden used his potty for the first time. It hasn't happened again (yet) but we are happy to have things going in the right direction! :)

Baby #3 - 18 weeks

2010-11-09T09:25:00.000-06:00

So do I look pregnant yet? Yeah, I didn't think so.
But now I know why Alexa calls any type of comfy pants "Mommy pants" apparently that's the only thing I wear when we're home. :)

How far along: 18 weeks, 2 days

Size of baby: About 5 1/2 inches head to rump and around 1/2 pound

Weight Gain: 5 pounds

Maternity Clothes: I have been wearing a few more maternity jeans but that's about it. Still in the annoying in-between stage. I'm thinking I should stop complaining about it and enjoy it while it's here, huh!? :)

Gender: ???

Movement: I have been feeling a lot more action the past couple weeks, I love it!!

Sleep: Great!

What I miss: Not much.

Cravings: Not really. Maybe salty foods.

Symptoms: Headaches have gotten so much better. Also, this may be TMI, but I go to the bathroom ALL the time. I used to have a never ending bladder and even when I was pregnant with Alexa and Braden it wasn't bad, I hardly ever got up in the middle of the night to go even at 9 months pregnant. This time around is not the same, I have been getting up during the night sometimes more than once already! Please tell me I will have my good bladder back again someday.

Best moment this week: Feeling lots of movement.

What I'm looking forward to: Our ultrasound!! 2 weeks away...can't wait to see our little babe!

Halloween

2010-11-08T21:30:00.003-06:00

I am waaaaaay behind on blogging but I wanted to post some Halloween pictures anyway, so here they are.

Carving pumpkins.
Don't let her fool you, she didn't actually put her hand in the pumpkin. :)

Matt ends up doing almost all the work, such a good sport.

Alexa drew the face on her pumpkin that she wanted Matt to carve...it's the one on the right. :)

Trick-or-Treating.
Alexa was a Princess (3rd year and counting) and Braden was a Giraffe.
They had SO much fun. It was kind of chilly but they kept going for quite awhile.

Our neighbors came over to go out with us, the dinosaur is their little boy.

Birthday Recap

2010-11-01T22:05:00.000-05:00

I still can't believe my little girl is four! I keep calling her 3, partly because I'm just not used to it and partly because I don't want her to grow up. But man, if that girl catches me saying three she sure speaks up..."I am FOUR now Mommy, FOUR!!" I promise I'll get it right sometime in the next 6 months. :)

Last weekend we had her birthday party, which turned out great! She woke up so happy and talked about it all day. I love this age and how excited she is about everything. Here are a few pictures from the party...

My grandma made this quilt for her and she loves it so much! She drags it around the house wherever she goes and tells everyone, "My Nana made this for me!"

My mom made cake balls and cupcakes and this cake for Alexa, SO yummy!

Last Tuesday was her actual birthday and of course she woke up to (my favorite birthday tradition) a room full of balloons. Her and Braden have spent hours this past week playing in those things. I told her today that it was time to get rid of them because I was sick of tripping over them all over the house, but then she gave me a sad face...maybe a couple more days. :)

I asked her what she wanted to do for her birthday and she insisted that we got to the beach. I wish! However it was about 40 degrees and rainy so it wasn't going to happen. So instead she decided to just wear a swimsuit around the house all day.

That night we had leftover cupcakes and sang Happy Birthday 4 times, per her request. :)

Happy Birthday Alexa!!

2010-10-26T21:05:00.001-05:00

I can't believe how fast the past four years have gone by.
You have grown into such an amazing little girl and we could not be more proud of you.
We love you so much!!
Happy Birthday Baby Girl!

Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-20T22:05:00.001-05:00

Every year we go to the same pumpkin patch with Matt's family. It's the best pumpkin patch, so much stuff for the kids to do! We were talking about how crazy and unpredictable the weather is here this time of the year. A couple years ago we were sweating the entire time we were there, last year we were so cold and all bundled up with hats and mittens and this year is was almost 80 again. (I prefer the warmer years!) :) Here are a few (aka many) pictures from the day.

