Christmas Past...

2007

Our first Christmas married was in Monticello

Ryan wouldn't let me buy stockings, so we had these dollar stockings with duck tape for lables: Ryan, Turkey and Missie

All of our decorations and lights were given to us by my mom, we had just enough to decorate the tree and one window.  And as you can see in the reflection of the other window, we lived across the street from the Griswolds.  

Our tree was a small 6 foot tree I bought in college.

No Star

No Tree Skirt

All second hand ornaments

This was the Christmas I told Ryan I was pregnant :)

2008

Our second christmas was also in Monticello

Same white trash stockings…

but we did upgrade the tree (a trade amongst the family) 

and I got new decorations (bulbs, ribbon and bow on top)

Riley was 4 months and we didn't get him any gifts

2009

Our third Christmas was in Monticello

Same tree as previous year

we are slowly adding more decor…poinsettia and little bow this year.

Riley was 16 months and we got him a cars play mat with cars characters and things he    needed like clothes and shoes.

2010

Our First Christmas in Indianola

Still the same tree and tree skirt

We ditched the poinsettias for candy canes, added new ribbon and got a star. 

We also got "BRAND NEW" stockings from Opportunity Village (Clear Lake's GoodWill)

Riley was 2 years old and I was 6 months pregnant with Tate.

This was the first year we did the "Santa thing"

I made cookies to put out on the Santa plate…when came down in the morning they were ALL GONE…the dog ate them…So I rushed to get another cookie with a quick bite out of it :)

Riley got the seasame street characters, football figurines, a large stuffed (bear) dog and bunch of little things.

2011

Our second Christmas in Indianola

Same tree 

Riley was 3 years old and Tate was 8 months old and I was 10 weeks pregnant with Blakely.

This year we ditched the candy canes, Riley kept asking to eat them.

I didn't take a lot of pictures this year…not sure why?  

But this is the year Riley got the 4-wheeler and Tate got a bunch of little things.  

And Finally

2012

Our Third Christmas in Indianola

Same Tree

NEW stockings and finally! NEW decorations, it only took 5 years, but I finally got my own stockings and decorations.  I have always wanted a "cozy cabin" themed christmas tree.  And although the tree looked stunning when I first decorated it…it looks pretty sad now (especially in this picture).  Decorations go missing and random items get hung up in their place.  The burlap ribbon gets pulled and used as ski slopes for the snow men.   I spent the first week re-decorating the tree about every hour, but I give up!  Riley just insists on moving the decorations to where he wants them!  However…I do have some tricks up my sleeve to keep the decor removal to a minimum...

What is Riley doing you ask?  Why he is checking out my new Santa camera.  What is a Santa Camera?

To any wondering eye, it looks like a tree light timer, but it is actually a high tech satellite radio device used by the north pole, so Santa can communicate with moms and dads to find out who's being naughty and who's being nice.  Works like a charm ;)

So now when Riley says "how about we turn that santa camera off?"  I know what is about to happen.

Family Pictures

 I get it…getting family pictures sucks.  I get it…I now know why people cut coupons and go to the mall to get photos.  Because after you spend money on matching clothes, the last thing you want is to blow a bunch of money on pictures that may not even turn out, because your 4 year old decided he had better things to do than cooperate, your 18 month old decided to be possessed by Satan and your 4 month old is hungry then spits up the whole bottle on her new clothes.  I get it…dads pissed - moms panicking…lets get this f*&king picture, get out of these clothes, go home and put these kids to bed 2 hours early.  I GET IT!

HOWEVER…I am stubborn and refuse to hang anything on my wall that looks like this:

TRUST ME!  I used to work in a mall studio…they will make you do this pose!  Don't believe their ad pictures…you will get stuck with a 16 year old high schooler who has no idea what she is doing.





No matter how bad our family picture turned out, I knew it would be better than a cookie cutter studio picture.  I have done our family photos in the past and knew I could do it again this year…but what a challenge it would be with 3 kids and Blakely at a hard age to photograph in a group.  So I asked my mom to come help.  We did the same thing we did for maternity pictures, I posed and focused the camera and mom pushed the shutter.  In the end…not too shabby.

