Wedding Pictures #2

4/5/2011 UPDATE :: KARA'S 10 MONTHS OLD AND CRAWLING!!!!!!!!!

Karalena started crawling just days before she was 10 months old, but would only go forward one little "step". But on April 5th at exactly 10 months old, she took off and will go anywhere now! Watch out Sissy! Here she comes and she's ready to follow you!!

Kara also has 2 bottom front teeth, but is teething again, so I expect the new ones to break through soon. She is also talking up a storm now and says both "No" and "Yes" which surprised Bhad and I when she first said it. Kacey refused to say yes until she was 25 months old (yep, just a month ago!!). LOL

I have truly enjoyed being home with my girls the last 2 1/2 months while I've been unemployed, but it's time to go back to work now and I will miss my time with them dearly. It's been a blessing to help both of them grow and develop and take such leaps and bounds. I have the best girls ever!!! Mommy & Daddy loves you!!!!!!!!!!

KACEY ELIZABETH IS WALKING!!!!!

5/16/2010 Kacey has more teeth coming in... right now she has her 4 front teeth on both the top and bottom, and now has some upper rear teeth coming in. I'm not sure if they're molars, but they are a few back from the front. She is just talking up a storm and starting to repeat what you say. Her vocabulary is very big for her age range, as she can say so many things and actually understand her!! She is just so smart and learning everyday! She loves to DANCE anytime she hears music, and her personality just blossoms everyday. She's learning that she can 'test' us as well, and tries to do everything we tell her not to do! The temper tantrums have started too!! ;-) She hates to hear "NO!"... have the terrible 2's started already???

4/26/2010 Kacey is 15 months old and is 32 inches tall and weighs 24 lbs 5 oz. She had to go for her shots today and was such a good girl! I'm so proud of our little sweet pea!

4/12/2010 Kacey started walking on her own tonight!!! Daddy and I were sitting on the couches and she just decided to get up and start making laps around the coffee table and to the kitchen! She was so cute, so precious!! Our baby is getting so big!

BABY/PREGNANCY UPDATES!!!

5/14/2010 - 36 WEEKS!!!! We've made it to 36 weeks and all looks great. Still have frequent contractions off and on, and I've been back to the Labor & Delivery since 2 weeks ago, so just waiting for little one to decide when it's time! I can choose to be induced at 39 weeks if I want, so maybe just 3 more weeks. We finally have the crib up and trying to tell Kacey that she'll have to watch over Baby during the night. It's so cute. If you ask her where Baby is, she'll raise my sheet and kiss my belly!!!

4/30/2010 - 34 WEEKS TODAY!!! Just spent 3 hours tonight in Labor & Delivery getting checked since I've been having contractions off and on since Monday. All is good, baby has strong heartbeat about 135, and I'm already dialated 1 CM!!!

UPDATE: 7 MONTHS 2 WEEKS OLD

Kacey is now 7 months 2 weeks old and just really growing into a beautiful little girl... she is the sweetest baby and always happy! We're finally in a routine and she settles down for bed much easier now. She's been sleeping through the night since she was 2 months old (and is finally back in her crib now).

She has 2 teeth on the bottom and cutting more on the top that we're sure will make their appearance soon the way she's been biting on her pacifer and rubbing her gums with her thumb.

She's starting to pull herself up but hasn't been able to do it completely yet. Still not crawling or walking, but that's OK with Mommy because I want her to stay little as long as she can!

She is a MOMMY'S GIRL and there's NO doubt about that! Whenever I'm in her presence, she wants me and no one else! Occasionally one of her grandparents or Daddy can sneak in a few minutes with her, but once she turns and sees me again, she's all mine! But I don't mind... I love my baby girl!

UPDATE... almost 7 MONTHS OLD!!!!

Kacey will be 7 months old next week and Chad and I are already talking about planning her first birthday party!!!

FIRST TOOTH - Well TEETH now... Kacey's first tooth popped through the gums around 8/3/09 and her 2nd tooth came out 8/10/09!!! She loves to bite down HARD when I brush her teeth at night.

FIRST WORDS - She is very actively saying "MOM" and "MAMA" now and has been since right about 6 months! We are trying to get her to say "DADA" but no luck yet!! Just wait Daddy and she won't stop saying it once she starts!! In the past few days, she's started saying "Aaaa" so not sure what she's trying to say... Daddy likes to tell her "Apples" stressing on the "a" sound!!

