2009...our year in pictures

Well since this is the last day of the year many people are reflecting on the past year and looking forward to the year ahead. So I suppose i'll join in. :o)

2009 was a very special year for us, we welcomed our beautiful Logyn to our family in January.


Watched Lexi grow from toddler,



To little girl.




Saw Konner mature even more from little boy,



to just boy.




Colby and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary,




And got to go on our first vacation.




All in all we had a great year and I can't wait to see what next year brings! So from our family to yours...Happy New Year!!




May 2010 be the best year ever!!!

Another post so soon?

I can't believe i'm getting the chance to post again so soon! It's not going to be another month and a half before i'm back! :o) I don't really have much to chat about so this may be a bit scatter-brained but since I have the chance I thought i'd take it...

I can't believe Christmas is a week from tomorrow!!! It's crazy how fast it snuck up on me this year. We still have so much to do though and i'm trying to not get overwhelmed with all of it. We're making pretty much all the gifts for everyone other than the kids and I still have quite a bit to do on all that, plus we haven't even started shopping for the kids yet! Yes, we will be some of those crazy people out next week trying to get everything at the last minute! But thankfully we don't go crazy on gifts for them, they each get 3 gifts and their stocking. For the 3 gifts they get something they want, something they need and something to read. And for their stocking they get things like fruit snacks, socks and underwear-old family joke in my house-and then a few little toys. So I don't think we'll have a real hard time getting everything taken care of...at least I hope not!

It's so funny to me how big Christmas gets once you're married, when I was growing up I wanted Christmas to last for a week at least but it always seemed to end so fast. Now it really does last for days and days since we have to go to each of our families for get-togethers. I think we have at least 5 functions we have to go to, we'll go to my mom's house, my dad's, Colby's parents and his family in Borger and then my friend Chelsea's house at some point so the kids can see their "Gigi"-she's an official yet unofficial grandmother to them. So now it really does last more than 1 day! :o)

The kids are loving the Christmas tree though and so far Logyn has really left it alone which totally surprised me. I just knew she'd mess with it constantly but she hasn't even noticed it really. We get a real tree now which is a new thing for me but it's one thing about Christmas that Colby really loves so i'm all for it! He's a bit of a scrooge about Christmas, he's better than when we first got together but he still has his moments. He wants to get the cartoon "Grinch" for the kids to watch, I swear, that's his theme song throughout the holidays. haha! But like I said, he's improving. :o)

Um lets see...can I think of anything else to talk about? See i'm actually trying to put off house work, that's the real reason behind me sitting here talking to myself! haha! But nope, I can't think of anything. Guess i'll have to actually get to it then... :o)

Overall update...

Well since it's been about a month and a half since I last posted I guess it's about time for an update. Last time I posted we were getting ready for Lexi's birthday, everything went so great!!! I did make her cake and it turned out really great so I was very relieved. Here's a pic for ya...




My friend Brianne and I stayed up till like 2am working on that thing but Lexi loved it so it was totally worth it! :o) Now we're getting ready for Logyn's first birthday! I can't believe it's already time for her birthday, it doesn't feel like she's been here for a whole year but at the same time I can't really remember what our life was like before she came.

A HUGE part of me is very sad right now, she's our last baby so while i'm exited to watch her grow and learn new things it's also really really hard knowing that she's the last. There won't be another baby to watch learn how to roll over, or sit up, or take their first steps...she's it. So i'm trying so hard to enjoy all my time with her because I won't have another chance at this. I know I have 3 kids and i've enjoyed every bit of each of their lives, but there's just something so final to everything Logyn does.

But like Colby says, eventually there will have to be a last baby. Even if we were to have 20 kids there would at some point be a last one so i'd have to deal with this eventually. Honestly though, i'm ok with not having more kids. I can't imagine having more than these 3 running around here! :o)My mom is a little devastated that we're stopping with 3, she thinks I should have 10 kids at least! haha! But like i've told her, it'd be better to only have 3 kids and be sane than to have 10 kids and go insane! :o)

All of the kids are doing great though, Logyn is still growing like crazy and I kinda wish she would slow down. I still can't believe she started walking at 8 months! Pure craziness!! Lexi is still my little drama queen, but she's growing more beautiful every day. I looked at her today and couldn't believe how grown up she looked! She was just wearing a pair of jeans and a plain shirt but yet she looked like a little girl, she no longer looks like a toddler and it just kinda caught me by surprise.

Konner is also growing like crazy. Every day he gets more and more mature. He's changing from little boy to just boy and I don't like it! :o) The way he talks and the things he says...he's just growing so fast. The other day he asked me to teach him how to cook so that when he gets married he'll know how. He also said when he was kids he wants a boy and a girl, he'll name the girl Flower and the boy Incredible Hulk so I guess he's not fully matured! :o)

I wish there was a way to slow things down and making them last just a little longer. For the longest time-and honestly even sometimes now-I felt like I was stuck in this rut and would never get out of it. For the rest of my life I would be changing diapers and getting cups and snacks and doing all the things you do with toddlers. But i'm starting to see more and more how quickly all this will be gone. It's like that country song "You're gonna miss this", before I know it i'll be in the next faze of life and the kids won't need me to hug them when they hurt. They won't want to show me each paper they color or want me to kiss-hug-and by them before bed. They'll grow up and move into their own lives and while that's good and how it should be it's just hard to accept sometimes.

Don't get me wrong, I don't want them to stay little forever-at least I don't always want that-it's just kinda hard realizing there will come a day when i'm not everything for them. While I can't wait for them to grow up and become amazing men and women of God it's hard to believe they won't still be my little babies anymore. I won't have all the answers, I won't be able to fix every problem and hurt with a kiss and that's just kinda hard. It's so easy to get caught up in the nitty gritty every day stuff and forget that my purpose as a mom is more than just changing diapers and getting cups. My job, the whole point of being a mom is to train these kids to be world changers for God! These 3 kids can make such an impact and make such a difference if we raise them the way God wants us to. That's our goal, to raise world changers for God. To raise kids who aren't afraid to stand up for what they believe no matter the cost, kids who believe in something greater than themselves, kids that make a difference.

Anyways, i'm not exactly sure how I got off on all that. haha! Went from Lexi's birthday party to my job as a mom! See when I just start talking the topics start flowing. :o) But that's ok right?! Well now that i've rambled on I guess I should get to some house work-I also need to raise kids who help clean house! haha!

Two weeks!!!

Lexi's birthday party is only 2 weeks from today! Where has the time gone? I still have so much to get and so much to do around here, i've been starting to feel a little panic actually because it's coming so soon! I still have to get all the cake stuff, although I am just getting the box mixes so that'll make it a little easier on me. I still have to get all the stuff for her cookie wands as well as the rest of the decorations. We got the pony decorations in today so that's a relief, everything else we'll just be getting at Walmart so I don't have to worry about it not being here in time.

We also got her gifts already so that's nice to have done. We got her a pony bag for all her little pony pieces-it will also help keep them up so Logyn won't eat them-and we got her a pink piano with a microphone. She is always singing, any song she hears she ends up singing it or at least her version of it! :o)

That is going to be a very busy weekend for us though, Lexi's actually birthday is on Friday then the party on Saturday and then Logyn's baby dedication is on Sunday. I'm a little nervous about that honestly, it'll be a family packed weekend which isn't always a good thing but I guess we'll see how it goes.

