Three Men and A Lady

Snow!

2012-02-13T21:08:00.000-06:00

We finally got some of the white stuff! I was afraid it wouldn't snow at all here this year and I was sad for Luke...but today we finally got just a little bit so were able to finally wear our boots, bundle up and play in the snow!

It was short lived, because it is cold, and Luke REFUSES to wear his gloves/mittens....but wants to throw snow balls and build a snow man...makes it a little challenging! We had fun though! I tried to teach him to do a snow angel, but he wasn't so sure about it quite yet...all in good time! Maybe just maybe we will get more snow this year and we can go sledding! Bo didn't care that it was cold or wet out...he kept going from sitting up to on his belly and rolling around! He was very content with his face in the snow!...go figure!

Okay mom, I have rolled around and sat out here long enough...I'm ready for my dinner!

Joy

2012-02-11T20:47:00.001-06:00

Today I had one of my favorite parenting moments to date! I had the honor of taking Luke to his very first KU game! Drew is out of town this weekend and I thought I would need to sell our tickets, but then I realized I should get a babysitter for Bo and relish in the opportunity to have my first baby boy all to myself and to share something with him that I love!

I absolutely LOVED my four years in Lawrence, KS, it is a such a special place to me, the place where I really learned who I was, started to grow up and met some of the greatest friends in the world. There is no place better to watch college hoops than Allen Fieldhouse, and that's not just my opinion, google greatest sporting venues and it is at the top of the list regardless of the sport, professional or college....the place is amazingly awesome. So, to be the one to first take Luke there was extra special to me.

He has been obsessed with the Jayhawk and the fight song for awhile, check out this video from last month...he constantly asks Drew and I to cue the song up on our phones in the evenings and on the way home from daycare in the car!

The moment we entered the Fieldhouse and he heard the band he started to giggle and started yelling "Mommy, Jay, Jay, Jay!" He could not stop laughing, it was adorable and made me feel like I was seeing the Fieldhouse for the first time myself!

When we got to our seats he couldn't stop pointing out all the Jayhawks around the building. He was just in awe.

Then when it was time to sing the Alma Mater and the Rock Chalk Chant he was so excited to watch the students, it actually surprised me but I got a little emotional during the Alma Mater holding Luke and taking in the scene around us, it was two of my worlds merging in to one and it made me so happy! I know it is so sappy, but it was just such a special moment for me!

He loved the opening video, it was a good little history lesson for him! :)

When the game started he kept yelling "Dunk it, Daddy, Dunk It!" He yells that when Drew and him "dunk" on his mini basketball goal and so to him Dunk it and Daddy just go together! It was super sweet!

We had a wonderful day!

He was so excited to wear his shirt!

That is the look he had on his face the entire time, melts my heart!

He giggled like this almost the whole time!

Giving Back and Unplugging in 2012

2012-02-06T16:06:00.000-06:00

I have been a terrible blogger recently...I have to be honest, I haven't minded much! I feel like we have been crazy busy, but I couldn't really tell you what all we have been doing! I am working on reprioritizing my time. I have never really been one for New Year's resolutions...I have always thought, if you want to do something different just do it...you don't need the calendar to tell you to change. BUT, this year, there are a few things I want to do differently. One is to give back and the second is to unplug.

Giving Back: We have been so abundantly blessed these last few years. We have two healthy, happy, well adjusted kids....they smile and laugh, hug, snuggle and explore. They are a parent's dream. I look at them and I am in complete and total awe that Drew and I created them and I just want to absorb every moment with them to my fullest. Drew and I are both blessed with wonderful families, great careers, a warm home and more than we certainly need. So, this year, in recognition of our blessings, I would like to find ways to honor the giver and give back. I want our children to be thankful and grateful for what they have and learn to serve others. Finding ways to do that with a baby and toddler is the tricky part, so if any one has any great suggestions, my ears are open! This year we are making the time to do this!

Unplugging: The fact that Luke can work an iPhone, IPad, Blackberry and a remote disturbs me. Watching Bowen already reaching toward my phone further confirms that Drew and I (more so me) are completely and totally obsessed with our devices, and our kids mimic us. So, I am trying to unplug...why on earth I find it necessary to look at Facebook is beyond me...99.9% of the information there is meaningless and irritating to me...yet I constantly hit the app on my phone...so I am slowly but certainly detaching from Facebook, I don't plan to join pinterest, start posting photos on every possible site for doing so or reading any more blogs...I have a handful that I thoroughly enjoy and I will keep those, but for the most part I am cutting back on all social networking etc. When I find the urge to grab my phone, I am going to grab my kids, because I certainly don't get enough time with them. When I want to catch up on a friend's life, I am going to call them, not look at their Facebook page. That leads me to the blog...I want to continue to keep up with the big moments because I want to be able to look back and remember all these moments....right now things are already blurring together in the craziness of life...but I don't want to feel like I HAVE to post or take a picture etc. I want to just play with my kids in the yard and see them with both my eyes and through the eyes of a toddler, not through a lens of a camera.

I didn't take a 6 month shot of sweet Bowen, but I can tell you he is sweeter and cuter with each passing day. He is happy, determined, inquisitive and adores his big brother. He is growing like a weed and last week weighed in at almost 19lbs! He has yet to meet a vegetable or a fruit he doesn't like! I didn't get a 7 month picture either because we were all sick as dogs with this respiratory junk that has been going around like crazy. Bowen rolls and army crawls to get to things he wants...last week he was stealing Luke's toys and pulling on his leg and Luke kept yelling "Mommy, Bo let go!!!, Stop it Bo!, Mommy Stop Bo!" I let Luke know that the honeymoon period of having a little brother was over and from this point forward it was game on! Nothing is sacred anymore! We have been thinking that official crawling is just around the corner for well over a month, as Bo has been rocking away on all fours, but so far we are still scooting. I am quickly realizing how challenging having a baby on the move is when big brother's toys are so small and can easily be swallowed...we are all trying to adjust to Bowen's mobility!

Luke never stops talking, ever. He is starting to enjoy singing and especially loves the Hot Dog Song! This week we survived a respiratory illness without having breathing problems which was such a relief....it didn't stop my complete and total paranoia about it occurring, but we are hopefully continuing to move in a positive direction! Luke repeatedly counts to 20 and we are working on learning more colors other than Blue and Yellow! We know the names of other colors, but pretty much think everything is Blue or Yellow at this point. Luke is still completely and totally obsessed with trains, he has three train shirts which he asks to wear every.single.day! I never thought I would be the mom to do laundry to appease my child's demands but after three days I get worried that a meltdown might occur if we don't have a clean train shirt!

We are totally exhausted but loving watching our boys grow!

Giggling...double chin and all! Looks like we've outgrown our Jayhawk shirt!

These two are almost impossible to catch smiling and looking the same direction at the same time!

Little chunk last month prepping for his first veggies and fruits!

Tia and Wajuh

2012-01-21T09:49:00.002-06:00

After Christmas Drew and I were blessed to be a part of his sister Jenny's (Tia) wedding to Roger (Wajuh, according to Luke)! We escaped for a quick 48 hours without the kiddos to Vermont to be a part of their very special day and wedding!

It was an amazing wedding, so special and unique and we were honored to share it with them! These two have an adventurous spirit for life and love the outdoors and skiing. In fact, Roger comes from a long line of well known and decorated skiers! His family has a ski area in Vermont and it was the perfect spot for their wedding! I don't really know how to succinctly describe their day, but here it goes in about a sentence, they were married at the top of a ski run at night in a rain storm amidst friends, family, and bonfires...they skied down to the lodge through sparklers in a wedding dress and tux and we all celebrated them soaked to the bone in ski wear and dress clothes! Can't say I have ever attended a wedding in ski boots! It was beautiful and just perfect for them!

Drew and I also enjoyed some time to just be us and not parents! We stayed at a bed and breakfast and after breakfast the morning of the wedding we went back upstairs and slept until noon, it was BLISSFUL!

Congratulations to Tia and Wajuh!

Finley (dog on left) was the ring bearer...the wedding was a little delayed starting because Finley needed to be found!

Seriously? How amazing is this picture? Especially with the dogs running behind them.

Married!

Soaked after skiing in the rain!

My father in law Chick in his tie and ski pants! :)

Kiss-mas!

2012-01-05T21:07:00.000-06:00

If I could choose just one word to describe Kiss-Mas (aka Christmas) at the Keller house this year it would be....wait for it...TRAINS! Holy moly, I never thought I would know so much about trains (I'm just grateful its trains right now and not dinosaurs...that is my biggest fear!-mark my words!)! Luke now has train shirts, books, a train table, a remote control train, lego trains, train videos, don't forget all the Thomas and Friends trains, oh and I am pretty sure we watched parts of the Polar Express everyday for 3 weeks...the songs haunt me in my dreams...I'm certain I am missing something, but wow...it is a train party over here!

In all seriousness though, this was the best Christmas yet. Drew and I were both off of work for 12 days, the weather was amazing, the kids were healthy, we ate well, slept well, and just loved on our boys. We had so much fun and although I say it with every post, every day it just gets more and more fun with these two boys. They bring us so much joy, laughter and love!

There were maybe 3 million pictures taken between Christmas Eve, morning and day...some of them are pretty darn cute, to me, but for the most part they are of a toddler opening everyone's presents...so I will spare you....from most of them! :) Just know that we had a blast...Luke busted down the stairs Christmas morning and was excited to open his presents, Bo's presents and everything else in between! When asked what Santa brought him he very sweetly tells people "presents!"

Not sure what all the excitement is about, but I'm having fun!

The best we could get this year of me and my two boys!

Love to throw!

Best and worst gift...a remote control Thomas train....Luke is obsessed (best) but also gets the train hung up on everything throughout the house and yells "Stop it Thomas!" every time he wants to stop the train or switch directions (worst!)

Future golfer!

Best we could get Christmas Eve...

Buddies

2011-12-30T20:29:00.001-06:00

There's a lot to catch up on since the last post...Christmas, Tia Juana's (Aunt Jenny) ski wedding in Vermont...honestly I haven't even uploaded the pictures from either...but we have been having a blast this last week being home with our little guys (minus our 48 hour trip to Vermont sans kiddos...wonderful in other ways!). The boys are interacting so much more...playing together, laughing together, stealing toys from one another...I think Bo's first word might be "MINE" because it is all he hears Luke, aka Bowen's idol, say.

So while I wait to post on the bigger events, here is a snap shot into our boy's budding friendship! (sorry for the poor quality phone camera pics!)

As is readily apparent...pretty much anything Luke does, as mundane as it may be or even if it slightly harms Bowen, he still finds Luke hilarious!

Sometimes, just because, we eat ice cream and watch movies on the coffee table...little brother closely takes in the bad behavior.

Luke might steal his toys, but Bo is getting even by stealing Luke's pants!

Bo being indoctrinated into the world of trains...

Shhhh Bowen! Little Bo is VERY vocal these days!

Loves to give kisses

Now that he can stand, Luke likes to show Bowen how to use all his old toys!

Finally! I have Luke's cars all to myself!

Santa Photo Op

2011-12-20T20:59:00.000-06:00

We skipped Santa last year...after Luke screamed and sobbed when he saw a large man with a beard at a KU tailgate we just knew it wasn't worth it! So this year, I felt like it was our duty to try Santa (read: Mom wanted a photo of Luke with Santa regardless of his thoughts!).

We started after Thanksgiving by decorating the house with Santa, watching Dora's Christmas Carol, reading Christmas books, watching the Polar Express...and when Luke started recognizing Santa I thought we might just pull it off!

We headed out after work last Thursday evening with our friends the Goods to the Brookside Dime Store...such a cute store...to see a FREE, sweet, clean Santa with NO line! Right up my alley, I just can't justify waiting hours to see Santa and then paying someone to take a picture of my screaming child!

When we stepped in the store and Luke first saw Santa his eyes lit up and he sweetly stared at Santa and said "Hi Santa!" and proceeded to show Santa the train in the window...I thought to myself, YES!, my toddler is going to sit on Santa's lap and LOVE it!

Not so much! Bo and Santa...BFF's, Luke and Santa...maybe next year! Poor Santa and poor Luke! But, pretty darn funny, and it made for a great photo op! Special thanks to Bethany Good for most of the below photos.

Still excited...

Checking each other out...

No big deal mom...this guy seems nice...

You want me to sit where?

This will be the picture that we pull out in 20 years....

Trains are much better than Santa

Santa's little helper...so happy!

Next year maybe Luke will be ready...but by then Bo will have entered the fear of Santa phase! Merry Christmas!

Cookies!

2011-12-15T22:12:00.000-06:00

Last Friday we spent the morning with Nonni and Papa baking and decorating Christmas cookies! Luke did better than I expected...though I think he liked playing with the flour and eating the flour more than anything else!

Five Months Going on Two Years!

2011-12-09T15:02:00.001-06:00

We have ourselves a little mover and shaker! Little Bowen has yet to catch on that he is five months old and not 2 like his big brother! He desperately wants to keep up and if Luke doesn't watch out Bowen is gonna catch him in no time! Bowen rolls across the room to get to places and toys, grabs Luke's toys (which usually incites a bop on the head from Luke and a "No Bo, that's my toy!"), he can sit up on his own and look Luke in the eye, he has started scooting a little, mostly in a circle still but he is trying SO HARD to move forward...and he gets MAD that he can't quite get it yet! He is so determined it is almost scary!

The boys are really interacting and it is a blast to watch them enjoy each other so much! We love our little men!

What are you doing in my chair?

Mom tried some cereal...we will wait another month!

Planning their day...serious chat!

Seriously...very typical...as if Bowen can support Luke...Luke's face is a blur because he saw me coming and knew he better move!

Another planning session....

Free rides in the tonka truck...what a life!