FIRST CUP - Kacey's doing very well drinking from her sippy cup. We let her try it at 4-1/2 months and since about 5 months old, she's drinks all of her water from her sippy cup! She loves it!

ROLLING OVER - she has started rolling over from her belly to her back, but of course won't do it when we are "watching" her so we've yet to SEE it, but she's doing it and we are so proud of her!

LAST DOCTOR VISIT - 6 months old and she was 28 1/2 inches long and weighed 18 lbs and 1 oz and is surpassing the doctors expectations for her age. She was impressed that she is already doing so many things now and compared her to the achievement level of an 8 month old!!

6/16/2009....... UPDATE and almost 5 months old

Kacey will be 5 months old next week and time has just flew by so fast! I know it will never slow down though so we're enjoying just watching her grow and develop each and every day. It's summer now and so she's with Grammy & Grampy every day now while Mommy & Daddy work and they are really enjoying this special time with her! I dreaded going over to Aunt Andrea's last week to get Kacey's stuff from her to take to Grammy's. Kacey loves her Aunt Andrea and Uncle Neil but at least they're just next door and we can visit anytime!

Here's the latest updates... Kacey loves to talk and laugh and suddenly last week she's figured out how to talk when she yawns and it's the cutest and sweetest sound! I laugh everytime she does it which is every time she yawns. She drank from her sippy cup ONE time last week but likes to bite it more than try to sip from it. She's really enjoying her baby food... except for the chicken with chicken broth (which tastes like chicken salad)... she was ready to spit it out tonight so we moved on to green beans. She tried on her bathing suit last night for the first time since we have Abi's pool party this Saturday, and thanks to Christy (and Sydnee) she has a baby float now so we can really enjoy the pool at Abi's birthday party! I can't wait!!! I hope Daddy can come after work and watch her the first time in the pool. Kacey loves to take a bath and tries to grab the water from the shower head so this weekend ought to be interesting! She did peepee on Mommy the other night walking into the bathroom for her bath and Daddy just laughed... was that funny? HA! She's saying "Mama" but no "Dada" quite yet, but we're trying to work with her on that. She really loves her Daddy... last weekend she was all his girl... didn't want much to do with Mommy! She got to meet MaKayla and Julie last Saturday for lunch and that was great to see her again. And oh one important thing I almost failed to mention... Kacey has her FIRST TOOTH coming in!!!! She's been teething since about 3 months and I saw a little white speck on her bottom gums last week and it's still there! It's got to be her first tooth trying to break through! We're so excited!! And she is almost able to sit up on her own now. She can hold herself up if holding onto something, but still falls backwards and sideways alittle. She's getting better with tummy time too! She really enjoys her walker (see picture below) and just loves to play in it! Well can't think of much else that's new, but I'll add it if I can think of anything! She's just growing up and becoming such a social butterfly too!! Thanks for following our blog and watching her grow!

Kacey's 4 months old... update!!

Kacey turned 4 months old on Memorial Day! We had her pictures made at Olan Mills that afternoon. She went to the doctor on Wednesday and weighed 15 lbs and 4 oz and measured 25.25 inches long... so she really is growing like a weed. She's started eating baby food now and I think you'll enjoy those pictures below. She finally got the hang of it for her 1st real time eating solid foods. She has taste tested the baby food before but just by sticking out her tongue and testing it, but tonight she actually ate some from the spoon! I love the mess! Enjoy her - we sure do!!

Update on Kacey

Kacey is just over 2 months old and boy has this time went by too fast for Mommy! She is getting so big and doing very well holding her head up. She is finally getting on a schedule that is very helpful to Mommy and now allows me to actually SLEEP at night!! (I should be in the bed now instead of posting!) She still doesn't care for tummy time though!

She is smiling and will smile back at you when you smile at her. She's rolling over onto one side now and will sometimes even hold her bottle when eating. She is cooing all the time and loves to talk... she's so ready and will be talking before we know! She's also trying to laugh and will every now and then!

We took Kacey to church yesterday - this was her 2nd time - and hopefully we'll be able to continue going now that she is on a schedule.