Oh but we did get a set of cd's from the church when we signed up for the dedication. About a year ago Pastor Connie did a child training seminar at church, it was 5 sessions total and we got the set when we signed up! I've been listening to them the last several days and gosh they're good! I just finished the 3rd cd today and even though I was at the seminar it's still changing my view all over again. I think i've just gotten lazy lately and this is really helping to shape me up again. I'm going to get a copy for my mom just because she's works with kids so much, plus she has ours kids so much so it'll help her even as a grama. It's seriously something I would recommend every parent have and listen to on a regular basis!

Total change of subject but I did some baking yesterday! I made brownies, chocolate chip cookies and pumpkin cinnamon rolls with a caramel icing. I also made homemade spaghetti sauce with fresh tomatoes...my house smelled GOOD! :o) I don't know why but I was just in the mood to bake. I did send about half of everything with Colby to work today, that way it's not all sitting here begging me to eat it! haha! We're also having bible study tomorrow so i'll probably take some of it with me then too. The only thing that was a little disappointing was the you couldn't really taste the pumpkin in the cinnamon rolls. I'm not real used to cooking with pumpkin yet so i'm not sure how to fix that problem, I don't want to add too much more and make it to gooey cause it was already pretty gooey but it really needs more. Any ideas?

Well this blog has been kinda all over the place, that's just how my mind usually works. I almost always have 10 different things racing through at once. But Colby will be home soon so I better go, gotta figure out what we're having for dinner. :o)

A little late...

Well I was supposed to get on here like 2 days ago and update on my cleaning and i'm just now getting to it. ugh! I'm so bad at this! Well for those of you that care....I did get my bathroom finished. It ended up being a day later than I was planning but I did get it done! :o) Now moving on to something more interesting than my bathroom... :o)

Have you ever been in the place where you're ready to move to the next phase of life? There are things in life right now that i'm ready to be done with but it's just not happening in my time line. I've kinda been thinking that maybe it's my timing but not Gods and I need to just trust in Him for things to happen in His time, and honestly i've been getting impatient and almost angry at God for not making these things happen for us. But last night at couples Pastor David read Proverbs 19 and verse 3 really stuck out to me, here it is in the Message... "People ruin their lives by their own stupidity, so why does God always get blamed?" I kinda had to sit back and think on that today.

If i'm honest with myself i've made a lot of stupid choices and really dumb mistakes and yet i've turned around and blamed the consequences on God! Pastor Connie said last night that sometimes we even give Satan the time off and mess things up for ourselves! I hate to say it but I think i've done that way to many times.

But I spent some time today really praying about these areas and things I want to change and i'm starting to see what I need to do. For months and months i've been praying for knowledge, wisdom, miracles...you name it and now i'm kinda seeing that what I really need to just quit sitting around and waiting for God to do some supernatural thing and start doing the natural things He's been telling me to do.

Now don't get me wrong, I totally believe in the supernatural things of God and I do think there is a huge place for that-i've had plenty of supernatural things happen in my life. But I do think there is a point where you've got to stop sitting around waiting for miracles to fall out of the sky and get to work! I think i'm at that point, actually I think i've been at that point for a while now but i'm just now starting to admit it and really make a plan and point to do the work.

Anyways, that's been my big revelation for the day...you'd think after being a christian for most of my life i'd have these things down by now! But i'm really glad to serve a God that doesn't get angry or frustrated with us when we do stupid stuff! Now I guess it's off to work... :o)

Do you FLY?

With Lexi's party coming up I am in the cleaning mode and i'm determined to get all the deep cleaning done that i've needed to do for a while now. So the last 2 weeks i've gotten out my Control Journal and started the FLYlady method of cleaning again. For those of you who don't know what i'm talking about i'll give a quick rundown and post the website in a sec.

The basic concept of FLYlady is very simple, it's a way to get into a routine of cleaning your house and keeping it clean on a regular basis. Sounds simple right? It really is! I am the kind of person that gets sidetracked SOOOO easy, i've always been that way. As a kid I had a poster on my wall that said "I mean to work are Lord but I keep coming across things that are more fun to do!" That was and sadly still is me! I used to be the worst house keeper in the world, seriously...the house was bad! But over the last few years i've gotten much better, I mean i'm not up for any cleanest house awards but i'm no longer embarrassed to have people over.

FLYlady breaks everything down for you. There are morning, afternoon and before bed routines as well as any others each individual needs. She also has Zones that you work on each month so that you never have a big spring cleaning to do. One week you deep clean the living room. The next week it's the kitchen, and so on. But you clean each Zone every month so it always stays clean. This way you never look at the baseboards or ceiling fan and want to hide from embarrassment because there's a 3 inch layer of dust because for the life of you, you can't remember when the last time you cleaned it was! Is anyone else like this or is it just me? I know i'm not alone because there's a whole website for people like me! :o)

Ok here's the website.... www.flylady.net If anything i've talked about reminds you of your home you should seriously check it out!! Some of the stuff might seem a little goofy but if you get in there and just do it it makes a huge difference and after a while you'll wonder how you got by before it!

So anyways, this week I am in Zone 3. I'll be working on the bathroom and the kids room, I think you're also supposed to clean the kids bathroom but we only have 1 bathroom so I get to skip that. I was bad yesterday and didn't start on my Zone work, I had slacked off over the weekend because we were gone so much so I spent the day catching up on my basic work. My goal for today is to get my bathroom completely scrubbed down-walls and everything-as well and all the rugs washed. Will I get it done? We'll see. :o) I'll post my progress tomorrow...I know, you'll be waiting at the edge of your seat until then huh? I mean of course my clean toilet is the most important thing happening today right?!

Also if you have any FLYing stories you'd like to share feel free to do so! :o)

It's party time!

Lexi's birthday is in a month, I can't believe she's going to be 3 already! We have decided to have the party here at our house which will be a bit of a challenge since our house is so small, but we'll make it work. We're going to do it kinda like a come and go so people can come when they want and don't feel like they have to stay the whole time. We'll have chips and sandwiches and of course cake and ice cream so that'll be fun. The big difference this year is that i'll be making the cake! I'm super nervous about it because i've never made a fancy cake before so i'm really hoping it turns out. She of course is having a My Little Pony birthday which is no surprise at all but she also really likes princess stuff, so I decided to make her a pony castle cake. I actually have been looking at cakes online for a while now trying to figure out what kind of cake to make since this is my first time, and I found a pony castle cake. So while it's not MY original idea i'm gonna do it anyways! :o)

We're just planning on inviting some of our friends and family so it won't be a huge thing but it's her birthday so I want it to be a fairly big deal for her so we're gonna go all out with decorating. Colby and I are planning on waiting till the kids leave on Friday and decorating the living room with tons of streamers and balloons so when she gets home from my moms on Saturday the house is all ready for her party! I'm so excited!