Braden was so in love with this kitty it was the most adorable thing ever. There were all kinds of animals around and lots of puppies to hold too but all he wanted to do was play with this cute little kitty. Too bad Matt is not a big cat fan (to put it nicely.) Why can't they just stay this small and cute!?

Here is Alexa this year and last year. How does that girl grow so fast? I can't believe it!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-10-20T22:00:00.000-05:00

Potty Training Update

2010-10-18T20:37:00.000-05:00

Yup, that pretty much sums it up.

Baby #3 - 15 weeks

2010-10-17T21:05:00.001-05:00

Sorry, another headless picture. I think it's annoying but I always end up taking them after I shower, therefore no makeup and crazy wet hair, therefore no head shot. :) One of these days I'll remember to take it before.

How far along: 15 weeks

Size of baby: About 4 inches long and 2 ounces

Weight Gain: 1 pound

Maternity Clothes: Pants a couple times but other than that no. I hate this stage of pregnancy. My regular clothes don't look good, maternity clothes don't work...I have nothing to wear right now!!

Gender: ??? At first I was thinking it was a girl because I felt more like I did with Alexa in the beginning (I think) but then heartbeat has been on the faster side which is definitely more like Braden was. Not finding out is going to drive me crazy BUT I'm going to be strong! :)

Movement: I think I have been feeling him/her a little bit the past week or so. I can't wait to get a big kick!

Sleep: SO much better!! I can tell I have more energy during the day now too which has been wonderful.

What I miss: Nothing much right now.

Cravings: Not really.

Symptoms: Headaches. They have definitely been better than what they were before, I don't get them every day like I was. Thanks for all the tips! And for the record I won't be using the prescription...taking a narcotic while pregnant doesn't seem right to me and is just not worth it so I'll just keep toughing through them and hopefully they will just keep getting fewer and fewer.

Best moment this week: Having the kids with me at my last appointment so they could hear the heartbeat. Alexa thought it was so cool and has been telling everyone what they baby sounds like. :)
Also finding out that my brother and sister-in-law are pregnant! Now Baby Bignell #3 will have a cousin 4 months older and another one 2 months younger, I love that my kids have so many cousins so close in age!

What I'm looking forward to: Actually looking pregnant...I don't like this fat stage!

Little Firefighters

2010-10-14T20:46:00.007-05:00

We have been so busy the past couple weeks (months, years...is it ever not busy?) and I have so much to blog about and pictures to share but by the end of the day I am so drained and looking at a computer is not usually what I want to be doing. Besides I have been having terrible headaches lately that have been impossible to get rid of. I don't remember having them this bad with the other two. I had a doctor appointment this week and my doctor gave me a prescription for Percocet but I am so weird about taking meds while pregnant so I haven't even filled it yet. Anyone have any tips that might help? On a good note the morning sickness is a million times better and I have actually been able to sleep! :)

Last weekend we went to the Fire Station for fire awareness week. We went last year but Alexa wouldn't really do much and Braden was too little so it was a lot more fun this year. Both kids got finger printed, cuffed and thrown in the back of a cop car.
Okay not exactly, but they did get finger printed...

Have you even seen someone so happy to be doing this!?
I told them this had better be the last time this ever happens. :)

They also go to sit in a squad car, a helicopter and a fire truck.

I think the best part though was getting to use the fire hose, they both thought that was so cool.

With Grandpa Dave!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-10-06T08:50:00.001-05:00

Breakfast Guests

2010-10-01T20:50:00.000-05:00

The Apple Farm

2010-09-30T21:40:00.002-05:00

I thought that I never liked Fall but I think that I actually always have, I just could never admit it. Of course I am sad to see Summer go but I really do love this time of year. The leaves changing color, apple picking, pumpkin patches, hot cocoa and apple cider, warm fires, crunchy leaves, hoodies...I love it all! Maybe I am just realizing it more now that I have kids, everything seems more fun with kids doesn't it!? Besides, I think the only reason I don't like it is because I know the negative 30 degrees is right around that corner. Now THAT I don't like!

