What a twosome

We had been wondering when Kylie would ask to hold Peyton for the first time. She really had never mentioned it...until today. She settled for holding her on her lap b/c even she quickly decided little Peyton was a bit heavier than her baby dolls!

Are we in trouble or what :)?! Fast forward to age 16- ay ay ay!

Yummy Crackers!

Gosh I'm happy to have something I can really sink my teeth into- wait I don't have any teeth yet?!

Royal Blue vs Red

This morning was game 1 of Kylie's summer t-ball league. Go Royal Blue team! She played third base, was 3-3 hitting and had some great plays in the field too :).

I'll let the pictures speak for themselves but I must say- these little 4 year old sluggers were actually pretty good - and super cute of course too!

PS- That's Kylie in the pink pants. I had to make her look at least A LITTLE girly out there!

A Habit I am trying to Change

Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matter least - Johann Goethe

I keep this in mind every time I don't feel like doing something, but think about what I would rather be doing. Is that something the thing that matters the most or least? Things suddenly become clear.

Change for the better

I think this week has been the longest dry run of our blog since I started it in March! This means I've been either extremely busy or without having happenings or photos of the little ones to share, I'm just pretty boring on my own anymore :)!

I've been travelling for business this week in Wisconsin. One more day of meetings here in Milwaukee and then I can hit the road back home. Kylie has spent the week having a blast at Grandma and Papa's house. Daddy is very busy at work but has been able to have some quality time with Peyton and Spike :) in the evenings. One added bonus for him is that neither of them have the ability to change the channel on him when he is trying to watch a Cubs game!

It's funny how everyone says kids change your life forever (and then add, "for the better of course :)"). But it's so true. Since I've been travelling more lately than I have in some time, I've realized just how much of a change for a better there's been since little Peyton and Kylie came into my world.

Here are the top 5 things from this week that show I've definitely been "mommified":

1) Even though I can watch whatever I want on tv, nothing really looks that great to actually just sit and watch (plus I don't really know what's going on in them so it's more confusion than enjoyment!)

2) Even though I can eat whenever and wherever I want to ALONE, I still find myself eating whatever and in record time!

3) Even though I can sleep more than I have in months, I've gone to bed much later and am still wide awake by 6am!

4) I was shopping last night and didn't even look twice at a store for me but was looking at things for Kylie and Peyton until they were locking the doors (bit of "useless" information for you: stores close at 7pm in WI?!?!)

and 5)... I can't wait to hear Kylie say "mommy" over and over and over again :)!

I love you so much little ones and can't wait to see you tonight! ...And of course I'll come bearing gifts :)!

Sadhya's 4th Birthday

Today was Sadhya's birthday party at the Dupage County Children's Museum. Kylie had been waiting and waiting for this morning ever since she received the invitation! To back up a bit, Sadhya was Kylie's best friend at the school she was at prior to her current school. The mommies keep in touch via email and one day we'll be able to make a play date and keep it. They greeted each other with big hugs and were so excited to be back together again! It was also fun for Kylie to see some of her other old friends again like Jimmy, Maya and Natalia.

Here are some pictures of the birthday party. Peyton was a little party animal too! Next post will be of our time visiting the actual exhibits upstairs in the museum...

Always an adventure!

Today Peyton had her 6 month Dr.'s visit. Kylie came to the appointment as well for a follow up on her allergy diagnosis and ER visit earlier in the week. That added an interesting dynamic to a usually pretty routine visit!

Both girls got a pretty clean bill of health which was great news. Peyton is down to 2 breathing treatments vs 3 for a few more days and Kylie shouldn't need anymore for now unless things flare up again. And as far as Kylie's mysterious virus goes, who knows. It seems to have run its' course.

Peyton got an A+ as far as all of the developmental milestones for 6 months old- babbling, sitting up, reaching for things, transferring things from one hand to the other... She also escaped without her shots due to the steroid medications she is on and the low grade fever she's had- but not for long. Unfortunately we have to go back for them next week :(.

Kylie flung into the office singing "Life is a Highway" which she learned from the Cars movie she can't get enough of these days. It's so cute the way she belts it out and says "I'm gonna ride it all day long" instead of "all night long" (and she REALLY anunciates the "LLLLONG")! Peyton was just something else too. She was in great spirits and pulled out all her tricks. The photo gives you an idea of why she had all of the nurses wrapped around her finger :)!

