For those of you who wondered how Kensley liked Santa this year...

Christmas Cookies '09

Last Saturday we spent the day at my Grandma Sally's (or GiGi's as Kensley would say) making Christmas cookies. This is an annual tradition although now when I come to think of it I don't think I participated last year for some reason or another. I think the weather was bad or something. Anyway, this year Kensley got to participate and she had a blast. Adding sprinkles to the cookies was by far her favorite. She ate A LOT more than she put on the cookies, but that is what sprinkles are for! Here is my brother putting all those arm muscles to good use ;) My Official Cookie Taster ;) Spencer was ready to gobble up any cookie crumbs Kensley and GiGi Ready to get my sprinkle on! It was so very neat to see how involved K got to be this year. Last Christmas she was only 9 months old and just starting to crawl and this year she is so much more interested in everything and she is such an intelligent little girl. She has made this holiday so very special and I can not wait to make even more Christmas memories with her this year and all the many more to come!

I have thrown up no less than 6 times today. And I thought the morning sickness was getting better...*sigh*

Baby #2

	I had my ultrasound this morning to date the pregnancy. I am officially 10 weeks and 2 days and my due date is July 12th. The baby's heart rate was right around 172 which was much higher than Kensley. Her heart rate was in the 140's and the nurses all guessed she was a boy ;) Guess that heart rate doesn't tell you much! My blood pressure was a little low 100/62 but that was not a big concern and I have already gained 4 pounds and the nurse informed me I should only gain 20 to 25 total. HA! They told us everything looks good and sounds good and we feel so blessed. What an amazing Christmas gift!

My favorite scent on earth

Every single year at Christmas time Dave and I head to Bath and Body Works to buy their Christmas Spice candle. This year when I walked in it was nowhere to be found and I literally wanted to lay down in the store and cry. We looked at the whole line of Christmas candles and they had something along the lines of "cinnamon and clove" which I thought might be like my candle but it wasn't. It just wasn't the same strong cinnamon smell we love. By chance I happened to get online and found the Spice candle. I wasn't even sure this was the right candle but since they were having a sale 2 for 20 I bought 4 candles. When it came the other day in the mail I was so nervous but this indeed the right candle. My whole house smells so yummy and now it finally smells like Christmas!

My Little Picasso

Some pictures you won't be seeing on our Christmas cards this year...

Kensley has some news to share

Belated Halloween Post

This is going to be a real quick post. I am getting ready to head to the gym and meet Dave for a workout. We have not been in over a week and that needs to stop! They have a daycare and everything so I have no excuse not to go.

This weekend was a lot of fun. We ended up going to my uncle's Halloween party and it was so fun. He had it all decorated outside with pumpkins and witches and even a flying ghost that Kensley just loved. Everyone loved our costumes and I thought K looked adorable with her bone in her hair. We came home and watched The Office (hahaha BookFace!) and Flash Forward and then headed to bed.

My mom was a brick house



My uncle and my dad



Fred and Wilma



Pebbles was not impressed.



Sunday we got up and headed to Pat Catan's because they had Christmas trees on sale for 50% off. We got a cute 7ft tree for only $50. It wasn't a pre-light tree like I wanted but for the price we could buy lights for less than most trees cost and that way we could buy the energy efficient lights. We ended up putting it up last night just so we could see how many strings of lights we needed. Surprisingly Kensley hasn't even paid that much attention to the tree. She will sit by it when the lights are on but they haven't been on most of the day and it is like it is not even there. I am not sure when we will bust the rest of our Christmas stuff out but hopefully soon. I just love having the house decorated and smelling like cinnamon! YUM!

I have seriously watched the 5 little pumpkins video online 700 times today. Kensley likes to do the hand motions when they "roll out of sight" so she keeps putting my hand on the mouse and making me click to start the video over! haha. Now she is putting her coins in her piggy bank and having me dump them back out so she can put them in again. Repeat. Repeat. All.Day.Long! haha

Well I am off to the gym!

My little pumpkin

Busy Weekend!

This weekend was a busy one :)

Saturday we took Kensley to Boo @ the Zoo. They get to go and see all the animals plus they have all the workers dressed up in costumes passing out candy along the way. She was definitely more into the animals this time, even more than when we went this summer which was just a few months ago. Plus she had a blast running around the zoo.

After that we headed to Quaker Steak to see Dave's family that was in town to see his Grandma. We all ate far too much food and then headed home.

Sunday was Date Day. Kensley went and hung out w/ Grandma Patti and Dave and I went to Panera bread for breakfast, went and saw Law Abiding Citizen (sooo good!), had lunch at Carrabba's and did some early Christmas shopping for Kensley. Why is it so hard to buy for little kids? I took Kensley to Target last week to see what she would play with because we had no clue what to buy for her. We ended up buying her this :





We also bought her some crayons to write in the tub and some decals that stick to the bathtub walls because she doesnt have many bath toys besides the ones she has had since she was little. I also got her a few long sleeves shirts, a cute pink cardigan, some penguin pajama's and a sweater dress. I am thinking of a few stocking stuffers and then she should be all done!