Last week we went to a local apple farm that we go to every year. And although they didn't have pony rides this year, Alexa quickly got over the disappointment of that with all the other stuff we were able to do.

Of course we did some apple picking...

and eating!!

The kids loved feeding the goats...

And climbing the fences.

We also went on a hayride, went through the maze, climbed in the hay bails and ate apple brats for lunch. And the weather was perfect for it all...beautiful and sunny but a little chilly!

Happy Fall!! :)

Baby #3 - 12 Weeks

2010-09-26T13:55:00.001-05:00

This is the last pregnancy post for awhile, promise. :)

So it seems like there is a lot of pregnant people in blogland these days and so many of them do this and I think it's such a cute idea. I have never really kept a pregnancy journal before and I have hardly any belly pics when I was pregnant with Alexa and not many early belly pics with Braden so I decided that I wanted to do better this time around. I probably won't do this every week but every once and awhile to show the progress. I also didn't want to post a picture yet because I feel like I am really big already and just look fat instead of pregnant but then I figured whatever. :)

How far along: 12 weeks

Size of baby: About 2 1/2 inches long

Weight Gain: 0

Maternity Clothes: I wore a pair of maternity pants once but other than that, nope. I just went through some bins this weekend and found all my maternity stuff and realized that the majority of the it is for Summer so I will eventually have to get some new tops. I hate spending money on maternity clothes though so I won't be getting much, besides I have tons of hoodies I can wear this Winter. :)

Gender: ???

Movement: None yet but I can't wait, I love that feeling!

Sleep: I am always so tired but I feel like I have insomnia or something, many nights I lay in bed tossing and turning and can't sleep.

What I miss: Over easy eggs and deli meat, I would love a Subway sandwich right now! (Yes, I am one of those people that avoid all the foods they tell you to avoid.) :)

Cravings: Fresh fruit

Symptoms: Starting to feel much better with the morning sickness thing, I love being able to eat dinner with my family again. :) I feel like I am getting more tired recently though...maybe because I can't sleep!?

Best moment this week: Telling everyone we're pregnant. :)

What I'm looking forward to: My next doctor appointment, I love hearing that little heart beat! We have also been looking for a bedroom set for Braden so we can get him transferred before the baby gets here, I can't believe my baby boy is going to be in a big boy bed.

Have a great week everyone!!

A Little More on Baby B

2010-09-22T20:25:00.001-05:00

First of all I have to say Thank You so much for all the sweet comments!! We are so very excited about our new little babe! I have been just a tad bit emotional lately and you all brought tears to my eyes with all your excitement and sweet words. Speaking of being emotional (I didn't think I was so bad but don't ask my husband he might give you a different answer!) So I had totally forgotten that Patrick Swayze had passed away until a couple weeks ago I picked up a copy of US magazine and there was a little "1 year later" tribute. So there I was on the treadmill in the middle of the gym crying, totally not awkward at all. Is there seriously a better classic movie than Dirty Dancing!?

So anyway, I am just about 12 weeks and our due date is April 10th. We have a Summer and a Fall baby so the Spring addition will be perfect. :)

Here are a couple of the most common questions I have gotten so far...

How are you feeling?
It's funny that this is almost the very first question that everyone asks when they find out your pregnant...like they don't already know. (Except for those lucky women who don't get sick when pregnant. Don't tell me if you're one of those because chances are I won't like you anymore.) So yeah, I haven't exactly found a nice way to say, "I feel like total crap so stop breathing in my face before I puke on you." so I just usually say, "Kind of icky but it should be gone soon."
It really has been a couple of rough months that's for sure but now that I am close to the second trimester I am slowly starting to feel better each day. I am so thankful I have such an awesome husband who comes home and cleans up after dinner (and many nights even makes dinner) then plays with the kids and gives them baths all while fetching me saltines and water. I was telling him a few weeks ago that I don't know if I actually feel worse this time around or if it's just because I am home versus at work. With my other pregnancies I was working and could sit at my desk and eat my crackers in peace but now that I am home and have a couple very active little ones who don't understand that I am not feeling that great, I don't get much resting done. I won't complain though, I am blessed to be home and love being here...besides I have been taking advantage of nap time and usually curl up on the couch too. :)

Are you going to find out the sex?
NO! Well that's the plan at least. I have always wanted to not find out and I completely agree when people say that it's the biggest and best surprise you will ever get. Being such an anal person though I have to be prepared and organized so I just couldn't do it with the other two. This time though we have everything we will need for either one so it is the perfect opportunity to be surprised! Besides, it's a third so all we really need is a couple of onesies and diapers, right. :)
(Side note: onesies always comes up on my spell check, is it not a real word??)

