And more pictures...

My boys. I love them!


Hannah all ready for church. We were trying out a new way to fix her hair, it's kinda on the side. She so pretty!


Supporting our Kenedy Lions. This picture was taken at 10:45pm after a friday night football game, and she was still smiling. She likes going to the ball games.

Caleb having a big time at the game too. He's just so cute, look at his cute little baby cheeks, and not to mention those precious little lips...awww.

Ok, this is huge, yesterday Caleb took like 5-6 steps in a row, and he did this like 10 times in a row!!! Huge. Actually Sunday when I picked him up from the nursery they said, "Kelly...he took some steps"....and I said "Yall better come get me out of church". Really it was ok, he has been standing for seconds at a time independently this past week, so we're waiting for him to take off. I tried to get some video, but it didn't work too well. Notice the blocks he's holding in this picture...he loves them. Thanks to aunt Mimi...these were a birthday present for him....we build towers with them and he loves to knock it down. They are a great incentive in getting him to WALK!

What have we been up to...

Here are just some pictures of what we have been doing the past month.

Well, I really just like this one because his eyes are SO blue. Beautiful baby boy. Not so baby anymore..14mos old!


Hannah is quite the chef. We made homemade sugar cookies with sprinkles, and well they were christmas trees, angels, and gingerbread men, because those were the only cookie cutters we could find. But hey, it's ok to have Christmas cookies in August...right?!


Decorating her, well, christmas cookies.


So much easier to just bathe the kids together. This is my system these days. Bathe Caleb first, then get him out and all ready for bed, meanwhile Hannah is playing in the tub (i trust her enough at this point to not do anything really dangerous). Then get her out, Caleb is usually happy and playing with all Hannah's books while I get her dressed and ready for bed. If Jeremy is home he'll put Caleb to bed. This makes the evenings go smoother and hopefully I'll have sleeping kids by 9pm for sure!


We were at a restaurant in San Antonio for my 30th birthday. I think everyone thought it might have been Hannah's b-day since she was sitting in my lap...thats ok with me : ) We had fun, and ate some good mexican food.

Tantrum Update

So, just an update on life around here with raising kids. I've had so many comments and e-mails from my previous post, thanks for the encouraging words. I love the comments, so keep them coming : )


Anyway, so I started thinking, I really want to discipline my children in love and not out of stubbornness or anger...I quit trying to make Hannah go potty before bed, if she needs to go she'll go. I'm fine, she's been fine, and still no accidents. So we're good there. Also with the screaming tantrums at naptime...today was a success. We started a sticker chart, if she goes to bed good for naptime and night-time, no screaming fits, then she gets a sticker. When she gets 10- stickers she's gets to get a new book. She is VERY excited about this...and it's starting to work. Night time has been good...and no more screaming at 7am.

Nap time, the past 2 days, she'll be in her room for "quiet time" after about 45min she comes out and starts whining "I wanna lay on the big couch"...I go put her back in her room....she then cries and has her fit for about 10 min, and it's so funny because I stand there and physically put her back in her bed (maybe 50 times if necessary)....then all of a sudden she'll stop crying, ask for a kleenex so I can wipe her tears, and then will lay down and just go to sleep. She's slept 2hrs both times. So today, no fit, no crying, she played, I still had to encourage her to lay down, and she slept for about 2hrs. SO it's working!!! She got a sticker and is ready to get a new book. 6 stickers to go.

Thank You Wal-Mart Lady...

I appreciate the comments from my last post. We are figuring out the parenting thing and I'm glad I get to share my stories with you. So, after a tantrum that lasted from like 5am-6am one morning, later on during the day we went to Wal-Mart as a family. We shopped and got a few things, we checked out, and at our Wal-Mart you have to show your receipt as you leave. So thats Hannah's favorite part. She handed the lady the receipt, the lady gave the receipt back to me and said, "It's so nice to see well behaved children". I smiled and said, "Thank you". She then said, "Your children are so beautiful". I smiled even bigger and said "Thank You, have a good day".

As we walked to the car, I was carrying Caleb and holding Hannah's hand, I thought well atleast right now is a good moment. I'll enjoy these to the fullest and take the others as they come!

Life as a 2 year old....

How do 2 year olds really think? Thats the question. I love my Hannah so much, but sometimes I wonder what her little brain is thinking. How is she processing information, does she really understand everything I say to her. Can she really not comprehend and rationalize some things? I mean she is only 2 years old (very very close to 3 yrs old), but she talks so well, I think that she should understand just as well.

