Pictures from Auntie Kendall

Thankfully we were able to get some photo's from Auntie Kendall of the new baby. Talk about the proud mom and dad! I hope to get some shots of my own soon, and when I do, you can bet I'll add them. Who says you can't brag about nephews as much as your own?

P.S. He already outweighs Kaleigh!!

A New Cousin/Nephew

Today we welcomed baby Braeden Robert Heins into the family. He joined us after a grueling overnight labor, hours of unsuccessful pushing, and finally a c-section. He was determined to make his appearance his own way, and he won!! He weighs in at 7lb 4 oz and is roughly 21" long. We didn't get an exact time of arrival yet. Mom and dad are both doing great, although they are understandably exhausted. Braeden has brown hair and his mommy's big eyes. We are so lucky to have him in our family, and can't wait to get to know him better. I'll put some pictures on when I get them. It was such a long day, that when I finally got to meet him I didn't have my camera on me!! We plan to go to the hospital as a family and visit tomorrow or the next day. Congratulations Dan and Sarah, you'll be wonderful parents!!

Ryan and Daddy's turn

After Jake came down and I caught him, it was Ryan and Daddy's turn to head down the hill. You can see from the video the size of the hill. We only took 4 runs up and down due to the length of time it took to get the boys back up to the top. It was so much fun though!

Sledding with both boys

We took both boys sledding down by Bryce and Sharon's house. It was a lot of fun, but a little scary since I haven't been sledding in like 15 years!! We decided it would be okay for Joel to send Jake down and me to catch him (it wasn't very far). He LOVED it! He was grinning from ear to ear from the moment he got into the sled til we were finished. I can't even imagine what it will be like taking them next year!!!

A way around the system......

I asked Joel to take a shot of "the girls" snuggling in the chair last night. Afterward, I realized you couldn't see anything on Kaleigh. It led me to thinking I could share the picture, so you could see what a peanut she really is,(keep in mind she's 3 1/2 months old) without breaking any rules!!

Some Random Thoughts

We had to find another nursing agency for baby Kaleigh. They kept dragging their feet, and actually delayed us coverage another 30 days or more!! It's such a disappointment to me because I've always had such good things to say about them. So we're on to another one. They seem to be very diligent in trying to help, but due to the previous agency's slow actions, they aren't able to speed things along any faster. It's very frustrating going through this process. I know some of the "behind the scenes" stuff seeing as I've been in this field for almost 4 years, and I'm already overwhelmed, I can't imagine what a lay person must feel like. Well, enough on that subject or I'll just get worked up.

Ryan is starting to reach the terrible twos. I think more than anything he just needs to get outside to play and burn off all his extra energy. It's really hard to do that with the little ones, so in the meantime we've been trying to do as many play dates as possible and take him with on any "one on one" errands if possible. His pre-school starts up again in two weeks, and that will be really nice. It's two days a week for and hour and a half, and he gets to play with all his friends, and the toys at the school. It's a lot of fun for him. Jake goes to the school childcare so I can be in class with Ryan. He loves it and the gals ogle over his hair all the time!

Jake is starting to let go of things on his own and try to balance. Before he would only do it if we let go of him in the middle of the room. He's also discovered the push toys make it easy for him to walk! He does things at his own pace that's for sure.

We still don't have our washing machine fixed. It's been 8 weeks since the repair guy came out. First he thought it was the computer, and after that finally came in-4 weeks later, he discovered it was actually a faulty motor. So he ordered that, and just when I finally thought I was going to get my washer back, he says "they sent the wrong motor" GRRRR! So now it's going to be another weekend of hauling 8+ loads of laundry to my in-laws to wash. They've been a great help, and it's nice to see them every weekend, but I'll be glad when I can wash clothes at home again.

On a positive note, I got all my Christmas decorations down and got everything dusted and put away, so that's a huge burden off my list! Now it's time to plan a birthday party for Jake! Hard to believe he's almost one.

Happy New Year!

We would like to wish everyone a Happy New Year! May it be filled with happy days, prosperous times and new memories to be cherished. We spent the evening at our friends Katie and Adam's house. They are the ones who have really helped us get started and find the right path toward foster parenting. They are great friends and good examples. Another nurse friend and her family were there so that made the grand total of children under the age of 3....wait for it....8!!! It wasn't as chaotic as you would think, it was a lot of fun (and picking up after they went to bed). At one point we had all 8 sitting on the couch and got a ton of pictures. Most in various stages of one child or another trying to get off the couch, poking another kid, or making some goofy face. After the kids all went to bed we popped the champagne and played some board games. It was fun, but it got even more fun when the gals figured out how to "help" each other win and the guys were never the wiser!! I couldn't hardly believe it when it was 2am and we were just loading up the car to head home. I can't remember the last time I was voluntarily up that late! Thankfully we were all able to catch some good naps today, and should get back to our normal life tomorrow. Jake's still only taken two steps at a time, and is preferring to crawl....(he must have some stubborn Arbuckle in him) I guess he's going to tell us when he's ready.