Kennedi's First Christmas

I don't know about all of you but I am still tired a day later!! I cant believe how exhausted I have been all day today. I wanted to write this update this morning but I just could not get myself to be productive. I hope that I can remember everything I wanted to include.
The first shock I got was on Christmas Eve. The boys and Chris were down in the basement and I was laying on the floor with Kennedi watching TV when all of a sudden she rolled over from back to stomach. This was the first time for this! A few seconds after she did that she went from stomach to back. She started that in November but I was very surprised that she did a complete roll that night.
I hope that everyone had a very Merry Christmas and I hope that Santa brought you everything on your list! I think everyone in this house did well. Apparently Santa really thought the kids were good this year. I guess looking back on the year they have been excellent kids!
It was very funny yesterday morning, Chris and I woke up about 630 and we were surprised the boys were not awake already. About 30 minutes later I heard a door open down the hall and Chris and I decided to pretend we were asleep. We heard the boys come into the room (since they are not allowed to go downstairs until everyone is ready to go down) and look at the clock. When they saw it was 7am Avery says, "lets go back to bed for a little while".... get this... the next thing we heard were 2 doors shutting down the hall! Its Christmas morning and the boys went back to bed?!?! It did not last long because about 20 minutes later the boys were back in our room getting us up.
Here are the boys getting ready to get into some presents.... Don't they look so awake!?
It was a long day from start to finish but it was so wonderful! We started out with just Chris, me and the kids at our house opening presents. Here are a few from the house in the morning.
Santa brought Conner and Avery some new cologne in their stockings. Whew now maybe we can get a break from the Axe... They also got new baseball caps. Both of my kids have been Red Sox fans since the day they were born (they get that from their dad).
Kennedi is test driving her new high chair that Santa brought her. She was not sure about it but when she realized she got to eat when she was sitting there she was good to go!
Conner is helping Kennedi open up her very first Christmas present from Santa.
Kennedi is chillin out in her jumper. We all got a kick out of her in it later in the evening. She is a wild child in that thing! She is building up those soccer legs!! Chris is checking out the wii gun and his new hunting game....
Later in the day we headed to my sisters house. We do this every Christmas but the house rotates each year. We were able to get a picture of most of the cousins. It is rare that we have all of them together on the same day....
front row L to R: Kelly, Caitlyn, Avery
Standing L to R: Taylor, Matt, Blake, David, Amanda, Natalie, Kennedi, Conner, Kevin, Bryan
It was really a great afternoon!

I did not get that many pictures of the entire day. I always bring my camera and then don't take the amount of pictures that I intend to take.

I guess that is all for now, I think its time for me to get to bed and try to catch up on some sleep sine Kennedi is in bed.

Have a great weekend!!

Merry Christmas Eve...

I just wanted to take a break from the madness for a few minutes to wish everyone a MERRY CHRISTMAS!! I hope that everyone enjoys the family time that is ahead of them. With everything that has happened in the past year its forcing us all to look at the real meaning of Christmas and its such a wonderful thing.
I know tomorrow will be a great morning in our house, the boys come home today, Kennedi's 1st Christmas (of course she is clueless)... Lots of pictures will be taken and hopefully some cute video!!
Chris had Dakota yesterday to celebrate Christmas. Luckily Chris was able to get a hold of Santa and arrange for an early visit this year.

until later.....

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

4 month appointment

Chris and I just got home with Kennedi from her 4 month check. She got 3 shots and 1 vaccine orally. She did a great job! Kennedi weighs 15 lbs 1 oz and is 26 inches long. She is 95-97% for height and I think it was 85% for weight. She is growing great. We can put her on solids 3 times a day which is more often than I have been doing. Dr. J says that she is doing wonderfully both physically and developmentally. She is doing some things a little early. She is so smart (she gets that from her Daddy).

Chris and I thought she was going to roll from back to stomach for the first time in the doctors office. She was so close. We both got so excited and then Kennedi rolled back over to her back. She gets so close and that arm gets in the way. Hopefully soon we will be writing about a new trick.

Well I guess that is all for now. Time to go make Avery some lunch. Have a great weekend...

6 days until Christmas!!!!