Peyton's 6 month stats

Height: 27 3/4" (Still off the charts! 26 3/4" at 4 months.)

Weight: 16 lbs 3.5 ozs (50th percentile. 14 lbs 6 ozs at 4 months.)

Head: 17" (16 1/4" at 4 months)

Snack Attack

Peyton can now partake in "snacktime" during the day at school! Mommy gave the green light to her teachers this week so she no longer has to sit at the table longing for her next door neighbor's snacks. She has quite a list of things she can enjoy eating now at only 6 months old! Today she had some clubhouse crackers with her friends. Imagine what a mushy mess that was :)! Soon she will be able to have even more delicacies like goldfish and cheerios...yum yum!

Kylie is especially excited as her world seems to revolve around "snacks" these days. But at least Peyton can't ask us for a snack yet!

Photos are of Peyton enjoying a scrumptious veggie wheel tonight when we got home!

Queen for a morning

After the long week we've had, it was nice to receive the "royal treatment" from Kylie this morning.

Kylie had finished her breakfast and was dressed for school but I was running late getting myself ready. Instead of watching tv or playing, she just wanted to hang out with me while I was finishing up. All of a sudden she heads into our bedroom and slowly walks around the corner back into the bathroom saying "Your earrings your majesty" and bowing while she passed me my earrings I had put on the dresser. She did the same with my makeup, hairspray and shoes! I tried to play along the best I could without cracking a smile! Kids are the best.

I can't help but to think that Kylie will be on some sort of stage someday- be it the big screen, small screen or theatre, she was born to be an actress! It's really amazing to watch how creatively her little mind works. Who knows, she and Peyton could be the next Shane and David (for those of you familiar with "The Upside Down Show" on Noggin)!

Kylie's "Burn"

I thought after yesterday's post I could maybe write about how nice it is to hear the birds chirping outside again or share some useless but fun fact I read about today, but not the case. Poor Kylie. Here's the latest...

After wrapping up the night with the breathing treatments for Kylie and Peyton and then the rest of the bedtime ritual, everything seemed pretty quiet around here - too quiet. I then went to go to bed with Kylie and she had quite a bad cough most of the night. I slept with one eye open as I noticed her teeth were chattering - the chills. I took her temp around 1am to find it was only 97. Then at 3am things took a turn for the worse. Kylie woke up again and said she couldn't sleep because of her "burn". I grabbed the thermometer and her temp = 104! Off to the ER we went b/c Kylie had never had a fever that high and that coupled with all of the allergy medication we had given her, I didn't know what could be happening.

She was diagnosed with a virus that could last up to 7-10 days. Nothing too too serious - just lots of rest, fluids and tylenol. We'll play it by ear but hopefully by tomorrow she'll be more back to the old Kylie who never sits still and is always saying or doing something to make us laugh! We miss her!!!

Photo 1: Kylie in the exam room at the ER early this morning

Photo 2: Kylie back home from the ER with the breakfast I let her choose- donuts, cocoa puffs and gatorade?!

Photo 3: Kylie set up for the Bambi movie party at 2pm today (so Mommy could get through at least one meeting via cellphone!)

One of the "joys" of springtime

Allergies.

Yuck.

I think I'd mentioned that the past week has been rough with Peyton and we thought the runny nose, awful cough, fever, no sleeping, etc...were just the miserable symptoms of teething. Well, as today was day 7 of Peyton being less than herself to say the least and Mommy & Daddy being at wits end with what else we could do to try to make her feel better not knowing what exactly was wrong, we were off to the doctor this morning. The 3 of us. That's right, Kylie woke up with a low grade fever and over the weekend had practically lost her voice and developed quite a cough herself :(.

Long story short, both girls were diagnosed with a bad case of seasonal allergies :(. Now we can add 3 10 minute breathing treatments a day for each and 1 prescription each to our To Do list for the next week. Then on Friday we head back to the Dr. to see if those things worked. Hopefully so, b/c if not we may be down the road of inhalers, etc for Kylie.

