Saturday, January 23, 2010

Hide n Go Seek

Bella often sprints around the house and hides from us! Its amazing the little tiny areas she can fit and squeeze herself into! No spot is left unturned as you can see by the video below!

You may need to click on the picture below and go to our Picasa site to view the video. There are 10 others on there too if you need a Bella fix!

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Pregnancy Comparison and Quiz

Okay, we are in the final weeks before Baby S #2 debuts, so I thought I'd post some comparison photos from when I was pregnant with Bella and open up a new quiz to determine if you all think #2 will be a boy or a girl. Remember, more than 68% of you said #1 was a boy and it was a baby girl, so answer wisely!! :0)





Here are a few other details to help you in your guessing perhaps:

1. As far as the overall pregnancy is concerned, both pregnancies have been VERY similar.

2. Baby S #2 moves and kicks much more frequently and rapidly than Baby #1 did. Baby 1 had hard, slow, forceful kicks. Baby 2 is a rapid fire kicker.

3. Baby S #1 lodged self up under Mommy's ribs. BAby 2 stays lower and belts in on Mommy's bladder!

4. I had no cravings really with either pregnancy, but with Baby 1 I loved to eat meat, potatoes or anything that I could dip something else in. With Baby 2, I have a tad bit of a sweet tooth, but nothing out of the ordinary. I drink a TON more water, though!

5. I don't remember being as uncomfortable sitting with Baby #1 for long periods of time at my desk as I do with Baby #2.

6. Baby S #1's heartrate was always between 146-148 at all appointments until we were in the hospital when it went up to 156 the whole time. Baby S #2's heart rate was 128 at the first appointment, 170 at the second, and then has been anywhere between 142-148 for the rest of the appointments, mostly settling around 145/6.

Okay, there you go! Hope that helps you as you decide! Vote on the poll in the right hand column!

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Christmas Bella Photos 2009

Okay, so quite proud of myself for having 2 posts in the same week! Here are the pics I promised, Family!!! Hope you enjoy our little cutie as much as we do! Soooo much personality...so much character!


Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Thanksgiving in Oklahoma

Every other year, we travel to the alternating family for vacation. This year was off to Oklahoma for a week with Chris' Family. We arrived on Nov 21st and stayed till the 28th. Chris always thoroughly enjoys stomping around on his home land...in the woods of course! Although he chose not to hunt for deer this year due to the outrageous price for tags and license, he was able to go out and hunt for wild hog.

Kelly enjoyed her time catching up on sleep while grandparents took care of Bella! Bella, well, she just enjoyed being the center of attention with family and all googling all over her!

Here are some pictures of our time in Oklahoma and a video or two of when we returned home to AZ.


FAQs:

1. How are you feeling, Kelly? GREAT! Same as last pregnancy. All is going well and I feel fine. Baby moves way different than Bella did, so enjoy experiencing the variety! Thank you Baby S #2 for staying away from lodging under Mommy's ribs. Now, if you'd avoid the bladder area...I'd be so grateful!)

2. When are you due again? Well, we are giving a range since Bella came so early and doc says there is a chance this one will, too! So, although our TECHNICAL due date isn't until Feb 19th, we are thinking more like 6-9 weeks! Hard to believe, I know, but in just 6 more weeks... that's when Bella made her debut, so we'll see!!

3. Do you have names picked out? Yep. With Bella we had two girl names and one boy, so seeing how we had a girl, we still have one girl name and one boy name on the docket! Come up with new ones weekly, but there are still two front runners! Not really keeping it a secret, but just not posting either! HA!

4. What is Bella up to these days? Gosh, EVERYTHING! She finally decided to walk so that has been a real adventure. It's weird seeing a little shadow following you around EVERYWHERE! She took steps at 13 months old and would from time to time, but was just rather lazy since her crawling ability was so superb! So, after seeing the doc at her 15 month appointment, she decided the next day that should would just start walking....and she hasn't looked back! She scampers off pretty quickly, and usually its heading back down the hall way to Mommy and Daddy's room. She still sleeps great, eats awesome, and is a very happy pleasant little one. She smiles and laughs and TALKS all day long. We are still trying to figure out who she takes after with all the JABBER! Seriously, the other day, it was over 15-20 minutes of NON-STOP jabbering. It had us rolling on the floor in laughter! She just talks all day long!

5. What are Bella's favorite things now? Mommy's hair, sniffing candles, putting mommy's chapstick in to various containers, plastic bags, paper (yes, still LOVES shredding paper), any type of container that she can put things in to, Daddy's shoes, kitchen cabinets, golf balls, her shoes, and her new found love for the motion sensored trash can. Yeah, that one has been REAL fun! We have found pens, toys, sippy cups, clothes, and mommy's work papers in the trash can from time to time among a list of other items!

6. Are you planning to still work after Baby #2? Well, that's the plan for now! We'll see how it all goes and what Baby #2 is like! Most likely I'll have the same schedule, though, with all afternoons being from home since Bella still sleeps 3-4 hours in the afternoon. More TBD! I would love to do just parttime at some point since I love what I get to do, but would also love more time with my kiddos! Please join us in praying for God's will and our following in this!

7. How is Chris? He is doing GREAT! However, I think the realization that #2 is coming so quickly is finally setting in! He has gone haywire on house projects and baby dresser restoration! :0) He is taking photos for all shorts of folks and enjoys being Daddy to his little princess...who may I add ADORES him! What can I say? Girl has good taste! :0)

8. How long will you take off after Baby is born? Still TBD, but most likely only about 8 weeks since I don't want to use up all my vacation time that early on in the year. Will all depend on Baby #2's personality, when he/she arrives, and how much sick time I have saved!