What do you want it to be?
It does not matter, all I pray for is a healthy little baby!! But honestly I want both. :)

How did you decide to have another?
Well approximately two and a half hours after giving birth to Braden I knew I wanted another. It took a little longer to convince Matt though. Don't get me wrong, he is very excited and completely on board with having this new little peanut and I honestly don't think actually having another child was ever that much of a problem for him but like I said before he is such a man and has to be all logical about things. Like, where are we going to put the baby? Well lucky for him he has a fabulous wife to take care of all the details and after some measuring and a couple phone calls we will soon have another bedroom in this house. Voila, somewhere to put the baby. :) In all seriousness though he is "ecstatic and very happy" about it. (his words) He also said "it's going to be a walk in the park!" (I don't quite know what he is referring to on that one. Haha)

Thank you again so much for all the wonderful words and prayers!!

Introducing...

2010-09-19T21:20:00.000-05:00

Our newest bundle of joy!!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-09-15T21:02:00.000-05:00

The Waterpark Capitol of the World

2010-09-13T13:20:00.000-05:00

A couple weeks ago we went on a little getaway to WI Dells. (It seems like forever ago but I wanted to post pics anyway.) We have been going at least once a year for the past few years and it is by far one of our favorite vacations we take! It is so much fun watching the kids, they get so excited and just love every minute of it. Alexa had so much fun this year. Many of the big water slides require that you be 42 inches to ride and she cleared that by a couple inches this year. I was pretty surprised by all the stuff she did...anything she could go on, she did. She is definitely our thrill seeker child!

There's a lot of pictures on this post and they also aren't very good quality at all. I only took our little point and shoot knowing that I wouldn't take our big camera with us anywhere because I wasn't going to leave it with our stuff while we were off playing. I missed the nice camera though, it would have taken such better pictures. Oh well.

First of all I have to show you our "hotel room." If you are ever going anywhere where you are staying at a resort of hotel you should check out Craigslist. We found this place though a timeshare thingy on there and we barely paid more than we would have for a 2 queen bed hotel room. We had an entire 2 bedroom suite, it was awesome!

Here's just part of our master bathroom. I could have just stayed in there the whole time!

Here's the kitchen, fully equipped with everything we needed. It's nice to be able to bring all the food you'll need and cook right there instead of going out for every meal.

And the living room...the door on the left goes to the big balcony. Seriously, check out Craigslist...good deals!!

This pretty much sums up Alexa the whole time we were there, she couldn't get enough water park fun.

Matt took Alexa up to go on these slides and as I was watching people come down I kept thinking that I should quick run up and stop her because I didn't think she would like it (you had to lay on your stomach and people were getting water sprayed all over their faces on the way down) and as I kept thinking that all the sudden I hear some kid squealing the whole way down...yup, it was her. She loved it and wanted to go over and over.

Braden was happy watching for the most part. Definitely our less daring child (for now) he liked floating around the two story lazy river and going down the little slides with me. He had a blast! I just had so much fun watching them both get so excited about everything the whole week, it was so cute!

Every time we go to the Dells we go out to eat one night and the past couple years it has been to Buffalo Phil's. They have train tracks running through the whole place and they actually deliver your food on the little trains. Alexa though it was so cool to take her own drink off of the train when it stopped at our table. When they weren't delivering food they would drive the trains around with different characters or fun stuff on them, all the kids there loved watching them...what a fun job for the cooks, we were sitting right behind the wall from them and you could hear them laughing at times!

And at night when we were all watered out there was a huge 3 story indoor climbing thing, the kids spent hours in there running around.

