Lauren 16 months

Lauren Grace - December 27, 2009

Lauren Grace - December 25, 2010

Lauren is a little spit fire.  She always is keeping me on my toes.  She has added a few more words to her vocabulary: "Papa" for my dad, ball, tickle tickle and Hi.  She loves to say Hi when people walk in the door or if we are in public.  She gets really excited if she hears the door opening and she has to run to the kitchen to see who is home.  She has been great with her little sister.  There is still some jealousy issues.  She doesn't always like to share, especially when it comes to sharing the bumbo chair.  Ever since we got it back out for Kaelin, Lauren has taken control of it.  She sits it over by her toy box and plays with all of her toys.  She is sweet most of the time with Kaelin.  She loves to give her kisses and hugs.  It's the most adorable little grin when she grabs Kaelin and squeezes her tight.  One of Lauren's new favorite things is tickling.  Not herself, although she does giggle quite a bit.  She loves to tickle other people. She loves to sneak up and tickle my toes.  Yesterday she was sitting with me on the couch.  Every so often, she'd reach behind me and say "tickle tickle" and tickle my back. She gets the biggest kick out of other people laughing.
Favorite foods include: Cheese, green beans, yogurt, eggs, fruit sticks, peaches, ravioli, corn, popcorn and anything that is on mommy's plate.  She eats all the time.  We don't always get to eat at the same time because of the baby.  So sometimes I have to eat, after I have let her down out of her chair.  She then likes to stand next to me, like a puppy and beg for more food.  Lauren drank her first glass (1/2 glass) of juice the other day without spitting it out.  She still doesn't seem very interested in it though.  I tried giving it to her again and she had one sip and shook her head "no". 
Oh well...Well that's about it for the updating for now.  Time to get lunch ready for the kiddos!

Yellow Ribbon Christmas

Yellow Ribbon Christmas

by Kristen Erickson

Christmas, this year, is not like before.
My dearest soldier is gone and fighting a war.

I anxiously wait for a letter or phone call.
But he works everyday, and some days we hear nothing at all.

The children, so innocent, they miss him so
And, oh how I wish I could kiss him under the mistletoe.

The presents, I wrapped, and labeled from him.
Thanks to technology, he was able to watch as they opened them.

It’s still not the same, most will not understand.
But as a military family, we sacrifice for this great land.

I don’t need jewelry or other fancy things.
I am always the happiest when the phone rings.

We talk about our day, we laugh and we cry.
Christmas seems no different than the other days that have gone by.

We keep our faith in the Lord, He’ll never astray.
He sent his son for us, and we celebrate Him on this day.

The presents have been opened and now the kids are asleep.
I lay here in bed, and my eyes begin to weep.

A great day was had, filled with the ones I hold dear.
But my love, my soldier, is the one I want here.
 

© Poem "Yellow Ribbon Christmas" Kristen Erickson 2010

A smile so bright!

 

My sweet, beautiful, smiley, Kaelin

I am so lucky to have not one, but two beautiful, precious baby girls.  

There are days that I just feel like breaking down, but then I get to look at Lauren & Kaelin and all the world seems so much better.  I hope Kaelin's beautiful smile brightened your day even the slightest bit!

Kaelin 3 months

My K-bug is 3 months old (yesterday).  It seems like just yesterday that we brought her home from the hospital.  I just can't believe how fast both of my little girls are growing up.  I only wish their daddy was here in the states to see them grow up.  It seems like the year from being born to one year of age is when they change the most.
Both girls had their well check last Thursday.


Kaelin Deborah - 3 months
Weight: 9lbs 1.5oz (90th percentile)
Height: 24 3/4 in.   (90th percentile)


Kaelin had to get 3 shots, and she was not very happy.  I expected her to stop crying after a little bit, but nope..this little girl has some lungs on her.  She cried and screamed at the top of her lungs for a good 10 minute afterwards.  Periodically throughout the afternoon and evening she would let out a few wails.  We gave her some Tylenol before bed and she slept for nearly 11 hours.  She was exhausted.

Miss Lauren Grace also had her check up at the same time as her sister, Kaelin.  Lauren had to get her follow up flu shot, and 2 immunizations.  She took it like a champ.  She cried for about 20 seconds and then was back to her busy body self.