Oh, i'm also going to make cookie wands for everyone. I got the idea from the My Little Pony website-yes I signed up for the party planning stuff. I got a cookie sheet that has 6 star shapes on it and a place to put the stick at the bottom before I bake them. Then i'll tie ribbon around the stick and put pink or purple icing and sprinkles on them so they sparkle! :o)Can you tell i'm having fun planning this very girly party?

Ok I guess I better quit chatting and get busy cleaning. That is one good thing about having the party here, it's giving me a great excuse to get all my deep cleaning work done...because we all know that people are going to go behind my furniture and inspect the baseboards! Don't you do that at birthday parties?! :o)

My how time has flown!

Logyn is now 8 months old! I can't believe 8 months has gone by since she was born, next month she'll have been here as long as I was pregnant which is just crazy! I thought my pregnancy went by so fast but it was nothing compared to since she's been born. My crazy girl is now starting to walk already! She took her very first steps yesterday, I just can't believe she's already starting to walk! She's done everything faster than Konner and Lexi but this is way faster than both of them, they were both 13 months and 2 weeks before they took their first steps. Once she figured out she could take a step that's the first thing she'd do every time she'd stand up which is all the time. I feel so bad for Colby though because he was at work and missed it, I was actually on the phone with him when she did it so he got to hear that she's done it. But she did good and did it again for him when he got home, and for Colby's parents when we went to dinner with them. Konner and Lex are so excited that she's trying to walk, every time she stands up now they yell for me to come watch cause she's gonna walk! It's so cute. :o)

It's so hard to believe sometimes that i'm a mom of 3, i'm only 23 years old and I already have 3 kids! I've actually had a bit of a hard time the last few weeks because i've just been feeling so overwhelmed with all of it. I know this was all my choice and don't get me wrong, I love my kids and wouldn't trade them for the world but I started feeling like i'd missed out on a lot of my life by having them. Gosh, just typing that is even hard! There's so many people out there that struggle to have babies and want them so bad and here I was not even liking mine or really even wanting them around. How awful is that?! I was the worst mother in the world!

But we had a Connect service which is a night of prayer and praise-at our church on Sunday night and God ministered so powerfully to me that night. A lady on our prayer team prayed with me and prayed peace and wisdom over me without knowing anything I was dealing with and that was exactly what I needed. I've been so lost on knowing what to do with my kids, I mean they're great kids but like everyone they have their weaknesses which have just been driving me crazy! I've needed wisdom on how to address these weaknesses and still keep myself controlled at the same time. I've also needed peace because i've just been so down and really upset with so much lately, some things that shouldn't matter and some things that really should but either way worrying over them hasn't changed a thing-surprise surprise!

I've had such a different week this week and I know it was because of Sunday night! Pastor Don said at church that morning that if we would come to the service expecting something of God that we wouldn't be disappointed and God would meet us there and that's exactly what happened! Honestly this has been a crazy week, the kids have been fighting more than normal, very little has gone smoothly and honestly I had a fairly bad morning yesterday but over all i've had a peace and calm this week that I haven't had in a long time and it's been wonderful. I'm so thankful that I serve a God that knows exactly where i'm at and comes to me even though i've done nothing to deserve it.

Well I guess I better get back to all my housework, it never seems to end which I guess is a good thing. It just means we have food to eat, clothes to wear and a house to live in-looking for the positives here! ;o)

Taking a break

Well i'm supposed to be cleaning but i'm so tired of cleaning so i'm taking a break to sit and relax for a bit. So far today i've cleaned the kitchen 3 times, washed 4 loads of laundry, cleaned and organized the kitchen counters, cleaned out and organized the fridge, cleaned off my desk, scrubbed the bathtub, toilet, and bathroom sink, deep cleaned the living room, cleaned our table-which had gotten very cluttered, and...I think that's it. I still need to...fold the laundry, deep clean my room-it's a DISASTER!-vacuum the house, change and wash all our bedding and sweep and mop the kitchen and bathroom. But I think some of that will just have to wait till tomorrow, there's just not enough hours in my day. Oh and all that was on top of the normal housework, cooking breakfast and lunch, cleaning up the living room 500 times, and tending to the kids and all their messes! *sigh* I'm tired! :o) But thankfully Colby will be home soon and then we'll begin our evening which is always my favorite time of the day.

Tomorrow i'm making lasagna for the first time ever so i'm super excited about that, I made a huge batch of homemade spaghetti sauce last night-we of course had spaghetti for dinner-partly so I could make the lasagna tomorrow. We're having some friends over for dinner and i'm really excited because it will be a kid free evening! Their daughter will go to bed shortly after they get here and my mom will have my kids like she does every Friday night so we'll get to hang out and enjoy a grown-up evening! haha!

Next week will be so awesome! Colby is off 3 days so we're going to have so much fun doing absolutely nothing! :o) But Next Saturday Konner and Lexi are both in a friends wedding which I can't wait for. Konner's gonna wear a little suit and Lex has a really pretty dress, they're gonna be so cute! Of course i'm hoping my temperamental little drama queen cooperates with everything, 2 weeks ago she decided she wanted to wear her pj's for the wedding instead of her dress so we'll see how it all turns out. :o)

Well this whole post has been so scattered and random but that's just how my brain works most of the time. Time to go get dinner ready... :o)

All things kids

That's what my life feels like right now! :o) Day in and day out it's kids, kids, kids. When I wake up it's kids. When I go to sleep it's kids. As a mom of 3 kids under 5 that's normal I guess but it can still be a bit of a challenge. There are those days that make me want to run back to bed and hide under the blankets, but for the most part as hard as this mom thing is I do love what I do. But even the most wonderful and dedicated moms need their breaks which is why I LOVE my husband! He totally gets that I need my times of just me! The other night he got home from work and i'd had an especially hard day so he let me go by myself to the store for about an hour while he took care of the kids. He fixed dinner and got the kids mostly ready for bed so all I had to do was help tuck them in and then sit and relax. It was awesome!!!

Starting in 2 weeks i'll also be getting a couple hours to myself ever other week, we're starting a scrapbook bible study this month so i'll get to get out of the house and scrap! I'm super excited, it'll give me a chance to have to scrapbook which is totally something I need otherwise I never get to it. Believe it or not i'm still trying to finish Lexi's first year album! But it's fun because I get the chance to see how much Lexi and Logyn look alike. My father-in-law was looking at Lexi's book and thought I had put a page of Lexi next to Logyn to show how much they look alike when in fact it was just Lexi. I'm really curious to see how much they'll look alike when they're older!

Konner told me the other day that he thinks I should have another baby and make this one a boy. haha! I was actually waiting for that to come from him at some point, after all he's surrounded by girls so I figure it's only natural for him to want another boy form him and daddy to play with. But sadly...that's not going to happen since we've decided Logyn will be our last baby. Oh well, i'm sure he'll enjoy being the big brother!

Well I guess I better get back to my house work...after all a mom's work is never done!

Blah...

I never know what to put as the title, it's rare that I get on here and actually have something to talk about! haha! Usually it's just me being bored and siting down "talking" to myself so I end up spending more time trying to figure out what I should title this silly thing than I spend actually writing it. I know, I put WAY to much thought into something that should be so simple...

