I just want to eat them up...

With Keslee getting older, things are getting much easier and I really am enjoying motherhood. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it before, but the workload is changing and I really like the stages we are getting into. Ryah is getting so funny with communicating and Keslee is just a bundle of chub.

Ryah funnies...

The other day she was running with the camera...she is becoming fast as I was literally chasing her around the furniture to get it from her since she's already broken one. I vowed I would never do the counting thing, but I started and when I got to three she looked at me and said..."Cheese," with the biggest grin ever.

Whenever I finish getting her ready in the morning she looks in the mirror and says, "Oh, cute."

She was stamping the other day at grandma's and I noticed she started stamping her pants. I looked at her and said, "Ryah, don't stamp your pants." She looked at me and said, "I din't."

Keslee:

Loves sitting up and walking while holding your hands.

Is not a fan of learning to crawl. Whenever you put her on her tummy she starts crying. I think she is going to struggle with the crawling because she literally gets high centered on her belly.

Is starting to really enjoy table foods.

Some people probably think it is silly to dress them alike when they aren't twins, but it is easier to buy two of everything.

Ryah really loves Keslee to be with her wherever she is. She insists Keslee sits in her house with her. I hope the excitement of having her sister around doesn't wear off any time soon :)

Enjoying Barney together. Keslee is perfectly content just being next to Ryah, she doesn't even need toys for entertainment.

Who ever would have thought gel stickers from the dollar store could be so entertaining. She loves these things and Kes enjoys sitting and watching her. Although, I did catch Ryah giving Keslee a "taste" of her stickers. When I asked her what she was doing she said, "Kes ike, mom."

Ryah was up in her room laughing the other day and when I checked on her I found her like this. She looked at me and said, "Osey (Horsey), Mom."

Then she would fall off the osey.

Ryah always wants to put the silverware away when the dishwasher is clean. Sometimes I dread it because it seriously takes a half hour since she wants to "make food" while doing it. I have decided I just need to slow down because the "laundry will always need to be done." Anyway, she thinks Keslee likes to help her and insists Kes stand on the chair with her. Of course Kes is all smiles and stands there just like this while Ryah does her job. Every once in a while Ryah will give a spoon to Kes and say, "Soup."

Who just would not want to eat these two up. They are so fun and full of life. I'm so glad we unexpectedly got pregnant with Keslee. If I had a choice, I would do it all over again. Give me 15 years and I might change my mind, but I hope these two are able to stay best buds like they are right now. It is so rewarding as a parent to see the deep love these two have for each other. We love them :)

Summer...where are you???

Can I just say I am more than ready for warm weather. The last week and a half has been not so fun at the Kay's. I finally took Keslee to the doctor and she has RSV and Ryah has a sinus infection. Thanks to antibiotics things are starting to get better physically, but mentally we are all going stir crazy having to stay couped up in the house. I figured I might as well document some of the funny things the girls have been doing lately since all we have to do is "enjoy" each other's company.

Funny Ryah doings:

The other day she continued saying, "Daddy wipe." I told her dad was at work and didn't need a wipe. She insisted daddy needed a wipe, so finally I told her to show me. She took me upstairs and had her "people" from her dollhouse all sitting on the back of the toilet. She said, "Go potty, daddy wipe." It clicked...it was so funny. I gave her a wipe and sure enough she wiped her "daddy" and then we proceeded to clean all of them with clorox wipes. :)

We went for a drive and she asked for her binki. When I said we left it at home, she told me to go back.

Whenever anyone asked where daddy was Ryah would say work, now she always says the potty. It's kind of funny. In her mind apparently when he's home, he's in the potty a lot.

Ryah is into anything that has to do with coloring. I always ask her what she's drawing and she says, "Write Ryah, Kesee, Mom, Daddy." The other day she said, "Draw Bankah (translated that's Grandpa). Not sure where she got that from, but it is kind of cute.

I folded and decided to throw in a bathtub picture. This is probably the highlight of our day. Ryah thinks it's swim time and Keslee loves to splash. The girls seriously stay in there until they are raisins, they love the bath. Ryah especially loves it when we let her get in the "big" bath (jetted tub), but Kes doesn't love it so much.

This is a picture of Kes shopping before she got sick, I had to post it. You would never have found Ryah doing this.

Well, I'm hoping all is well within the next week or so. There is nothing worse or more exhausting then having sick kids.