We can both sit facing forward now! How fun is this?

Luke showing Bo how cool Dora is....

Playmates for life!

Bowen is the happiest baby on the block...no doubt, my parents have nicknamed him Mr. Sunshine and it is very appropriate! We love this little man so much! He is a sweetie pie!

Thanksgiving!

2011-12-09T14:43:00.000-06:00

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with Drew's family in North Carolina! When we planned this trip in August, I was pretty tentative. I envisioned long lay overs, cancelled flights, a whiny toddler and a screaming baby...but we definitely wanted to catch up with Drew's family that we hadn't seen since before the kids were born. So we decided to take the risk, and we are so glad that we did! The kids rocked all three flights, despite getting colds!

We spent part of the week in Charlotte with Drew's cousin's family. They have FOUR kids...ages 6 and under (holy lord they are saints) and their youngest two are Luke and Bowen's ages exactly (birthdays just a couple weeks apart). It was so fun to see them and watch the kids interact and we were SO impressed with how well they manage such a busy household, we learned a lot! The second half of the week we spent in Greensboro at another cousin's house with Drew's entire family! We had so much fun and they were so gracious to host us all! We wish we all lived closer!

Drew managing 3 ages 2 and under...love the look on his face!

Jenny and Roger...these two are so cute and in love it almost makes you wanna puke! :) Just kidding! So excited for their wedding in a few weeks!

The whole family....ages 88 to 4.5months....including 8 kids!

Grab a baby any baby...doesn't matter whose it is!

Nana with Bowen

Luke and Brooks...instant buddies, just 2 weeks apart in age! We are honored to be Brook's godparents!

Stay on your side!

Luke and Maddie...best friends and best enemies all in one, just 3 weeks apart in age! We thought with the leaves we had finally found a toy they couldn't yell "mine" at one another about...but ultimately they each laid claim over a particular leaf pile! These two were hilarious to watch!

Gonna Wish These Days Hadn't Gone By So Fast

2011-12-09T14:28:00.002-06:00

I have to be honest, there are many days lately where I feel pretty overwhelmed with the busy, crazy, messy nature of our life right now. I feel like my to do list is always growing, our house, despite my best efforts, isn't nearly as clean as I would like and our decor has taken on a fisher price like feel...and a construction site feel (thanks to Luke's obsession with trucks). I swore our house would never look like Toys R Us exploded...make that #5,000,000 on my list of things I was wrong about in parenting! :) Some days I look around at the mess and find myself wishing some of these moments by and for the next big milestone...and then I realize that I am going to miss this one day, A LOT, I'm gonna wish these moments hadn't slipped by in the blink of an eye. When I sit back and watch Luke running around, giggling and acting like a crazy person and Bowen giggling at him, I realize these are MY boys...and I love these moments to pieces (even when Luke sticks his fingers in his ears and yells "LA LA LA LA LA!"). Despite feeling a bit overwhelmed and undermanned at times we are having a blast...so much so that I realized today I haven't been on here in about a month and we have been up to a lot! Thanksgiving in North Carolina, Bowen turning 5 months and thinking he is actually a 2 year old, Christmas preparations...so the next few posts will be quick catch ups!

Two!

2011-11-14T21:40:00.000-06:00

My sweet baby Luke, I can't believe you are already TWO! What a remarkable year you have had! I thought nothing could beat your first year, but I was mistaken! This year you have learned to walk, run, kick, and (kind of) jump (who says both feet have to leave the ground at the same time!). You have learned to talk...a mile a minute...from complete jibberish to adamantly telling your brother today "No Bo. That's MY choo choo!" You have grown a whole set of opinions and ideas about the way things should be...from the way your food is organized on your plate, how many napkins you get at meals, if your cars are arranged in YOUR particular order, how many chap sticks you can hoard from mom and dad and so many other funny little things that make you LUKE! We have learned about the things you really like-music, choo choos, Elmo, cars, Dora and Legos. It is a joy to watch you explore the world and watch what excites you! You have grown in to such a kind and sweet boy, who always asks me "why cry" when you hear someone upset. You hold my hand and your brothers hand, you freely give hugs and kisses, and you love your brother in a way that melts my heart. This year you also became a brother and I'm just certain you gained a life long friend! Never in my life have I felt more proud than when I watch you!

I know they say that two can be tough...but I can't wait to see what this year brings! I love you little man!

Now on to your birthday celebration!

We had a few friends over for a Choo Choo Pizza party to celebrate Luke this year! When Luke saw his gifts wrapped the morning of his birthday in Thomas the Train paper he immediately just tore into one! He definitely understood opening presents this year (makes me REALLY excited for Christmas!)

He was overly spoiled...I don't know where we are going to put all the things we are going to accumulate over the next few years...or what on earth we will be able to buy for Bowen that Luke doesn't already have!

It was fun to watch Luke take it all in. I don't think he fully "got" it, but he definitely knew that the day was about him! It was so cute to watch him while we were singing Happy Birthday to him...he got kind of a shy, but proud look on his face! We probably should have practiced blowing out the candle a little more because he actually ATE the flame! Luckily, daddy was blowing too and so he just felt a little heat, no tears, just kind of a surprised look on his face!

Everyone is singing for ME!

Luke's Choo Choo Cake!

When he woke up from nap time, his cake was on the table, he climbed right up on the table and was very irritated that he couldn't eat it! Rookie move by mom having the cake out!

Luke and his sweet little friends!

Want to see pure joy in toddler?...bring a GIANT Mickey Balloon! Thanks Pete and Linds! So fun! Unfortunately, after much hard play Luke managed to decapitate Mickey and now his large head is at the top of our vaulted ceiling looking down on us, for weeks, until the helium runs out!

Right before he ATE the flame!

Terrible family pic...but it was the best of the batch! Getting a family picture these days can be challenging!

We had a blast celebrating our little man!

Twick o Tweet!

2011-11-03T21:28:00.001-05:00

I must admit...I have never been much of a fan of Halloween. I'm not creative enough to devise good costumes, I'm not in to dressing up, and usually I try to avoid Halloween parties. I know party pooper. So I knew when I had kids I would have to really work at getting in to Halloween. Last year didn't help things much...Luke was pretty pitiful through all of Halloween, so this year I had low expectations. The first time we tried Luke's costume on him, he broke down and cried....the next time, he made it about 3 minutes, so we figured when Halloween rolled around, we wouldn't have much of a trick or treater again. I didn't even bother getting a costume for Bowen, I know I'm a terrible mommy, baby's first Halloween and I did nothing.

Well, little Luke amazed us this year. In typical Luke fashion, he took it in slowly and soaked it all in very quietly and then went full steam ahead. Sunday night we went to my dad's church for Trunk or Treat...Luke refused to wear his mask or carry his shield, kept saying "off" and pulling on his costume, held Drew's hand with a death grip, and cried when he saw a man in a gorilla costume. BUT, he wore the costume for about 45 minutes.

Monday, we joined our friends, The Goods, for Luke and Campbell's Halloween Part 2 at the Village Shops. Not only did Luke wear the mask and carry his shield (part of the time), but he also was TOTALLY in to trick treating...he was pretty assertive in getting his candy (and in eating it!). He was like a completely different kid and it was so fun to watch him...so now I am a total sucker for Halloween because he loved it so much! I love seeing him happy and enjoying himself...so if that means I have to decorate the house in orange and black every October and dress up myself, I will do it! And, sweet little Bowen, you will get a costume next year my dear, even if you aren't totally ready to enjoy Halloween yet!

The video below is of Luke trying on his costume last Friday, excuse how loud I am, we were really trying to get him excited so he would want to wear it! What I love is that he is watching himself in the mirror!

A special thanks to Bethany Good for many of the pictures below!

Captain America!

Getting ready to hit the shops!

These two pushed the wagon all over the Village!

The "Nerds" candy slowed him down a little bit....

Still pushing....

This picture just screams Halloween...does it get any better? Candy in both hands, and all over her face and costume!

Mom, can I have another?

Sweet Bowen...no costume, but he got to snuggle with mama in the Ergo, so I think he was happy!

The strong face! Luke's signature face!

In the Words of Our Dear Friend Dora...

2011-10-29T22:19:00.000-05:00

We did it!!!

We made it through the long week! Lots and lots happened this week, almost too much to post about...

-Mom went back to work and Bowen went to daycare (he did awesome and fell right into pace with us!) The week went really well, but we are B-U-S-Y!!!!

-Bowen started rolling from his back to his front, he is one determined little fellow...he started wanting to roll on Thursday and had perfected it by this afternoon! He is bound and determined to keep up with Luke! He loves to stand and even tries to move his foot forward in a stepping motion!

-Luke had his appointment with the allergist and asthma specialist. He for sure has asthma and also is allergic to dust (great) and peanuts. Not fun, but at least we now know and can avoid triggers. He is also on 3 medications daily to help manage asthma and allergies so hopefully things will get better. We have also been extremely concerned because Luke hasn't done much growing in the last year, not in weight or in height...he is TINY. The specialist said that his lack of oxygen might have contributed to his slowed growth, so now that we hopefully will have him breathing and feeling better overall we will see some growth! Otherwise, Bowen is bound to catch him, because he is growing like a weed!

-Luke is stringing 2 and 3 word sentences together with mach speed! Now that he is feeling better he is having a ball and keeps us laughing almost constantly. He can now do the Rock Chalk Chant...just in time for basketball season this week! Luke loves to give "bumps" (knuckles) but he can't just give Drew or me a bump....if Drew gets a bump then Mom and Bo have to get a bump...it is a family affair! He is learning to dance like his daddy...not sure why we are teaching him the Drew Keller signature move...most of you know the one I am talking about.

-Luke looks pretty darn cute in his Halloween costume, the trick will be convincing him to keep it on for more than 3 minute increments!

-All three guys got haircuts today at the Men's Salon by our house! Bowen had a major mullet and his hair completely covered his ears...so just like Luke he had his first "big boy" haircut at just under 4 months! He was a rock star!

Blessed

2011-10-23T20:07:00.001-05:00

Three years ago (tomorrow) we were receiving devastating news in the ER at Shawnee Mission Medical Center. Dougie Houser MD, with the worst bedside manner of all time, was callously breaking the news that our pregnancy was over, that I had an ectopic pregnancy, that my fallopian tube had (allegedly) ruptured, that I would need emergency surgery within the hour to stop the bleeding and that I may never be able to have a child. Whoa...it was a lot to take in. What was worse, our parents didn't even know we were expecting, and Drew had to call to tell them I had been pregnant, was in the ER and heading to surgery. Double Whoa.

I was devastated in more ways than one, and over the next three months while my body healed I never stopped fearing the worst; that our dreams of having biological children might never come true and it would be all my body's fault.

Flash forward three years...nothing short of a miracle to me...my two beautiful baby boys.

Yeah, I know its not the cutest picture...we've been too busy to capture 2 kids looking great at the same time!

If only I could have seen these days three years ago, it might have spared me countless worries and tears. But, I don't think I would be the mom I am now without those moments, we wouldn't be the couple we are today and maybe I wouldn't appreciate the beautiful moments of pregnancy and parenthood like I do today. It is all a miracle, every amazing, tiring, challenging, yet heart melting moment. I will always be grateful that I was blessed with these moments with our babies. I cherish them, we are blessed. I feel like the luckiest woman alive. There is nothing in the world that compares to the absolute love and devotion I feel for our boys.

This "anniversary" comes as a good reminder of how blessed we are after a challenging weekend. Our poor Luke is struggling with his breathing again. Yesterday afternoon he started struggling and after several hours at home trying to get things under control with his inhalers we finally had to take him to Children's Mercy last night. The little man was so strong and such a trooper, but he went through a lot, a deep suction treatment (horrible to watch), several breathing treatments, a steroid treatment, a chest x ray, an IV with antibiotics (watching that get placed was even harder than the deep suction), and then finally an admit overnight. We got home today around 1pm and we are all pretty wiped out...well at least when Luke isn't jazzed up on all his medicine and running around like a crazy person! I was very proud of how tough he was and he had the nurses laughing in hysterics this morning at 1am! And such a sweetie pie, when he woke up this morning in the hospital bed, his first question..."Where's Bo?" I pray that we can get this under control and that we don't ever have to spend another night at Childrens. Hopefully, we get better at recognizing the signs and getting his asthma under control more quickly. We are also praying that Bowen doesn't end up with RSV now from Luke's illness and we don't have Bo heading to Children's as well. Not good timing, right before I head back to work this week. Hopefully tomorrow is a healing day around here and I can head to work Tuesday feeling confident in the boys health.

Both boys are now fast asleep, I pray they wake up stronger, healthier, and still sweet as ever!

Moooo

2011-10-21T15:35:00.000-05:00

You know you have a toddler when...

This past week Luke noticed the cow on the outside of the milk carton, and of course said with enthusiasm "Mooo." He then of course asked me "why?" So I explained that milk comes from cows. He replied "oh." This conversation has repeated every time we pour his milk.

This morning I was pumping, you can probably guess where this is going. Let me first say that Luke is a little too obsessed with the pump, almost uncomfortably so...he can assemble it, likes to be the one to turn it on and off for me and even has held it up to himself and pretended to pump...seriously kid? Anyway, this morning he pointed to the pump and said "Pump! Milk!" and then he got a very confused look on his face and pointed at me and said "Mooooo?"

Well, if I didn't already feel like a cow these past 4 months I most certainly do now that my son has equated me to a cow! But pretty funny.

The kid IS pretty funny, and Bo really thinks so... you never have a video rolling when you want it, so I missed the big belly laughs the first time around but here is just a little taste of Bo giggling at his "hilarious" big brother.