Anyways...I think this blog thing is so hard for me to do because I have so little to say. Actually there's lots of things i'd like to say but very little that i'm confidant enough to actually say. I have all kinds of opinions of things, I have all kinds of things i'd love to talk to people about but I hardly ever have the confidence to actually say those things. You wouldn't think that something as simple as sitting down and writing a journal-basically-would be so complicated and difficult but for me it is. I mean this is on the internet, anyone can read this-not that many do but plenty could and that always manages to make me second guess what I actually end up writing about.

I've always wanted to be the kind of writer that when you read it you feel like you're sitting in my living room and we're chatting while drinking a cup of fabulous coffee. I love opening a book and after the first page feeling like i've known the author for years, I don't know how people do that. I've actually always wanted to be a writer-goodness knows i've read enough books!!-but once again i've never had the confidence to actually write anything. I guess the whole confidence thing is something I should really work on.

Ok, so from now on i'm going to try to do just that, i'm going to work on being more confident in my writing. I'm going to sit down with a good cup of coffee and imagine that i'm having a girlfriend over to join me and we're having the best time chatting about nothing and everything. I'm going to write about whatever happens to be on my mind and not worry about the fact that anyone could read it, this is after all MY blog! :o)

But for now, the kids are awake, well Konner and Logyn are, so I guess I better go...but i'll be back very soon! After all, I love any excuse to enjoy a cup of coffee! ;o)

Daily craziness

It's so strange to me how the simple day to day can be so crazy around here. I remember telling Colby when we were talking about having another baby that I wanted a house full of chaos, I wanted the busy days of sports practice and dance class and all the many activities that kids get involved with. So far we haven't even reached those activities and yet we stay so busy.

Growing up I always thought my mom just came up with chores for us, I really didn't think there could actually be that much to keeping a house of 4 clean. I was wrong!!! :o) I have to say I can't wait till the kids are old enough to get a daily list of chores...does that make me a bad mom?! haha! They have their regular things they do like pick up their toys and clothes and take their dishes to the sink, things like that. But the day they can do laundry will be a good day!!! :o) There's so much to keeping a house running smoothly and i'm still learning what all it takes, we have way to many bumpy days around here.

Konner has started asking questions like crazy, since he started talking he's asked questions but now they're getting a little bit harder. He now wants to know what everything means, plus he loves to talk so if he doesn't have anything to say he'll come up with something! "Mommy, what does what mean?" "Mommy, why is the sun the sun?" "Mommy, what does because mean?" Those are the times I just have to tell him to stop talking and silence is a good thing! haha! He's such an awesome little boy though and i'm learning all the time how to mother a boy, it's SOOO different than mothering girls! In the last few months he's started not wanting to much affection from me, it's been awhile since i've been able to hug him very much but it's continuing to increase. The other day Lexi was still sleeping and Konner came and sat with me while we watched a movie, he actually let me snuggle him a little bit. Of course as soon as Lexi came in the room he had to get up, he couldn't let sister see him snuggling with mommy. I guess my little boy is growing up!

Lexi is my major drama queen! I told my sister a while back that I don't know where the kids get their dramatics from, I mean I wasn't that dramatic as a kid! Of course she reminded me that um..yes I was! haha! It's so funny to me how often the end of the world comes around here, at least that's what Lexi thinks. She's also my strong willed child, she's only 2 and already she tries to out last me when it's something she doesn't want to do. It's so funny to me that she thinks "no" will actually work! :o) I guess it's something she has to try out though, i'm just having to remind myself to train her will. Being a girl with a strong will can actually be a great thing ans long as her will gets shaped right. Thank goodness for our church, I wouldn't have a clue if it wasn't for our pastor's teaching us regularly how do train these kids!

Logyn is doing awesome, she's growing like a weed and wants to bad to be big like brother and sis. She just follows them around all the time now, of course by the time they've gone in 3 circles she's starting on her first one but she'll catch them soon enough! We're going to go up to Colby's work tomorrow and take some new pics of the kids, it's been forever since we've taken some good pictures of them and they're growing and changing so fast. I'm excited to get them done though! I'll have to post some of them as well as some of Lexi and Logyn at the same age, those girls look SO much alike it's crazy! It's a good thing we keep their pictures separate because I wouldn't be able to tell them apart otherwise!

Colby and I are still doing great, we just had our 5 year anniversary a couple weeks ago, we got to get away for the weekend without the kids which was awesome. I can't believe it's been 5 years already! It's feels like so much longer sometimes, of course a lot has happened in those 5 years! I never though when we got married that by our 5 year anniversary we'd have 3 kids, but I have to say it's been an awesome journey! I told him on our trip that i'm so anxious to see where well be in 5 years, I don't even have a clue honestly. We have some ideas of where we'd like to be but don't really know if we'll actually get there. Colby's starting to pursue his career in fashion photography a bit more which is pretty cool and kinda scary at the same time. If he does end up doing solely fashion photography we'll most likely have to move, I mean there's not a lot of opportunity for fashion work here. Of course we're not really close to that right now so I try to just let go and give all of that to God until the time comes. No need to worry about it right now...easier said than done though that's for sure.

Well it's almost time to get Colby for lunch so I better go...plus it's back to all that house work I was talking about! ;o)

Summer...

I've always hated summer, as a kid the only good thing about it was we didn't have school, now that i'm an adult even that reason is gone. I've always preferred fall and especially winter to spring or summer but yet every year those two seasons still show up. :o) I did find something to enjoy during summer though...grilling!! My dad gave us a grill this year and we have since started grilling on a regular basis. I love it because it leaves at least half of the cooking to Colby which always makes for a nice break.

I'm also getting into cooking from scratch, i've made rolls, bread, different baked goods and breakfast foods from scratch so far. I have a few websites that i'm on regularly getting new ideas and trying new things and so far I love it! I have so many more recipes I want to try out, muffins and several different breads now that i've pulled my bread maker out again. It's surprising how fun it really is to get in and be all home-makey!

Also quick update on Logyn, she is now almost 6 months old and is crawling, sitting herself up, pulling up in the crib and slowly cruising in the crib! Crazy girl, she's so ready to be big. Everyone else is doing good and about the same as always. :o) This was super short but I gotta run...it's time to swim-for the kids not me! ;o)

It's been too long!

I think I start out most of my blogs saying it's been a long time since I last blogged! Maybe I should get better about doing this. I think there's so few people-if any-who read this and they probably already know what all's going on in my life. But it's something that's fun to do so i'll sit and talk to myself on here for a while! :o)

I'm not really sure what I blogged about last time so I might end up repeating myself but that's ok, I do that quite often when i'm talking anyways! The kids are doing awesome which always makes my life good! Konner is still the same Konner, active, entertaining, loud and just all around energetic! Lexi is still my little drama queen, she's Konner's accomplice in most mischief, and still melts her daddy's heart with a simple smile-or tear! Logyn is growing like a weed! She's already 4 months old, rolling over and I even caught her up on her knees the other day which is hard to believe. She's the happiest baby and her smile lights up our house regularly, she's still her brother and sis's favorite toy and they're always doing things to make her smile!