We also bought her a potty chair last night, she attemted to let her run around naked and she peed twice on the floor and didnt want to sit on the potty. So we will wait a little longer. But it is sitting in the living room so she gets used to it, maybe she will sit on it. We shall see ;)

When we picked K up at grandma's she was running all over. She had this little pretend orange juice carton and she would reach her hand in and pretend she was pulling out a treat and then put it in our mouths saying NUM NUM! haha It was too funny and I wish we could have gotten it on camera. I thought it was so cute that she was playing pretend. We left there and headed to the grocery store, picked up Taco Bell for dinner and headed home.

We watched Away We Go last night and can I tell you how much John Krasinski reminds me of Dave? They don't look a thing alike, but they act very much the same. Goofy and sweet. It was a good movie. I really liked it.

Well that was pretty much my weekend. It was non-stop and now I feel like I need a day to recover from all that running around. Don't you just hate that?! haha!

Because goldfish crackers taste better off the floor.

Happy 18 months Kensley!

Dear Kensley, Yesterday you turn 18 months old. I remember before I had you that I always hated when you asked a mother how old her child was and they would say 18 months. Why not just say a year and a half? Why did they insist on stating it in months? Then I realized that every month in your life is a big deal. You were 12 months, then 14, then 17 and each one brought so many new things that summing it up as a little over a year just doesn't cut it. But for all of those people who want me to respond she is a year and a half now, you are officially a YEAR AND A HALF. I certainly know that when you are this age that half is a very big deal. Because for some reason when you are young you are in such a hurry to be OLDER. Let your momma tell you a little secret- SLOW DOWN! These are the best years of your life! You have a personal maid, cook, chauffer and well, someone wipes your ass for you. IT DOESN'T GET BETTER THAN THAT. But since I know the half is such a big deal we bought you a cupcake to celebrate. I couldn't help but think how different you look from just six months ago when you ate your first piece of cake at your birthday party. Your hair is longer and your face looks so much older. My little girl is growing up. You don't just look different either. There is so much more that you can do. You couldn't walk at your birthday but now you are running. You can climb stairs, you can take a broom and sweep my kitchen floors. I really like that last one. Saturday you finally got another tooth. This brings your total to a whopping five teeth. At this rate you will be eating applesauce and milkshakes until you are seven. Unfortunately, no one will want to trade with you at lunch in elementary school. Applesauce just doesn't cut it for a twinkies trade. You are a baby of few words. Don't let that deceive people though. I am talking few actual words anyone can make out come out of your mouth. This is not for lack of trying. You babble from the moment you wake up till the moment you go to sleep. The important thing is you babble with such conviction. You know exactly what you are saying and someday soon so will the rest of us. And Lord help us then. Right now you are still into every Pixar movie ever made. You love to look at your books and have mommy and daddy read them to you. You love puzzles, blocks and your little peoples animals. You have a mini broom, mop and swiffer and you tote them around with you and clean. You LOVE to be outside and playing. The other day we took you to the park and you lost it when we had to go home. You are still a great eater. Your favorite foods are brocolli, green beans, peas, tomatoes, black beans, chicken noodle soup, raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, bananas and pineapple. You gobble up spaghetti. Alright, really you will eat anything we put in front of you. I hope that never changes. As I sit here typing this I can not believe that you are already a year and a half. I still remember how it felt when you rolled around and kicked in my belly. I remember the first time I held you and I feeling I had never seen anyone so beautiful and perfect. I remember the car ride home from the hospital and those first few magical days with you. I remember your first smile, when you rolled over and started to sit up. I rememember you starting to crawl, then stand and eventually walk. I am sure these are all things that I will never forget even when you are all grown. Your daddy and I want you to know that these 18 months have been the very best of our lives. We can not wait to see all you can do in the next 18 months. We love you Punky. Love, Momma

Mommy's Little Helper

For some reason when I leave the closet door open, the first thing that K goes for is the mop and broom. I sometimes joke and call her my little type-a personality because she is constantly picking things up and putting them away. (Oh I know! I got one of those weird kids!) We went to my mom and dad's house and seriously her idea of fun is to pick up all of the rocks on the sidewalk and put them back in the driveway. Who knew cleaning could be so fun?! And I hope she keeps this up till she grown and out of the house. Mama always needed a maid and now she has one! For free!