Ka-BOOM

2011-10-20T11:16:00.000-05:00

That's the sounds of Luke's language capabilities EXPLODING! Wow, I heard that it would happen fast, when it happened....we feel like we have been waiting FOREVER for this, but it is finally coming together!

As cool as it is to watch, it's also a little tiring...my typical day with Luke...What's this?, What''s that?, Where's (fill in the blank...any person he knows, kids at daycare, favorite toy of the moment, whichever "guy" he is looking for-our "guys" are very important these days (you know like the dump truck driver, the firetruck driver, Lego people). Oh and don't let me forget the dreaded "Why?"

Normal conversation from the moment of waking:

L: "Where's Bo?"
Me: "He's still sleeping."
L: "Oh, bed, shhhh!"
L: "Where's Daddy?"
Me: "In the shower"
L: "Oh, what's this?"
Me: "A flower called a geranium"
L: "Oh cool, geranium"

5 minutes later....

L: "Where's Daddy"
Me: "He's at work"
L: "Oh, why?"
Me: "uhh"...(that's kind of hard to explain)...."mommies and daddies work to earn money"
L: "oh, why?"

5 minutes later....

L: "Geranium" sniff, sniff (pretending to smell the flower)
L: "Dora? Where's Boots? Map?...."
Me: "No TV right now"
L: "Ok mama. Where's guy?"
Me: "How about some lunch"

After taking his first bite:

L: "Mmmm, Good! More, please" (Although many times it is also "YUCK!, All Done, cookie?")

Rest of day...

Pointing at every object in the house asking what it is called and repeating it...and the kid's memory, it amazes me. I don't know how he does it!

Last night Drew and I both agreed that even in the last 3 days his language has doubled. Just last week I told Drew I was concerned that Luke wasn't putting more phrases together and was still just using single words...I am hopeful that the next few months bring a lot more communication! It is so much fun!

Gonna Miss These Guys....

2011-10-18T22:07:00.000-05:00

After five months, next week it is time to go back to work...FIVE months, that's a long time. It's been amazing...I've gotten not only to enjoy the summer and gorgeous fall, but most importantly spend extra time loving and playing with my "willful" but adorable Luke, birth a second baby boy (a precious, sweet, perfect baby in my completely unbiased opinion), bond with said perfect baby, enjoy watching my boys get to know one another and spark what hopefully will be a lifelong friendship, and have overcome obstacles to become a stronger mama and person overall.

It is a bittersweet feeling, returning to work. I don't think I am cut out to stay at home full time, but I also don't feel like I am really cut out to work full time and be a mom. That's a hard spot to be in. But, alas, full time work it is right now. Thankfully, for the next two months I get to work part time, 3 days a week and don't have to face full time work until the week of January 1.

It's hard to pass the reigns off to someone else with Bowen. I know that little man inside and out and his bright smiles make my day in an instant. I am confident though that he will do great at daycare and I love that he and Luke will be together, but I will certainly miss them.

I adore the little men in my life and I am so blessed to be their mama! Here are a few of my favorite moments from the past 5 months!

Pappy!

2011-10-13T10:21:00.001-05:00

Last week my best friend Ashlee and her sweet 4 month old Patrick braved the solo parent 2 flight trip from Birmingham to Kansas City to spend 4 days with Luke, Bowen and me! They are both total troopers, especially considering they missed their connecting flight in Atlanta on the way home and her husband had to pick them up and drive them the two hours home to Birmingham because there were no more flights to Birmingham on Sunday night!

Drew was out of town for the weekend and it was so nice to have Ashlee here with us (I definitely needed a little adult time...I have a ton of respect for all the single parents out there....wow)! We were so excited to meet Patrick, or as Luke has sweetly called him, Pappy. I have a feeling that nickname might stick for us! Pappy is just the happiest little guy, full of smiles and giggles. We managed to pack in a lot in 4 days considering we were entertaining 3 babies!

Thanks Ashlee for spending the weekend with us and giving me some sanity! Can't wait to watch Luke, Bowen and Pappy take on the world! Love these boys!

Just met, and already holding hands! Best friends in the making!

It was a full house in my back seat with 3 car seats!

Several of our college girl friends joined us throughout the weekend...here Luke lets Charlie taste his toy...love that we all have such cute boys!

Although blurry of Pappy, I love this picture of him grabbing Bo's hair-both of their expressions are priceless!

Both boys have found their hands...so fascinating!

I brought out the exerscaucer for Pappy, so, of course, Luke had to partake again! That is his new, not so cute, smile when we get out a camera these days!

This is actually from this morning...Luke insisted on tucking Elmo in for "night night" binkie, blankie and all!

Pappy and Bo, already best buds, chatting up a storm together!

Pum-kin!

2011-10-02T20:22:00.000-05:00

We learned a new word today, pum-kin!!! We spent the morning at the Pumpkin Patch, another gorgeous fall morning. Luke still really isn't at the point where he is stoked to pick out his own pumpkin...but we checked out the petting zoo, played in a maze, contemplated riding a pony before Luke decided against it, took a hayride, took a ride on a little "choo-choo!", watched some pumpkins get launched in to a lake and listened to some music while enjoying BBQ, corn on the cob and apple cider slushies!

It was a great fall morning, minus the fact that our Nikon stopped working....it was a picture perfect day, literally, but we only have a few cell phone pics for documentation. Little Bowen was a trooper through the whole morning, but definitely was exhausted and slept for almost 4 hours when we got home!

We are ready for Fall and Halloween now, we have our pum-kins and Luke's Halloween costume has been ordered!

Thank Goodness we had Luke to push the wagon!

The kid loves corn...he tries to eat it in his fake food set every night while I cook dinner!

Three Months Old and A Super Fan!

2011-10-01T20:58:00.000-05:00

Today was a big day...our marriage is 6 years old, our baby is 3 months old and Luke is a KU super fan (at least there is still one out there after the last few weeks)!

Honestly, I didn't take much time to get a cute 3 month shot of Bo today (thank goodness for cell phone cameras), we had other things going on. I will tell you that this kid is a ROCK STAR...seriously, I am so impressed with him! He is so easy I almost feel guilty! He smiles with his whole face, though I haven't quite captured any of those on camera because I am way too engrossed in enjoying the smile than in capturing it. He sleeps like a dream....12 hours at night without a peep and as of this week 3 naps...1.5 hours in the morning, 2.5 in the afternoon, and about 45 minutes in the evening, pretty textbook. He is growing and thriving, tipping the scales today at 14lbs! We all adore him, and it is easy to tell that he already idolizes his big brother...he stares at him with complete and total adoration!

The joys of being a little brother!

We spent the day at KU and the weather was gorgeous, the boys were great and Luke had a blast! He just lights up in the games, we definitely have an extrovert on our hands! It is way more fun to watch him than the Jayhawks! I am daily amazed at the words he picks up and how aware he is of his surroundings!

Luke loved his flag today!

Poor Bowen, such a trooper, slept in the Ergo for the first quarter and then wanted to be a part of the action...it was so sunny though and hard to keep him shaded! I think he was thinking "what are these crazy people making me do now?"

And he's out...passed out before we even left the parking lot! The ultimate Super Fan!

Our life in snippets...

2011-09-30T20:38:00.003-05:00

THEN.....

NOW.....

Slightly different?...From dance parties, late nights, and crazy tailgates to 5pm dinners at kid friendly restaurants leaving trail of food behind us, game days on our deck and afternoon naps, as we embark on our 6th wedding anniversary tomorrow I couldn't imagine our life any better. Sure, we have had our setbacks, disappointments and heartbreaks, but we have also had a hefty dose of love, laughter and have brought two beautiful children into this world together. If eight years ago when we first got together you would have shown me a picture of our life today I wouldn't have believed it could be so sweet!

So our life used to be a bit more adventurous and exciting when it came to traveling, weekends, parties, tailgates etc, but these more recent iPhone pics (because I certainly don't have room to carry a camera in the diaper bag amongst the diapers, matchbox cars, sippy cups and goldfish) still tell a pretty great story, our happily ever after, every perfect imperfection.

I am blessed to be married to my best friend, an incredible and fun daddy, and someone that daily helps me grow as a person. I am a better person today because of him.

This post comes a little early, because tomorrow we will be spending the day as a family at KU, a pretty perfect way to celebrate. We celebrated as a couple last weekend with a great date night and hotel stay on the Plaza while the boys spent the night with the grandparents!

Happy 6th Anniversary Drew...I think we have at least another 54 in us!

In Case You've Been Wondering....

2011-09-30T15:21:00.002-05:00

Yes, we know we named our sons Bo and Luke and that these are also the names of the Dukes of Hazzard...(in all fairness though their names really are Lucas and Bowen)....

NO, we did not name them these names BECAUSE of the Dukes of Hazzard, though Drew was a fan growing up.

Everyone asks us, so here is the answer, we know you've wondered :)...because many have asked!

Hopefully we haven't doomed ourselves to a lifetime of craziness with these names!

A Thin Line Between Love and Hate

2011-09-15T20:33:00.002-05:00

Pictures speak a thousand words...

Poor unsuspecting Bowen...

Look at his eyes...not sure what to think yet...

Bowen...pleading for help, Luke giving him the stare down

Love this...Luke always holds Bowen's hand...there is a thin line between love and hate, but I think we still fall on the side of love with these two.

Big Hug!

Finally Fall!

2011-09-12T14:11:00.000-05:00

Despite the fact that it is 90 degrees today, we have been enjoying some amazing fall weather and football (well only sort of enjoying football...KU is pretty bad despite their 2 wins and the Chiefs were an all out embarrassment yesterday!).

Saturday we braved the KU game with both boys and they did amazing! We had such a great time in the game...Luke was all about finding the Jayhawk, the music, the band and the game! Bowen was all about sleeping in the Ergo...a pretty great combination!

Sunday we brought a TV out on the deck and Bowen slept, Luke played in his sandbox and Drew and I grew increasingly disgusted with the Chiefs!

Lucky kid slept though the game!

Perfect day for football on the deck!

Hey mom! Come play in the sandbox with me, it's more fun than the game!

Happy Boy and so alert these days!

Rock Chalk! The below video hardly shows Luke's excitement at the game...but mom didn't have the camera out at the right time!

Up late after the game and HYPER! Poor kid...mom and dad didn't change his diaper at the game and he soaked his clothes! He loved riding home in just a diaper and socks!

To Do List

2011-09-08T13:58:00.000-05:00

-Get back in shape
-Organize my closet and pack away return all the borrowed maternity clothes
-Organize the master bathroom
-Organize the spices
-Get baby on regular schedule....

.....the list goes on and on. I figured I would use the days when Luke is at daycare to accomplish these things because Lord knows when I return to work they will never get accomplished.

Well, some days the to do list just needs to be put on hold. For moments like these...

These are way more important tasks and I am loving every moment of them. So if it means I keep my baby belly longer than desired, so be it. When my work pants are a little too tight I will think of these gorgeous fall days on the deck snuggling with the sweetest of babies...these moments go far too fast and this maternity leave I realize that more so than my last maternity leave with Luke. Baby will get on a schedule eventually, my clothes will fit better eventually and I can deal with a messy closet longer too! There is nothing sweeter than a sleeping baby on your chest.

Finishing Strong

2011-09-08T09:33:00.000-05:00

From start to close we have had a blast of a summer! There has not been a dull moment that's for sure! We ended the summer on a great high! Aunt Jenny (Tia Juana) came to town this weekend and we met her wonderful new man, Roger! Bowen loved meeting them and Luke loved playing! Bowen got to chill with Tia Juana and Roger while Luke, Drew and I hit up the first KU game of the year and then on Sunday we all hosted a 40th Wedding Anniversary for Drew's parents. Their actual anniversary was actually my due date, July 10th, so we bumped the party back a couple of months to give everyone some time to settle in. It couldn't have been a more perfect weekend, the weather on Sunday was in the low 70s at the lake and we had a wonderful evening with their friends and with family!

Rock Chalk Tailgater!

Handsome man getting ready for the party!

Happy 40th Anniversary to my wonderful in laws. What a great example of strong and happy marriage. These two absolutely know what it takes to make a marriage work! I hope someday we will be as good of in laws as they are!

Roger napping with Bowen, what a natural!

Waiting for the party to start!

Part of the spread!

Party animal!

Tia Juana!

Ode to a 2 Month Old

2011-09-01T21:26:00.001-05:00

Sweet Bowen, today you are two months old...in some ways it seems like you were born just yesterday and in other ways it feels like a lifetime ago! I can't imagine your sweet smiles and coos not filling our household! Everyday you grow more engaging and sweet! Today you started the beginning signs of giggles and smiled at me all morning long! You continue to bury your little self deeper in my heart!

I am amazed by your laid back nature...you definitely didn't get that from me. Each day you endure more torture than any baby should...pokes in the eye, hair being pulled, kicks, drug across the blanket by your ankle, fallen on, sat on, trust "falled" on (though you have yet to catch your brother he continues to try), and likely many other things I don't see when my back is turned for 3 seconds. Never during this torture do you cry or even whimper...you take it like a man and I am thoroughly impressed. You are one tough cookie. You never protest when I leave you on your tummy for far too long while I chase your brother around the house. You will either be the most laid back kid in America or you are cataloging each of these moments and someday payback will be yours...I can't wait to watch which way it plays out...I am kind of hoping for both!

What I really love is that you had me worried for the first month that you might not be quite the sleeper your brother had been, but it was all just a game for you, you little trickster you, and now you are sleeping a solid 8 hour stretch at night and I feel amazing!

I love you little man! Can't wait for the next month!

Mr Big Stuff

2011-08-31T16:20:00.000-05:00

That's right...Luke thinks he is pretty big time these days...holding baby brother, standing in the double BOB while baby brother is locked down, riding on dad's shoulders...he is the bomb...just ask him! He keeps Bowen right where he wants him...sleeping and getting little attention! If only mom could get the video camera out at the right time to catch Luke's new dance moves...to his new favorite song...LMFAO's Party Rock Anthem...if you need a pick me up on a rough day, these moves will do just that! I will try to catch it on video in the next few days!

seriously?