Colby is still amazing! He's just finished up another senior season at his job which is always such a busy time for him but keeps him busy witch is good. He's just an awesome guy and I can't brag on him enough! :o) He's the kids favorite toy, he helps me stay sane on days that I want to scream for whatever reason, he's growing so much spiritually and pushes me to grow as well. He's just amazing!

Honestly there's not tons to blog about, not much has changed which is pretty normal. We just continue to go day to day and are learning to love life more and more. So I guess that's all... :o)

Just an update

I haven't posted a basic update in a while so since I have a few minutes till the kids get home I thought i'd do just that!

This are going really good right now which is awesome! Colby's job is still going good, he's had a bit of a rough patch there but things are starting to turn around. It's senior season so it's been just plain crazy anyways, he is looking forward to June though because things will start to relax a bit more.

The kids are doing great, growing like weeds!!! Konner gets more active every day which is so hard to believe but very true. He is the wildest and sweetest little boy in the world! But he's so curious about everything, if he doesn't know what's going on he won't stop until he finds out! He's memorizing bible verses now which is so fun, he loves to say them to anyone who will listen which is so cute!

Lexi is 2 1/2 now and so much like her brother, she definitely manages to keep up with him and hold her own which is such a talent!! She's been fighting a UTI for the last few weeks which is sooo not fun. But thank goodness for Eat Rite, they knew exactly what vitamins she needed and so far we've been able to keep her off antibiotics which is awesome! She's has become such a little girl though, she's in love with dresses and loves to prance around once her hair's all fixed. She comes up and asks "How do I look?" and she'll wait for the answer she wants whether it's pretty, cute or beautiful! I tell Colby all the time that if she keeps this up she won't have low self esteem problems at all!! haha!

Logyn is 3 months old now which is so hard to believe!!! She's so much fun though and the kids are still all over her all the time. She's rolling over now and smiling all the time. She actually laughed for the first time last night which is so cute! She's just like Lexi was though and so ready to be big! You can tell she wants to go and do already which is fun and yet sad at the same time, since she's my last baby a part of me wants her to stay a baby. But I do have to admit that I can't wait for her to big enough to play with Konner and Lex, of course once that day comes i'll be out of my mind busy chasing after them so i'm trying to enjoy this time as much as I can!

I having actually gotten a small part time job through Colby's work, they make baby books and have asked me to start making them for them. It will only be an extra $60 or so a week but that's our grocery bill so sounds good to me! It's pretty cool though because it's basically digital scrapbooking which sounds awesome and right up my alley. So i'm pretty excited about that, it'll allow me more time to play on the computer and not feel bad for it! :o)

I guess that's all really, see this is why i'm so bad at doing just basic updates...there's rarely anything new to update! haha! Oh well, at least it's fun...

It snowed!!!

Yesterday we got more snow than we've had all winter!! It looks so beautiful outside today with the sun shinning off the snow. Konner finally got to wear his snow boots that he got forever ago so he was thrilled! Lexi however wasn't quite sure about the whole thing, she's my little miss priss so she wanted to watch it from inside only!! They stayed the night at my moms last night and the first thing they did when they got there was get a big bowl of snow and sit down to a snack of snow on ritz crackers!! We used to eat tons of those when it would finally snow enough to get a bowl of clean snow and it was so much fun watching my kids enjoy the same goofy snacks that I did as a kid.

They are growing up so fast and sometimes it's hard to believe it really. Konner came up to me a few days ago and said his first bible verse! He watches a Hillsongs Kids dvd all the time and in between the songs they come on and say a verse and he picked it up from there. It's so cute though because he even says it with an Australian accent!! Then just after he said it Lexi even came up and said it, it was a little more slurred than Konner's was but she knew most of it! The verse was Ephesians 3:18 "And may you have the power as all God's people should to understand how wide, how long, how high and how deep His love is." It's so great hearing them say it and knowing that even if they don't quite understand what it means those seeds have been planted in their little hearts!

Every day i'm learning more and more about God's love just from watching my kids. They are so forgiving and understanding and it just blows my mind sometimes. When someone does something to make me mad I sometimes have a hard time getting over it even after they've asked for forgiveness. But the kids are so quick to forgive, oftentimes even before forgiveness has even been asked for! That's something that I want so much for them to keep hold of! I really have to watch myself with them though because it's so easy to get into myself and forget that I have 3 little pairs of eyes watching every thing I do and say. Our pastor's wife says "Everything you see in your kids you either put there or allowed it to be there" and that's so true!! I have a tendency to get angry easily and that's my daily battle, but I never really saw it in me before I saw it coming out of Konner. I remember wondering where his anger came from, I mean he's just a little boy why does he get so mad so easily? Then like a slap in the face I remember it hitting me exactly where it came from. He was watching me and since it was ok for me to act that way he thought it was ok for him to act that way.

Now of course he's slowly learning that it's not ok for him to act that way but i'm having to be very careful about getting my anger under control and not just telling him what do do but actually letting him see me doing the same thing. Pastor Connie also said that teenagers are simply kids who stop doing what you say and start doing what you do. So right now if he doesn't get his anger under control I can simply tell him to not act like that and expect him to mind me but once he's a teen that won't work anymore. I have to get it under control in myself before I can ever expect him to.

This parenting stuff is a lot of work!! :o) haha! I'm finding out that old song is so true "Oh be careful little eyes what you see" only now it's not just God who sees what I do, it's my kids. I'm responsible for how my 3 beautiful children turn out and that's so scary and challenging and yet so wonderful all at the same time. With God's help Colby and I can raise world changers and that's an awesome thing!! I love going to a church that teaches us and our kids how live day to day so that one day they can be those world changers! So often I feel like my job is worthless, I mean all I do is clean my house, refill juice cups, wipe noses, find toys and 100 other seemingly mundane things. But in reality what I do is so much more than that! I'm teaching my children how to live life day to day and keep God in the center. When they're sick i'm teaching them that Jesus is the healer by praying for them. When they're sad i'm teaching them that Jesus is our joy by turning on their praise dvd's and dancing with them. When they need comfort i'm teaching them that Jesus is their comfort by holding them and loving them. When they're afraid i'm teaching them that God is always with them and there's nothing to fear by reminding them how HUGE God is and how much He loves them.

Day in and day out it's mine and Colby job to make sure that when those kids are grown they are not only equipped to live life and face this world but to do that while relying on God to be their strength and guide them day by day. That's why it's so important for us to make sure that WE are living life relying on God day by day because if they don't see us doing it how can we ever expect them to do it?

I'm not exactly sure how I went from talking about the snow to all this but I guess that's just how my mind works sometimes! :o)

This week at couples...

Last night Colby and I went to our weekly couples group and it was awesome! Pastor David has been teaching on Proverbs but this week he took a break and gave some basic-and some not so basic-marriage training. I took notes like I always try to do but last night was so good and I ended up taking 5 pages of notes, so since it was so good and I wrote down so much I thought i'd blog about it for anyone else who might need to hear it as much as I did. Of course since this is the first time i've written out something like this I won't be able to say it as well as PD did but since I wrote down so much of what he said hopefully i'll be able to get the basic concept of what he taught across!