So ALL week long, we have had MAJOR tantrums EVERY morning. It usually goes something like this:
At 6:30am: when she wakes up she comes into our room and next to my side of the bed and taps my face:
H: mommy is it time to get up yet?
M: no, its the middle of the night, go back to bed (i walk her back to her room and tuck her in)
6:45am
H: mommy, i want to get in your bed and rest
M: it's still the middle of the night, go back to bed (i walk her back to her room and tuck her in)
H: I don't want to go to bed, I want to be awake
M: you have to lay here in your bed and read a book...DO NOT get up yet, I'll come get you when it's time.
6:50am
H:mommy...is it time to get up yet?
M: no, get in bed with me and lay really still, be quiet, and go to sleep (she gets in bed with us, and wiggles constantly).
7:00am
Then she decides it's time to get up and watch a movie. So then it's usually Jeremy's turn to get the movie going, get her a drink and dry cereal to snack on. She's usually good and will lay on the couch and watch TV while the rest of the house is still sleeping. Lately, she been saying "I wanna watch a movie RIGHT NOW". We say you need to wait for 10min....she then proceeds to whine a lot, and usually ends up with screaming, throwing her limp body down onto the ground and rolling around for about 15min. We keep her in our room usually so she won't wake up Caleb.

We say, ok, you can watch a movie if you ask NICELY....say "Daddy can I please watch a movie". It's like she just can't/won't do it. So she proceeds to have her tantrum for another 15min. So by then, we're all awake, not so sleepy and relaxed anymore....and almost a little bit stressed out (atleast I am)....at 7:30am!!!!!!!

Whew...this makes me tired. I try to reason with her, rationalize the situation....and absolutley nothing works. After she's done with her fit, she'll ask nicely to watch the movie with a smile on her face. I say "Hannah, all you have to do is obey mommy and daddy and ask nicely"...she smiles and says "Yes Maam". Then we start over again the next morning.

Now...the other big thing is going potty before we go to bed and take a nap. We have taught her that everyone goes potty before they go to bed....it's just the rule. If you don't have to go, then you sit and try. Thats the key word "TRY". I really don't think she understands what "to try" means. I mean I have explained it a thousand ways. So this is how this tantrum played out:

Last night: We were getting ready for bed....I really wanted her to go because she hadn't gone very much that day. So we got all ready and I casually said "lets go potty and then I'll read you a story"...
H: I don't need to go potty
M:Yes you have to sit and try
H:But I don't need to go potty
M:Thats ok, you don't have to go, just sit on the potty and see if you can go (still with a very pleasant tone in my voice)
H:(tears starting) I DON'T HAVE TO GO POTTY
M: You have to TRY

This conversation went on for awhile.....and I'm stubborn so I was prepared to sit on the bathroom floor and wait it out until she went in the potty. Me, Jeremy and Hannah were all in the bathroom (me sitting on the floor) waiting for her to go potty. I started to feel sorry for her, because it was like 9pm and we'd been in there for maybe 20min (a long 20min). Finally Jeremy and I decided that maybe she really doesn't understand what "to try" means. She just knows either she has to go or she doesn't.

SO...we wipe all the tears, and I put her in bed. We have a rule, once you're in bed...NO getting up for ANYTHING...no water, no potty, no nothing. Five minutes later she wakes up and says "Mommy, I decided that I need to go potty". I was SO frustrated. I'm trying to be consistent with our discipline and rules. *sigh*

These are just a few of the situations that we deal with pretty much daily. So the "terrible twos", well not so much, things have really been pretty good. It looks like we're headed into a whirlwind of adventures for the age of 3.

I know, as you glance back up to the beautiful picture of my daughter, it's hard to think that she's capable of such fits. I do, I love her so much...and after she's asleep at night, I go back in and look at her, and I am filled with joy that I have such a beautiful, healthy, independent little girl.

Holiday Weekend

Well everyone has pictures like these. His expression is like "What...did I do something wrong". He likes to tear them into really little pieces and eat them, then spit them out leaving soggy wet kleenex on the floor for mom to pick up. Fun.


So lately Hannah hasn't wanted to take naps. She averages about 3-4 naps a week which I guess is still good. I make her go into her room for quiet time, usually between 2-4pm when Caleb is sleeping. She can read, or just lay in her bed, but she has to stay in her room. It's a challenge to make her stay in there, but I'm trying to enforce that we all need quiet time and that this is MY time to do what I want and to rest. so we'll see how it goes. This was taken on labor day, I went to check on her, and I peeked in her room...she wasn't in her bed, but it was too quiet in there. She fell asleep on her Pooh couch by her bookshelf...so sweet. She slept for like 2.5hrs. Good girl.


Daddy's girl. Let me say I really have the best husband ever. Him and Hannah are having "craft time". I was sick basically all of labor day weekend....so our exciting 3 day weekend wasn't so exciting. Daddy didn't really get a break or get to sleep in. He was in full time dad mode while I was in bed basically all weekend. No complaints, he just took care of the kids, cooked, and picked up around the house. I took this picture as I emerged from the bedroom to see how things were going. Hannah naturally hugged his neck and smiled big.


Sisterly Love. Well i was attempting to get a cute picture of the kids outside. Hannah was all into it...poor Caleb, she's kinda got him in a choke hold, but he was fine, just really ready to get away from sister.

Could he be any cuter...