Kee Kee's First Christmas

Kenadee is turning into such a fun little stinker.  We were able to enjoy this Christmas with her and I think Christmas is so much more fun as a parent.  She really didn't understand what was going on, but she loved it and got spoiled rotten!!! 

We had so much fun with family this year and were thrilled that we were able to continue to participate in many of our traditions. On the 23rd, Kenadee and I attended our annual cousins lunch with my mom, sister, Averie, my aunt Barbara, my cousin Cheri, and her 3 wonderful girls.  We went to Olive Garden and had a great time catching up and enjoying each other's company.  I look forward to this time every year. 

On Christmas Eve we exchanged gifts with Cheri and her family (another wonderful tradition) and then we spent some time with Dru's family.  Kenadee had such a blast with her cousins on both sides and loves all of the extra attention she gets!  Kenadee also got to open her Christmas Eve present from Daddy and Mommy and they were her very first pair of Christmas Jammies!

On Christmas morning we went over to my parents and opened presents and talked to my brother Robbie on the phone.  It was so good to hear from my little brother, but I am so excited when he will actually be here for Christmas again.  It feels so much different without him!  

Kenadee enjoyed unwrapping all of her presents (it took her like 10 minutes to do each one, but she was in Heaven).  She wore herself out so much that she fell asleep in the middle of present opening.  It was hilarious!!!  

We went up to Egin for Christmas dinner with Dru's grandmother and many of his aunts, uncles, and cousins.  I must say that I really enjoyed spending time with some of Dru's extended family (we don't do that very often).  Some of them I had never actually met before.  Kenadee again had a blast.  She loves watching kids play and even got in on the action a little bit with her cousins.

Needless to say that as wonderful as the day was it was completely exhausting and we came home from dinner and took a long nap!!!!  

Kenadee opening presents at Gma and Gpa Ingram's Christmas morning.  She is getting a little sleepy at this point.

And she is out!  All of the excitement was exhausting!  (Look at her cute Christmas jammies!)

Candy Cane with her cousins Kenna and Brenley!  (Her cousin Clay thinks Candy Cane is her name! So cute!)

Kens rocking her cute smile because she is spoiled rotten!

Kenadee and Averie with the cute Dobson girls on Christmas Eve!

Kee Kee (Averie's name for her) playing with her kitchen from Grandma Janny and Grandpa Stanny

Concentrating while dad helps her open her present from the Dobsons

All of her loot from Dad and Mom, Santa, Gma and Gpa Ingram, Gma and Gpa Charles, Averie, and the Dobsons!

The day after Christmas was almost as busy as Christmas day filled with much more family time!  We enjoyed it very much and now we are looking forward to our annual New Year's weekend at the cabin!!!!  We just love the Holidays at our house!!!

The 3 of Us

I was looking at baby pictures of Dru and I the other day and decided to put them right next to Kenadee's to see the similarities. It is so much fun to see our different traits in this sweet little baby!  The bottom picture is what most of my day is filled with....SMILES!!!!  Love my little girlfriend!

Exciting News!!!!

I have recently started using Shutterfly and I am so in love with this site. I used it to make a storybook documenting Kenadee's birth and first few months of life. I read it to her all of the time and I love having those memories readily available to look at anytime. I also just made a book for my little brother who is serving a mission for our church. I was able to use pictures of his companions and use neat sayings and quotes I found about missions. You can check out their books here http://www.shutterfly.com/photo-books/simple-path


Shutterfly is wonderful for beginners (they have an easy route you can take) or they give you more creative control when you are more experienced. That is one of my favorite features of shutterfly because they make things easy for people who are creatively challenged like me.
My sister in law made the cutest calendar using shutterfly. You can check the calendars out here: http://www.shutterfly.com/calendars/wall-calendars



I am so in love with their holiday cards. Check out their fabulous cards here http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-cards

I love this card!!!!


The great news is that bloggers get 50 free Shutterfly Holiday Cards just for blogging about it. Go here to sign up http://bit.ly/sfly2010 and enjoy making your cards as much as I have!!!

4 months old!