"The marriage relationship is a two way street"

There is so much teaching out there about marriage and so many views and perspectives both christian and non-christian but the most important thing to remember when listening to or reading anything about marriage is all teaching must come from and be biased on God's perspective of marriage. After all He is the one who created marriage so why would any other perspective even be considered? We hear all the time that "the 2 shall become one" and that's very true and something that has to be remembered, but the flip side of that is you are still two people with two desires, two needs and two dreams. You have to recognize that you are two individuals before you can act and move as one.

There are 9 different keys that we need to remember when thinking of and acting as two different people.

Communication: You are two people and both of you need communication.

This is so important-probably the most important-thing to remember and put into practice. Communication is absolutely vital in order to make you marriage work. Girls need communication, it really isn't done just to bug our husbands (although it can seem like that at times), it's something we actually need. But what a lot of guys don't understand is how much they need it too. Guys need communication because in that communication is the information needed to make it through another year. So often when women try to communicate we let our emotions get all revved up and we get super excited-whether in a good way or a negative-and once those emotions get all worked up it can be easy for men to shut down and tune out. It's so important for men to not do that! You have to learn to move past the emotions and listen to the information because once you do that you'll be able to get down to the root of the issue and really start to get somewhere. But women have to remember to give your husbands a break every now and then, you can't have a 2 hour conversation and expect your husband to stay interested the whole time with no breaks! If you want him to stay aware of the conversation throw a few bathroom breaks in every now and then. :o) Conversation goes both ways though, it should never be one sided-you both have to talk and you both have to listen! If you want your marriage zapped with power learn to listen to and understand each other!

Affection: You are two people and both of you need affection.

In marriage you are faced with so many challenges but the greatest challenge in your marriage is making your spouse feel loved. When you were dating you took the time to make them feel special, you studied them and learned what they liked and didn't like. You learned what their favorite food was, their favorite sport, their favorite flower and all those little things. But often times once a couple gets married they think that's it, they never need to learn anything else about their spouse but that's not the case. You have to study your spouse! There's a very good chance that your wife's favorite flower isn't a rose anymore but is now a daisy, or your husband used to like football but has now gotten into basketball. Take the time to learn those things and be interested in what your spouse is interested in. Find ways in your everyday life to make your spouse feel loved, valued and treasured. Figure out how they feel loved and make an effort to do those things for them whether it's giving them a hug after a long day or taking out the trash without giving them a hard time.

Intimacy: You are two people and you both need intimacy.

It's so important to remember that intimacy is not just about getting what you want and then moving on. Again, you have to study your spouse, find out how your spouse's body works. Doing that will greatly enhance your marriage. One thing that girls need to remember in dealing with this issue is that as much as we crave and need communication, guys crave and need sex. However that's also something that guys need to remember when thinking about communication. Ok enough about that uncomfortable subject and moving right along! :o)

Respect: You are two people and you both need respect.

The first thing to remember about respect is that your spouse doesn't have to earn your respect, you are to respect them simply because they are your spouse. If your having a hard time respecting them give the situation to God and let Him go to work. Respect is so important to men, they crave respect from their wives. If their wife doesn't respect them it's easy for them to feel like no one will respect them and that's a hard thing to deal with. In fact you can give your husband as much sex as he wants but if you don't respect him that won't even matter. Respect their work, whether in the home or outside the home. Men have to respect the work your wife does in the house, and women have to respect the work that men put in at their jobs.

Rest: You are two people and you both need rest.

Each of you need to make time for each other to rest. It's easy to think that your job is the harder of the two but that's not the issue, the fact is that whether you work in the home or outside the home you're working and you need to have time of rest. Also men, if your wife works outside the home understand that she needs help once she gets home. There is no reason that she should work a full time job and come home to cook dinner, clean up dinner, take care of the kids and clean the house all while you watch tv! Make sure you're not expecting more of your spouse than you are of yourself.

Recreation: You are two people and you both need recreation.

As kids you played and as teens you played, as adults remember to take time to play. Find something you like to do and have fun "playing". If you like fishing, make time to go fishing. If you like gardening, make time to garden. If you like golf, make time to golf. If you like scrap booking, make time to scrapbook. If you only ever work it's very easy to get burnt out, you have to take time to relax, unwind and just play.

Intellectual exercise: You are two people and you both need intellectual exercise.

When you graduate high school or college it's easy to think that you're done learning but the fact is you never need to stop learning. Once you're married you need to learn how to be married. Once you have kids you need to learn how to raise kids. During your carrier you'll need to learn new aspects of that carrier. Find books to read, people to listen to and things to study on a regular basis-just be sure you mentally exercise on a regular basis. Never stop learning, when you stop learning life is over.

Prayer: You are two people and you both need prayer.

Matthew 18:19-20 says "Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them." The most powerful thing you can do in your marriage is to pray together, the power of that prayer is phenomenal! Come together on a regular basis and physically pray together. If you have a pile of bills, come together and pray over them. If you're having trouble with your kids, come together and pray over them. If you have life decisions to make, come together and pray over them. You have to have a personal prayer life but it's also very important to have a prayer life together. Learn to believe together for you life, your dreams and your goals. You have to keep God the center of your marriage, make sure he is a full 1/3 partner and remember that that is what it will take to make your marriage work!


Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (The Message)

9-10 It's better to have a partner than go it alone.
Share the work, share the wealth.
And if one falls down, the other helps,
But if there's no one to help, tough!

11 Two in a bed warm each other.
Alone, you shiver all night.

12 By yourself you're unprotected.
With a friend you can face the worst.
Can you round up a third?
A three-stranded rope isn't easily snapped.

Crazy busy!

That's why it's been so long since my last post...things have just been crazy busy!! We've started doing regular school work with Konner and Lexi is even joining in and doing her own school, i've created and started having a regular schedule that we stick to most days, and on top of that i'm keeping up with 3 kids now! That alone makes me busy! haha!

Logyn is 2 months old today and just doing awesome! She's so much easier than Lexi was as a baby, not quite as easy as Konner was-then again he was pretty much dead to the world for the first 6 months! She's started smiling a lot which is so much fun and Konner and Lex will sit and talk to her forever trying to get her to smile at them. They still adore her which is so great, I was really worried about how they would handle her, especially Lexi, but they both love her. I'm having just a hard time believing it's already been 2 months, it so feels more like 2 weeks, the time is just flying by!

Colby's job is still going good, they're starting senior season-senior's in high school not elderly senior ;o)-so he's busy with that. Senior's are his specialty so he usually stays pretty busy during this time. I'm so glad he has a job that he loves, it has made such a difference for him and for us! He's been doing the digital artist job for the last few months-I guess all that playing around on photoshop he used to do actually paid off. But they did just hire someone else for that so he can go back to just being a photographer there which is nice, now he won't have to stay as late as often.