Don't you mess with me Bo!

My feet are bigger than yours! (Actually he was probably kicking him and I accidentally took a picture while moving Luke away!)

Love to hold my baby brother!...Bo's not so sure!

Love!

Riding backwards standing up is way more fun!

Hovel Family Pics

2011-08-30T20:14:00.000-05:00

While my brother and his family were in town, Bethany took some pictures of the Hovel side of our family! She again did a fabulous job, despite the fact that Luke had ZERO desire to have his picture taken that morning! Here are a few...(too many I know, but there were over 250 pictures on this disc)...there are MUCH better pictures than the ones I have chosen, these are some of the funnier ones though!

One of his few smiles...though he was running away and hiding at the time!

This sums up the photo shoot...Luke running away!

Nonni and Papa with their 4 grandkids!

Luke demonstrating his STRONG face!

My brother's sweet family

We thought the bubbles would help...backfire!

Week in Review...

2011-08-28T21:36:00.002-05:00

It's been a long week around our house, but it has ended on a high note! Last Sunday Luke came down with his first cold in a few months, can't say I have missed those these last couple of months! It came on with a vengeance and Sunday and Monday night Drew slept upstairs with Luke while I stayed downstairs to tend to Bowen. By Tuesday night both Drew and I had Luke's cold. I have been really worried about Bowen getting sick as well, but so far it appears that he is going to escape this round...which is nothing short of a miracle since Luke constantly has been trying to kiss him and stick his fingers in Bowen's eye all week!

By the end of the week Luke was up for some fun and so we spent Friday at Wonderscope (a children's play museum) playing with Nonni and Papa and listening to a concert by Mr. Stinky Feet! Bowen slept through the whole thing, of course!

We then spent the weekend at the lake and I finally took my camera...Luke has been so cute at the lake this summer and loves to take boat rides...we love evening boat rides with him because they lull him right to sleep!

The boys are really both doing great! Luke is just exploding with language, everyday I write down at least 5 new words that he has said! For the first time ever he actually likes a television show, Dora. In the early evening before dinner time when we are all a little on edge anyway Dora has been our saving grace while I feed Bowen. Luke brings me the remote and says "Dora" and when I turn it on he is so cute! He yells "map" and "backpack" and hums along with the songs! During the day I have Dora songs running through my head...I have to admit it is one kids show that I actually don't mind! He continues to do really well with Bowen, he is so sweet and is such a good big brother!

Bowen is doing terrific, just happy as can be, and easy peasy! He is sleeping a good 7 hour stretch at night so I am basically getting a full night's sleep again! One of these days I might not feel exhausted...though I am not holding my breath!

While the first month was really difficult, the second month has been really great and Drew and I are both pleasantly surprised with how well things are going! We are in a groove again!

Talk about a case of the Mondays...poor sick baby!

What a difference 4 days can make!

With Mimi and Grandad

Deanna Rose Farmstead

2011-08-17T11:13:00.000-05:00

Yesterday morning Nonni and I packed up the boys and headed out to the Deanna Rose Farmstead. I had never before been, and I was completely impressed. It was incredible and I have a feeling we will be spending lots of time there over the next five years. Luke loved his inaugural trip while Bowen pretty much slept through the entire experience! Deanna Rose is designed to depict a turn of the century family farm with almost 200 animals and birds of prey, vegetable and flower gardens, a one room country schoolhouse, an old time fishing pond, pony rides and more (that is actually from the website). The gardens are amazing, there are playgrounds, a petting zoo, goat bottle feeding, little tractor rides, cow milking, an ice cream parlor...the grounds are just absolutely stunning. Several of the activities Luke is still too young to enjoy, but next summer I am sure he will be all over that place!

This trip was much more successful than our trip to the Kansas City Zoo in June when Luke screamed whenever he saw an animal...funny for mom, not so funny to Luke! :)

Ride em cowboy!

Man he look like Drew in this picture!

Not so sure he wants to feed the goat!

Very excited!

Checking out the fish!

Giggling with Nonni!

This was Bowen's experience at Deanna Rose!

Cousins!

2011-08-17T11:03:00.000-05:00

Last week my brother and his sweet family came to visit from Boston! We had a great visit! I was so incredibly impressed with my nephews Spencer and Graham....they were absolutely incredible with both Bowen and Luke. The fact that an 8 and 10 year old let a 21 month old run the show and appeased and entertained him, stunned me, not to mention the interest they took in holding, feeding and soothing Bowen! They are the sweetest boys, and my brother and sister in law have done an amazing job with them! I hope our boys are as kind, generous and thoughtful when they are my nephews age! Luke adored the boys and when they left on Friday Luke just kind of wandered around the house, looking for them and whining to us...we were chopped liver compared to his cousins!

Aaron's family was able to join us for Bowen's baptism and then Drew's parents were generous enough to allow our entire family to utilize their lake house for a few days. We also spent time at the park and pool. I wish we all lived closer and could see one another more often...traveling is not easy with little ones! Here are far too many pictures from the trip (courtesy of my mom and sister in law)...of course I took ZERO pictures...I am such a bad mommy!

Nonni with three of the four grandsons

Spencer, such a good cousin!

Graham keeping watch over sleeping Bowen

Giving mom a break!

Luke demonstrating his "strong face"- a staple in our household!

Uncle Aaron giving Luke a ride on his back! Looks like Papa was a little concerned!

Playing at the park by our house

Trying to beat the storm back home!

All four cousins

What Hovel trip would be complete without a Maryland Steamed Crab Fest.

Aunt Nellie feeding Bowen...this woman rocks...she gave me so many breaks this week, helping with diaper changes , dressing Luke, making me cocktails! Thanks Nellie!

Smitten

2011-08-15T15:39:00.000-05:00

Before Bowen was born I honestly wondered how I could love another little baby as much as I loved Luke. Other moms shared with me they had these same concerns before their second children were born and that I was normal, but also assured me that without a doubt I could absolutely have that adoring love for another child.

What I have learned these first six weeks is that no matter how much my boys look alike, they are very different, but that I am also absolutely smitten with little Bowen. Now that the newborn fog is lifting and I have time to actually use my brain!, I love our littlest little man more and more with each passing day. He is so strong but also so sweet and cuddly, so entirely different from Luke at this stage (except for the sweet part!). I think he might just get a little bit cuter every day too! Just in the last few days he has grown so much more alert and smiles and coos more and more. I love seeing his little personality develop! It certainly doesn't hurt that he is starting to sleep in longer stretches for me as well! We have been blessed again with a very easy, mellow baby that really only cries when he is hungry.

Here are a few iphone pics of my sweetie pie! I love having all this time at home with him! One of these days I will get our regular camera out again, I am so lazy! We also had a wonderful week with my brother and his family...once I get the pictures from the week from my mom I will post about their visit!

My three boys swimming!

Such a big boy!

Baby Bo's Baptism

2011-08-12T20:51:00.000-05:00

Last Sunday our sweet Baby Bowen was baptized. It was a very special day...one of my best friends, Bethany maybe said it better than I can even describe on her blog.

As we approached the baptismal font on Sunday I was suddenly overcome with many emotions, mostly overwhelming gratefulness to be standing there with our sweet baby, to be blessed with two healthy boys, richly blessed. We were surrounded by so many people who love our family and loved Bowen long before he was born, who prayed for months that he would safely arrive in our arms. We filled three church pews with Bowen's Great Grandfather, his four Grandparents, his Great Aunt Nancy and three second cousins, his Aunt Nellie and Uncle Aaron and cousins Spencer and Graham, his sponsors and our great friends Dennis, Asia and their children Henry and Harper, our sweet friends Mat, Bethany, their daughter Campbell and Bethany's amazing parents the Bells, of course big brother Luke and finally my dad's congregation filled with many familiar faces that had also prayed for our sweet baby boy.

My dad baptized Bowen, which was so special and Bowen wore a baptismal gown that has now been worn by 5 generations-Bowen, me, my mom, my grandmother, and my great grandmother. It was sown by my great great grandmother over 100 years ago. After the baptism my dad preached a sermon on prayer and as Bowen slept in my arms I couldn't think of a greater reminder that God does indeed listen and answer our prayers.

Bethany was kind enough to take pictures of the baptism for us.

Bowen with his Baptism Sponsors

Three generations that have worn the same baptismal gown

We Survived!

2011-08-01T20:36:00.001-05:00

A month ago I thought I had tackled motherhood and was a seasoned pro...after all I had one seemingly well adjusted 19 month old child, success! HAHAHA!!! Needless to say, this past month my confidence has been shaken! That being said, we have survived the first month of two boys under two and we are making some progress toward regaining control and coming out of the fog that the first month with a newborn brings!

Everyday I figure this whole parenthood thing out maybe just a slight bit more, and we are starting to have more and more fun. The housekeeping has gone to the you know what and we maybe aren't eating quite as healthy as we should, but we are making it! We are figuring out how to manage time with both boys and not have Luke's jealousy control our lives! Luke is handling himself much better but is also learning what time out is all about!

Bowen is doing great. He has grown 3.5 inches since birth and weighed in today at 9lbs 7 oz and I will admit that I am quite proud of the 22 oz he has gained...they have my blood, sweat and tears (literally) poured in to them. He started on some medication for Reflux today so we will see if that makes any difference in his eating.

As I glance through these pictures I can't believe how similar Luke and Bowen look at one month of age...it seems that Drew and I only make one kind of baby!

Last week's Chinese fortune cookies (quite appropriate I think)

Thank goodness we had that fortune...because the next night this happened...Bowen's first injury at the hands of his big brother. Not really intentional, Luke didn't mean to draw blood, but he definitely meant the swipe across the face. First time out in effect.

Thankfully babies heal quickly...this picture just two short days later.

Time outs are working! This is more like it!

I have learned that letting Luke create a mess while cooking dinner is totally worth it!

Uh-oh! I don't even care that there are crushed cheerios everywhere, this little activity gave me 30 minutes!

Love these boys!

Cue a few scary one month pictures...babies this age just aren't too photogenic! Scary eyes and all! But we love our little Bo Show and think he is pretty cute!

Luke at one month

He's a total chick magnet...watch out ladies!

Calling All Mamas...

2011-07-25T12:38:00.001-05:00

Meet my eldest son...

Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde (you can see both in this picture right?)

I knew it was coming...I have been waiting...the time is now officially upon us.

Dr. Jekyll: AKA Luke-loves his "BABEEE", is super duper helpful, gives kisses to the baby, hugs, wants to help feed him and is genuinely excited to see him each morning and throughout the day. These are the heart melting moments.

Mr. Hyde: AKA Lucifer-hits baby on his head, pulls his hair, wants to do trust falls on to the baby, and is overall too rough with the baby. All of these antics are done typically while I am nursing the baby and Mr Hyde/Lucifer looks at me and watches for my reaction while he hits etc.

I know he just wants my attention and is jealous. I know that at heart I really have Dr. Jekyll/Luke, and in all honesty I have my nice sweet boy much more often than I have my challenging one....but the challenging moments can get a little scary. I learned last week that disciplining didn't get the desired result nearly as quickly as taking a moment away from the baby to show love and affection and attention to Luke, but the reality is that I can't always take those moments away when I am feeding the baby and I need for Luke to realize that his actions aren't acceptable. I don't want to give bad behavior too much attention, because that is reinforcing the behavior, but I also don't want to ignore it completely and have him think it is okay.

So, I need some advice. Mamas of 2 under 2 (or any age for that matter)...any ideas/thoughts? How did you handle these issues. I am not a proponent of spanking just to be clear, but I do need some suggestions, words of wisdom, success stories...and maybe to hear that it gets better? :)

What It's All About

2011-07-22T14:42:00.002-05:00

Brotherly Love...this is what makes life great!

These moments melt my heart...

Motherhood Take Two...

2011-07-19T19:45:00.001-05:00

Before I was a mom, I was a REALLY good parent...meaning I could easily spot all the things other people were doing wrong with their kids...then I became a mom and realized I had been a fool. I realized that you do what you have to do to survive.

I have had friends tell me that I give great advice when it comes to parenting or babies or whatever, truthfully I never believed it. Now, I know for sure that it isn't the case, I am clueless. I just got LUCKY folks. I had a EASY baby, don't hate me. A baby that loved to sleep (and still does), a baby that rarely cried except when hungry, a baby that only cried through the night when he was sick (and that wasn't until he was 10 months old). I got LUCKY. He breastfed the first time I put him to the breast, and while we had a few beginning hiccups the first few weeks, it was pretty much a seamless transition. He ate, he grew, he got fat, we were all happy.

I didn't understand moms who said that "breastfeeding didn't work out" I secretly thought they just didn't try hard enough or maybe they didn't like the uncertainty of it all, that they preferred knowing exactly how much their baby was eating, maybe they were control freaks. After all, breastfeeding was easy, right? My apologies ladies...I get it now. I didn't realize how lucky I really got the first time around, and that's exactly what it was LUCK. I now am realizing that sometimes no matter how much you work, how hard you try, or how much you try to will something in to being, sometimes it just doesn't go to plan. Seems that little Bowen might be a big flashing message to me from God that I am not in control, that I need to learn flexibility. This message has been coming loud and clear since January in the form of a high risk pregnancy, a breech baby and subsequent c section, and now a baby that just doesn't want to breastfeed. Apparently, I haven't been listening. I am ready to listen now.

