Update on the girlies.

My eyes are burning and I am completely exhausted but I need to update this blog before I put it off any more!!

We are all doing pretty good except for all the nasty viruses that keep making their way into our house.  No matter how clean I keep the house, or how many times I wash mine and the girls hands, or keep them inside, we are STILL getting sick! I dont understand.. I was sick for about 24hours with a horrible sore throat and body aches, Kinsey has a head cold, cough and bad ear infection, and Harper has a cold. BUT we are all happy and enjoying life still haha

Kinsey's vocabulary has grown so much these past few weeks, its amazing! She is putting so many sentences together and turning into quite the little talker.  The other day Brandon had spilled something on his shirt and she told him "nice shirt, Dad!!" haha I about died! I have noticed if Brandon and I are talking she will repeat what we say to each other right after we say it, she is our little parrot :).  She also likes to pick one or two words out of a sentence you say to her and repeat them back to you and laugh.
Since the time change has happened I have kept Kinsey on her same schedule so that she says up an hour later and sleeps in an hour later.  Last summer she was going to bed when it was light outside so I figured we will put her to bed at 9pm instead of 8pm and now she sleeps until 830am!  Harper gets up at 7am so I dont get to sleep in, dang it haha! Kinsey lays down for a nap between 130-2 and will sleep until about 4.  Her new thing is she will yawn and say "I tired!!" then when you ask her if she would like to go to bed she yells NO!! haha  She is enjoying being a big sister and we still havent had any major jealousy issues (yea!!).  She did kick Harper while they were in the car the other day but I know it was an accident because Kinsey started to cry when Harper cried and as soon as we got out of the car Kinsey rushed over to her and gave her a big hug and kiss and said, "you ok? I sorry!" One of those moments that melts my heart :)  Now that it is getting warm outside Kinsey wants to be out there 24/7!  She LOVES to play in the dirt and get dirty...and swing on her swing!
Another cute thing she is doing right now is if you give her multiples of something, like a few pretzels for example, she will eat one, give one to whoever gave them to her and save one for daddy!  She will even point her finger and tell me "daddy's!!" She is very protective of him and loves to share.
Every night before she goes to bed she likes to watch an "EEE" (movie) in Mommy and Daddy's bed.  At first I thought I was starting a bad habit but then I realized its a great thing!  We snuggle in the bed together as a family and watch a few minutes of TV together while I feed Harper.  Then after I am done we give each other kisses and the girls go to bed.  It works out PERFECT and its nice to get those last few snuggles in before the day is over :)
Kinsey is growing up so fast and becoming quite the character.  Her personality is exactly like mine and its so fun to watch her grow up, explore and learn new things every day.  Having a toddler is so rough sometimes but the good times def weigh out the rough times :)

This girl loves her chocolate milk with a "staw" :)

best buds!!!

practicing her frog jumps

"JUMP, JUMP!!"

She is starting to loose her chubby cheeks :(

Kinsey adores Elmo

Crazy hair :D

Taking a pic with dads phone of Harper haha

Thank goodness for toy rooms!!

Now for Miss Harper!! Where do I begin?!  She is SUCH a sweetheart oh my goodness!  I find myself just snuggling with her and kissing her every single second I get! I cannot believe how big she is getting and the fact she will be 16 weeks on Saturday just makes me want to cry..I honestly have no clue where the 16 weeks have gone.  We have so much fun with this little girl that time is flying by so much faster than imaginable.  Harper is now on a 3-4 hour schedule and sleeping almost 11 hours straight at night.  She wakes up every once in awhile but she usually just fusses for a few min and falls right back to sleep.  Sometimes I make Brandon get up to give her her binkie but thats it :)  We got into a little bit of a bad habit over my spring break because i didnt have to get up early and I wanted to sleep in as much as possible. So I would bring her into bed with me for her first morning feeding and then we would both fall back to sleep until Kinsey got us up haha! I did LOVE snuggling with her though and now we are back to the normal..
Miss Harps is doing better with her tummy time!  She will lay on her belly and play and watch whats going on around her.  When she is on her back she likes to roll to one of her sides, I think she will be one of those babies that rolls from their back to belly before belly to back haha!  She gets on her side and gets her legs swinging so much, its funny to watch :).  Her tongue is usually poking out of her mouth!  She loves to blow bubbles and drool A LOT! I have had to start putting bibs on her already!!!  Harper is THE happiest baby I have ever seen, this girl is constantly smiling.  And boy does this girl have flirting down to a T!  She will look at you with her beauty eyes, then as soon as you make eye contact she smiles big and turns to look the other way.  Brandon and I are in BIG trouble haha!  Harper is now giggling as well!  Her and Kinsey play together and Kins can get to her giggle so much.  I love just sitting back and watching those two interact.  They are best friends already!

