It's time for,"Guess That Baby!!"

So, which baby is this....? And yes, Mia has that many teeth now....and she's sitting up and even stays (for awhile anyway) upright. She scrinches up her face and breathes heavily through her nose--a trick that took quite a while to perfect......but so did Annie.....so, which baby is this???? After I get a few votes, I'll blog some more pictures of everyone!

Yes, we are still here!! It's just been crazy--crazier than usual, actually!! I will be blogging SOON!! Annie starts 3rd grade this week (hard to believe!) so I should be able to squeeze a few minuts in to blog. I wanted to include this picture of (from left to right) Scott, Kay (my nephew Nicholas' girlfriend), Nicholas, my mom, Samantha (my niece), Sarah (my cousin Greg's wife), Greg, Christina (my niece), Cathy (my sister), Annie, me (and yes that chubby baby attached to the front of me is Mia--she was mesmerized by something to her left) and my brother-in law, Tony. My sister visited in August and we did some "touristy" things-like riding the "ducks". More pictures to follow! But, we're good, Mia's big and has some new tricks and I'm off to church now, but will blog soon!! Love ya!

Happy 4th!

Well, Happy (belated) 4th of July everyone! It's been awhile since I've blogged so I thought I would try to get caught up. I found Annie and Mia matching tank tops (Annie loves to match her sissy.) for the holiday. And even though it was 10pm when we took these pictures, they were both in good moods. Mia did great with the fireworks. I told Scott that if I didn't know she can hear just fine I would want to have her ears checked--she didn't even flinch! The fireworks weren't coming in a fast enough succession so she would look around at the ground or something, but when they would catch her eye, she would just stare at them! It was nice (this was teh first year ANnie made it through the fireworks without noise-reducing headphones on!)-- I guess if there was a positive of all her months in the NICU it is that she will sleep through anything and doesn't seem to be bothered by noises!! Mia goes to the doctor next week for her 9 month check-up! So, no current weight, etc... She is starting to wear 6 month clothes, though--very exciting! And she's made her way through all the stage 1 foods-fruits & veggies-and even stage 2 meats. We started meats last week again and now she does just fine with them. She even seems to like the turkey (blah!!). She rolled from her stomach to her back a few days ago, but hasn't repeated it. She's really trying to roll-she'll get there! She's gotten herself on a pretty good schedule, too. Up at about 6:30, breakfast, playtime, a bottle at about 9:00am and then down for a nap at about 9:30. She sleeps for about 2 hours, lunch, playtime and another bottle at about 1:30ish, then back down for another nap at 2:30ish for another two hours or so. Then she's up, has a bottle, plays, and wants a botlle and bedtime right around 8-8:15, PERIOD. If she sleeps later and has a dinner bottle at 6:30 even, she'll want to get ready for bed at about 8:15. She's usually in bed by 9-9:30, since we're also trying to get Annie in bed at about that time, too! She sleeps through the night very well. There was one night she woke up at 1:30, but she ended up fussing herself back to sleep, so, it's been great. I just need to go to bed earlier and take advantage of both the girls being in bed early, but whatever! She's been vocalizing more-we've been workig with her by repeating the sounds she makes back to her. Annie is enjoying summer (as you can see by her great tan!). She's been to the waterpark a couple of times, to the city pool, and over to play at almost all her friends' homes. I'm just trying to remind her that she doesn't have to go, go, go all the time!! But, she's does have swim lessons once a week, karate twice a week and starting next week, gymnastics three times a week. So, so much for a quiet summer!!

When Annemarie was a baby, I would dress her up, pose her and take pictures of her. Well, the other day it was Mia's turn. This yellow outfit was Annie's and it has always been one of my favorites. I love the animals on it because they actually match her nursery theme.

This pink dress was also Annemarie's. It was made by a very dear friend of our family's who has known Scott a VERY long time. Her name is Sis. Branscum from the church Scott's dad used to pastor in Coachella, CA. It's a beautiful dress, but I just can't believe she made it! It has such detailed stitching in the front. I tried to get a picture of it, but you can see a little of the detail in the front.

This is such a great picture!! I love it!! My sister supplied Mia with a few onesies so that we wouldn't forget her (like we could!!).

Hmmm, I wonder where this onesie came from :-) ??

When I was pregnant with Mia, I bought these last two onesies. I thought this one was appropriate and that it shows support for my husband :-)

And really, this is the best. If you're in this family, you know you've thought it at one (or more) point in your life!!!

Mia in her first pair of tennis shoes, that no longer fit, but I sqeezed her foot in there long enough to get a picture (no, they weren't THAT tight.....) and her first pair of jeans. In the second picture, yes, she is sucking her thumb and no I am not discouraging it at this point. It makes her happy; orthodontically speaking it's now considered better than a pacifier and it makes her HAPPY!!! Annie loves to hug and love on her sissy. It reminds me of that cartoon character, "And I will love her and squeeze her and hug her forever!!" I know she won't always feel this way, but it's nice for right now!!

More pics....

When we were in California in May, my sister bought Mia this seat. I've seen them called a Bumbo seat or something like that. Whatever this particualr version is called, Mia likes it. She likes to sit in it and play with the toys that hang from her gym. And, as always, she lets me know when she's done! One of these days, I have to get a picture of her pitching one of her fits.....no one believes me but this sweet little girl can SCREAM and arch her back....the whole bit!! I just like pictures that are close up of babies. This is what Mia looks like when she's tired and I'm sticking a camera in her face--more scared than anything! Mia really likes her swing! And if you look closely you can see her little Sock Monkey onesie (Aunt Cathy is so proud!!).

Tummy Time!