Six Month Stats

Keslee had her six month check-up this week and since people continually ask how much she weighs, I figured I'll just post it...she is a whoppin' healthy 17.6 pounder :) I had a little chuckle when I looked at the scale. She definitely has not taken after her sister in the weight department. Ryah did not even hit the 20 lb mark at her 12 month appt.

Keslee's weight tends to gravitate to her cheeks and thighs, they are rolls of chub, it is so cute. In fact, she and Ryah wear the same size diapers now. We just love her.

This seating arrangement is a thanks to her big sister. Ryah likes Keslee to sit by her in the bumbo on the barstool to eat. Keslee, actually, really enjoys herself. She tends to eat better sitting at the bar instead of on top believe it or not.

On a more miserable note (at least for mom and dad because the nights are long and she switches between which parent she wants)...Ryah has been sick. The other night she woke up around 3 a.m. extremely hot. As the days have gone on, the 102 fever is on and off, her nose is running like crazy, and today she developed a nasty cough. She has hardly any appetite. I feel helpless because you can just tell she is miserable. She is up almost every hour from midnight until about six just trying to get comfortable and figure out how to breathe with her stuffed up head.

Anyone who knows Ryah knows she is a busy body and does not sit still very long (although we just recently made it through all of storytime at toddler time). She always has to be doing. So the pictures below really show just how miserable she is. The story behind the first picture is kind of funny. We were eating lunch and Ryah did not want anything to do with it...instead she looked at me and said, "I down, I go seep." I went and checked on her after feeding Kes and this is what I found. She never does anything of this nature so I know she's feeling pretty crappy. She keeps telling me she needs edcine (medicine).

After being downstairs for a while she wanted to watch Barney (which I vowed my kids would never watch, but she and Kes love him) in our bed. She seriously has just been lounging...so sad.



















This was at dinner...she had no interest in that either, instead she wanted to "Go seep" again. I will feel much better when she's better. She isn't as lethargic as she was this particular day, but she definitely isn't back to her Ryah-self.

Six Months...Already

It seems like just yesterday I was in the hospital on bed rest with this munchkin. Her last 6 weeks in the womb were a rough ride for me, but I would do it over again in a second. I can't believe she recently hit the six month mark. It seems it took Ryah forever to reach six months.

Keslee is such a sweetheart and has a smile that is contagious. I practically squeeze the life out of her everytime I hug her. We love having her...and so does Ryah. Some of the "milestones" she's reached are:

-Just recently graduated from the bassinet to the crib...I know this sounds silly, but it is true. For the first month of life, the girls spent it in a bassinet in my room. Keslee spent a little longer due to her being on the monitor. Well, the little girl developed a major attachment to her bassinet and didn't want to sleep in anything, but that. The last couple weeks she became more and more annoyed by the bassinet because she couldn't stretch out, yet she didn't want to depart from it. Despite the crying of feeling "free" the first couple times she went down, she eventually mastered the crib which is now her resting place.

-Has taken an interest in food other than the bottle. I know this is horrible, but today she devoured a salt and vinegar pringle. Ryah decided to share her snack when I wasn't looking. When I went to take it away Keslee screamed, so I let her try it out and sure enough she loved it. She kept trying to reach for more.

-Sits on her own

-Loves the bath

-Loves Ryah...it has gotten to the point that sometimes she is ornery while Ryah is napping, but as soon as Ryah wakes up she's a different kid. She loves her sister.

-Loves watching cartoons with Ryah in the morning while holding hands. The funny thing is Keslee really will put her hand out when Ryah is by her. It is so cute and Ryah loves it, too.

Another snapshot of holding hands while watching cartoons.

We read to Ryah before she goes to bed, in turn, she likes to read to Kes.

Keslee is so full of love and has such a special spirit. We can't imagine life without her and look forward to the many years to come.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year...a little late

Wow, where did December go. I can't believe it's over. We had a crazy month, but it was well worth it with family time we were able to spend. There is nothing better than all being together. Here is a brief overview of the month...

First part of December we enjoyed the annual Snowbird treat my dad does for all the employees. It was hilarious, we did "ES3 Idol", the company owners were the judges the Idol cast. You were paid $100 just for participating and then the audience voted for the top three who won larger money prizes. It was a husband/wife duo who won doing their version of Sunny and Cher. The husband was dressed as Cher and the wife was dressed as Sunny, it was great. Afterward, the judges surprised us all by serenading us with their rendition of Beyonce's...All The Single Ladies, so funny.

Mid-December we enjoyed family night with part of the fam at Desert Star's Dinner Theater presentation of The Nutcracker: Men In Tights.