Things at church are going great! We just finished studying Faith vs Fear these last few weeks and so much has changed for me! I didn't even realize how much i'm affecting things just by being afraid of so much! I always joke around with Colby that i'm scared of everything but honestly it's not a joke, i'm afraid of so much and this teaching has shown me how much that fear is affecting my life! Now i'm working really hard on being a person of faith and not of fear, it's taking a lot of effort because i'm having to retrain my speech and speak my faith and not my fear. I love our church because i'm always learning new things like this, stuff that I know in my head but i'm learning how to apply them in my life. It's so great that i've been a christian for so many years but i'm still able to learn new things so often and find new ways to grow in Christ.

I think that's the awesome thing about christianity, i'll never have it all figured out. To some people that might be overwhelming or discouraging but for me I actually find it comforting. I think it's comforting because I don't ever have to feel bad that I don't know enough or that i'm not learning fast enough. It's awesome knowing that God is so personal that He teaches me on my level and comes to where i'm at and works with me on my flaws without me having to try to keep up with where anyone else is at. I've spent so much time trying to get things just right and be who other's thought I should be whether it was in my christian walk or just as a woman and i'm coming to realize that it doesn't matter where people think I should be, what matters is that I work on getting where God wants me to be. Now granted i'm still trying to get there and i'm still trying to figure out exactly what i'm supposed to be doing but God is so patient with me and I love knowing that.

I'm not sure exactly how I got off on all that, once I get going my mind just goes in a 100 different directions! I guess that's ok, it can get kinda boring if all I ever talk about are the kids!! :o)

Things are changing...

Gosh it's been almost a month since I last blogged, i'm so bad at this! haha! Things have been crazy busy around here and we're finally starting to get into something of a routine but it's super hard sometimes. Logyn is doing awesome though and the kids are doing great with her which makes things so much easier. She's now 5 weeks old and i'm really having a hard time figuring out where the last 5 weeks have gone. It's gone by so fast and yet at the same time it feels like she's been here forever so it's kind mixed.

I've been kinda surprised at how easy it's been going from 2 to 3, not that it's been super easy by any means, it's just gone better that I was planning...of course I have a tendency to plan for the worst and worry about things. :o) The hardest thing so far has been keeping up with everything and still making time for Konner and Lexi, I really slacked off with my one on one time with them and especially Konner. But I really started working on making sure I set that time aside with him and things have changed a lot.

The last few weeks at church, Pastor David has been teaching on "Praise in the house" and teaching how to praise effectively, and also why we praise, and the benefits of praise. So about a week ago we got the kids a Hillsongs Kids dvd and watched it the next morning first thing. I could not believe the difference in our house that day!!! I told Colby that night that we hadn't had such a good day in weeks and I was seriously shocked! So we have been trying to start our day off with praise music and just set the atmosphere for the day early on and the changes have just been awesome. Last week was so much better than the weeks before, I was able to discipline better, I had more patience with the kids, I was able to get more done but yet still found time to spend with the kids as well as finally start reading my Bible every day. I seriously could not believe how different the week was just by changing that one thing, of course the fact that I read my Bible first thing every morning i'm sure played a huge part in it too. I guess when you start the day off putting God first He helps you align you priorities better...funny how that works! :o)

We are super busy this week though, Konner's birthday is next Sunday so we are having his party this Thursday night. He's so excited that he's finally getting his Batman party...he's been asking for it since Lexi's birthday back in November! We're planning on getting him his first bike and I can't wait for him to see it! Gosh it's so hard for me to believe he's gonna be 4! It does not seem like that much time has gone by since he was born. I remember so well the day he was born, as well as his first birthday and so many other "firsts". But when I remember all of his "firsts" I can't help but think of the poem that Karen Kingsbury wrote called "Let me hold you longer". She talks about the "firsts" but focuses on the "lasts" and as Konner's growing up and changing from my baby into a little boy i'm trying to remember to watch for those "lasts" because those will be just as precious to me as his "firsts". So here's the poem if you've never read it and if you have kids you might want to have a tissue ready! :o)

Let Me Hold You Longer

Long ago you came to me,
a miracle of firsts,
First smiles and teeth and baby steps,
a sunbeam on the burst.

But one day you will move away
and leave to me your past
And I will be left thinking of
a lifetime of your lasts…

The last time that I held a bottle
to your baby lips
The last time that I lifted you
and held you on my hip.

The last night when you woke up crying,
needing to be walked,
When last you crawled up with your blanket,
wanting to be rocked.

The last time when you ran to me,
still small enough to hold.
The last time that you said you’d marry
me when you grew old.

Precious, simple moments and
bright flashes from your past-
Would I have held on longer if
I’d known they were your last?

Our last adventure to the park,
your final midday nap,
The last time when you wore your favorite
faded baseball cap.

Your last few hours of kindergarten,
those last few days of first grade,
Your last at bat in Little League,
last colored picture made.

I never said good-bye to all
your yesterdays long passed.
So what about tomorrow-
will I recognize your lasts?

The last time that you catch a frog
in that old backyard pond.
The last time that you run barefoot
across our fresh-cut lawn.

Silly, scattered images
will represent your past.
I keep on taking pictures,
never quite sure of your lasts…

The last time that I comb your hair
or stop a pillow fight.
The last time that I pray with you
and tuck you in at night.

The last time when we cuddle
with a book, just me and you
The last time you jump in our bed
and sleep between us two.

The last piano lesson,
last vacation to the lake.
Your last few weeks of middle school,
last soccer goal you make.

I look ahead and dream of days
that haven’t come to pass.
But as I do, I sometimes miss
today’s sweet, precious lasts…

The last time that I help you with
a math or spelling test.
The last time when I shout that yes,
your room is still a mess.

The last time that you need me for
a ride from here to there.
The last time that you spend the night
with your old tattered bear.

My life keeps moving faster,
stealing precious days that pass,
I want to hold on longer-
want to recognize your lasts…

The last time that you need my help
with details of a dance.
The last time that you ask me for
advice about romance.

The last time that you talk to me
about your hopes and dreams.
The last time that you wear a jersey
for your high school team.

I’ve watched you grow and barely noticed
seasons as they pass.
If I could freeze the hands of time,
I’d hold on to your lasts.

For come some bright fall morning,
you’ll be going far away.
College life will beckon
in a brilliant sort of way.

One last hug, one last good-bye,
one quick and hurried kiss.
One last time to understand
just how much you’ll be missed.

I’ll watch you leave and think how fast
our time together passed.
Let me hold on longer, God,
to every precious last.

Logyn Audrey...

Last Monday at 11:06am Colby and I welcomed our beautiful little girl into this world. She's now been here for 1 week and I can't imagine our family without her! Gosh how to even begin....

Last Sunday I stayed home from church because it was my due date and I was just feeling tired and kinda run down. I ended up having contractions off and on all day but that really wasn't a big deal because i'd been having contractions for weeks. So we went all day with nothing happening and I was honestly a little disappointed, I was really ready to meet the little person that had been living inside me and also find out if we were having a boy or girl. Anyways that night after we put the kids to bed I got the urge to scrub my living room carpet...so at 9:30 at night I was on my hands and knees with a bucket of cleaner scrubbing my floor! :o) Nothing like the pregnancy urges! haha!