She went to the doctor on 3/27/09 for her 2 month check-up and weighed in a 11 lbs 3 oz. She has had her share of spit-ups though when she eats, so the doctor went ahead and started her on rice cereal... up to 3 tablespoons of rice with a 6 oz bottle at EVERY feeding and this thicker formula has worked and reduced the spit-ups! But only after a week of trying (and failing) with several different bottle nipples that would work for the thicker cereal/formula! Finally after trying 3 different ones, we have ended up successfully with the Gerber NUK bottles (medium flow) that have turned into a Godsend and work perfectly for Kacey! With the other ones, she would either drown herself by getting too much out or sucking and not even getting one drop out! So Mommy's very thankful that we finally found one that works!

She had her first taste of baby food on Saturday too... Applesauce. I'm trying to just introduce her to different foods and flavors since I've had to cut back on nursing her and now she's 95% on formula. We just dipped her spoon in the jar and let her taste it with her tongue and she loved it! Over the next few weeks, we'll also try bananas, peaches, prunes, pears, sweet potatos, carrots, peas, and green beans.

Mommy has been back at work for a month now and although I love being back on schedule myself, I really miss her during the day. I'm gone for 11 hours so I feel like I have no time for her in the evenings because of everything I still have to do when I get home... but I truly cherish every moment I have with her! She stayed with Chad's mom the first 2 weeks I went back to work and that really made it easier to get through those first days! Now she's staying with her Aunt Andrea (my next door neighbor) and that's been wonderful just walking her next door in the mornings and not having to drive anywhere. My mom will begin keeping her when school's out for Spring Break and then during the summer... and then Chad's mom still watches her on Fridays when Daddy has to work!

Her eyes are turning more blue every day, but I know that may still change... but we're hoping that they stay blue like Mommy's!

KACEY IS 2 MONTHS OLD!!!

I cannot believe how fast time flies! She is already 2 months old and growing so fast... too fast!! She is 11 lbs 3 oz and 23-1/2 inches long now... and already starting to grow out of some 0-3 month onesies that have the footies... she's fine as long as the feet are open so she can stretch out.... so she's now starting to wear some 3-6 month outfits already! She's also starting to eat rice cereal at every bottle feeding now - all because she is spitting up so frequently so the doctor told us to thicken her formula to help keep it in her tummy!

LOTS OF NEW COUSINS

If you remember from previous blog posts, there were 4 of us in the family pregnant together... on Chad's dad's side, it was me and Megan, and then on his mom's side of the family, it was Mandi and Stephanie!! Can you imagine how FUN the family dinners will be now with these little ones running around???

So our family has proudly welcomed these little babies...
9/30/2008 Wayne Garrett Baker (Megan)
1/16/2009 Mark Andrew James (Mandi)
1/25/2009 Kacey Elizabeth NeCaise (Helena)
2/3/2009 Jackson Dwayne-Lee Vanhoy (Stephanie)

Garrett was born prematurely 7 weeks early, but then a chain reaction came with the other births... one every 9 days!! Kacey is 9 days younger than Andrew and then she is also 9 days older than Jackson!! How funny! That couldn't have happened better if it had been planned!

UPDATE...

Kacey now has 5 teeth and one more coming very soon... she has had her two bottom front center teeth since she was 6 months old, and now finally the four front center top teeth are almost all here! She is walking better with assistance and sometimes will take a few steps holding just one hand instead of both! Her favorite foods include grilled cheese sandwiches, and chicken... and she's enjoying snacks like cheerios, honeycombs cereal, chocolate milk (with her daddy), cheddar cheese, and lots of new stuff! She is learning new words to say ("nana" is banana, "water", "tractor") and doing great with sign language as another way to communicate. She knows MORE, ALL DONE, and DRINK. It's so cute, it I tell her that I love her more, she gives me the "more" sign to say that she loves mommy more!!

The baby is growing fast and really kicking mommy alot now! I always thought I would miss those kicks after Kacey was born, but it's worth it once they are here and giving hugs and kisses!!! Less than four months left and we are getting ready for baby! We had our ultrasound in January, however the baby's legs were crossed so the only quick glance we got makes us think it's probably another girl, but will be a surprise at delivery!

Another update soon....

BEFORE I WAS A PARENT...

"Before I was a parent, I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby. I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous. I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a parent, I had never been puked on... Pooped on... chewed on... or Peed on. I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts. I slept all night.

Before I was a parent, I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests or give shots. I never looked into teary eyes and cried. I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin. I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a parent, I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put her down. I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt. I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much. I never knew that I could love someone so much. I never knew I would love being a parent.