Zoo Fun

2010-08-28T21:40:00.000-05:00

We normally go to the MN Zoo since we have a season pass and it's a lot bigger with more stuff to do, however last weekend we decided to go to the other zoo in town to switch it up. It also has a little mini amusement park thing which we ended up spending a lot of the day at. Matt and Alexa both got wristbands and I think she made him go on like 200 rides. I had to post pictures because they are just kind of funny. There's something about a 6'1" man sitting in a kiddie ride that looks comical.
He is such a great Daddy!

The Frog Hopper was definitely Alexa's favorite ride. At one point they just let her stay on it because she just kept getting off and running around to the entrance gate again.

Alexa's favorite animals we saw...the penguins.

This is how Braden fell asleep halfway through the day, going to the zoo is exhausting!

What's On My Mind

2010-08-27T21:55:00.000-05:00

I haven't blogged in forever and for some reason I have a lot to say tonight so if you don't make it through this whole thing I totally understand and will tell you here to have a wonderful weekend!! If you do make it to the end, bless your heart. :)

This week we have had a couple chilly days. Chilly as in waking up to temps in the low 50s and not getting above low 70s. Although it was wonderful to have a little break from the heat and humidity and to be able to break out the jeans it's sad to think that Summer will start fading away soon. I love having lots of beach and pool days and being able to get up and head to the park or zoo for the day and honestly, I don't know how I am going to entertain my children come winter. They have gotten used to being on the go this Summer. Time to scope out the indoor play stuff.

I keep saying that once Summer is over things will start calming down and everyone won't be so crazy but really as I have been making phone calls and setting up schedules I am realizing that the crazy is just starting.

We had planned on putting Alexa in the same Preschool that she was in last year again this year however to make a long story short, funding fell through somewhere and they won't be open this year. After Matt and I thought about it and weighed our options we decided that instead of finding a different school in a different town that we would just keep her home this year. Yes people, this means I am going to be homeschooling. I bought some stuff and started planning out what we would work on and started a little bit this past week. Well, come to find out I'm already boring her to death. I bought Preschool and Pre-K stuff and a lot of that is working on writing and simple shapes and sounds which she can already do. So I have no idea what I am going to do. I think one of the main things I want to work on with her is starting reading. Anyone know how to do that? :) (I don't think I am cut out for this teaching stuff!)

Since she isn't going to be going to school we wanted to keep her involved in other things so she is starting up swimming lessons again in a couple weeks and instead of doing classes every other month I think I might keep her in every month. She loves swimming and since we won't be outside doing it I think she will like that. I also found a gymnastics program for her that I think she will really like that runs for about 3 months in the Fall and 3 months in the Spring. I also wanted to get her into soccer but I think we might wait on that one.

Last year we joined a MOPS group but due to Alexa in school we just couldn't make it very often. This year I really hope we can get back into it, it's such a great group! I am also going to be back in Bible Study after taking the Summer off. I am excited to be getting back into these groups, I think it will be good for me and the kids.

The MN State Fair started yesterday and I can't wait to go! A friend of mine put something about having traditions with her kids on Facebook (while at the fair) and I couldn't agree more. I love traditions even if it's a silly one like going to the State Fair every year. Besides the kids are at such a fun age to do that kind of stuff with.

I have been in a major organization kick lately. I am trying to go though cupboards and closets and TOYS! The toys around this house is driving me crazy, probably because they always seem to be laying around everywhere. Every time I get them all cleaned up I have the one toy out at a time discussion with the kids. Clearly it's not working. I have been trying to throw out all the broken and little junk toys and went through and got all the baby toys out and bagged up, it's still too much though. I need a some TLC show to come and help me...or just a bigger house. :)

Okay, I'm sure I could go on and on but I won't bore you to death.
If anyone has any suggestions on the whole homeschooling thing I would really appreciate it!!
Or if anyone wants to come organize toys you are most definitely welcome to. :)

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Look Who's 2!