Dearest Kenadee,

On Tuesday you turned 4 months old! You are such a big girl! When we took you to the doctor, you weighed in at 14lbs 5oz and are 25 1/2 inches long! The doctor gave us the go ahead on rice cereal and your 1st foods. You hate to eat rice cereal plain (I guess your dad was the same way) so mom has to mix a little bit of fruit into it. It took you a while to get the hang of the spoon but you are getting much better at it.



You are usually a pretty happy baby these days and we are so thankful for that. You LOVE to smile and just talk away. It is the cutest thing and it makes my day every time I see that little smiling face. Yesterday I woke up to you patting my face, and when I opened my eyes I saw that gorgeous smile of yours and thought I was in Heaven.

(this is only a partial smile, but I had to get one of you in your owl hat!)



You are quite the little mover. You love to play in your exersaucer and when you are not doing that you love to be on the floor all stretched out. A couple of days ago you rolled from your back to your tummy. I am not ready for you to crawl any time soon, so please hold off on that for a few months baby girl.



You love to take in the world around you, especially when it includes your pups wrestling. You are so much more interactive these days. I must say I am really enjoying this stage because you are so much fun to play with, but you still love to cuddle. I know the cuddling is going to be short lived so I will take all that I can right now. You have a new found love for books. You love to be read to and will just stare at the book or the person reading it.




We gave you your first ponytail this month! Probably could have done it sooner but this is when mom tried. You look so stinkin cute. We also did piggies too and that was fun as well!



We continue to fall more in love with you each day and are so grateful that we were blessed to be your parents!

We love you Kenadee Rae,
Dad and Mom

Seriously!

The Best Sound in the World!

I have been enjoying an especially chatty baby for the last few days! Being a mommy gets better everyday!

Happy Halloween!!!

3 months old!

Kenadee my love,
You are growing up so fast! I can not believe that you are 3 months old already. You are turning into the funnest little baby! You have had many firsts this month.
-You are a curious little soul. You love to be up looking around. You will watch TV (love the Disney Channel) so that mom can get ready. This is a really nice change.
-You love when mom or dad stand you up so you can check out your surroundings.
-You love to smile and when you do it lights up the room!
-That being said you also LOVE to let us know when you are upset and still throw some amazing fits! You are very dynamic and dramatic in all of your moods!
-You are a little jabber jaw and love to babble to whoever will listen.
-You can sit in your bumbo all by yourself. Your head is still a little wobbly but you are doing really well with it.
-When you are on your tummy you can lift your head all the way up and look at everything around you.
-Two days ago (10/7/10) you started rolling over. The first time you did it you looked at mom with a puzzled look on your face. You weren't quite sure what had happened. Last night while you were doing tummy time you kept rolling over. It was so funny. We would put you on your tummy and two seconds later you were on your back. I am a little worried for when you can make it from your back to your tummy... you will then have a way to get around and I don't know that I'm ready for that yet.
-You love to go for walks in your stroller.
-You sat in your exersaucer all by yourself today and you loved it! You are too small for the seat though so mom had to pack it with blankets so you could sit in it.
-Last week (9/29-10/3/10) you went on a vacation to Califoria and had your first airplane ride. You did wonderful for the most part (had some issues with your ears taking off and landing). You went to the San Diego Zoo, the Long Beach Aquarium, and Disneyland. You were so amazing the whole trip even when you weren't feeling well.
-You got sick for the very first time. You started getting croop when we were in California and it hit in full force when we got home. I am not looking forward to the next time you get sick because it makes me so sad!
-When you went to the doctor for croop you weighed in at 12lbs. 1 oz. Most of that is in your cheeks! :)
-You are still an amazing sleeper! Last night for example was 10:30p to 8:00a. (We don't usually put you to bed that late but we were having too much fun with you).

You are such a happy sweet baby and we love you so very much!!! You have changed our world so much and we could not imagine our lives without you!
Love,
Mom and Dad

looking at the seals and sea lions at the aquarium


Tummy Time


checking out your exersaucer


California Girl


Sitting by your bunny


Standing Up (you didn't like the flash on the camera)


Bumbo Time!