As you can see, we changed our attire slightly…the boys are in the same clothes but Ryan, me and Blakely have new outfits.  The park I wanted to take pictures at was still closed for hunting and the ally was still under construction.  So we ventured out and found this spot at the last minute.  It's a challenge in itself to photograph your own kids but to photograph your kids with their dad there…WHEW!  I always tell my clients "don't bring dad! bring grandma!"  But Ryan did well…keeping his patience, knowing these picture were a necessity and important to me.  The kids on the other hand thought we were there to play.  I mean we did pick the spot closest to a pond and at a frisbee golf goal…so in between Riley throwing sticks in the water…Tater saying "fssshhh…fsshhh…?" and people yelling "HEADS UP!"  we did manage to get some family photos! (and I only had to switch one head!) :)  And as you saw in the last post, I already have them hanging in the house.

DIY

When you want something done Do It Yourself.  

Junk window frame+foam board+chalk paint=country chic chalk board :)

Left over paint from my mom + a overly ambitious mom= kitchen facelift (antique red and loving it)

One wall saying from Wal Mart + 3- 3M hooks = A place for the kids to hang coats so there isn't a pile at the bottom of my stairs

One Grandma + One desperate mama in need of family pictures = a miracle we got them done!

Daddy ate your candy...

Firstly... this is long overdue.  I meant to post it and forgot.  Found it today on my phone and made it a point to post today!

Secondly…I apologize for the obvious mining at the beginning of the video

Thirdly…in NO WAY would I normally let Riley act this way…however, I built up eating the candy and played this awful trick on him, so I let it pass.

Finally…note how Tate reacts to the missing candy :)

Just Being….

I used to have little photo sessions with Riley ALL THE TIME and with Tate SOME OF THE TIME and now I have them with Blakely ONCE IN A BLUE MOON…This particular day I had some down time [translation: I got bored folding clothes]  Blakely was laying on our bed on her back watching the ceiling fan go around…and I thought she looked perfect.  So I grabbed my camera to capture her being…perfect.

CarSeat

You may notice Blakely has a new car seat cover.  When she got her billirubin checked as a newborn, blood got all over the old car seat cover.  A friend sent me a link to a deal on a new cover.  I got the seat cover, heat support, lap blanket, canopy and wind/sun cover for $35 (original $120)  It's super soft minky fabric.  I don't LOVE the color, but there were only select colors on sale…beggars can't be choosers!  She fills out her seat very nicely.  

Compiling Christmas

Thanks to pin boards…collecting ideas for christmas is easier than ever!

click on the pictures to be directed to the website


http://pinterest.com/mlphotos/riley-christmas/

http://pinterest.com/mlphotos/tate-christmas/

http://pinterest.com/mlphotos/blakely-christmas/

Blakely: 4 Months

Normally I would start off these posts with "Blakely is such a happy baby!" or "It's going so good…she hardly ever fusses!"  but guess what folks…those would be lies!  Something happened to this little girl at 8 weeks.  She stopped pooping and it was all downhill from there.  She still slept good at night (which was a blessing)  but whenever I nursed her she just cried and cried and then wouldn't stop crying.  I was spending 1-2 hours trying to feed her and calm her…which is fine and dandy when you are a first time parent with ONE child…but I don't have that luxury.  While she was fussing and I was rocking…patting…shushing…bouncing…Tate was dive bombing off the sub-woofer onto the couch or sacrificing toys to the toilet gods or putting the dog's food in the dog's water bowl and making a fine paste.  By the time Ryan came home at 5:45pm…I was about to LOSE MY MIND!  I felt like I couldn't leave the house because she would cry the whole car ride, and the boys would sit there and cover their ears.  We had taken her to the doctor and he wasn't too concerned and said to keep doing what we were doing but to give her apple juice (thinking she was constipated)  But Ryan and I eventually determined (and I think I secretly knew the whole time)  something in the breast milk was upsetting her tummy…so I tried not eating certain foods, but unfortunately that didn't work.  So I came to the hard decision to switch to sensitive tummy formula last week…and immediately she was a different baby.   We saw more smiles from her in one day than we had her whole 4 months of life!  She is now pooping on her own (I was having to do the old q-tip trick) and she guzzles 8 ounces every feeding.