I haven't totally give up control yet, but I am coming close. I am realizing that sometimes "breast is NOT best" contrary to what all the experts say. What is best is being a mom that I can be proud of, one that has the time and energy to devote to my active 20 month old and one that has the time to nurture my 2.5 week old, not the kind of mom that is exhausted with breastfeeding, pumping and bottle feeding. Something has to give. I wish the issue would correct itself, and it still may, but the lactation people have one more chance to salvage things and then we are going to have to move on to hopefully greener pastures. The bottom line is that I want to enjoy my babies, and anything that takes away that joy and creates stress, just isn't worth it, no matter the potential health benefits.

I know this is a lot of information to share, but it has come to my attention recently that a lot more people read this blog than I ever realized. A lot of other mamas out there, or soon to be mamas. There is a lot of pressure these days to breastfeed. I feel it. It's partly why I want it to work out so much. I feel like I need someone to tell me that it is okay if it doesn't work out and that I have given it every chance that I can. So instead, I am telling anyone reading this that if you are struggling, have struggled or may potentially struggle with breastfeeding and you have tried as much as you feel necessary and don't think you want to continue, it is okay. You are a good mother and breastfeeding does not define motherhood, the relationship you have or will have with your child, and your child will grow up happy, healthy and secure, I did. Now if I can only heed my own advice!

Updates

2011-07-17T14:27:00.000-05:00

It's been a busy week around here. We are continuing to adjust well and are consistently amazed by Luke's ~~interest~~ obsession with Bowen. Bo is going to be one tough kid...while Luke loves to hug and kiss Bowen almost constantly, he can be a little rough in his attempts to help "burp" him, he tries to roll over him, kicks him in the head while he is feeding, and overall is just a little confused that Bowen isn't his personal jungle gym. Bowen already pushes his hands and arms out to protect his little body and yesterday actually rolled over (I think it must have been a fluke) to escape one of Luke's sloppy kisses. I am going to have some great blackmail material some day!

Everyday gets a little bit easier, but I can't help but feel it would be much easier if I could just sprout another set of arms! I have to remind myself that we have TWO babies...not really a kid and a baby, but TWO babies! It is very fun though and I can't picture it being any other way.

Uncle Aaron came in to town for a quick 24 hours this week for my grandma's services and was able to play with Luke (while I got to shower!) and meet Bowen. We are super excited that he and his entire family will be back the beginning of August for a week!

We are definitely much lazier this go around with documenting Bowen's first moments...I feel a little guilty. We have taken maybe 5 pictures since we came home from the hospital. Hopefully I can get a little better this week about capturing some fun moments.

Here are just a few pictures from the last few weeks....

Dr. Luke before we left the hospital

Big Brother helping with Bo's first bath

Loves the water!

Snuggling with Daddy

The greatest OB. We adore our doctor and are so blessed that she was able to deliver both our babies!

Swimming with Daddy at Mimi and Granddad's pool

Uncle Aaron is way more fun than Mom!

Celebrating Grandma Hovel's life

Newborn Photos

2011-07-17T14:17:00.000-05:00

Last week our good friend Bethany Good took some newborn and family photos for us! She did a great job. Here are a few of my favorites!

Dorothy (Bowen) Hovel 1921-2011

2011-07-12T21:23:00.000-05:00

I couldn't help but post a few pictures that we have been sorting through from my Grandma's things...here a few of my favorites, I will try not to get carried away!

My grandparents on their Honeymoon

Grandma pregnant with my dad

The Circle of Life

2011-07-10T20:28:00.002-05:00

Yesterday afternoon my sweet 90 year old Grandma passed away with my Dad by her side. She had been suffering from dementia for many years and the last three and half months her quality of life had declined tremendously. While we are happy that she is now at peace and has her mind back, we are saddened by her passing. She has been praying "for the good Lord to take her home" for quite some time and it makes me feel peaceful that her wish was finally granted.

Friday we got a call from hospice that she didn't have much time remaining, and so I was able to take Bowen to meet his Great Grandma and namesake. The last time my Grandma opened her eyes and spoke was when I placed Bowen on her chest....she opened her eyes, placed her hand on his head and said "he's beautiful." I can't imagine a better memory to take with me for the remainder of my life. I am so happy that she was able to meet her fourth great grandson. I feel so blessed that she was able to meet both my children. I am confident that Bowen will help live out her legacy.

It has been remarkable to watch in the past week both the beginning and ending of life, the state of how we enter this world is often very similar to how we leave.

My Grandma gave of herself very unselfishly. She and my Grandpa were house parents at the Milton Hershey School where they helped raise orphaned boys in a group home for twenty years. She loved to sing and was a part of a variety show in her younger years. She had an eccentric and eclectic taste in clothing, jewelry and decorating and loved arts and crafts. She will always be remembered for her "sayings" and the way she often confused words that sounded similar, for example: "He was a very extinguished gentleman, " "This RV on my arm is uncomfortable" (instead of IV), "they had to do the Hemlock remover"...the list goes on and on. She was sweet as can be and she always claimed that "good things come in small packages" after all she was only 4'8.

With Luke at his Baptism

Mother's Day 2010

Meeting Bowen on Friday

I will always remember her fondly. We love you Grandma and we are grateful that you are finally at peace and no longer suffering.

Couldn't Ask For More

2011-07-09T10:45:00.001-05:00

One week in to our family of four and the thought that Drew and I each have each night when we go to sleep (for 3 hours stretches) is that we couldn't ask for more. We feel so incredibly blessed to have two healthy, beautiful baby boys. Luke has been a dream come true this week. I never in my wildest dreams would have thought he would handle the first week of being a big brother with such grace, fun and love. He has never been in to other babies at daycare or interested in our friends' babies, but there must be something different for him when it comes to his baby brother because he is obsessed with him. Each morning he comes racing down the stairs yelling "BABY" he then runs to the nursery, pulls down the bumper so he can see Bowen and puts his hand in the crib and waves yelling "Hi Baby!" He brings us blankets, burp cloths, binkies, bottles, you name it to try and be helpful without being asked. He is just as sweet as can be. He has grown up tremendously and we are so incredibly proud!

We have learned a lot of parenting lessons this week as well. Rule number 1) Just because this isn't our first rodeo doesn't mean we have it all figured out or have a clue what we are doing (I wasn't really expecting that) 2) all kids are very different and we can't compare our little men. There have been many more but those are the biggies.

Bowen is a great baby, he loves to sleep, cuddle and is very mellow, not much of a crier. So far he has been nearly perfect. Our biggest obstacle is that he is having a very difficult time nursing. I wasn't sure I was going to share all the troubles we have had this week on the blog, but after talking to a few friends I realized that lots of women struggle with nursing. As women we aren't very good about sharing our struggles, we are more apt to share our successes and hide behind the things that don't always go to plan. So I am going to throw it out there that this week has been rough as far as feeding is concerned and pretty emotional for me. I can't quite put my finger on why nursing is so important to me. Of course there are the obvious health reasons for the baby, but let's be honest, formula fed babies turn out just fine, most of us in my generation have at least! There is just an emotional factor to it all, and I desperately hope that we can work it out. Right now we are bottle feeding pumped milk, which means that I try to breastfeed without success, then have to pump, then have to feed a bottle which is very time consuming especially with an almost 20 month old watching. All the hormones certainly haven't helped. We have taken a few days off from even trying and will get back to it again this weekend. I am still holding out hope that the little man will take to it, but if he doesn't it will be okay. I just never in a million years thought that breastfeeding would be hard the second time around, I was prepared for it with Luke, but this time I just thought it would be easy especially since it went so well the first time around.

The important thing is that our little man is doing great, he is snuggly and cute as can be and we are falling more in love with him each day. We couldn't ask for more, we are richly blessed and I couldn't be happier.

We haven't taken out the real camera this week so these pics are just courtesy of the iphone plus one sneak peek from a newborn session we had yesterday with our good friend Bethany Good, of Bethany Good Photography, google her, she rocks. We were hoping for some great sibling pictures[
yesterday but Luke decided to have his first real toddler moment since the Bo Show's arrival, in all honesty the pictures of all of us smiling and Luke screaming will probably be more funny looking back anyway! :)

Heading home from the hospital!

Luke enjoying some watermelon on the 4th of July! He had to be hosed off after!

Such a snuggle bug!

Bowen meeting his Great Grandma and namesake. Unfortunately, Grandma is not doing well again and may not have much time left.

The Bo Show! Love this picture! Thanks Bethany!

Luke and Bowen

2011-07-02T21:17:00.000-05:00

What do you think? Do they look alike?

Luke 11/13/09

Bowen 7/1/11

Answered Prayers

2011-07-02T21:07:00.000-05:00

It is with very full hearts that we share the birth of our second son, Bowen Charles Keller! Bowen was born at 7:56am on Friday July 1st. He weighed in at a surprising 8 lbs 1 oz (considering he was 9 days early) and a tiny 18 inches long (Thank goodness he wasn't a week late like his big brother or I could have had a 9 lb baby!)!

We have spent many months praying and hoping that the little man would join us in late June or early July and that he would be born healthy. I am touched by the number of people that have kept our family and this little precious bundle in their prayers over the last 6 months. Thank you so much! Bowen is proof that God answers our prayers! Not only is he sweet and mellow as can be, but he is also a very healthy little man!

Bowen Charles is named after both sides of our family. Bowen is my Grandma Hovel's maiden name and Charles is a family name for 6 generations in Drew's family. This little guy has big shoes to fill but I am certain he is up to the task! So far he is quite the rock star!

I must admit that after all of my dismay over having a c section it really was 100% fine and nothing to fear. It was a very different experience than my delivery with Luke but really none less special. Everything happened very quickly, it was kind of like an out of body experience in some ways, but I didn't feel nearly as disconnected from the delivery as I had feared. From the time our OB came in to the OR for the delivery to the time I first saw little Bowen it was probably just over 5 minutes and 15 minutes after his birth I was headed back to the recovery room to hold him.

Bowen, immediately after birth, looked just like his big brother Luke, except with chunkier legs and lighter hair that isn't quite as thick as Luke's was. We are undecided right now on how much the two boys look alike. We can certainly tell they are brothers but they seem different to us. Bowen is mellow, so far, just like his brother and loves to sleep and snuggle. I forgot how sweet little baby sounds are!

The greatest part of yesterday was when Luke came to the hospital to meet Bowen. We had very low expectations for how Luke would respond. We were fully prepared that he would be far more interested in my IV, the machines in the hospital room etc. than in his baby brother. We figured he wouldn't pay much attention to the baby. We were completely mistaken. Luke was completely in awe of the baby. He "pet" his head/hair, pointed out his various body parts, kissed him, hugged him, studied him, replaced his binky, spoke in a soft high pitched voice to him and was just overall very engaged. Today when he walked in the room he pointed and yelled "Baby!" It completely melted my heart to watch Luke interact with Bowen, he is going to be an amazing big brother. I am so proud of him.

I feel so incredibly lucky to have two healthy, adorable baby boys. I couldn't have dreamed for more in my life. I didn't know I could be in love with three men at a time, but I was wrong; I couldn't be more in love with Drew, Luke and Bo even if I tried!

We are hopeful that we will head home Monday and will keep everyone posted as we all get settled back in at home!

Without further ado...here are some of Bowen's first pics!

Last night as an only child! (Excuse the blurriness, it was so humid the lens fogged over!)

First Glimpse of Bowen!

Love Luke's expression here

"Petting Baby"

The loves of my life!

Group Kiss!

It's the End of the World As We Know It...

2011-06-26T20:43:00.000-05:00

and I feel (mostly) fine! All weekend I kept thinking to myself that this is the end of a great era...the Drew, Sarah and Luke era. Honestly, I feel a little sad, but mostly really excited, because I know that we are on the verge of a brand new era with our baby boy joining our family and I know it is going to be great!

I have been cherishing all the moments with Luke. The great part of having been off of work this last month is that I haven't had the stresses of work, the time commitments of work and I have gotten to spend more days with Luke than normal. He has become such a little snuggler especially at night (for a long time he was way too independent to snuggle much). He pats my back and reaches for my hand when we are cuddling before bed and he loves to get his little face right up next to mine. It seems that even in the last few weeks he has matured a lot. He is trying to do more tasks independently and we are picking up more and more language from him. He loves to run races (starting with yelling "ready, set go!"), play ring around the rosie (he mostly just hums randomly and spins in circles and then yells "all fall down!"), he counts to three before doing something fun (like trying to climb over the dogs), he is enamored with the dogs...he takes them treats and tries to wrestle with them, we are working on him not pulling their hair (or mine for that matter), and he just giggles constantly. He has his "toddler moments" of being extremely demanding (which is a little daunting to us right now with a baby just around the corner) but overall Luke is such a joy. We have absolutely adored having him as our only and first child. He is a parents' dream, or at least this mama's!

It makes me feel a bit nostalgic that he won't be our only child anymore, but I am so thrilled that he will have a sibling to share his childhood and hopefully a lifetime with. Our baby is so lucky to have him as a big brother. I know there will be moments when he pulls baby brother's hair, tries to poke his eyes out like he does his doll, steal his binky etc., but for the most part I believe that in time Luke will be just great and the idea of watching them play together over the years excites me.

It's hard to believe the time is upon us for this new chapter! Next week this house will be full of little voices, dirty diapers and likely some overwhelmed parents! In the mean time, here's to our first baby...the joy of our lives!

Clarity

2011-06-23T09:35:00.001-05:00

It is amazing what a good night's rest can do for peace of mind and clarity. I awakened this morning feeling at peace with our son's upcoming birth and to many kind emails, texts and voicemails. Thank you so much for all your support and prayers. We are a very blessed family to be surrounded by so much love. I have talked to a few friends who have had c sections (and also have toddlers at home) and I feel much better overall about the recovery and have gotten some great tips on caring for Luke. A birth day is simply that, the day someone is born, and while a huge and exciting day it doesn't come close to measuring up to the sum of each and every day from that point forward.