Cute Kennedi video

This is hilarious... Kennedi is such a giggler. Well in this video she is more than giggling, she is cracking cracking up. The boys had just gotten off the bus and went over to greet Kennedi. Conner took one of her dolls and started to make the noise you hear on the video while punching the doll and letting the doll fly. I warned him that if he were to do the same thing in about 4 years it will make her cry. I still remember my dad taking my dolls and being all nice to them right before he would poke her in the eyes... I think I am scarred for life!! Remember that one dad?!?!?

Well enjoy the video!!

On another note THE BOYS ARE OUT OF SCHOOL FOR CHRISTMAS BREAK!! I am so excited, we have so much planned to do the next few weeks. I am sure there will be plenty of new pictures and updates.

Some great news for Conner!!

Today we went to the orthodontist.... Conner came out of his appointment telling me that he no longer had to wear his rubber bands. This was a good thing in his eyes, so good that of course I didn't believe him. He just got his braces in May and is supposed to have them until about December 09. Apparently his teeth are very cooperative because we got the news today that Conner will probably be getting his braces off before summer. He is so thrilled at the thought of starting high school with a new smile and no braces!! I am so happy for him. I hope the teeth continue to cooperate so they come off soon!! One down.. one to go (Avery has another appointment in January with the same doctor).... ugh...

4 months old already!

I can't believe it, yesterday was Kennedi's 4 month birthday. I was going to make her some cupcakes to celebrate but being that she can not eat them yet her brothers and I made a gingerbread house instead. It was very cute. I have to take some pictures of the finished product and post them.
Kennedi is getting big. She is starting to outgrow some of her 3-6 month clothes and is in a lot of her 6-9 month. She is very long!! She eats like a little piglet. I will feed her and then she will eat some cereal of veggis and then after that she will still take about a 4 oz bottle! PIG! She is getting the hang of solid foods. I believe that carrots are NOT her favorite! When we feed her sweet potatoes and squash she eats them so much better. She has yet to try to spit those back at me when they are in her mouth like she does the carrots. I guess after a few days of carrots we move up to the green vegis. Oh yeah!
She does not go to the doctor until the 19th so I am not sure what she weighs or how long she is.
Here is a picture of her the day before her 4 month birthday!
We did have a first this weekend... we had family pictures taken. Sadly we were missing Dakota in them but maybe one of these days we will be able to get ALL the kids at the same time and get a complete one taken.

I have to make a plug now for Portrait Innovations. They were amazing! All the pictures turned out really well and they were priced great. We have a ton of pictures from the day. Needless to say we will be going back there for more pictures!

The morning of the pictures was a stressful time and of course when they were being taken I was worried about what they would look like. Those of you who know my kids know why. I halfway expected my kids to pull out some bright sunglasses and have them in some pictures. They were very good during the whole thing and they even looked like they liked each other a little bit in the ones of the two of them. see.....

I absolutely love this picture of my 3 favorite young people (almost said 3 favorite people but Chris is not in this one)..... Kennedi did great and the boys held their smiles so long to get Kenendi looking at the camera. This was after they were arguing over who got to hold Kennedi during the pictures. Whew when she is around they both want to be the caregivers! I am still waiting for Conner to change a diaper but Avery has changed several (volunteered to do it). They all look so sweet and innocent in this one. We all know that is far from the truth! The great thing about this picture is that I have the same one of Conner and Avery when they were really little. I have to dig it up and make sure I frame them together. I cant say enough how proud I am of how they were during these picture!! I have two of the best boys ever (most of the time)...What a great family! Chris even got his way this time and we had pictures taken of just the two of us. We had not had this done yet so I said OK. It will probably be the last for awhile being that I HATE getting my picture taken! After that we got the tree so I think now we are all ready for Christmas. I can't wait for the kids to be out of school again for awhile. I am worn out from project after project after project. I need a break! I am sure all the teachers do too!

A Day in Cochran

OK I dropped the ball, I just realized this is out of order but I didn't want to let this slip.

Last Tuesday Chris, Kennedi and I went to Cochran (where Chris grew up) to visit his family. It was a long ride but Kennedi did a great job. Chris and I are determined to get her used to the car so when we take the big trips she handles them well! So far so good.