Lauren Grace - 15 months
Weight: 24lbs (68th percentile)
Height: 33 inches  (98th percentile)

Both girls are tall like their daddy!
They are growing leaps and bounds everyday.  It's so fun to watch them interact with each other the older they get.  Looking back when I found out that I was pregnant with Kaelin when Lauren was only 4 months, old.  I thought, NO WAY is this happening.  I can't handle this.  Now, I wouldn't have it any other way.  I love my darling little girls and I know they will have a special bond as they get older too.
Love you to pieces Boo Boo & K-bug!! MUAH!!!

30% Cash back on diapers?? What? what?!

use code:KRIS4065

Not valid for existing Diapers.com, Soap.com or BeautyBar.com customers. Some restrictions apply.

Hey friends! Check out this great deal that I am bringing to all of my friends for diapers.com!  They have great deals on bulk diapers, wipes and many many more things.  Our next purchase from there is a side by side double stroller that is on sale for $78.99.  We are waiting for our cash back to be credited to our diapers.com account (takes approx. 10 days to credit)  and then we will use our diaper credit towards the new stroller.  You, too, will get your own savings code to pass on to your family and friends once you sign up at www.diapers.com  ...So start shopping and start saving big bucks.  Diapers.com will also send you emails on sales, coupons, free shipping ect. Don't forget enter KRIS4065 at the checkout to get your special savings! See the box above for details!
Merry Christmas!!
Love, Kristen!!

Weight loss update...

Update:  I promise I have not been avoiding this post!  If you have noticed, each Monday, I have been updating my weight loss on the ticker to the right of this column.  I just didn't feel the need to write EVERY single Monday.  There wasn't much to write about for a weekly post.  So from now on I will write a post once a month and update weekly on the ticker.  Things have been going pretty well.  I have just cut down my portions and started exercising at a gym.  I am really enjoying Zumba and just started a cardio kick boxing class.  I am catching on pretty quickly to the Zumba, and the kick boxing will take a few more times to get it down.  I have been walking on the treadmill and doing the ellyptical as well.  I have a love/hate relationship with the ellyptical. I love it because it's less straining on my knees but hate it because, boy does it burn!  Last night I did a 20 minute hill workout with resistance ranging from 1-10.  5 minutes in I thought I was going to fall off the machine..but I kept on going.  10 minutes in, same thing..just kept going.  5 minutes left to go..I had to stop and take a breather for about 10 seconds, almost quitting for good...but I didn't and I am so happy that I didn't now :) Now, if I can only get the courage to do it again! lol!

So what you all have been waiting for:

Starting weight:  11/15/2010     250lbs
Current weight:  12/13/2010     241.6 lbs
Total weight loss to date:  8.4lbs!

My biggest struggle?  Not constantly weighing myself.  I am working on only weighing myself once a week.  It's so hard.  Everytime I go to the bathroom I want to step on the scale and I need to STOP!  It's so disappointing to gain here, lose here, water weight..etc.
So I know this much at a time likely won't keep up.  But, I am going to keep up what I am doing, and 50 lbs in a year is a definite goal that I can reach!!

One month down

WOOOHOOO!! Today marks one month since Kevin left for Iraq.  There have been ups and downs but we are all doing great.  It helps that we get to talk to him almost everyday via MSN messenger, Skype or phone calls.  I think it definitely helps my sanity to be able to talk to him.  I don't know if it will always be like this, but for now, I will take what I can get and be perfectly happy with it.  Everyone says the first two weeks are the hardest. I would have to agree. Adjusting to him not coming home at night, crying every time Lauren would say dadda, crying myself to sleep.  Things are slowly getting easier.  My heart still hurts because I want him here but my head knows there is nothing I could do that would bring him here right now.  I can't remember the last time I sobbed...that's a good thing right?  I still tear up every so often when I see things like families picking out their Christmas tree, or decorating or sledding.  I think this is all perfectly normal to feel this way.  At least that is what Kevin is telling me.  He is my biggest encourager.  I couldn't do this without him, and ironically I wouldn't be in the situation without him.  God sure knew what he was doing when he brought us together.  We are made for each other.  I'm the storm, he's the calm..and it all works out in the end.
So, yes, one month down, and 11 more to go.  I do get to see him mid tour sometime, so it's nice to break up the entire 12 months. 
Please continue to pray for his safety and well being, as well as the other soldiers overseas in all areas of the world.

