Young Party of Four

This year was Kenzie's first real Halloween experience. Sure, she was around last year but at that point in time, she didn't do much. Last year we sat outside (bundled up) and gave a few kids candy before we had to move the party inside because I was afraid she was getting too chilly. What a change this year. Not only with our little munchkin but with the weather. Holy cow! This year we started our Halloween festivities by attending our church's annual Fall Festival and trunk or treat the weekend before Halloween. This was set to be our dry run in Kenzie's Calico cat costume. I had this feeling that I had spent hours making this tutu and she was going to refuse to wear it and therefore become a regular black cat. I figured this would be a good practice though. We got her all ready (sans the ears and tutu) and headed over to the church. We live less than 2 miles from it, so it was a short ride. Once we got there, we put on her ears, drew on her nose and whiskers, and

This year we were all able to take part in the annual Green Meadows Petting Farm trip that a friend of mine puts together every year. It is a huge group of families that all meet at the farm on a specified day and are able to take the tour. Kenzie had a blast! Let me back up though, to start, Kenzie started walking maybe 2 weeks prior to this trip which made us super happy because we knew she would get more out of the trip if she was able to walk. We got the the farm bright and early on a Sunday morning and met up with everyone else in the group. Kenzie "driving" a tractor Just hanging out, waiting to get the tour started We ended up renting a wagon to wheel Kenzie around in. She doesn't have a stroller that was really feasible for the dirt paths and everything at the farm. She seemed to think it was pretty cool. Waiting for the tour in her little red wagon The tour started with us visiting the chicken and duck pens. Kenzie seemed to think this was

Tuesday,  July 30, 2013 12 Months/1 Year Old Dear Mackenzie, Happy 1 st birthday Smiley Girl!! I can’t believe that you are now officially a toddler. What on earth is going on around here? This has been an emotion week for me (and your Daddy though I think he doesn’t like to admit it) knowing that you were getting ready to turn a whole year old and you were leaving infancy and entering toddlerhood. I just can’t believe that it has been a whole year since we first met you face to face and fell in love. A few minutes old...   Your year appointment at the doctor isn’t until tomorrow so we are still unsure of your exact weight and height. I figure you are around 20 lbs and 29 or so inches. That is the same as what I said last month I think but your weight and height gain have slowed a lot in the last couple months, especially considering how fast you used to gain weight and height. You are still the happiest baby I have ever met. Just yesterday you

I've been spending a lot of time lately, as Kenzie nears her first birthday, thinking about and reflecting on something that has been a staple of my life for the last (almost) 12 months. Breastfeeding. I wanted to share my thoughts on the subject since it is something that has been so relevant in my (and our family's) life for so long now. I am also working through some mixed emotions myself related to breastfeeding (or nursing as I use them interchangeably) that I will mention later. First, I feel I should tell our breastfeeding story. That's right. We have a "story". I'm sure all first time, and maybe some second, third, or more time, moms do. Ours had a very rocky beginning as I hear a lot of these stories do. Anyone who reads our blog probably knows that Kenzie was born at 37 weeks via a C Section. I should stop here and tell you that this was never my "plan." I plan a lot. I'm a bit OCD when it comes to planning and when things don't g

Sunday, June 30, 2013 11 Months Old Dear Mackenzie, Happy 11 Months Smiley Girl!! I have only had one breakdown in the past couple weeks thinking about how your babyhood is almost over. You will be a toddler in just one short month. How on earth?!? You are just the happiest baby. Even when you are tired you still give a lot of smiles. Sometimes we have to really pull one out of you, but there are moments when you just can’t seem to help yourself. We love to see your little smile. I’m not 100% sure what you weigh or how long you are now. We haven’t been to the doctor since your nine month appointment and it is really difficult to get a handle on what you weigh or how long you are at home. I figure you are somewhere around 19 or 20 lbs and you are likely around 29 inches. You don’t seem to be gaining as quickly as you used to but I think part of it is because you are always on the move. You seriously don’t stop. You are definitely not a snuggly type baby. You have to be involved in somet