Kennedi met her Great Granny for the first time. What a great picture it was!!

Kennedi and her Poppy

While we were down there we stopped and got Kennedi some food. This was her first day with sweet potatoes and we have to say that she wore them well!

The funniest part was that Chris apparently was not feeding her fast enough so Kennedi would lunge forward towards the spoon top get a jump start on the food! I think she is going to be a great eater!

Happy Thanksgiving and a busy weekend!

I can not believe that it is already Thanksgiving... well a few days after. I meant to post on Thursday but it was such a busy day and the kids and I got home late and I was exhausted. Then I planned on updating Friday and well it was pretty much the same scenario. Here it is Sunday afternoon and I am just sitting down to update. I figure I better do it now since Kennedi is asleep in the swing. Not only is she asleep but she is snoring pretty loudly.

As I said before, Thursday was a busy day. I picked the boys up at 8am and we came back to the house for a few hours. I was able to get some things together to take to our Thanksgiving dinner at my brothers house. We left soon after and headed out for a day of family fun. Chris was not able to join us this year which was a bummer but at least now he does not have to work for the next 2 Thanksgivings.

We went to Rick and Beth's house which was a blast! Kennedi got to meet two of her cousins that had not seen her since they are out of state for school. She loved being spoiled and held all day. It did not take long after we got there for Kelly to grab her up. Here is the first picture of cousins Kelly and Kennedi. Kennedi loved the attention from her cousins!!

Conner and Avery were relaxing before a great dinner!

This is another great shot with Kennedi and her... hmm... cousin-in-law maybe??? Well whatever they are it is a great picture of Kennedi and Bobby minus the Georgia hat.

The entire day was great! There was a lot of extended family there. Both sides of my brother and sister-in-laws family comes together each year for this feast.

Rick is the resident turkey carver. He is dangerous with that knife! You make one false move and try to grab a bite to early and Chris maybe treating you to some complimentary stitches.
Like always, the food was wonderful and I think many of us would agree that we ate too much!

Here is a great "after dinner" shot of dad. Actually this is pretty much and all the time look for Dad. He is able to fall asleep anytime, anywhere!! I have a few other good after dinner pictures but will spare Kevin and David-this time.

Here is one of Kennedi and her Godfather... Uncle Rick.

When it was all over Kennedi was wiped out!!

OK this is a picture that I had to add because it was such a great mother-daughter photo of Beth and Kelly.

Friday came and went quickly!! I got up (but not at the crack of dawn like most years) and was determined to get the bulk of my shopping done. I was so sucessful!! Kennedi and I shopped and shopped all day. She was so good, I think I have a little shopper on my hands. I am extremely happy about that since Conner and Avery HATE to shop! They are typical boys and do not like the thought of going from store to store. The rest of the weekend has been spent putting up some decorations and then wrapping all the gifts that have been bought. Now I feel like I am caught up with the Christmas season!!

another milestone!!

I am so excited tonight and its not about me not working!! Kennedi his a big milestone tonight and it was so unexpected! The video shows it all!!

I was so happy. She started out on the floor of course facing the crib. I was folding clothes next to her and when I looked up she was facing me. She had scooted 90 degrees around. After that I decided to turn the video on my phone on to see if I could get her scooting. Well I didnt but I did get her rolling. She had never been close to rolling when I was around. Actually I was starting to worry a little bit because she really was not pushing up much on her tummy. Well I guess that all changed today.

Kennedi sits on Santa's lap.....

I just wanted to post this picture really quick before I headed off to bed. We all took off up to Lenox after school today to put Kennedi on Santa's lap. I gave the boys the option of sitting or not and they both chose to do it. I was so happy they did it for her 1st Christmas. Now lets hope Santa brings them everything they want!!

A bittersweet weekend...

Wow, This weekend flew by!! It was a great weekend but like the title said, it was bittersweet (for me at least).