Before I was a parent, I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body. I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby. I didn't know that bond between a parent and child. I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a parent, I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay. I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache, the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a parent... I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much, before I was a parent."

This was sent to me in an email (thanks Melody) and it is all ever so very true! This little baby that now controls my life is the biggest and best gift from God that He could EVER give to me and Chad! She is awesome!

Kacey - I just love being a parent!!! You are the most amazing thing that I have ever experienced. Mommy loves you baby girl. Hugs-n-kisses XOXO Mom & Daddy!!

IT'S A GIRL!

Kacey was born on Sunday 1/25/2009 at 2:42PM!! She was 7 lbs 4 oz and measured 21.5 inches long at birth (but at her last doctor appt she was only 20 inches so not sure how she was measured initially but she shrunk!!! HA!) but she's perfect and healthy!

We were finally able to really bring her home on Thursday! Well actually we were discharged on Tuesday night, but her jaundice levels were borderline at 12.3.... so we had to take her to the pediatrician Wednesday morning 1st thing and they checked it again and it was 19.2 so they immediately admitted her back into Jeff Gordon Children's Hospital. She had to stay under the light in the incubator ALL the time except to feed and change diapers and it came down to 11.3 by Thursday afternoon so they let her go home.

Her birth weight had dropped down to 6 lbs 6 oz while she was in the hospital, but was back up to 6 lbs 14 oz at her first follow-up appt and then she reached her birth weight and was 7 lbs 9 oz on Tuesday, February 11th at just over 2 weeks old!

My labor and deliver went well........... I started having regular Braxton-Hicks contractions Saturday night about 6:25pm and they were every 5-10 minutes apart. I got up Sunday morning at 4:40am with BAD back pain and then my water broke about 10 minutes later. We went to the hospital and they checked me, but I was still closed and hadn't dialated any, however my contractions were 2-4 minutes apart by then. They gave me Oxytocin at 8:30AM and I did 2 doses of Stadol for pain which helped with the 1st dose for 30 minutes of relief, but nothing the 2nd does, and then my contractions got so bad I couldn't stand it. I ended up on my hands and knees to relieve the back labor and Chad says I almost pulled the rails off the hospital bed with each contraction. By this time they were less than a minute apart so I was hurting really badly. About 12:30pm, they ordered an epidural even though they hadn't checked my cervix again. They came right in and done that and then the doctor checked me only to find out I was fully effaced and dialated to 10 already! So I went thru all that labor without the epidural, but I was thankful I got it before I started to push for 1 hour 40 minutes! Now she's here and healthy so we couldn't be happier!

A FAMILY THING!

I was responding to an email today from my cousin, Stacey, in Ohio and that's when I realized that we have a lot in common! Both of our mom's were pregnant with us at the same time - she is just shy of being 6 months older than me - so I always said that it would neat if Stacey and I could be pregnant together too! Well it didn't work out that way, she had her youngest child in 2006, but both of us had our FIRST child on January 25th! Her oldest son, Trent, and Kacey, will share the same birthdate - just 7 years apart! How crazy is that! It's a Family thing!!! HA! :-)

HOPE, FAITH & LOVE with Relay for Life

CELEBRATE... REMEMBER... FIGHT BACK and help me in the race to find a cure for cancer! Why Relay? SURVIVORS!! Cancer hit close to home several years ago when Chad's mom fought her own battle. Thankfully, today she's here to watch Kacey grow up!! Amy, one of my best friends, recently won her own battle with breast cancer (at the age of 30!). As a survivor, she can now raise her two young kids with her husband. Then another one of my friends, Brandy, watched as her 15-month old son fought the battle and survived. Hunter is now a healthy 5 year old who will soon celebrate his 6th birthday in May. They were all able to receive the care they needed and were blessed to find the cancer at such early stages. Now we have a family member who was just diagnosed with Lymphoma, so this year I'll be raising money in honor of her! (UPDATE--sadly we lost Aunt Betty on March 16th when she was called home to be our Lord and Savior!) If you are interested in helping me to meet my 2009 goal of raising at least $150, you can click on the link below to see all available options. Remember that your donation will share the HOPE for a cure, give another survivor FAITH to continue on, and you'll be sharing your LOVE with everyone that's been affected with cancer! We all know at least one person that has been through this battle. Thanks in advance to everyone who contributes to this worthy cause. My prayer is that Kacey will never have this struggle!