So finally Colby and I went to bed around 10:30ish and I figured i'd have another long day ahead of me. Well at 3:30am I woke up with a contraction, again I didn't think much of it because i'd been having them for weeks so I just tried to go back to sleep. Then 9 minuets later I had another one...and 9 minuets after that I had another one. SO finally I got out of bed and on the computer and then I started having a contraction every 7 minuets. After about 6-7 contractions I woke Colby up and told him that we just might be about to have this baby!! Then he suggested that I get up and walk around and see if that didn't increase my contractions...he was right! As soon as I got up my contractions went from 7 minuets apart to 4 minuets apart and then to 2 minuets apart! So after about 30 minuets of that I called my mom and asked her to come stay with the kids because we had to go to the hospital!

Well she got to our house about 6:30ish and Colby and I finally got out of the house about 7:00. I was so worried that we were going to get to the hospital and they were going to tell us that it was just a false alarm and send us home. But thankfully that wasn't the case, when I got there I was dilated to a 5! I was so excited that it was finally time! So I called my friend Chelsea, we had decided that she was going to be in the room with us when we had the baby, and we called our family and let them know that we were actually going to have this baby.

Chelsea got to the hospital about 9:00 and her and Colby and I just kinda hung out in the room for awhile. My contractions were still 2-4 minuets apart and staying pretty steady so in between contractions we would all just talk and laugh and pretty much just hang out. :o) Then about 10:30 I asked the nurse to come check me because I was starting to feel pressure-which is a huge sign that things are moving along-so she did and I was dilated to an 8! So she left to go call my doctor, because he was still at his office, and to start getting everything ready. Well about 15 minuets later my contractions got STRONG and I started needing to push. Colby had Chelsea page the nurse and she came in and instantly called for some help because I was having this baby! So all these nurses came rushing in and a doctor who's name I still don't know and they started telling me to not push! YEAH RIGHT! :o) For about 15-20 minuets I think, I pushed and screamed-it hurt really bad!-and then finally at 11:06 Logyn was born! She was very healthy and super chunky and started crying right away.

I'm still amazed that it's all over honestly! I thought and prayed and planned for that moment for months and suddenly it was there and now it's gone. I was so blessed because I was actually able to go drug free, I had prayed about that and planned for that for a long time but honestly didn't think i'd be able to do it when it came right down to it. But God was awesome and helped me through it. Plus having Colby and Chelsea in there was a HUGE help! I've told him several times that I couldn't have done it without them in there talking me through it and encouraging me through each contraction. All in all the whole experience was amazing and I really can't imagine it going better.

Now we've all been home for almost a week and we're starting to get into a routine-slowly but surly!! The kids adore Logyn and couldn't be better with her, although Konner does love to pinch her cheeks which I guess I can't blame him...they are super chunky!! Anyways I just wanted to take a minuet and share my 3rd and final birthing experience because it was a pretty amazing thing!

11 Days!!!

Well it looks like we're in the final stretch of this pregnancy, I only have 11 days till my due date!! I so can't believe it's already here and we're actually about to meet this little one. I don't know why but it really feels like I should have another couple months before i'm due. I think it might be because the first half of my pregnancy I didn't feel pregnant at all, in fact until I started feeling the baby move I worried that I wasn't really pregnant. I kept getting scared when we'd go to my doctor's apt that there wouldn't end up being a heartbeat...I had no real reason for my fear-then again that's the case with a lot of fear-but it was there just the same. Then once I was able to start feeling movement that was the only pregnancy "feeling" I had really. Everyone would ask how I was feeling and if I was doing ok and i'd kinda laughingly say "Yeah I feel great, I don't hardly even feel pregnant." So i'm guessing that's why it doesn't feel like it should be over yet.

With both Konner and Lexi I felt pregnant very early on, especially with Konner. I guess since he was my first I was able to pick up on the changes I was going through more. I actually found out with him when I was only 3 weeks! It did make for a long pregnancy though...by the time it was over I felt like i'd been pregnant for forever!! haha! So I am glad that this one hasn't been like that, that's been very nice.

Konner is SOO ready for the baby to get here though, poor guy he does feel like i've been pregnant forever. He's been asking about baby Logan for months and we kept saying that a little while after Christmas the baby would be here but now Christmas has been over and the baby's still not here! He's going a little crazy with the whole waiting thing I think. :o)

I starting nesting REALLY bad this last Friday so that was fun. Colby was going out of town so I needed to iron his clothes but I couldn't find the starch...so when I went to look in the closet with the ironing board I got this sudden burst of energy and ended up cleaning out the whole closet-I did find the starch though! Then I moved on to the other hall closet, then cleaned out the kids room-got rid of 2 big trash bags of toys!! They now each have 1 toy box and then a few other things that don't go in their toy boxes. I did all this plus my normal house work of 2 loads of laundry, vacuuming, sweeping and mopping, plus other odds and ends throughout the day all on Friday. Then on Saturday Colby and I deep cleaned our room, I cleaned out my closet-got rid of a huge bag of clothes and even a bag of shoes! Things had gotten super crazy in our room so it needing cleaning pretty bad, I don't know why our room is always the last one to get my attention. Plus we got everything all set up for the baby since he/she'll be in our room for awhile, nothing like waiting till the last minuet to get these things done!!

So now my house has had a good deep cleaning and it feels wonderful! I think I worked harder those 2 days than i've worked in a long time. I still have no idea where all the energy came from but it did give Colby a good laugh...and my mom, and my sister! haha! At least i'm good for a laugh as well as getting things cleaned! :o)It's awesome though, yesterday I did a total of maybe an hours worth of cleaning all through out the day and yet things still looked great! I love having the house that clean. I'm trying to keep things so that once the baby comes it won't be hard to keep things in order and so far I think i've gotten it pretty well covered. We got rid of so much clutter-it's amazing how much junk you can gather if you let yourself!!

Colby left on Sunday for his photography conference and thank goodness he comes home tonight!!! It's crazy how much the kids and I depend on him for our sanity!! haha! I think what i've missed the most since he's been gone has been our evenings. We always put the kids to bed around 9 and then we stay up till 10 or 11ish just talking or watching tv and just having our time together. The kids of course are missing him like crazy too! They haven't seen him since Saturday night, we had them stay with some friends since we had to be at the airport at 6ish on Sunday. They would not have been pleasant that early in the morning!!! haha!

Of course we made the mistake of telling Konner that baby Logan would come soon after daddy got home, so now he thinks that as soon as daddy gets home it's time for baby Logan to come! :o) Poor guy is never going to believe anything we say again!! haha! I'm just so thankful that the baby hasn't come while Colby was gone, that was something that we've been praying about since he signed up for this conference back in October!

I do see my doctor tomorrow so we'll see if i'm getting close to actually having this baby sometime soon. Last week i'd started dilating so with all my cleaning i'm curious to know if i've gotten any further. Most likely this little one will stay nice and snug for awhile but i'm hoping not too long...i'm getting just as anxious as Konner!! :o)

Ok now i've rambled on and on and I still have work to do around here so I guess i'd better stop for now. I don't know if i'll have a chance to blog again before the baby comes. I guess we'll just have to see how long that'll be...so my next one may be telling all about meeting this little one!!! :o)