Now, I am just excited to meet our little man, welcome him with open arms and introduce him to everyone! Hopefully he stays put until next Friday morning at 7:30! Thank you again for all your love and support!

The Rolling Stones

2011-06-22T13:24:00.000-05:00

They said it best folks..."you can't always get what you want."

This morning we went for the version, and as you can probably guess, it was not successful. We started off with the most thorough ultrasound I have had in either pregnancy. One positive from today, we know for certain that we have an extremely healthy little boy from his fingernails, to his kidneys, to his left ventricle, to his parietal lobe you name it, they checked it today and they all looked perfect. He measured in at 7lbs even and his fluid looked great. The perinatologist said everything about him looked perfect and he was a great candidate for a version. I was worried we might not get to try, so I am grateful we at least had the chance. The perinatologist tried for about 10 minutes and the little man just never budged. He would kick at her hands trying to move his bottom and that was about it. His heart rate was perfectly steady the entire time. Despite the medication they gave me to relax the uterus, every time the doctor really tried to move him much my uterus would contract giving him less space to move.

I would be lying if I said I wasn't pretty emotional about the outcome. I went in to it this morning with low expectations but still a hope that he would flip and the finality of knowing that he is staying put and will be born via c section makes me feel really sad. I know millions of babies are born via c section. In fact, of the 10 women or so I know that have had babies since January all but 1 has had to have a c section for a variety of reasons. I know it isn't that big of a deal and I will be fine. I just had such an amazing experience when Luke was born. It is the most favorite day of my life and not just because I got to meet him but because it was fun and exciting and I just loved the experience. It is hard for me to know that I won't get to experience that likely ever again. Even if we have more children, they will likely have to be born via c section. I am totally scared to have the surgery, sad that I won't get to hold our baby right away, worried about the recovery time and worried about not being able to carry Luke around for some time after the surgery. I am already worried about Luke feeling neglected when the baby arrives and this just adds insult to injury. I am sure I will look back and realize it wasn't as bad as I built it up in my mind to be, but I am still disappointed.

I have some time to get over it and I am confident that I will. I just need a couple of days to reset my expectations and come to terms with the inevitable. I vow to not let the method of delivery ruin our son's birth day. This pregnancy hasn't quite been the journey I had hoped for and the delivery won't be either....BUT the positive is that the final outcome will be, and in the end, I know that is all that really matters. So, next week we will be holding our second son and it doesn't get much better than that...that will continue for years to come, while the rest of this will just be a memory of the past.

I thank all of you for your concern, prayers, texts, emails, phone calls etc. It means the world to us! We have had lots of people praying for us; for a healthy baby and for a final somersault, and if I had to choose just one of those prayers to be answered it would most certainly be the healthy baby, so thank you!

Father's Day, Full Term and Flips

2011-06-20T09:24:00.000-05:00

I am a bad mommy...I forgot to take any fun pictures at Father's Day this year! BUT, we had a fabulous weekend! We have managed to cram a lot in to the last few weeks of what we feel may be our last taste of freedom for awhile...we felt this way before Luke too, and still managed to do a lot, but this time we are a little more fearful that we will be home bound for awhile! We shall see!

Saturday we had a group of friends and their kids out to the lake, 5 couples, 6 kids present, 2 more in utero, 3 dogs and lot of BBQ...it was a great way to spend the weekend! Yesterday we enjoyed lots of family and daddy time! I must say that I couldn't dream of a better daddy for my boys, Drew is amazing. He is fun, sensitive, engaged, caring, and rambunctious! The perfect combination. I love watching him with Luke and Luke adores him. Sometimes it annoys me (in jest) how much Luke adores him, but if there were ever a time for him to be a complete and total Daddy's Boy this is it!

My parents spent the weekend in St. Louis so I had a nice lunch with my dad on Friday before they left to celebrate the day.

I am also officially full term as of yesterday, so while I would really like to keep this baby where he is for at least another 7-10 days, he is welcome to join us at any point. It is interesting though, on Friday at my OB appointment she gave me my chart to take to the hospital in case I go in to labor and my due date was listed as June 29th, July 4th AND July 10th....11 days between the first and last, so who on earth knows when this baby is going to arrive. He clearly has a mind of his own!

At my ultrasound all looked great, he is going to be a bigger boy than his brother, especially if he hangs around until July 10th...on Friday at 36 weeks 5 days he weighed in at a whopping 6lbs 12oz...meaning that he is likely going to be 8-8.5 lbs if he stays put...we shall see.

He is still breech, so Wednesday morning I check in to Shawnee Mission for the version. We are keeping our fingers crossed that they can turn him and I can have a natural delivery. BUT, since the beginning of January we have worried about his growth, if I would make it full term, about preeclampsia and several other factors...none of which have come to fruition. So, the bottom line is that if the version is not successful, likely on July 1st I will have a c section and a healthy baby boy. So my recovery is longer, so I need more help with Luke, so I don't get to hold our baby right away...the important thing is that he will be here and will be healthy, the rest I will get over.

Please say a little prayer that the version goes as smoothly as possible on Wednesday. There is always the chance that the baby may not respond well to the procedure and I would have to have a c section right then and there...my prayer is that at my next post I have a head down baby that is still in my belly!

Strength of a Woman

2011-06-15T15:45:00.000-05:00

Since I am going to be highly outnumbered in the Keller household very shortly, I am happy to report that we are at least raising Luke to respect the lady of the house! His new favorite song is Shaggy's Strength of a Woman, smart kid knows a good message when he hears one! All kidding aside, the kid goes nuts when the song comes on! This video doesn't really do it justice because it was captured while driving last Saturday and the binky hides the smile, but you get the point. The kid loves to dance and knows his mama is one tough cookie! ;)

Desperate Times...

2011-06-15T08:56:00.000-05:00

Call for desperate measures. That's right folks...I have officially quite possibly gone off the deep end in my attempts to turn this baby. I have done headstands, laid on an ironing board at a reverse 45 degree angle, played music to the baby, put frozen peas on his head, swam in the deep end of the pool and done flips and now this....

What on earth is going on here you may ask...this is Chinese Medicine folks. That's right I have resorted to burning Moxa on acupuncture point Bladder 67 in an attempt to turn my baby. I have officially become either a hippy or down right insane. But, I have some time on my hands and what do I have to lose?...everything to gain. If it doesn't work, I am in no worse shape than I started.

Thanks to my friend Bethany Good who is now moonlighting for me as a Chinese Medicine Dr. We have been burning Moxa during the kids' naps the last few days...Moxa smells like...well let's just say the neighbors might be getting ready to call CPS on the mom's getting high in the backyard during nap time.

Hoping for a Break!

2011-06-10T13:25:00.004-05:00

Well...if United didn't drop us last week, we gave them further reason this week...seriously? I know. Let me just clarify, after last week's post my mom actually thought that we had received notification from United that they were considering dropping our coverage...I was only kidding around, and I am very aware that our recent health issues are extremely trivial compared to many people suffering out there.

Drew left town this week for a work trip and even though in my head I felt confident I wouldn't have this baby while he was gone, I was still a little nervous, especially considering I am still heading for a c section with this breech baby. Luke and I had a great day on Wednesday playing with friends and relaxing together but as the day progressed Luke started to have a severe allergy attack. I honestly didn't think much of it because it seems every time he is on antibiotic for his ears he seems to get a lot of congestion about a week in. By the time bedtime rolled around I noticed he was wheezing a little bit but I thought it was just the nasal congestion so I suctioned him out and put him to bed. I went to check on him a few times and the wheezing was getting louder, finally I lifted up his shirt and saw that his chest was retracting significantly. So I scooped him up and took him to Children's Mercy at about 11pm. By the time we got to their waiting room Luke had very shallow, fast breathing and a lot of retraction. They skipped the check in process and took us immediately back to see the doctor. Luke got some steroids and a breathing treatment, which he hated. The last time he had breathing treatments he loved them because they made him feel so much better (in fact, after the first one he signed "more please"), but this time he screamed bloody murder and fought us the entire time. When we left 3 hours later, Luke had a "diagnosis" of asthma and I had been "trained" (I use that word very loosely) on how to manage his asthma and left with an action plan and 4 prescriptions which I was told needed to be filled immediately so I could use them at home if he struggled with his breathing again that night. So my 9 month, pregnant tired, a@* hauled my 19 month old child who was jazzed up on steroids to the 24 hour CVS at 2:15 in the morning. Awesome. To the inconsiderate, slow, rude pharmacist who "helped" us in a record 60 minutes (the prescriptions had been sent over 25 minutes before we even arrived), I have a call in to your manager, you should be ashamed of yourself. Let's just say that after exhaustedly trying to contain Luke for the first 30 minutes in the store, I finally allowed him to create total chaos, pulling things off shelves, running through the isles, trying to open bags of candy anything to irritate the guy enough so he would want us out of the store, I didn't work very hard to clean up the mess before we left either, and I don't feel badly about it now either.

After just a couple of hours of sleep, Luke woke up struggling to breathe again, so I went to give him his inhaler. The same inhaler the respiratory therapist at the hospital told me it would take 2 people to administer; one to hold the child down, the other to give the meds. Sounds pretty realistic, right? Who thinks up these kind of instructions? Anyway, I was NOT successful, my mom came over to help and we were only partially successful. It is awful to watch your child struggling to breathe, have medicine that can help them, but not be able to get the medicine IN him. So I called the pediatrician and said I needed a lot more training to administer these meds. So we spent nearly 3 hours yesterday morning at the pediatrician. That session included 15 minutes of pure hell while me and the nurse held down my again steroid jazzed child (who was unrecognizable to me at this point) who was flailing, thrashing, arching, kicking, punching, pulling and screaming while we tried to administer a breathing treatment. I am pretty sure he scared off the super full waiting room of kids who heard him screaming bloody murder for 15 LONG minutes. I would like to point out that Luke is probably the most laid back kid, 90% of the time, I have never seen him act like this.

The good news is that I have found a way to give Luke his medicine, by myself, although my mother in law was gracious enough to help me twice yesterday. Luke is breathing well, he is back at daycare today so I can finally "rest" and put my feet up...almost forgot about those doctor's orders!

I am really bummed that it appears Luke has asthma, I am hopeful that it is a minor case and that since we have medicine and know warning signs now that we can control it and not have a middle of the night trip to the hospital or any other time for that matter. I had asthma as a kid, and I had hoped that that wouldn't be one of the things I passed on to Luke...seems that poor kid has inherited all the things I don't really care for in myself...hopefully he will get a few positive things too!

The great news is that I am still pregnant and only 9 days from a full term pregnancy, 37 weeks! The biophysical this morning went great, baby is still breech but my amniotic fluid was better which is important to help him turn. If he hasn't turned by my appointment next Friday we will schedule a version at the hospital for the week of June 20th, if that is not successful then I will have a c section July 1st.

I feel like I have been asking for an awful lot in my prayers lately, for Luke's health, the baby's health, to not go in to labor, to have the baby flip, to not have a baby with Drew out of town. I need to be grateful for the small successes and the answered prayers and not focus so much on the c section possibility, especially. The most important thing is that we have a healthy delivery and baby. Hopefully in the next month we will all 4 be home with two healthy kiddos and all these things will just be a memory and we will be figuring how to manage 2 under 2...that's when the funny versus the dramatic posts will most certainly begin!

We have spent the last 2 weekends at the lake and are working on acclimating Luke to the water again...

Luke has been hilarious and ornery lately...his favorite thing to say is "Don't do that" while shaking his head...which makes me realize that we have been saying THAT too much! Oops! He is in to everything, but does love to be helpful and bring us our keys, shoes, phones etc. He is such a sponge and absorbs everything, both good and bad!, and I love watching it. He has a new baby doll that he is practicing with, he is going to be a great big brother!

Ode to United Healthcare

2011-06-03T09:35:00.000-05:00

It is ~~weeks~~ months(!) like this that I am grateful to not be one of the millions of Americans without health insurance. Lord Have Mercy, United Healthcare is going to drop our family come 2012. It is RIDICULOUS! Between this semi eventful pregnancy, Luke's never ending head cold/ear infections/tubes/breathing issues and Drew's back problems we have been giving the old insurance card a WORKOUT. I can think of many years where the card never left my wallet...now it is positioned before my driver's license and debit card...you think I am kidding...I am not! In the last 10 days Luke has been to the pediatrician 3 times...not that unusual (before you go thinking I am some hypochondriac mother, I can assure you that I am not...I will do most anything before going to the doctor...our little man just cannot catch a break), I have been to the OB 3 times and to Shawnee Mission hospital 3 times. I wish I could say we are coming out of it, but Luke has a horrible ear infection, despite the tubes, that isn't responding to ear drops so he is BACK on another oral antibiotic and has been running a 103.9 degree fever, which is compounded by a reaction from the MMR vaccination. I think we may have finally had a break in the fever this morning, but the little man won't let me get further than 2 inches from him before he begins to cry and needs to be held/snuggled (as much as I love when he is snuggly, it is growing increasingly more challenging to hold him on my lap and cuddle with him as Baby Boy is taking up almost all of our room). As I sit here, I am having contractions and drinking gallons of water by the minute to try to relax things. I won't get in to Drew's back issues, but he hasn't been the healthiest of his life this spring either. Even if our family's overall health improves, having a baby definitely increases our overall utilization of our insurance. I am really excited for the day that we go more than 2 weeks without a doctor visit! This too shall pass, right?

So, United Healthcare, as much as I despise your twenty dollar co pays at times, I am thankful for your unfailing support this year...we aren't even halfway through 2011, please don't drop us...we promise (???) next year will be better! (at least I hope so!)