always has her hands in this position lol

i love my girl :)

FLIRT alert!

one happy little girl!

she is proud of her tongue haha 

Having a second child has really added to my stress, anxiety, and workload but I have learned to just take each day and to enjoy it all! The dishes can wait, we all have enough clothes that laundry doesnt HAVE to be done every week, and so what is my house isnt always clean, but my girls are never going to be little like this again.  They grow up so fast and time is slipping away.. I absolutely LOVE being a mommy!!! and even luckier I get to be a stay-at-home mommy!!!!! :)

2 best girls a mommy could ever ask for :)

little monkeys!

Well I finally got Kinsey registered for a dance class!! She LOVES to dance around the house all the time and if there is music, she is movin to the beat haha.  She will even notice if you arent dancing and tell you to get up and "DANCE!!!".  The class is called "Me and Tot" so I participate with her and the age group is 18-36 months.  Once she is 3 I can move her into a different class like ballet or hip hop.  Another great thing is they teach her simple tumbling, and when I say simple I mean VERY simple lol.  They jump on the tramp, do summer salts, swing on the bar and walk on the balance beam.  Kinsey has so much fun and every Thursday when I tell her we are going to dance class she gets soooo excited!  Some of the things we do in the actual dance part is sing songs and they have dances to go along with them.  Like "5 little monkeys jumpin on the bed" (this is Kinsey's absolute favorite one and is singing this song all the time all day long), "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" and then they have music that tells them to hop like a bunny, crawl like a lion, hiss like a snake and so on. The main thing they should learn from this class is not how to dance, obviously because they are 3 and younger lol, but how to listen to their teacher and follow directions. This is prepping her for the dance classes she will start in about a year.  The first couple dance classes we had, Kinsey was ALL OVER!!! She didnt care what she was supposed to be doing, she just wanted to dance!  Now she knows the drill and actually sits down and stretches with the teacher and does the dances without getting distracted too much ;)  This is also giving her and I some very special one-on-one time and I dont know about her, but I love it!!!
The time we took the camera to get some pic, Brandon got sidetracked talking to the other dads, and would only take a pic or two when I would ask him haha!  But at least we got a few and we will be getting more I'm sure :)

waiting for class to start

she takes it very seriously.. HAHA JK!!

They dress up and dance around for part of it, another one of Kinsey's favs.

we have fun :)

HOLY SMOKES Kinsey is not afraid at all.. she jumps so high and it even freaks me out sometimes lol  

she loves the tramp :)

Miss Harps is 3 months

Harper is now 3 months old and growing like a weed!  She is such a fun baby and I just cant imagine life without her.  There is a constant smile on her face and she just LOVES life :)

*Harper is now wearing size 3-6 months clothes. Some 0-3 month outfits still fit her but they are getting snug hehe.
*She is now wearing size 2 diapers.  Kinsey is still in size 3 LOL!
*tummy time is not as much as a struggle anymore.. she used to HATE it and scream as soon as I put her on her belly.  Now she can tolerate it for a few minutes before I get yelled at ;)
*Bedtime is between 8-830 and for quite a few nights now she has slept all the way through until I wake her up at 715 to feed her before I go to school.  I hope she keeps this up :) (we might even have to make bedtime earlier..)
*She LOVES to lay on her back and swat at toys and grab anything close to her
*Harper takes 4 naps a day and we are on a feed/wake/sleep cycle.  I totally recommend this for any new moms.. it really does help them sleep better at night :) Her naps range from 1.5 to 2 hours long, depending on what nap it is.
*She must be in the room where all the action is..she is very observant and loves to watch people.
*She eats every 3-4 hours
*Harper absolutely adores her sister.  Kinsey is better at soothing her then I am sometimes, its amazing! She loves to sit and just watch her sister play and whenever Kinsey talks to her she gets THE biggest smile on her face. Kinsey also adores her sister and if we go anywhere without her she is constantly asking "where Harper??"

We go back to the dr in a month for her 4 month Well Child Check and I'm anxious to see how much she weighs and how tall she is.  She seems to me much longer than Kinsey was..

She loves her bumbo

Her hands are 95% of the time in this position! I love it :)

this pic wont upload in the correct position.. but I LOVE their expressions haha

smiles :)

Big GIRL

haha Kinsey was getting mad that I wasnt taking pic of her.. so when I pointed the camera at her, this is what she did LOL

Being a Mommy comes first.