This weekend (Saturday) marked the 1 year anniversary for Chris and I. We had a such a big celebration.. well big for Chris at least (enter bittersweet here for me)! We celebrated by going to the Auburn-Georgia football game. What a huge game it always is and being that Chris and I are not fans of the same team we knew going into it that it was going to be a bad day for one of us. I was hoping that one would be him of course but it wasn't. I can't say that either team played well (because Auburn really has not played well all year) but it was a great game. I thought for a few minutes (and only a few) that maybe Auburn would come out on top. The weather was pretty good, the rain cleared out and there was a breeze (a some points it was more like a wind) but it was bearable. This weekend was the last home game for Auburn which meant the last of our season tickets. Of course I left the game saying I was not going to waste money on tickets next year but I am sure that will not be the case once I start to miss football again.

We left Kennedi at home for this game. She was in good hands at her Aunt Barbie and Uncle Chuck's house. She was able to play with her cousins Caitlyn and Natalie but I still missed her a ton! I got a few pictures of her having a great time so that helped a little.It was really kinda hard to have a good time without her there with us. I am amazed at how many people got to know her this fall at the games. We were asked by many people where the baby was. Some of these were people we talked to each game and others I did not recognize at all!

Well time to get ready for the week of work. I have 5 days left until I am home full time again. I cant wait to be home but I really am going to miss the kids at work and of course those I work with!!

Here are some pictures of Kennedi while over at Barbie and Chuck's house...


what a pretty girl!!

Kennedi and Caitlyn

WAR EAGLE!!!!

Go DAWGS... Barbie had to do it just to be fair (it WONT happen again!!)

she is back to WAR EAGLE!!

An Exciting Decision...

What a big day today was. As most of you know I went back to work after 12 weeks of maternity leave and it has not been an easy transition for me. Chris tried to get me to not go back at all but I felt like I had to try. Chris and I have been talking about day care and how much it costs and how it will actually cost us money for me to work (since as a Para-pro we do not get much of a check). When I was on leave I felt like I had so much more time with the older boys since I did everything I needed to do during the day and then when they were home from school I could focus on helping with homework and just be there with the kids. Since I have been back to work I have not been able to be that mom. I have had to do everything when I got home and often felt guilty because I could not sit with Avery and help him when he needed it because there was so much to do, I was very overwhelmed. With Chris’ support, I have finally decided that I am going to join the world of those stay at home moms and be home with the kids. Of course there is only one home full time because the other two are in school but they will still benefit from me staying home for sure.
One thing I am going to miss a lot is seeing the kids during the day. I was in the lunchroom with Avery when he was in there so I see him all the time! This nine weeks Conner is in the classroom next to me so I see him most days when he pops in to say hello on his way to health. They both assured me that they would be OK without me here (I think that part will be harder on me than them for sure) but they did have the concern of “how will I get my ice cream money?” I guess that is something that I will have to work out…
As of right now my last day of work will be Friday, November 28. I am looking forward to being home and spending my days with the kids but on the other hand I am a little nervous about leaving. I have been with the school system since 2001 when I took the leave from Delta due to the events of 9/11. In that time I have gotten used to having that check come in with my name on it, as little as it was (the check not my name). I guess I am going to have to adjust to not having a check but I think that being home with the kids is better than that check any day.
….. now maybe I will find a little extra time to keep up the blog since we are getting to the stages where Kennedi is doing more and more. She is so fun to be around and I and so thankful that I have the opportunity to stay home and that I do not have to miss any of it!!

THE BIRTHDAY BOY!!!

I just wanted to wish Conner a HAPPY 14th BIRTHDAY!!!

I can't believe that it was 14 years ago today that he came into our lives. What a wonderful little man he has turned out to be. I am so proud of him.

This time next year he will be driving around town (on his permit)... WOW what a scary thought!!

I LOVE YOU CONNER!! HAVE A GREAT DAY!!

Kennedi's Baptism

Yesterday Chris and I along with many of our family members and friends saw Kennedi being Baptized during the 9am mass at church. She was so cute in her christening gown. The gown has been in the family for about 100 years and it started with my dad's mom getting baptized in it. Needless to say, I was a nervous wreck that Kennedi would put her foot through one of the parts that has not been restored or blown out her diaper and made a mess of it. But, when it was all said and done, the dress was still perfect. This was even the first Sunday in weeks that I did not have to take Kennedi out of mass because she was babbling too loud.