Neither of my daughters have ever enjoyed tummy time. But we do it, because if we don't, Mia's Physical Therapist can tell and then I get in trouble. And, I know that they say that kids won't crawl unless they get ALOT of tummy time.....soooo, here's Mia on her tummy.......She's actually doing alot better lately, since my mom and I found her this little mirror toy. It has little buttons for her to push and it plays music. In the second picture, Mia has caught a glimpse of herself. In the third picture, well, she's just trying to eat the little animals (and this is usually what she does when she's done, except with alot more screaming!!) And in the last picture, well, she just looks like her dad!! Raised eyebrows and all!!!

Little Tony

I know that most everyone is aware of what happened a month ago yesterday. On Friday, May 11th, my nephew Tony was killed in Iraq when an IED exploded near his vehicle. I have gone back and forth about whether it would be too painful to blog, but then I realized that I want everyone to know what a fine young man Tony grew up to be and the sacrifice he made for all of us. Tony was the oldest of my 5 nephews and surely the quietest. He loved gaming, eating (although it's hard to tell by his small frame!), his family and his country. He hoped to enter law enforcement one day, like his dad. He was a wonderful young man, and God wanted him home. It is hard to know what to type. I know that the pain I feel is only a portion of what my sister, Tony, Kenny, Nicholas, Christina, Samantha and little Tony's mother are feeling. But, we hold on to the knowledge that we know where Tony is. I remember receiving a phone call late one Friday night. It was little Tony calling to say, "Aunt Kelly, I was saved tonight!" I cried that night, just as I did the night my sister called to tell me God had called Tony home. Below, I've included a picture of Little Tony when he was baptized just a few weeks after he was saved. I love this picture because Tony was so happy about obediently following his Lord in scriptual baptism. But, this act is not what saved him-Tony was saved by the blood of Jesus Christ that was shed to cover the sin of ALL mankind. Tony asked Christ into his heart, recognizing that without Christ in his heart, he was facing an eternal seperation from God in Hell. Tony's legacy is that he loved Christ, and he would want every person who reads about his death to know how they can join him in Heaven one day-by simply accepting Christ as their Savior.

All grown up....

I can't put into words the amount of love and pride I have for each of these young men (and calling them men is just weird!). They have served this country with maturity and determination and we are all so proud of you. B, Butthead and Little Kenny-I love you. (For those of you who don't know these three, they are my cousin Brian [Navy], my brother Ken [Army] and my nephew Kenny (Little Tony's younger brother) [Marines]).

But, being a part of this family means that we can only be so serious for so long.... I don't remember who suggested switching hats....

but the result is tooo funny!!! Yeah, about that whole maturity comment.... ;-)

The Girls

While we were in California, Annie, Christina and Samantha played every available minute of every day. Here they are in Sis' back yard (which is currently under construction-just not when I took these pictures). They decided to skateboard on their stomachs across the backyard-whatever. In the back of the yard, you can see "The Pit". That is where a pool used to be, MANY years ago. And there will be another one in that general location in a couple of months.....yah!!!

The girls decided to use the ice chest as a bath tub while playing house outside. That was fine, until they started closing the lid while one of them was inside!! I thought our heads were going to explode!! Needless to say, they stopped!!

Really, I don't know what they were doing, Annie just aske me to take her picture so I did!!

Update time.....

Well, here she is, our little Miss Mia. First, the stats-as of last Thursday, she's 14 lbs., 7 ozs. and 25 1/2 inches long. She has had her LAST eye exam as her eyes have matured to the point that the Retinopathy is gone!! THANK YOU, LORD!! and to everyone who has been praying for her!! She has learned how to spit (the raspberry-type) and is very good at it. Unfortunately, her favorite time to show off her new trick is when she's eating! So, that has been challenging! She's tried all the vegetables and is working on the last meat (beef-blah!) before we head into the fruits. She's interested in her sippy cup and will even bring it to her face (sometimes her mouth, sometimes, her nose or eye, but at least it's her face!) and even take a sip or two. She still LOVES her bottle, but we're working on not taking a bottle after she eats baby food, so we'll see how that goes.... She really likes her new ExerSaucer, even though she falls forward sometimes if we're not careful. She's very strong and is SOOO close to rolling over! The physical therapist visited last week and is very happy with Mia's progress-she's right on track for her adjusted age (4 1/2 months). We saw the Developmental Pediatrician yesterday in Madison and she is also very happy with Mia's progress (considering how early she was, the problems she overcame, etc...). She did say she would like to hear Mia vocalizing more, so we'll continue to work on that. We're finally back on schedule from our trip to California. Mia's back t going to bed around 9pm and sleeping until about 5:30 or 6am. She'll get up, eat and then USUALLY go back to bed....she's also taking 2-3 naps per day of 2-3 hours each. It all depends on where we have to be, etc...but now that the evening schedule os in place, we'll be working on the daytime schedule. She's still on Zantac for her GERD and has shown that she still needs it (when we miss a dose, she will be cranky, gurgley, etc...). Mia will be 8 months old on Friday--it's hard to believe! Recently I went back and looked at the older posts and just thanked God for everyting that He has brought us through.

LOVE those baby rolls!!!!! And chubby cheeks--I just want to SQUEEZE them!!

Such a big girl!

Our Kids....

These are "our" kids-our Teen Discovery group (and some of their friends), anyway. But, I call them our kids....On June 2nd, we packed them all up and headed to Six Flags Great America for the day. The weather was great (just a little rain) and no one got lost, injured or detained by security :-) They are a great group of teens and we are very proud of the way they conducted themselves....even if they did give me grief about taking a group picture :-)