I'm going to wrap this up and let the pictures speak for themselves. The breathing treatments break your heart, especially poor little Peyton. It was a rough day for all. Time to get the little patients tucked into bed...

T-ball time

Kylie is playing t-ball this summer in the Stonebridge Sandlot league in our neighborhood.

Go Royal Blue team!

First shots are from a few months ago when Daddy and Kylie were having a great time playing ball at the park.

Following photos are of Kylie and Daddy in their Cubbie attire before they set off to the park yesterday morning for the first day of t-ball!

Fun with flowers

Today as we were manning the garage sale, our neighbor Bud set to work on planting the flowers along our front entryway. It's turning into an annual event that Bud plants these for us and it's a win win situation. He loves gardening and we stink at it! Kylie had a lot of fun helping him this year. I'm sure they will brighten up our home as they continue to grow and bloom along the front of our house.

Great job Bud and Kylie!

Papa and "2" of his "6" grandkids

A few extra bucks

Today was our annual neighborhood garage sale. Got rid of some stuff but not as much as we would've liked to. Oh well, it was a beautiful day out and we made it through it! The kids had fun playing together amongst each other's houses and the mommies and daddies could finally catch up a bit after the long winter months!

Thanks to Grandma B. & Papa for helping watch the little ones and for lunch!

Peyton is 6 months old!

Happy Birthday Peyton!

It's so hard to believe that today half a year has already passed since her arrival last November!

--Blurry photo (taken with my phone) is from last weekend at Grandma and Papa's house when Kylie decided to hang out with Peyton in the playpen. But you can see how great Peyton already sits up on her own and can play (more like chew!) with any toys you set in front of her!

Pancakes With Syrup

So before I get on with this cute post compliments of Kylie this morning, a little bit of background for you. Kylie dips everything in ketchup these days. Things like bread, apple slices, grapes and PANCAKES. Except for this morning. All of a sudden after months of dipping her pancakes in ketchup, Kylie wanted syrup! Of course, because Daddy has our syrup in his fridge at work. Trying to get himself out of the Kylie meltdown situation, Daddy proceeded to tell her that we needed to get dressed, drive to Grandma B.'s house and go to Sally's (their neighbor) maple tree and how the whole maple syrup process works!

Kylie immediately grabbed my blackberry and left a message on Grandma B.'s cell explaining what Daddy had told her and what she needed. So you have some more things to add to your suitcase this weekend Grandma B. - leaves and sap from Sally's maple tree! Mommy mental note: pick up syrup on the way home tonight!

Long day, longer night?

Little Peyton was home sick today. She could've probably gone to school but I felt bad enough seeing her at the end of the day yesterday, curled up on her teacher with her little cheeks flushed. We think the culprit is teething b/c she was in pretty good spirits and had only a low grade fever today.

Mommy was home with her and unfortunately it's my "night shift" tonight too. Can't complain too much though since Daddy has taken it the past 2 nights and got less sleep in 2 nights than I probably got last night! But it's gonna be a long one (first picture taken this afternoon, second picture taken a few minutes ago) - looks real tired doesn't she :)?!

See?!?!?!

I tend to be known as a bit over the top when it comes to dirt, germs, etc. I should probably dial it down a notch or two but it makes it so hard when I continue to read things like this! Gross!!!

http://health.msn.com/health-topics/slideshow.aspx?cp-documentid=100202755&imageindex=3

For all mommies

In honor of Mother's Day yesterday- a long read but worth it!

This is for the mothers who have sat up all night with sick toddlers in their arms, wiping up puke laced with Oscar Mayer wieners and cherry Kool-Aid saying, "It's okay honey, Mommy's here".
Who have sat in rocking chairs for hours on end soothing crying babies who can't be comforted.

This is for all the mothers who show up at work with spit-up in their hair and milk stains on their blouses and diapers in their purse.
For all the mothers who run carpools and make cookies and sew Halloween costumes. And all the mothers who don't.

This is for the mothers who gave birth to babies they'll never see. And the mothers who took those babies and gave them homes.

This is for the mothers whose priceless art collections are hanging on their refrigerator doors.
And for all the mothers who froze their buns on metal bleachers at football , hockey or soccer games instead of watching from the warmth of their cars, so that when their kids asked, "Did you see me, Mom?" they could say, "Of course, I wouldn't have missed it for the world," and mean it.