Summer Time and the Livings Easy

We had a BBQ at my mom and dad's this weekend. My cousin Christy was in town from Michigan with her new boyfriend so we decided to have a pool party so everyone could meet him. I am happy to say that Kensley enjoyed the pool a lot more this time. It may have been the fact that is was close to 150° 92° and it certainly felt better in the pool than out. Dave tried to put her back on the patio for a bit to get her out of the sun and she cried to be put back in the pool. That is major considering the last time we put her in the pool she looked something like this- But this time my little girl acted more like a fish than anything else. I am so glad to see that she enjoys the water and that she gets more and more comfortable the more we take her. I LIVED in the pool when I was little and I hope she enjoys it as much as I did. Plus I think Dave LOVED the fact that he got to play with her in the pool this time. He was beeming the whole time ;) Doesnt that look so refreshing? I mean, a girl could get used to this!

A bunch of jibberish

So Kensley will be 17 months soon. And the only real word I can get her to say is Dada. She says the occasional Hey! or Hi! but the majority of what comes out of her mouth is Dada. Dada this, Dada that, Dada Dada Dadee Dad. I can not wait for the day when she says another word. Any word. And although I work tirelessly on it, that day might not come for awhile. I crack up listen to her jibberish. She has these grand stories with hand motions and I just know she is telling me something extremely fascinating, I just dont know what it is yet. Anyway, I taped her the other day jabbering away and thought I would share it. So here you go.

Please Vote For Miss Kensley!!!

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Congratulations!!!

I have had some really big news to share, but until Dave took his state test I didn't want to jinx it. Now that we have received his testing results and he PASSED! I can now share the good news with all of you.

I am now the proud wife of a paramedic!!!


For those of you who don't know, Dave has been taking classes to become a paramedic since the fall of 2007. Before this he was in college for almost 7 years. He started college in Toledo, then switched to Akron, switched majors and finally decided that he would go to a local community college for their paramedic program. I tell you this simply to explain that my husband has been in school for a looooong time. We (kindly) joke with him that he could be a brain surgeon by now with all the schooling he has under his belt. In all honesty though, I don't think I have been more proud of my husband than I was on Saturday when we walked up to the front of the room and received his certificate. For you see, in the time that my hubby has been in school we have met and started dating, moved in together, gotten married and started a family. Those are a lot of things for anyone to go through, let alone having to stay committed to working full time (and then some), putting in major clinical hours and maintaining good grades. And he has pulled it off!

The sheer amount of determination that my husband has to give myself and our child (and future children) a better life is remarkable. I have never seen him so dedicated and focused. He was very nervous to take his state test and fail because this test has a very high percentage rate of failure the first time. He didn't want to let me down. I tried to let him know that even if he failed, I loved him and was very proud of him. We would simply take it again and again until he passed. You guys, he took the test in less than an hour and passed with flying colors. My man is a genious. ;)

So this post is dedicated to my husband. Who can finally relax and take a break from schooling (but wants to get right back into it again and start his nursing degree!) for doing whatever was necessary for you to get through these last two very difficult years. I am so very, very proud of you and even though I know Kensley can not understand all that you have sacrificed to make her life better right now, I know that when she grows up she will and she will have an excellent role model for her to look up to. So CONGRATS BABY!!! You did it!!!

(Here is Dave with his mom on graduation day. I swear K is much more excited about his graduation than she looks in this picture. She was just much more interested in chasing a 3 year-old boy down the hallway ;~) Does daddy have his work cut out for him or what?!)

Father's Day '09

I have to start my Father's Day post by pointing out my dad's huge Father's Day Fashion Don't. Socks with sandals??!! In June??!! Sometimes I am just so embarrassed to be your daughter. But he redeemed himself just a little by wearing the Ohio State shirt Colton bought him with the Cleveland Browns swimtrunks we bought him at the same time because he liked our gifts so much. Love ya Dad. And Kensley may or may not be wearing pajamas from the night before because her parents are just a tad too lazy to change her clothes. Anyways.



Father's Day was a good one. We spent the majority of the day at my mom and dad's. We ate delicious grilled food, swam in the pool (and K enjoyed it much more this time!), toasted marshmallows and ate s'mores and had a great time celebrating the men in our lives.

K really enjoyed the s'mores.



My brother and his gf Rachel spent the day with us as well. The look blindingly pale in this picture because they never come outdoors. They are usually always in the basement ignoring the rest of us ;)



Mom and Pops.



She now grabs your hand and makes you take her for walks all over. She walked circles around the yard for at least an hour.



Champion marshmallow toaster.



Just the three of us.





Daddy's girl



This was the view from the pool. A girl could get used to this!



I feel so blessed to be married to the man that I am. I knew when I met him that he was going to be an amazing dad and that was one of only a million reasons why I married him. Just watching him with K each and every day is a sight to see. He is soo good with her, he thinks about and misses her constantly and when she sees him her whole face lights up. I am glad that we have days like today, but I hope that he knows how much I appreciate him each and every day.