2010-08-19T20:30:00.000-05:00

Last Friday was Braden's birthday.
He is officially our little two year old...a cute one at that! :)

He woke up to balloons all over his floor from the Balloon Fairy. This is definitely one of my favorite birthday traditions, seeing the look of excitement on their faces is priceless. We woke up to hearing him on the monitor, "Mommy, mommy...bawoons allll over down der, mommy, mommy wow!"

The kids spent most of the morning playing around in there...cheap entertainment, maybe we should do it more often! :)

Since his actual party wasn't until Sunday we couldn't just not do anything for his real birthday so that night my parents, bother, sister and her boyfriend came over for dinner, cake and a couple presents. I think he liked all the attention!

I think he liked his ice cream cake too! :)

We also had his 2 year check-up this past Tuesday.
The doctor said he speaks very well, is a super happy little guy and overall looks like everything is great.

Weight: 32 pounds (92 percentile)
Height: 2' 10.5" (53 percentile)
Head circumference: 20.51" (99 percentile)

We ended the appointment with a couple shots (thankfully the last ones until Kindergarten!)
I can't remember if he has ever cried at shots, maybe his very first appointment but he was always the one that just got really mad and then it was over. This time he did, I heard him yell from out in the hall (yes, I leave the room and let Matt take care of the dirty work, I am a huge baby like that) but as soon as it was over I went in and gave him kisses and a sucker...all better! :)

It's still hard to believe this little guy is two already but it has been so much fun watching him grow into a little boy!

Happy 2nd Birthday Braden!
Love You Forever!!

Baby Boy is Growing Up

2010-08-12T20:34:00.002-05:00

Tonight I spent a lot of extra time snuggling with and singing to this little boy before bed.

Tomorrow he will be 2.

Where does the time go?

Happy Birthday Eve Baby Boy!!

Camping

2010-08-11T13:35:00.007-05:00

I am having a hard time blogging these days...can you tell!? :) We haven't been doing anything too fantastic but we are staying pretty busy just enjoying Summer. When you live in WI you never know when Summer will be gone, it comes and goes too fast. We have been spending lots of time outside...fairs, parades, parks, pools, you name it we're doing it. The kids are loving every second of it and I have no idea how I am going to keep them busy this winter. :) So I apologize to those who actually care and have been waiting for a blog update...ahem, Nana! (My grandma) :) I will try to do better but it's hard sitting on a computer when it's so nice out.

A couple weeks ago we went camping up at Duluth with some good friends. We had SO much fun!! I was curious as to how the kids would do but they did perfect and loved every second of it. Matt and I used to camp pre-kids but we have never taken them. Not sure why, I think we just thought a hotel room would be better for them (or me!) :)

We were going to rent a pop-up camper but a couple weeks before leaving our friends asked us if we wanted to use theirs. Ummm, YES! Matt was pretty pumped to be saving the money on renting one and I was just happy to not have to use a rental...it's a rental people, you have no idea what happens in those things! Gross. So anyway, it was perfect. We have been throwing around the idea of getting one of our own so it was nice to try one out and see how we liked it. We liked it. :)

I am kind of bummed that I didn't get many pictures but that always means that we were having too much fun to break out the camera so it's okay. Here's a few from a little day trip we took into town.

There was 3 other families that were with us and 10 kids between everyone and they all had a blast! We were in the perfect group camping spot that had lots of room for the little ones to run and play, and that they did! Braden loved being able to get a dirty as he could...

Going camping is one of my best memories of a kid and I hope to make it something our kids remember too.
This is definitely something we will be doing much more of next year!
Thanks Tina and family for letting us tag along, can't wait to go again! :)

Wordless Wednesday

2010-08-04T14:02:00.000-05:00

Little Diva

2010-07-16T14:55:00.005-05:00

It may or may not be obvious (and by that I mean it is definitely obvious) that Alexa is somewhat of a little Diva. And if you needed just one more picture to believe that, this should just about do it.

I went in to check on the kids when they were napping today and this is how I found Alexa.

On another note, this is where I found the kids earlier today.
I am determined to remember them this way and how cute they were reading together instead of 20 minutes later when they were screaming and fighting over the dumbest toy we own...which is now in the garbage.

Happy Friday!! :)