4 Month Milestones:

15.95 pounds
25 inches long
6-9 month clothing
size 3 diapers
started formula (similac sensative)
sleeps from 8pm-8am with (2-3) 2 hour naps
lost all her hair and is working on a new layer of darkish blonde
rolls over from tummy to back (almost from back to tummy)
holds head up at 90 degrees
pushes chest up with arms
sits up briefly
bears some weight on legs
holds bottle (needs some help still)
starting to grab toes
reaches for objects
recognizes mommy, daddy and riley's voices
blows bubbles, razzes, goos and gaas
likes to be held up above your head and brought down slowly for a kiss (and if your lucky she will drool in your mouth)
likes to be tickled on her belly and her toes blown on
had a couple bites of cereal…she seemed to like it
sucks her thumb all the time (and has since she was born) she sucks it all night
has a BIG BELLY and the waist line on pants are always too tight!
for the majority of this month she was not a very happy baby…hopefully she will be much happier in this next month

……………………………………………………………….

This is what Riley and Tate were like at 4 Months:


Tate:

This is a little late because Tate got his first cold and had to be put on antibiotics…he is still taking them and wakes up with his eyes crusted shut and coughs up mucus…Riley and I had the same thing, and we just can't get rid of it.

Here are some things Tate has been doing this last month:

-Rolls over both ways
-Grabs for things he wants
-Very interested in watching people eat, I was eating popcorn the other night and Tate kept grabbing the pieces out of my hand.  I haven't started cereal yet, I have tried a couple times and Tate gets really fussy that night, plus I just can't figure out how to feed him the cereal without interfering with nursing... (any suggestions?)
-sucks his thumb when he is tired and when he sleeps
-grabs his toes ALL.THE.TIME
-sits up, if you can keep his attention away from his toes
-likes the jumper
-sleeps from 10pm-7am, with a 2-3 hour nap in the morning and afternoon
-still nursing exclusively
-like to be "tossed" around and tickled
-developed a birthmark under his left eye
-16 pounds (I'll let you know on Tuesday how long)
-9 month clothing - size 2 diaper (not for long though)
-ticklish on his neck and armpits
-LOVES his big brother…and the feeling is slowly becoming mutual.  Tate will be fussy but when he hears Riley's voice he stops and smiles.

Here are some 4 month pictures

Riley:

Riley is 4 months old!  He is 16.5  pounds (90%)  and 27 inches (95%).  He has excellent head control, eye sight and hearing.  He is stretching his 9 month clothes.  He sleeps from 8 pm-7am. He eats at 7am, 11am, 3pm & 7pm and gets cereal from a bottle at 7pm.   Here are some of his accomplshments:

-Sits without support (new)

-rolls over (new)

-teething

-Laughs out loud

-On stomach, lifts head up 90 degrees

-Squeals in delight

- Brings both hands together

-Smiles in response to anothers smile

-Follows an object

-Holds head steady when upright

-Grasp a rattle

-Bear some weight on legs when held upright

-Reach for an object

-Keeps head level with body when pulled to sitting position

- Turn in the direction of mommy & daddy's voice

-Say aah-goo, geeee, and gah- gah

-Can razz (a wet razzing sound)

-Blows bubbles

-Can carry on a short conversation

Riley is such a sweet baby! We get told he is "easy", so YAY for us! He is always talking to his animal friends and smiling and laughing!  Such a sweet guy!  He loves to talk to you and be read to, his favorite book is Green Eggs & Ham.  We have a schedule in place;  it works well and Riley seems to like the structure. We are still nursing and have added a little rice cereal to a night bottle. We have accomplished rolling over, sitting up and grasping things!  He discovered the loud noises he can make at Thanksgiving.