Christmas Eve day was spent with my fam. We get together at my parent's church to play games. We used to do the movie thing, but due to the addition of kidlets our tradition has taken a backseat. The evening is spent with Jared's family doing dinner and a cousin gift exchange with his mom's side.

Finally, Christmas...oh, how fun it was with little ones and I can only imagine how each year gets better. Jared and I decided we are going to set the expectations while they are young so they don't expect a huge, lavish Christmas. I really want to teach the girls the importance of giving as well. They still were spoiled. Ryah got a dollhouse which she loves to play with. Her "people" take a bath with her every morning and are put to bed every night. She also got books, coloring paraphernalia, a baby, a ball blower, blocks, and an outfit. Kes got a ball with a clown on it and everytime you push the clown it makes music (it is one of the more annoying toys we've purchased lol), teething toys, bath toys, and an outfit to match her sis. I got Jared some golf stuff and he got me a new flatscreen TV he wanted. I admit, I like it. He also splurged a little more and bought me an outfit, my sister's complemented him all day on the purchase. He was pretty proud of himself. We went to Jared's parents after opening our presents for breakfast and do a gift exchange with his brother's and parents.

Christmas night was spent at my parents for the traditional Christmas Auction. This year the theme for the 12 days of Christmas my mom did for us was "Time." A lot of the gifts it was based around spending time with family, making time to get your house in order, etc. The Christmas Auction presents varied from food storage buckets, food organizers, shopping spree's, various gift cards, entertainment tickets, to the grand prize of an iPod touch which Tiff and Zach bid the highest. Our family lucked out with food storage buckets to add to our others, an all expense paid date night to Bill Cosby with my parents, golf stuff (Jar loved), and a couple gift cards. It was such a fun time. Thanks to my mom who goes through all the work to put everything together, I can not even imagine how much work it is...and of course my faja for funding the fun :) We feel so blessed.

Thanksgiving

This last year has had so many good and bad things happen and I am so grateful for all of them. I truly have so much to be thankful for. I have an awesome husband (and best friend) who I get to spend eternity with. I have vibrant, healthy children, something which is so priceless now-a-day. I hear stories so often of families whose children are struck with terminal illnesses and my heart goes out to them. I can not even imagine. I am especially grateful for my knowledge of the gospel; it is basically my self improvement program. I could go on and on, but my sleeping has become a priceless commodity and I have to take advantage of every minute. LOL

This year we spent Thanksgiving with Jared's side of the family and I'm horrible and didn't get any pictures. It was a lot of fun and Jared's grandma always goes to so much work to make sure everything is just right. Afterward we headed to Delta for the weekend. My cousin Jade had his mission farewell so we did a lot of family bonding.

Hanging out at the Mexican Restaurant in Delta.

We took Ryah to the roller skating rink...and yes, you can only wear roller skates, no roller blades allowed. Ry thought it was the best thing ever, she didn't want to take off her skates.

Jared was a trooper and put on a pair of skates to take Ryah around...she was laughing.

My brother wishing he was a figure skater :)

Jared and me at the end of our skating adventure. I guess I should say Jared's skating adventure. We had a great time and I can't wait to take Ryah to my family's big skating party. I get so excited just taking her places now to see her reaction.

All-in-all we had a great holiday...couldn't ask for any better.

Happy 30th Jared

A little late, but better than never...right??? Jared turned 30 last month and I had him a surprise party with family. One of the many perks of living in a small town is the ability to use the large municipal building at no cost. This building comes in handy due to the large family Jared and I have on both sides. I served a main dish of italian chicken and rice and others brought some pot luck items. It was a huge success and Jared was totally surprised. There is a lot more video footage than pics. Things got a little crazy and I abandoned the camera :(

I (my mom actually) decided on the Oh No, three Oh instead of Over the Hill. There's no way I could have pulled it off without her. Jared would have been way too suspicious...

My dad did a great job distracting Jared most of the day so I could get things ready along with the help of my mom and sisters. Jared wasn't suspicious of anything until my dad told him they had to go look at quilts down by our house...not sure where that one came from.

Ryah loved having Maddi drag her around on the floor.

Jared (with the help of the munchkins) blowing out the candles. His grandma made his favorite spice cake.

My mom is really big into making videos, so I scanned in all the pictures and she did the rest of the work. It turned out so good and Jared loved it. It is crazy all the memories we've made in the short amount of time we've known each other. I can't wait to make lots more :)

Thanks to everyone who came and helped out, I couldn't have pulled it off without you.