This is for all the mothers who yell at their kids in the grocery store and swat them in despair when they stomp their feet and scream for ice cream before dinner. And for all the mothers who count to ten instead, but realize how child abuse happens.

This is for all the mothers who sat down with their children and explained all about making babies. And for all the (grand) mothers who wanted to, but just couldn't find the words.

This is for all the mothers who go hungry, so their children can eat.
For all the mothers who read "Goodnight, Moon" twice a night for a year. And then read it again. "Just one more time."

This is for all the mothers who taught their children to tie their shoelaces before they started school. And for all the mothers who opted for Velcro instead. This is for all the mothers who teach their sons to cook and their daughters to sink a jump shot.

This is for every mother whose head turns automatically when a little voice calls "Mom?" in a crowd, even though they know their own offspring are at home -- or even away at college.

This is for all the mothers who sent their kids to school with stomach aches, assuring them they'd be just FINE once they got there, only to get calls from the school nurse an hour later asking them to please pick them up. Right away.

This is for mothers whose children have gone astray, who can't find the words to reach them.
For all the mothers who bite their lips until they bleed when their 14 year-olds dye their hair green.
For all the mothers of the victims of recent school shootings, and the mothers of those who did the shooting.
For the mothers of the survivors, and the mothers who sat in front of their TVs in horror, hugging their child who just came home from school, safely. This is for all the mothers who taught their children to be peaceful, and now pray they come home safely from a war.

What makes a good Mother anyway? Is it patience? Compassion? Broad hips? The ability to nurse a baby, cook dinner, and sew a button on a shirt, all at the same time? Or is it in her heart? Is it the ache you feel when you watch your son or daughter disappear down the street, walking to school alone for the very first time? The jolt that takes you from sleep to dread, from bed to crib at 2 A.M. to put your hand on the back of a sleeping baby? The panic, years later, that comes again at 2 A.M. when you just want to hear their key in the door and know they are safe again in your home? Or the need to flee from wherever you are and hug your child when you hear news of a fire, a car accident, a child dying?

The emotions of motherhood are universal and so our thoughts are for young mothers stumbling through diaper changes and sleep deprivation ... And mature mothers learning to let go.
For working mothers and stay-at-home mothers. Single mothers and married mothers.
Mothers with money, mothers without. This is for you all. For all of us.

Hang in there. In the end we can only do the best we can. Tell them every day that we love them. And pray.

Happy Mother's Day!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day today!

Here are some pictures from our day. We were in Michigan City for the weekend and had a great time spending time with everyone. Pete's cousin Sven from Germany was even there as he and Kersten are in the states making some stops in Chicago, Michigan City and Vegas. We had a great time catching up over several "biers" last night (since it had been 7 years since seeing each other!)

Special thanks to Daddy, Kylie, Peyton, Grandma B., Papa, Great Grandma B. , Oma and John, for such a nice weekend together.

Being a Mommy has to be the best and most satisfying thing in the world - but maybe it's because I have the sweetest little girls in the world!

Happy Birthday Uncle Mark!

We hope you have a great day! How many does this make? Ha ha ha ha ha!!!!!

Baby Beethovens

#1 (Kylie, 7 months) & #2 (Peyton, 6 months)

Down she goes!

Last night we brought Peyton down a level in her pack n play after seeing she was trying to pull herself up on the sides and also banging her forehead into the top bar!

Here are some of the classic first shots all parents have of her peeking through the netting as well as standing up!

Until tomorrow!

I'm off to KC today and will be back late tomorrow night. Hopefully it will be a worthwhile meeting and smooth sailing as far as my flights, etc!

Good luck Daddy! I'm sure everything will be fine! You will have a great time with your biggest (but smallest) fans and there's always Spike for a bit of testosterone if you are feeling buried in Barbies or can't bear the Strawberry Shortcake song one more time :)! Although the way Spike has been behaving lately I have a feeling he will be very cozy in "Spike's Place" for the next few evenings!

I love you and will miss you! Wish me luck in finding a Southwest airplane and some chocolate beans/balls?!?! for Miss Kylie!

XOXOXOXOXOXO