Conner and Avery were a part of the celebration by being two of the three Altar servers. This past Sunday was Avery's first time as an altar server and I was N-E-R-V-O-U-S but he did an excellent job! I am so glad that he did not change his mind at the last minute and it was wonderful to see him sit still! I know know that he can do it!!

I have posted pictures from yesterday. My brother Rick is Kennedi's godfather and my niece Amanda is her godmother. Amanda flew in from Charleston, SC to be with Kennedi on her special day and thankfully the flights were open and she was able to return home yesterday and be at work bright and early this morning. THANK YOU AMANDA FOR COMING INTO TOWN!! We miss you already!! Amanda was not the only one who came in from a distance, Kathleen (my nephew Matt's wife) and they baby Ryan were here from Columbus Mississippi. Of course I can't say that they came in just for the Baptism, Kathleen spent the weekend at USC where she went to college with some of her ROTC friends. But regardless, we are thankful that we were able to have her and Ryan in for the day. Chris' parents also made the 3 hour drive. They were up bright and early to be at the church by nine!!

We have to thank everyone that came to celebrate Kennedi's special day with us! It was beautiful!! We are so fortunate to have a family that loves Kennedi and gave up some time to celebrate. I am sure there were some tired people last night and I hope everyone had a good nights sleep before hitting the real world this morning.

2 proud brothers... they LOVE their little sister!!

family photo...

The family... or some of them at least...

The grandparents...

the godparents, Uncle Rick and Amanda

The pretty baby...

Kennedi's 1st Halloween and a few days before...

Hey everyone, its been a little while since I have updated the blog so this one maybe a little long but there are a lot of cute pictures of Kennedi to put in here...

These first two are added because I LOVE the dress she is wearing. This was a great find at a consignment shop that I often stop by. I rarely walk out of there without something for one of the kids in hand! She looked so cute dressed up for church in the dress with her little tights.

This past week Kennedi turned 12 weeks old. I have put some pictures that I took on Thursday (the actual day we got to celebrate the 12 week mark). We also got her 3 month pictures taken on Thursday. I can't wait to go back on Monday to view them. I am just worried on how much our purchase if going to cost us! It is so hard to go in there and NOT buy every picture they took. At least Chris will be there to help me decide what pictures to add to the collection.

This was also Kennedi's first Halloween. Of course she was so into it. At first Chris and I were not really planning on doing a whole lot. We were going to dress her up in her Auburn cheerleader outfit but then with Auburn not doing so great we thought we should make her first Halloween something better. We were actually doing some Christmas shopping the other day and we ran into what is now her costume. It was so cute, its a size 6-9 month so I thought she was going to swim in it. I was surprised when I got her home and it fit pretty well, it was a little big but nothing like I expected. We did not go to a lot of houses. We went to Kennedi's Aunt Karen's house but when we were sitting in the driveway we found out they were not home at the moment. So we took pictures in front of their house to prove we were there and headed to my other sister Barbie's house. Kennedi got lots of candy while we were there. She loved every bite of it too!! I think Reese's are her favorite so far! She is just like her mommy! Our last stop for the night was at Grandma and Papa's house where once again she got some candy!! I think she is set on candy for a little while. Here are some pictures of Kennedi throughout the day on her first Halloween. costume.

With Kennedi turning 12 weeks old this week it means that it is time for me to go back to work. My dreaded day is Monday and I hate to say it but I am not looking forward to it at all. I really hope that I will get used to leaving her behind. I think it is going to be extra hard (or I will feel extra guilt) because I stayed home with the boys but I also feel like I have to try to get out there again and work some. She will be in good hands next week and I am sure she will be spoiled! OK enough about all that.

I don't know how many times I have heard that Kennedi looks just like her daddy, I have to agree with them to an extent. I found the one picture of her and I as newborns that looked alike but have trouble seeing it in person. It is very hard to get past the cheeks that her and her daddy has. I came across this picture the other day and wanted to post it (its cute)....

of course it's cute... IT'S ME!! I think that maybe Kennedi is a really good mix of both of us but there are some pictures where its scary how much she looks like me! When she starts to crawl i will have to get a picture of her like the one above and really compare them!

Well I think I have rambled on long enough. I hope everyone had a safe and fun Halloween!

Tara and Chris