Biophysical profile this morning for Baby Boy was fine, he passed in a just a few minutes...still breech and hanging tough, apparently he hates gymnastics. I think I have about 2 weeks left for him to do this on his own before we check in to the hospital for a version. I haven't heard the greatest stories about versions, but I am willing to endure a little pain on the front end if it means we can avoid a c section. The great news is that we are one week further along and he is that much stronger than last week...hoping for a minimum of 16 more days with him in my belly!

Early Matirement

2011-05-28T08:41:00.000-05:00

Well....Baby Boy is definitely keeping things interesting for us this pregnancy. I think he must be concerned that he is going to be sharing the spotlight with Luke when he arrives and so he is trying to steal as much attention as possible right now.

Yesterday I had my Biophysical profile and 34 week OB appt. The biophysical went great, Baby Boy passed in record time and looked great...other than the fact that he is still breech, frank breech at that, meaning that his arms, legs/feet and head are all up between my ribs...not too comfortable. At my OB appt I mentioned to her that I had been having contractions in the last few days so she decided to check if there is any "progress." I will spare you the details, but needless to say, Baby Boy seems to be possibly making his move earlier than desired. So, my OB told me that yesterday was my last day of work. I am supposed to take it easy and keep my feet up...not on official bed rest, hopefully I can avoid that, but definitely need to not be driving 1-2 hours away each morning for work and standing on my feet and lifting like I have been. Additionally, she sent me over to the hospital to get a steroid shot to help with Baby Boy's lung development should he come earlier than 37 weeks. I go for the second shot today. At the hospital they also hooked me up to the monitor to track Baby Boy's heart rate and my contractions. I had about 3-4 bigger contractions in 45 minutes...they want less than 6 in an hour. So I got to go home at about 6pm last night with list of preterm labor signs/symptoms.

I am feeling much better today. I can't believe that I am off work until this baby arrives...hopefully it is a long 6 more weeks! In the mean time, please pray that this little guy stays put for another three weeks and continues to grow and get stronger and healthier, every day is a blessing. We really want to be able to bring him home right away from the hospital. Feel free to add a little sugar on top to those prayers if you have time...we need one final somersault from this little man...mama doesn't want a C Section!

New Room and Baby Boy Update

2011-05-21T11:51:00.000-05:00

Luke has adjusted really well to his new room upstairs! We are so happy it has gone smoothly. Below are a few pics of his transportation room, nothing spectacular, but he seems to really enjoy all the space he has to play. There is now room in the evening for Luke, mom, dad, and both dogs, plus toys! We recycled quite a few items for his room...the table and chairs were my mom's when she was growing up that we sanded a painted, the book shelf Drew's dad made him when he was child that we also painted and the shelf on the wall was in my room as a kid! He loves the decals on the wall and I don't have to worry about him pulling something heavy down off the wall in to his crib with him! It only took about 2 minutes of coloring at the table for him to draw on the wall with crayon....awesome!

Unfortunately, the little man isn't feeling very well this weekend. He had a rough night and Drew took him to the pediatrician this morning because we felt Luke wasn't breathing well, and right now he is getting a steroid shot and a breathing treatment, poor little man.

Yesterday we had another biophysical and growth scan, and our second little man seems to be doing well. He had chunked up 2 lbs since our last growth scan and came in at 4lbs 10 oz. I feel really good about his size and will be especially happy once we know he is over the 5.5lb mark. The only down side to the scan yesterday was that he is still breech and my amniotic fluid was a little low, still in the normal range, but much lower than the previous week. Apparently it can fluctuate quite a bit and the measurement isn't exact so hopefully next week we will be back on track...until then it looks like I will be drinking lots of water and standing on my head in hopes of a better report next week!

18 Months

2011-05-15T16:20:00.002-05:00

This weekend we set out to take some 18 Month and Family pictures with Luke! I have to admit that when I envisioned these pictures I thought it would be 80 degrees, sunny and that Luke would be "Luke." Well, reminder number 5000 that parenting doesn't always go according to "Mom's plan" occurred instead. Our original plan to take pictures at an abandoned farm got scratched because it was rainy and muddy earlier in the week, so we went to an amazing backup location, Loose Park, one of my favorite KC spots on Saturday morning. You would have never known that just 3 days earlier it was 95 and sunny here in KC (and I will admit I was kind of complaining about that too because it scared me for June will be like big huge and pregnant). Yesterday morning it was 45, breezy, cloudy and just down right cold and Luke let us know all about it! He was not up for pictures, and who could blame the poor little guy! Our usually sunny, happy, giggly, excited 18 month old was transformed into a cranky, whiny little man that could only be comforted by his daddy, and I will admit that this mama might not have been in the greatest of spirits either! All that being said, our great friend Bethany Good (check out her photography website (BethanyGoodPhotography.com), she rocks!) still managed to capture some amazing pics of our little family of three going on four. To see a few of our pics check out this link! http://matbethany.blogspot.com/2011/05/k-family-sneak-peek.html Thank you so much Bethany, you are so talented and we really appreciate you putting up with us yesterday!

In other 18 month news, Luke made the big move this weekend to his new room and he did amazing! He hasn't tried once to go back to his old room and he slept a great 12 hours last night and a wonderful 2.5 hour nap this afternoon! Yesterday's nap was shorter than normal, but after last night and today I feel totally confident that he is content! He made it super easy on us! I will post some pictures of his new room soon, I still have a few pictures I want to hang up and to be honest I am feeling too lazy right now to go take pictures of it! Right now the nursery is littered with all of Luke's outgrown clothes that I am sorting through and all of the baby stuff is slowly migrating back up from the basement to prepare for Baby Boy! This little man will be here before we know it!

All Grown Up!

2011-05-13T12:57:00.002-05:00

Earlier this week after watching Luke pick up a napkin, walk over and wipe my face, then walk over to the trash can and throw the napkin away I said to Drew "oh my gosh, he's all grown up" to which Drew replied "not really babe, he doesn't wipe his own butt". So that is true, we are far from potty training, but in many other facets I feel like every day Luke becomes a boy instead of a baby. I guess it's a good thing because the little man needs to do a lot of growing up here in the next 6-8 weeks! This weekend we will begin the "big exodus" to the upstairs...something I think I may be more anxious about than Luke! I am mostly worried about disrupting his amazing sleep...I don't want to interfere with our 12 hour nights and long afternoon nap!Luke began sitting at the dinner table with a place mat and plate this week and was ecstatic to do it like mom and dad! He brushes his hair, cleans up his face after meals, likes to pretend wash his hair in the bath, use a fork, fill his own water bottle with ice and water, and many other fun things! It's so gratifying to watch him mature and grow! These last 18 months have been amazing and I couldn't be more proud of our sweet little man.

Last weekend Drew went a little crazy at Toys R Us...and Luke basically walked out with the store...but I know all his fun new toys will help when Baby Boy arrives. Luke is now the proud owner of a water station, sandbox (with a million toys), pool, soccer goal, basketball goal, swing, and a few other items I can't recall right now. We had a great time watching him explore them all last weekend...the water station is by far his favorite!

Checking out all my fun sand toys!

With Mimi and Daddy on Mother's Day

Mother's Day

My new Water Station...we had to fill it 3 times on Sunday because Luke watered all the plants in the yard with the water many times!

Eating at the table for the first time, so grown up!

Terribly out of focus...but this is Luke's new face when he sees a camera...."CHEESE!!!!"

We had a nice Mother's Day with both sides of the family and enjoyed the gorgeous weather. I am so lucky to be Luke's mom, he brings so much joy to our lives!

Things are good with Baby Boy, the last few biophysicals have all been great, next week is the growth scan and I am anxious to see how his growth has progressed over the last month. I am so grateful we have made it to this stage in the pregnancy and that he is getting all the womb time he needs to be healthy and strong on arrival. The only hiccup is that he is still breech, he has a little time (and a little room!) remaining to make the big flip, but we are getting down to the wire...please say some prayers that he goes tumbling soon!

Can We Build It?

2011-05-01T13:39:00.002-05:00

In the kind words of Bob the Builder, YES WE CAN (well sort of...with some help)! So the bathroom project (see last week's post) is mostly complete!...along with a heavy dose of reality! I wanted all the aesthetic changes to make the bathroom look "new"...best way to do that though I have learned it to just tear the sucker down to the studs! Since that wasn't an option, our bathroom budget went mostly to behind the scenes work-replacing a rotted, leaky window, replacing corroded and leaky plumbing and adding valves and other things I don't really understand, patching and painting the ceiling, and adding an exhaust fan. None of these things make a bathroom look very cute, but they sure are necessary! Before you go getting all impressed...we didn't do all of these things on our own, we had some help and left the plumbing and window placement to the professionals! It is amazing what some new light fixtures, mirrors and a fresh coat of paint can do however to help transform blah into voila!

Now, we are almost ready to move Luke upstairs to his new digs...hopefully he adjusts well, because there is no going back now!

The little man is doing great, so happy, giggly, inquisitive and chatty. He tells us the longest, most dramatic stories and laughs at the things he is telling us...too bad we know very little of what the stories entail....we play along though with the hope that soon it will all come together!

Question of the Week

2011-04-26T21:56:00.004-05:00

Can you transform a 1974 bathroom to a 2011 bathroom on a shoestring budget....we are talking wood rot, mold, rust, the whole nine yards...Three years ago when we bought this house and (nearly) completely renovated it...we purposely skipped the upstairs...because after all we wouldn't need any of the space for a really LONG time...well it looks like that LONG awaited time is upon us a little quicker than expected!

We will let you know in the next week or two if it can be accomplished...in the mean time, anyone interested in this lovely chain light fixture in the above photo....it is a beauty! Don't get your heart set on those lovely spindles that serve no purpose....those have to stay :( Our first lovely surprise of the day...underneath that massive mirror (seriously it is 92 inches wide) is some gorgeous shiny gold wallpaper...it just gets better and better! And, when you take apart the shower components and find tons of hair in the parts that doesn't belong to you or anyone in your family it is really, really, really gross....never knew hair could get BEHIND the faucet in the bathtub. I pray the next photos you see of this bathroom are slightly improved.

Easter!

2011-04-24T20:34:00.000-05:00

Happy Easter! We had a great day at the Keller house...what was supposed to be a rainy day turned in to a beautiful Easter and we took the opportunity for Luke to do a mini Easter egg hunt, go to church, get THREE Easter baskets and enjoy the afternoon with both sides of our family!

Luke didn't eat much Easter dinner, but he sure did enjoy treats all day...tomorrow may be one of the first days where I am actually glad he has to go to daycare to work off all the sugar and they can deal with his tummy issues!

We had lots of fun and continue to enjoy our little man's lifted spirits since his tube surgery!

Ready to start looking for eggs!

Found the first egg!

This is so exciting!

What's inside?

Rigley wants in on the action!

My new book from Nonni...getting ready for my baby brother!

Easter SUCCESS!

Thursday I had my first growth scan and Baby Boy 2 is looking good! He measured in at 2lbs 12 oz which is right at the 50th percentile. They believe that if all continues at this pace we are looking at another 7.5 pound baby which I would be thrilled about! For the next 3 Fridays I will have biophysical profiles to check on this little man and make sure that all continues to trend positively and then I will have another growth scan on May 20th to check in on how he is growing! We are feeling really positive that this little guy will wait until the end of June beginning of July to join our little family. We want to keep him cooking as long as possible, but view every passing week as a blessing as he grows stronger!

HYPER!!!

2011-04-17T13:23:00.002-05:00

Well Luke's tube surgery was a definite success! The little man wasn't even remotely phased...he had fun during the pre-op time charming all the nurses and playing with all the toys they provided him and when we reunited with him after the surgery he came around the corner sitting up tall on his little bed with a big smile on his face! The doctor said he removed tons of fluid from Luke's ears and judging by his behavior the last few days we are pretty sure he injected him with hyper juice as a replacement. We are guessing our little man just felt so crummy with all the infections and fluid that now we are finally seeing his true colors! He has more energy than we could have ever imagined...never stops talking, running, spinning, rolling and giggling.

Getting ready to head back for my ear tube surgery, don't I look cute in my little gown?

As a celebration we took him to a Japanese steakhouse for dinner Saturday night (the same place we went the night before I went in to labor with Luke). He loved the fire and the show, though he did reach out to Drew a few times just to be sure he wasn't too far away! He ate like a trooper...steak, shrimp, veggies, rice, ginger salad, soup....all his favorite types of foods (with the exception of blueberries!). We are hoping that now that he finally feels better his appetite will ramp up. Although my 4 foot 8 inch Grandma has always said that good things come in small packages, we are a little concerned with how little our "big" guy is. Although, based on his recent behavior, even if he ate enough for a small army I think he would work the calories off immediately, he NEVER EVER stops! Not that I am at all disappointed, but Luke has NEVER had any interest in sitting down to watch TV, he can't sit still for longer than about 15 seconds, no exaggeration. Finally, just in the last week, he has more interest in sitting down to read a full story.

This week we have our first growth scan for Baby Boy 2 and I am anxious to see how he is growing. Until we have this little man in our arms we will now see him every Friday to make sure that all is progressing as it should. Even though they have been worried about his continued growth, I am thinking that he is HUGE, I feel ginormous!

Third Trimester

2011-04-10T19:43:00.000-05:00

I have officially made it to the third trimester, which I am so grateful for, back in January I had moments when I feared I wouldn't make it, so I am thrilled that this little man is still in my belly, here's to at least 10 more weeks!

I am one of those women that actually enjoys being pregnant for the most part, and I couldn't wait to be pregnant again. That being said, being pregnant with a second child is a very different experience than the first for many reasons, at least for me. The overall excitement and anxiety is just very different and because I have previously experienced it (despite this being a very different pregnancy than with Luke) I don't take the time to relish in all the fun moments, and certainly don't have the time to spend for myself....I honestly feel as though I haven't sat down since I found out I was pregnant. Chasing a toddler with a big ole belly, aching hips and heartburn is a whole new experience! There are no prenatal massages, naps, and pampering for this mama!