9. Are you guys hoping for one sex over the other? In all honesty, I can say NOPE! On one hand, I would LOVE a little boy and would be THRILLED if I had one. On the other hand, with this baby being so close in age to Bella, I would LOVE for Bella to have a SISTER! I have 2 sisters close in age and LOVED it growing up and especially now! I know Bella would too...in years to come! So, with that being said, I can't wait for the little one to arrive and to see what little bundle God has in store for us! Chris, too, would really like to have a little man in the house to even the scores, but his 1st little princess has captured his heart, so he's ready to spoil another little lady if the chance presents itself!

As far as clothing is concerned, the girls would be off season from each other, so I'd have to start over with lots of new items anyway! (minus some donations from Cousin Hailey who was also a Feb baby!)

10. What are you guys doing for Christmas? We will be enjoying the sunny, but most likely brisk AZ weather as a family. We are both participating in the Christmas Eve services this year as modern day Mary and Joseph narrators (go figure!...must be the belly that helps make me Mary!). We also hope to spend time on christmas Eve with a close friends at their party. Christmas Day will be just the 3 of us, but on the 27th, my mom and sister fly out to stay with us until the 31st. We are thoroughly looking forward to that!!!

And since I am on a roll today, be ready for some Christmas photos coming tonight or tomorrow! :0)

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Halloween and AZ Fair

Okay, okay, again, running behind on the photos! Here are a few for ya to indulge in of our little cutie for now!
She had a blast at the fair, loved all the lights of the rides, enjoyed the animals and loved the pumpkin patch. WE didn't collect candy since neither Chris or I wanted to eat it, but we did go to a Neighborhood Party and it was a lot of fun to interact with our neighbors!

Friday, September 25, 2009

FAQs and Updates

FAQs in the Months of August and September:

1. Is Bella walking? NOPE! She is close, but not quite ready to go! She has taking a very tiny step forward here or there, but not quite ready to take off on her own just yet. All in her own timing! She'll be walking the rest of her life, so we'll let her decide when she wants to move to that new milestone! She does love to stand in the middle of the room without assistance all the time, so its just a matter of time really!

2. What does Bella like to get into these days? EVERYTHING! She has found new drawers to open (which we are a bit behind on the baby-proofing!), new things to push (TV buttons), has climbed up on the dining room chairs to get something down off the table, loves to get in the pantry where Daddy had to save her from eating the thousands of sprinkles she managed to get in to and open, loves the dishwasher, recycle bin, toilet, trash can, book shelves...you name it, she has probably discovered it. She also LOVES to talk and jabber. Will be interesting how many words a day this child gets in when we can verbally understand what she is staying!

3. What is Bella's normal schedule like? Well for the most part, she wakes around 7:00am and has some milk in her sippy cup (she is completely off bottles as our Peditrician recommended due to research on tooth decay, etc). She then goes to the sitters Monday, Tuesday, THursday, and Friday, has breakfast around 8-8:30, plays, gets tired around 9:15-9:30, sleeps or blabs to self in crib for 1-1 1/2 hours, wakes and plays some more till lunch at 11:30-noon, plays, sleeps 1-4 (with some crib play time there too if she goes down late or wakes early), milk at 4, plays, dinner at 6, plays, milk and bed at 8pm.

4. Is Bella still a good sleeper and eater? For the most part, YES! She is definitely a good eater all the time although she does let us know if she doesn't like a texture of some foods (picky like her Daddy on that!). Her sleeping has gone through a bit of a change as her morning nap is shortening, but for the most part, she is still pretty good about staying and playing in the crib and then falling asleep when she's ready.

5. What are Bella's favorite things? Well, depends on what time of the day. When Mommy is around, its her, but as soon as Daddy comes in the door from work...its him up till bedtime. However, if we are both around...whoever has food or is doing something that she could potentially destroy...they become her new favorite!

6. Where is Baby #2 going to sleep? Well, for the first part of his/her life, he/she will be in our room while I nurse and wait for the night time hours to stretch a bit. Then, we plan to put up a crib that has GRACIOUSLY been given to us in the guest room with a corner of the room designated for the new baby. THat way, we can keep our extra guest bed for visiting family, etc, and just move baby into our room when people come to stay.

7. Are you finding out the sex of Baby #2? To the disappointment of a few "key" friends, NOPE!!! Sorry! Will have to wait till February!

8. Do you have names picked up? Sortof! Will use the same boy name we had for #1 and are still trying to decide on a girls. New names have come into the mix, so still determining!

9. How are you feeling with the pregnancy? Just dandy! Tired, and this summer a bit hot due to hormonal changes and the AZ heat, but overall, as long as I have a bottle of water on hand, I can manage just about anything!

10. Are you excited to have them so close in age? ABSOLUTELY! I know it won't come without its challenges here and there, but that's the way I grew up (4 kids in 4 years on 3 birthdays with oldest and third having same b-day). Wouldn't have traded it for anything!! Always said I'd love to have them close if the Lord allowed!

11. Most annoying pregnancy comments you get? The worst one I get this time around so far is "good luck on #2 being as good as Bella" or "Get ready, next one is going to be horrible" or "HA, HA, if your first was good, your next is going to be a nightmare." THANK YOU, People, but I'd rather you keep your comments to yourself if you have nothing better to say then discourage an expecting mom!

I'm fully aware that #2 will be different than Bella and for that, we welcome the individuality and the spunk and the new adventures that lie ahead. We would never want to compare our kiddos to each other as all are uniquely gifted and made by God. If the next one is a handful as so many people almost "wish" upon us, then FINE. We'll take him/her just the way they are.

Well, that's about it for the FAQ for now. Hope these videos and photos satisfy a "certain someone" that keeps asking for updates!

From Miscellaneous Bella Photos

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Bella's One Year Photos

Here are some photos we just took of Bella as an official One year old!