Rub a dub dub

Kaelin loves the tub!

Lauren's first day...

Lauren had her first day at "school" today.  I was struggling with the fact of sending her somewhere for social interaction and to get her out of the house for a few hours each week, and what would break our bank.  I researched all daycare centers and I stumbled across Calvary Baptist Church.  I had attended CBC in 2007/2008 while living at my parents.  I found that they have a program called "Morning's out for Mom's".  It is two days a week for 3 hours in the morning.  The cost is the eqivalent of a day and a half at some of the other daycares in town.  It ends up being around $3.50 an hour.  That is totally affordable.  Not to mention, it gives me a bit of a break too.  I would have enrolled both girls but the limit the number of students that are able to enroll each school year.  I am very thankful that they had one opening up in Lauren's age group.  Here is a picture of my little cutie patootie, all bundled up and ready to go. 

I wasn't sure how my sweet munchkin would adjust.  With the exception of hourly daycare while I was at Dr's appts, back when she was only 6 to 8 months old...she has always stayed home with either myself or Kevin.  I dropped her off and she started playing right away.  She was introduced to some of the other little kiddos and she just smiled.  I ducked out of there fairly quickly.  I didn't want to make a big deal out of it.  I am not going to lie, my eyes filled up with tears as I walked down the hallway and out the door. 

When I picked her up, her teachers said that she did fabulous.  They had never had a child transition that well from staying at home to a social setting.  I am hoping that it wasn't just beginners luck!  I was worried about how she would do because she normally takes a mid morning nap and usually is pretty cranky until she gets one!  She must have been too busy and having too much fun to even think about naps.  She was asleep in the car before we had even made it a block down the road.  It was too adorable.  They wore her out! 

Happy 2nd Anniversary

My hero

My best friend

My love

My husband

I am a little emotional to be spending today alone whlie he is gone, so I'll just leave you with the above pictures.  I miss him like crazy.  Happy 2nd Anniversary, baby! I love you more than I could ever express.  MUAH!

Lauren Grace - 15 months

My silly munchkin is 15 months already! I can't believe it.  I just don't know where the last year has gone.  She (Kaelin, too!) is the most amazing blessing that Kevin and I have ever been blessed with.  There isn't a day that goes by that she doesn't melt my heart, make me cry (happy mommy postpartum tears), make me laugh, and frustrate me.  Lauren Grace is my little music box.  She loves to sing, dance, hum, and clap along.  It is the most adorable thing ever.  She and her daddy share an extreme love for music.  I just loved the nights they would sit down at the computer and listen to songs together.  He would tap his leg and she, on his lap, would sway back and forth, and clap her hands. 
Lauren's new thing is to fall asleep ANYWHERE but her own bed.  She was doing well about going to sleep on her own, but since we moved she has been a bit out of her routine.  She is so stinkin' adorable though. 

Lauren's vocabulary grows everyday.  She has a handful of words that she says clearly and in the right context.  They are:

Mamma, Dadda, Kaelin, Sissy, Flower, What is it?, Who's that?, Hi, Up, Pretty, and Debbie. 

She couldn't quite say "grandma" She caught onto Debbie super fast though. Lauren also says "Dah" for Uncle Jordan.  If we says "Where's Jordan?" ..she walks around looking for him saying "Dah!" 

She also knows how to sign the word more.  We learned that from her cousin Caleb.  That is the only sign language we know but it has definitely helped with the screaming when she wanted more food! 

Lauren loves books, especially her animal and color book. She is just like a sponge and is soaking it all up.  She makes monkey sounds, and yesterday I heard her growl while looking over at a lion magnet.  She also is learning to identify her colors.  She can now correctly point to the colors, Red, Green, Blue, Pink, Brown and White in her color book.  The other night at dinner, we were trying to show her off to her Auntie Kara, we laid 3 crayons in front of her and asked her to pick up the green crayon and hand it to grandma.  She stared at the crayons for a good 30 seconds, but throrougly thought before picking it up.  She picked up only the green crayon and handed it to Grandma.  We were so impressed and excited for her.  She gets excited too and starts laughing and clapping at herself. 

We just love love love love her to pieces.  I can't wait for all of the big developmental milestones to come.  She impresses me daily.  