Drew has been out of town on a guys trip the last four days, and I have loved all the alone time I have had with Luke. I have said it before, but I try to soak up all of these remaining solo moments with him. Since I work full time I often feel somewhat cheated out of the alone times with him and feel like my mind is always split between work and engagement with Luke, whether I am at home or at work...its hard to feel like I can give either work or parenthood my all, or be as great at either one as I would hope. Having these last few days with Luke to myself just reinforces how much I adore this little man and also made me feel a little anxious that soon there will be two little men in my life...that I know I will equally adore, but have to split my time with. Obviously, I am ecstatic to have our family grow, but it is hard to imagine Luke not being our "baby,"sharing my time and energy with another child and I worry about how Luke will feel when Baby Boy 2 arrives. The great unknown...its what makes expectant parents excited and nervous for Baby 1, and this time those same feelings are reemerging but just for very different reasons. We have an idea what to expect and what parenthood is like (even though every baby is different) but this time I am more nervous about finding balance. Balance between two children, work, our marriage, and a little "me" time, too. Those of you that 3+ kids probably think I am being silly, TONS of people have more than one child and I know that it will all work out great, and I will look back and think how silly I was being at this juncture! There is just something really special about a first child, and I know there will be something so special and unique about our youngest, or maybe someday our middle child. I have just really enjoyed having Luke in the spotlight and it makes me a little sad that he will have to share that, and that Baby Boy 2 will never feel that solo attention that Luke had. Of course, this little guy will have an instant best friend for life (hopefully!) and will always have a play mate! There is give and take with everything.

This weekend I did make some significant progress on Luke's new room....even though I dread moving him upstairs and so far away! My parents helped me paint some furniture and his room and soon we can move on to getting his bathroom ready!

Luke playing fetch with Rigley...he throws it further every day and she amuses him by chasing it and bringing it back!

It's amazing the fun that can be had with old measuring cups and big bowl of water! (Thanks for the idea mom!)

We had great weather and enjoyed lots of time at the park by our house and Luke had his first experiences in a sand box and he loved it! Please pray that Luke's little ear surgery goes smoothly Thursday morning and that he is back to his jolly self just a few hours later!

Busy Week

2011-04-03T20:43:00.001-05:00

This week has been pretty busy for the Keller and Hovel household. First and foremost, my Grandma is still with us. In fact, we were blessed to help her celebrate her 90th birthday on Friday. What a milestone birthday and what a blessing that we could share the day with her. As last week progressed, my Grandma continually improved, to the point that she was very alert, talkative, sitting up in a wheelchair, feeding herself and even trying (though we couldn't allow her) to walk, and even able to hold short coherent conversations. We were really surprised by this turnaround since earlier in the week Hospice had indicated that my Grandma was showing signs of imminent death. By Friday many of those signs were diminishing. We have been blessed to have some very sweet moments with her that are truly gifts. Unfortunately, it seems that over the weekend while her physical health has continued to make drastic improvements, her mental capacity and dementia seem to have equally declined. The positive is that we had such good lucid moments with her last week. It will be interesting to get Hospice's perspective tomorrow, they had indicated last week that Grandma will have highs and lows.

Four generations helping celebrate Grandma's 90th birthday!

Getting ready to blow out her candles!

Luke partaking in Root Beer Floats, Grandma's favorite treat growing up!

Dad and Grandma enjoying her birthday!

Monday, poor Luke was back to the pediatrician with yet another double ear infection, poor sweet baby just can't get a break. Fortunately, Luke qualifies for the Fast Track Clinic at Children's Mercy and we go for our pre-op visit this Tuesday and he has ear tube surgery scheduled for April 14th. Hopefully he will get some relief quickly and start to hear better!

This weekend we also made a lot of headway in getting Luke's new room put together, we assembled furniture, cleaned out the old furniture from the old guest room and did some shopping. This next weekend I have lots of painting to do, but I think we will definitely have his new "transportation and construction" bedroom and "cars" bathroom ready for his big move the middle of May!

We also took time to enjoy the gorgeous warm weather this weekend. Luke loves the outdoors...earlier this week when the weather was cold and rainy he would stand at the door and point and bang on the door wishing to go play outside!

Luke got in to the bird bath (which we had just filled with fresh clean water, no worries) and LOVED the splashing, he was soaked from head to toe!

This face screams I LOVE SUMMER!

Transitions

2011-03-27T13:13:00.001-05:00

Thanks to everyone who has inquired about my Grandma over the last few days. Unfortunately, things are not going as smoothly as we had hoped. While the repair to her hip was successful, Grandma had some difficulty during the surgery and her heart slowed to the point that very little oxygen was reaching her brain. This led to brain damage that has drastically impacted her ability to communicate and complete activities of daily living. After the surgery Thursday we did not anticipate that she would make it through the day, but on Friday morning she rallied. Since that time though, her mental alertness, ability to eat and drink and her movement has declined. Tomorrow she will have to move to a skilled nursing facility, she will never be able to walk again and will likely be bed ridden for the remainder of her life.

It is very difficult to see her in this condition. Truth be told, we lost my Grandma many years ago when her Alzheimer's Disease reached a certain point, but she was still able to carry on conversation and could care for herself and live somewhat independently in Assisted Living. Its sad that something like a fall can so dramatically change the quality of life for someone her age. My heart breaks that this is how her final days will be spent, but I am grateful that she was able to remain in Assisted Living as long as she did. I feel especially sad for my dad who is an only child and carries the responsibility of making such difficult decisions for his only remaining parent. He has been tasked with making many heart wrenching decisions these last few days. Please pray that my Grandma's final moments may be spent in comfort and peace and that we can continue to make the best choices for her.

A Week of Numbers: 61, 25, 16, 1

2011-03-23T21:22:00.000-05:00

It's been a busy week around here! First and foremost, Drew is home safely from Mexico, and claims that Monterrey was actually quite safe and no need for concern.

Luke is growing exponentially (I think I maybe say that each week, but the subsequent week seems to far surpass the previous each time!). His vocabulary is expanding quickly, he is moving faster, becoming more demonstrative, and growing attached to a random object daily (i.e. chap stick, matchbox cars, wooden spoons, certain sets of PJs). He is so much fun and makes us laugh daily. His favorite pastime is anything that involves the outdoors, he constantly wants to go outside to play and explore. He loves to stand in our driveway and watch the cars go by...every time a truck goes by he says "wow" and if a motorcycle goes by he points, and screams "WOW!" He is SUCH a boy!!! Although he is such a boy, he does have quite the flair for the dramatic...we hope we don't have to nickname him "Drama."

As for numbers....this week my mom turned the BIG 61...sorry to out you mom! We had my folks over for dinner, playtime and the KU game on Sunday and Luke had lots of fun! Happy Birthday Nonni!

Chatting on the phone in his big boy chair!

Playing with Nonni...note the wooden spoon (beloved object of the day)

Helping Nonni open her gifts!

Can't have milk before bed without the beloved wooden spoon!

Reading with Nonni!

25...This week marks my 25th week of pregnancy, meaning that this pregnancy is now viable, which is very comforting news. Obviously, we have no desire for this little man to join us anytime soon, but at least we know now that our doctors will take every necessary measure to keep our little man safe if he must be delivered early. I start my weekly monitoring in three weeks and by 28 weeks the risk for complications of preterm delivery start to drop dramatically. We are still hoping though that we have another 41 weeker brewing! In other news, we are pretty much signed, sealed and delivered on this little gentleman's name!

16...The sweet 16...we are very happy that our Jayhawks made it past last weekend and are heading to San Antonio this weekend. We are hoping to survive the dance until April...Luke's new PJs definitely brought our boys in blue good luck last weekend!

Go Jayhawks!

1....Sadly, the number of hips my Grandma broke this morning during an unfortunate fall. Poor, sweet Grandma will be having surgery tomorrow morning. Please keep her in your prayers tomorrow morning and in the upcoming weeks. Unfortunately her rehabilitation could be challenging due to her Dementia/Alzheimer's Disease. Grandma turns 90 next Friday, April 1st.

March Madness!

2011-03-17T20:19:00.000-05:00

We really hope the Jayhawks don't bow out early this year like last year...so far the tournament has been anything but boring...seems anyone can win it this year...that is anyone but my bracket...yikes, this may be my poorest showing of all time!

Sporting our Jayhawk Jammies for good luck!

Sitting up big on bean bag cheering for all the underdogs (except the Jayhawks!)

He looks like such a grown up! He is obsessed with balls...loves to throw them, loves to watch the dogs chase them!

Total mischief, what is he planning next?

The weather here today was gorgeous...about 80 degrees! When I picked Luke up from daycare he was running and playing outside and loving the weather! I think his hair was just a little bit blonder than when I dropped him off this morning, I have a feeling by the end of the summer we will have a little blondie! It is so fun to just take Luke outside and watch him explore now! Big progress of the week is that Luke will finally walk in the grass...last week he would freeze on the grass like his feet were in cement! I was starting to worry he might be one of those kids that doesn't like to get dirty...after watching him play in the dirt today, I, thankfully, have no concerns! What fun is it to have kids if you don't get to play in the mud too?

Luke has been carrying around this orange car everywhere he goes...to daycare, to the grandparents, to bed...also he has been carrying a tube of my chapstick which he pretends to put on his lips constantly!

Luke is still healthy, but he definitely passed his nasty cold on to me...I finally got the all clear from my OB today to get an antibiotic, hopefully it works quickly!

Drew is safe in Mexico...I text him every few hours to make sure he hasn't been kidnapped! We are anxious to have him back tomorrow night!

Boo-bewwee!

2011-03-13T18:58:00.000-05:00

For those of you that don't speak "Luke" that's BLUEBERRY, Luke's favorite word of the week, not to mention his all time favorite food. It's a good thing boo-bewwees have been on sale lately, because Luke eats almost an entire crate in one sitting.

After another rough start to the week, I am happy to report that (for now) we are healthy, free and clear of ear infections and happy and abounding with energy! Monday afternoon and evening we spent a dreadfully long 2.5 hours at the pediatrician culminating in Luke's first shot of Rocephin for his ear infections which still had not cleared with our third antibiotic in 7 weeks. We headed back Wednesday and the ears still weren't clear so we moved to shot number 2 of Rocephin. Friday we headed back again and thankfully the little man was finally clear! Let's hope we can make it more than 4 days without the infection returning because our next stop will be the ENT and likely PE tubes. It is so nice to see Luke feeling well and having so much energy and pep for life! He is eating like a champ again, active, laughing, inquisitive and hilarious again, which we love!

Luke chatting up a storm on mom's phone...setting up some dates with all the ladies!

So happy to feel good!

How big is Luke? As big as you please these days...our little man is no longer a baby!

It is very happy times around the Keller house...despite the fact that we are under a ANOTHER @#$% Winter Weather Advisory tonight, it has been warm this week and the 10 day forecast is for upper 50s and 60s, so we have turned the corner towards health, spring time, outside play time and March Madness!!! The best time of the year by far! Drew and I got to head down to the Big 12 Championship to watch the Jayhawks dominate the Texas Longhorns for the 6th time in as many championship tries. It's actually getting a little boring! We are excited for tournament time, regardless of how the 'Hawks fare this year we always love to watch all the games!

We are hoping for an easy week around here...Drew is headed to Monterey, Mexico this week for work, not the safest of locations currently, I will be very happy when he is home safely and without any crazy stories on Friday evening.

Here's to another fun year with the Jayhawks earning a #1 seed, that never gets old! :)

Return of Lucas Mucas

2011-03-06T21:01:00.000-06:00

Its been a busy month around here...between family time, vacation time and a sick family, we feel like its been a whirlwind. THANKFULLY, we have a very happy "sick" kid who still laughs, plays, sleeps well and keeps us smiling...otherwise this month might have felt like an eternity. Drew and I are finally on the mend, but poor Lucas Mucas is on his third antibiotic since MLK Day. We can't seem to kick the ear infections around here...I am really hoping this antibiotic does the trick, because the side effects of this last one have not been fun! Luke hasn't eaten much and has a roaring diaper rash, our first real one, and we are just ready for him to be 100% again. Our little (literally) mister can't afford to lose weight, and he is slimming down by the day it seems! I was so happy that Luke had never shaken his head "no" or said "no" to me, but this week everything I attempted to feed Luke brought on both a head shake and a resounding "NO" from his mouth!

Although he may be small in stature, Luke is maturing by the day and preparing to become a big brother (hard to believe!). He is all over the place, gaining independence (when he wants to), pushing cars and trucks all over the house and gaining confidence working all of our electronics. We are trying to decide how to decorate his brand new bedroom...our little man is going to be moving upstairs in May in preparation for baby brother. It is so hard for me to imagine him not being in the nursery across the hall but I am excited to decorate a new room for him and get his new car themed bathroom in order! I have a feeling that these next four months are going to fly by in the blink of an eye, I am in no hurry, I am loving every minute we have left as a family of three.

Our little man just got a big haircut...he looks so grown up!

Don't mess with Luke and his Ipad! Talking Larry, Tom, and Hippo are his favorites!

All is going great with Baby Brother. I start my weekly monitoring in about a month and it will be very reassuring to see our littlest man every week until he arrives! Although I managed to visibly hide the fact that I was pregnant for the first 20 weeks these last 3 have been all about growth...and there is no denying it anymore!

I've neglected our first kiddos, Rigley and Bentley! They are so patient with Luke and he is really enjoying playing ball with them more each day! They will all be the best of friends!

Luke and Harper had another date last night!