Just a quick update on ME :)  I am loving life as a mommy of two and staying so busy.  Schools is going amazing and I couldnt be happier!!  I decided to just focus on Chemistry this semester since Harper was only 2 weeks when the semester started and I knew my life was going to be quite an adjustment.  Well I am getting an A in the class so far and we are more than half way done :)  My professor is probably one of the best I have ever had and I know he is there to help me succeed.  If anyone has to take Chem at Weber State I HIGHLY recommend Dr. Spencer Seager!! 
I have a set schedule down for both girls and I now have about an hour when their naps overlap to do what I want (usually clean or do homework.. LAME i know lol)  Kinsey is adjusting to life with her sister so well and I rarely have to deal with jealousy issues which is awesome!  The only time she show signs of jealousy is when I sit down to nurse Harper.. but usually I can talk her into getting a few book and she will sit next to me and we read together.  MAJOR multi-tasking :) haha
Now for my running habit... This makes me so sad to admit but it is whats best for my Miss Harps. I have had to dramatically decrease my running because I was training so much and burning so many calories that I started to not "produce" enough milk for Harper.  Running is so good for you and burns so many calories but unfortunately between running, chasing a toddler, and nursing, I was burning TOO many calories.  I lost 4 lbs in 10 days!!! Nursing alone burns around 300 calories a day, plus I am very active with Kinsey so all that put together was just too much.  I was/am eating constantly to keep my energy up so I know I did my best in that department.  I started to notice Harper wasnt getting quite enough because she would still want more and was crying to be fed about every 1.5-2 hours.  At her age she should be able to go 3-4 hours in between feedings.  So I took a full week off from the gym and just ate and drank water until it was coming out my nose!! Now everything is perfect and Harper is much happier :)  I am still going to run and keep up those habits, but I have set a goal to run 7 miles a week.  I chose 7 because that means I can do 3 miles twice a week (3 miles is fun, 4 is just too many, and 2 isnt enough) and a mile for fun another day in the week... and also because 7 is my lucky number haha.  This also means that I wont be doing the Salt Lake Half marathon in April like I wanted to.. and this is the SADDEST part for me :'(  I was so looking forward to it and couldnt wait!!! But being a mommy comes first and has top priority to me so I will be running the Salt Lake Half April 2013!

Thank you just isnt enough..

This post is going to be totally different from what i normal blog about: me, the girls, and celebrations.  It is going to be all about my hubby!!! I have gotten so busy with "life" and feel so guilty that I have neglected to brag about how wonderful he is!  This April will mark the 6th year we have been together.. crazy to think I was only 16 when we started dating.. We have def had our rough and tough times but we have also had very great times together :) We havent done things the easy way, EVER, but I think thats what has made us grow so close together and become such a strong couple.  Going through tough times with the one you love is bound to make you love them even more!

I dont tell him nearly enough how much I appreciate all he does for me and the family.  There is just not enough time in the day even if i was to tell him every min or every second how much i am thankful and how much i love him.  He goes to school full time, works well over 40 hours each week and still comes home to help me with the girls and housework.  I am just amazed at how well he has done in his job and know its because he is such a great man and hard worker.  He is only 24 years old and has his own corporate T-Mobile store, and is supporting me and the two girls. Plus he owns his own home and pays 2 car payments each month.  How freaking amazing is that?! I dont know what I would do without him.. At times I know he is stressed to the max because he has a lot of pressure being the only income and when I offer to go back to work his response is always the same.. he wants me to stay home and raise our girls and focus on school. he knows school does not come easy for me and that my major is very time consuming and supports me in any way that he can. 

I love you so much Brandon and words cant even describe how thankful I am for you and all you do for us :) The past 6 years have been amazing and I cant wait to see how far we come and achieve in the next 6 years!

Look who's TWO!

Its official... I have a 2 year old!! WOWZA! It seems like Kinsey should still be crawling around and eating baby food :( Her birthday this year was so much fun to plan because I knew she would love it!  We went the the Sesame Street theme and focused more on Elmo since he is her favorite. 
The morning of her party she woke up to balloons EVERYWHERE!! Brandon and I stayed up late the night before filling tons with helium and blowing them up as well.  Her face was priceless and made it all worth it :).  I also cooked her favorite breakfast, eggs, bacon, and pancakes! YUM YUM!
We kept her party simple this year with just close family, but geez louise my house was still packed full! Kinsey has so many family members that love and spoil her.  At her party we served some of her favorite afternoon snacks, they were all kinda random but I didnt have any left overs so they all must have been good ;).  We had little smokies, 7 layer dip, fruit with the marshmallow and cream cheese dip, popcorn, and some of her favorite candies. Her cake this year was AMAZING!! I am so glad I paid someone to make her cake haha If you ever need someone to make a great themed cake that also tastes yummy I highly recommend this girl.  You can check out some of her work here and here.  Kinsey was a spoiled little girl and had tons of fun at her party! Thanks to all of you who came out to celebrate with us :)

Grandma and Grandpa Sullivan got her this dress and if I could I would have her wear it every day!! She loves wearing it and I love seeing her in it!