Smiling cuz you're at Disneyland


Chillin in your diaper

The Big 3-0!!!

On the 23rd this guy turned 30!


We had a wonderful week spending time celebrating with family and a weekend getaway to Island Park and Yellowstone with just the 3 of us. I could not ask for a better man to spend Eternity with. You are the most amazing husband and father Dru, I love you!!

2 Months Old

Kenadee,
We can not believe that you are 2 months old. Yesterday on your 2 month birthday we celebrated by taking you to the Dr. to get a well child check and to get your shots. I felt so bad when they poked you and you started to cry. You were so upset you did your favorite cry (the one where you stop breathing and turn bright red). Mommy and Daddy hate that one! This month has been a very fun month for us, but also a very challenging one. This month you:
-Smiled a real smile at us for the first time. You smile quite a bit actually and you melt our hearts every time you do. Your little smile is one of the highlights of my day.
-You started cooing. These sweet little noises are so fun. Sometimes I feel like we are having a little conversation although I have no idea what you are trying to say and I'm sure you feel the same.
-You love tummy time! You also love to look at yourself in the mirror while on your little play mat.
-You are a very very good eater and sleeper. You eat 5 times a day, 4 oz. each time. Every 4 hours like clockwork, then you sleep at least 7 hours a night. Although sometimes you do fight your naps and it can be a struggle to get you down.
-You can see much better now and love to look at the things around you. You love the ceiling fan and would stare at it for hours if we would let you.
-You love noise and don't usually cry unless someone raises their voice.
-You have also started getting a little bit of colic. This is very hard for mom and dad. Thankfully you are easily comforted (for about 5 minutes) and then you scream your head off again. You get the worst tummy aches and mom and dad feel so bad for you. You cry the most in the evenings and right after you eat. These are the times that your tummy hurts the most.
-Sorry to embarrass you, but you have the loudest and smelliest burps and farts. I hope you grow out of this because it isn't very ladylike!:)
-You will let just about anyone hold you, but you definitely know your mom and dad and like them the best.
-You are a little cuddle bug and I love to cuddle with you. Sometimes I just sit and watch you sleep. You are so precious and do the cutest things while you are sleeping (your little facial expressions, your funny stretches, and your cute little yawns).
-You went on your first trip to the cabin. You did really well there too. You really enjoyed sitting outside.
-You are such a wiggly baby. You squirm all of the time and sometimes it is hard to hold on to you.
-You love when we hold on to you so you can stand up or sit up like a big girl. I have a feeling you will be walking early because you like to move around a lot.
-You go to grandmas all by yourself 2 times a week for a couple of hours so that mommy can go to work. You are really good most of the time and I think quite enjoy the attention you get when you go to grandma's.
-You still love your binky. I swear it is permanently attached to your face.
-You love to ride in the car, and you love your Baby Einstein mirror. Whenever the music and lights on it are playing you are nice and quiet. As soon as the timer turns them off you start to cry.
-Your hair is turning brown. Mom is a little sad about this. I do have hope that it will turn black again eventually (daddy's did the same thing). It is still as unruly as ever, but you still have all of it. I love that you have so much hair and hope that it stays that way. You get so much attention from it. It's always the first comment people make.
-I have no idea what color your eyes are. Hopefully one day we will be able to tell.
-You are growing like a weed. You now weigh in at 10lbs 11 oz. (47th percentile) and are 24in long (93rd percentile).
-You can finally wear your 0-3months clothes. You didn't start doing this until you were 6 or 7 weeks old.
We love you more and more each day little stink bug and are looking forward to all the new things you will be able to do next month!
Love,
Mom and Dad

Maddie watching you while you play


Still a crazy sleeper!


First time at church


Right after your bath


Getting kisses from Aves


Naptime with daddy. Mom loves this picture!


Wardrobe Malfunction. You hate wearing your headbands and bows but you are a good sport about it most of the time


Getting loves from Averie while you two posed in your cute GAP jackets from Grandma

Update on August

August has been a busy month for us. August 1st Kenadee was blessed by her dad. He gave the most beautiful blessing. We had the support of many family members. August 4th Dru and I celebrated our 3 year Anniversary. We celebrated by dropping baby off at my parents and going to dinner at the Outback. It was really nice to spend some time alone with Dru. August 5th was Ray's birthday (Dru's dad). We celebrated by going out to dinner with some of Dru's family. August 10th was my mom's birthday and we went out to dinner with my family.
I also have to give shout outs to both my parents and Dru's parents who had Anniversaries this month. Dru's parents have been married for 39 years as of August 14th! My parents have been married for 30 years as of August 15th! Both sets of parents are examples to Dru and I on what marriage should be. Yesterday (August 28th) was little Averie Jae's 1st birthday and we had a bbq and opened presents for her at my parents house. She was so cute and got spoiled rotten!
Kenadee has been struggling with a little bit of colic for the past 4 or 5 weeks. It has been difficult to console a screaming baby, but thankfully she only does it for a few hours in the afternoon and evening and then sleeps like a champ all through the night. Aside from the screaming we are really enjoying our little one. She changes so much everyday.
I can't believe how quickly summer has come and gone, but I must say that I am looking forward to the fall and the holiday season. Tomorrow is my first day back at work since I was put on bed rest. Wish me luck!
My mom and dad at my mom's birthday dinner!

Kenadee and Great Grandma Carol

Tired from all of the action

One Month Old

Kenadee,
On Monday you will be one month old! Time has flown by for us. We can not believe how big you are getting and how much our little girl is changing. You are our little miracle and our world. Your daddy and I would both do anything for you.
This month you:
-squeak when you are waking up. It is the funniest thing!
-have a head full of black hair that is uncontrollable like Albert Einstein most of the time. We try to tame it with big headbands and flowers.
-your nicknames are baby, sqeaker (or squeaky), ducky, gizmo, and boogey. Sorry baby, you are destined to have many nicknames.
-went from being a lazy eater to a really good eater
-went from sleeping most of the day and being up most of the night to only waking up once a night and being more alert during the day. Mom and dad love this one.
-hate to be swaddled most of the time (mom did manage to get a picture where you let her swaddle you). You love your arms out and sleep with them in crazy positions. You also love to sleep on your side.
-had a struggle with constipation and didn't poop for 8 days. This made mom and dad really sad because you would scream every time you tried to go to the bathroom. Mom was never so happy to clean up a blow out!
-throw some pretty wicked fits when you are upset. You kick your right leg like thumper, throw your arms everywhere, arch your back, and just scream. Sometimes you get so worked up that daddy and I just have to laugh. Sorry baby, I think you got your temper from mom. Most of the time you are a really good baby though.
-have the cutest little smile even though I know it's just gas I laugh every time I see that little grin (I think you got that from me too!)
-started focusing a little better on things and actually look at mommy and daddy. We love when you stare at us. It melts our hearts!
-got to know your puppies a little bit. They sure are excited for you to grow so that they can play with you. You don't cry at all when they bark, but you do cry when mom gets mad at Maddie for barking. You even let your puppies lick your toes a little bit.
-love your bouncer and your swing. If you are not being held these are the places you would rather be.
- LOVE LOVE LOVE the bathtub. You sink down in the water and just relax. Your favorite part is when mom washes your hair. It's so cute to watch.
-LOVE your binky! That's ok though because when you don't have that you try to put your fingers in your mouth and mom doesn't want to start that business!
-went to the zoo and to bear world. These outings were more to get mommy out of the house, but you enjoyed yourself (slept the entire time both places).
-went to both of your grandparents houses. Grandma Janet even babysat you a couple of times.
-were blessed by your daddy on August 1st (the same day mommy was baptized)! He gave you the most beautiful blessing and you were so good during all of sacrament meeting. You had quite the circle (13 people) and the support of many family members that came to watch your special day. Of course one important person was missing, your uncle Robbie who is serving a mission in Ohio. (He was there in spirit though).

We are so blessed to have you in our home baby and we love you more and more everyday. We are so excited to see what month two will bring. We love you Squeaker!!!
Love,
Mom and Dad