So happy she FINALLY got the Elmo from mom and dad.. she had wanted it since Christmas!

So this was one of those $1 toys at Target and I thought it was a good idea when I saw it... but I am kinda regretting my decision lol she LOVES to play it all day!!!!!

4 generations :)

I am THE luckiest wife and mommy in the world!! I love my family :)

On the actual day of Kinseys birthday we decided to take her to the Living Planet Aquarium since she loves water and fish!  She had such a great time and didnt want to ever leave lol.  When we first got there I whipped out my camera to start taking pics and guess what... my freaking batteries were DEAD!!! Just my luck.. so we went to the little gift shop they have to get some batteries and they only sold AAA and my camera takes AA.  Brandon, being the amazing husband he is, decided to run to a near gas station to get some and the first one he went to was completely out of batteries so he had to walk further to another one and finally got some LOL! What a man! Her favorite station, by far, was the sting ray pool.  I dont think she liked the sting rays as much as she loved playing in the water ha! After dinner we took her to Texas Road House.  I wanted someplace fun and somewhere I knew they would make a deal out of her birthday :) They of course put her on the saddle and gave her a big "yeeehaww!!" :)

playing with the sting rays..

what a life :)

I LOVE her so dang much!!

So she got an otter pop when we left the aquarium and of course dad picked the bright red one that would have stained her shirt pretty good.. so he made a nice bib out of a napkin LOL It actually worked quite well and she only got a little bit on her sleeve!

She did NOT want to leave the aquarium..

YEEE HAW!!

2 months, and 2 years!

Wow my girls are growing up so fast right before my eyes!  I love them to pieces and I KNOW I just have to be the luckiest mom ever to have these 2 munchkins in my life.  They are healthy, happy, smart, and just perfect.
I scheduled their appointments back to back since their dr is CLEAR out in Pleasant View and they needed to be seen around the same time anyways...

Harper is doing so well! Here are her stats:

Height: 22 inches (25%)
Weight: 10.3 lbs (25%)
Head circumference: 36 cm (3%)
She is a well rounded girl with a tiny small head :) The MA was laughing because her 36 cm head is barley touching the line so technically she is not on the charts but since it was touching she said she is in the 3rd percentile haha
*She is now awake longer during the day and I am loving it! She is such a chill baby and doesnt require a lot of attention.  She just likes to lay and watch her sister play or watch the family be goof balls that we are lol
*Her middle of the night feeding is more of a chit chat session so I have a feeling we will be getting rid of that feeding here in the next few weeks.  She will nurse for about 5 min on one side then just sit and talk and smile at me and wont eat any more!
*Harper is wearing size 0-3 month clothes and size 1 diapers.
*Her toothless smile is THE cutest thing ever and it melts my heart every time she does it!  Her whole face just lights up :)
*Kinsey has a way with calming her down and it makes me so happy! She can get to be one onry girl and as soon as her big sis comes to see her she smiles and it happy again lol

Kinsey is growing into a WOMAN! She is 2 going on 15 lol

Height: 33.25 inches (40%)
Weight: 22.9 lbs (5%)
Head circumference: 46.5 cm (25%)
Kinsey is tall (well kinda lol) and skinny! She will be the model of the family for sure! :)
*She likes to be independent and is getting quite good at doing things on her own.  We are working on not getting so angry when she cant get something the first time.. but its rough when you cant accomplish something you want!
*DIVA is this girls middle name. Holy Cow! She is a champ at throwing "drama" tantrums to try to get her way.
*She imitates just about every word you ask her to say or say to her.  Brandon and I have really learned to watch what we say around her now lol
*Kinsey loves to eat! Im surprised with as much as this girl eats that she isnt higher in the percentile for her weight.  Its very rare for her to not have something in her hand to eat.
*Bedtime is between 8-830pm and she will sleep until about 730 or 8am.
*When tucking her in at night I HAVE to tuck in Elmo, Grover, and her bebe as well or else she will NOT lay down ha! Its a good thing she is sleeping in a twin bed now so she has room for all those "extras" :)

I LOVE being a mommy to these two little girls!!!!