Kaelin 10 weeks

Wowza! My sweet baby Kaelin is 10 week already?!  Where did the time go?   I feel like a terrible mother for not updating very much in her first few months of life. 
Miss Kaelin is just growing leaps and bounds every day.  She is my little Miss Piggy.  She LOVES to eat.  She slept through the night from 9pm to 5am for the first time on Sunday night.  It was amazing.  It's just what I needed to get ready for my first fitness class in two years. 

Kaelin is smiling all of the time.  She has the most beautiful, infectious smile.  She has started to coo and it is absolutely adorable.  She isn't a big fan of tummy time and is usually screaming within a few minutes. 

I have no idea what she weighs or how long she is.  We are still working on switching over our insurance to this region and have yet to be assigned a primary care physician for the girls.  I faxed in our application last week and hopefully will be receiving that info soon so I can set up their well checks and immunizations.

Although I don't have an stats to share, I will share a few of my favorite pictures of my little munchkin. I just love her to pieces!

"Mini Sue Sylvester"

So stinkin' cute!

I love her beautiful smile and dimples!!

Goals

Today marks 2 weeks since Kevin left.  We are pretty much settled into life here in Illinois. 
We miss him a lot but hopefully with the holidays approaching, time will just fly by! 
I have set some goals for myself while Kevin is gone.  I haven't written them all down but I soon will be, so I can share them with all of you.  My main goal is to become a healthier person physically and mentally.  This last week has been hard and overwhelming and I knew that I had to do something to de-stress.  I checked out a gym yesterday afternoon called Fitness Connexion in Bloomington.  They offer a variety of different fitness classes as well as your regular exercise cardio and toning equipment. Best of all....they have affordable CHILDCARE right there in the gym.  I start my 16 day free trial today.  The free trial also includes free childcare for up to 2 hours per visit to the gym.  I am totally taking advantage of this while I can. 
I have about 50lbs to lose and I am looking forward to surprising Kevin with my new look when he gets home! 
I am going to stay accountable and post my weight on here for all of you to see.  It's embarrassing but maybe with all of your support and motivation, I won't fall off the bandwagon and give up. 

Today's weight:  246.8 (eek! I could cry!)
Goal weight:  198 (weight I was when I met Kevin 4 years ago)

This is my goal during this deployment.  50 lbs.  I can do it!  I will update everyone on my progress on every Monday.  Wish me luck! 

On the road again...

Let me just start this by saying THANK YOU.  Kevin and I have many people to thank for their support and help during the last few weeks.  First of all to our families.  We love you all very much and are so lucky to have such supportive, loving parents, siblings and cousins.  Specifically thanks to Kyle and Mike for helping Kevin carry all of our huge furniture and appliances.  We would have never been able to do it all ourselves.  Thanks to Kevin's mom for her thorough cleaning and Kevin's sister Karla and cousin Ashleigh for keeping the kids occupied while we were busy trying to get everything done. 

Thank you to my parents, and sister for coming down so soon after Kevin left.  The support and love for you all to take off work and be down here to just be with me really meant the world.  I love you. 

Thanks to my dad for not even blinking an eye and driving an hour to pick up the u-haul trailer to haul my car.  I almost had a melt down when they called on Tuesday and said they didn't have any trailers in Manhattan even though I had reserved one days prior.  You didn't even question anything and said you would drive to go get the nearest one. 
Thanks to my mom who stayed up talking with me when she got there even though she was extremely tired and it was after midnight.  I am known to be talkative but at the time I was just lonely.  Thank you for just letting me cry.  Seems like everything makes me cry but you don't judge and always are there to comfort me.  Thank you for putting a fire up my butt and getting EVERYTHING done yesterday so we could head home.  I still don't know how we managed to get all of the cleaning and packing done in just a matter of a few hours!

Thank you to my sister Stephane for being an amazing Auntie and taking care of the girls yesterday morning and allowing Mom and I to get a head start on organizing and then allowing me to have coffee with my friends.  I know you were super exausted at the end of the day.  I totally appreciate your help. 

Sincere thanks to ALL OF YOU!  We were able to get everything done and leave early.  We were able to spend a nice evening at a hotel in Kansas City and soon will be on the road again bound for Illinois.  6 hours left to go today.  Maybe a little longer depending on how many stops we have to make.  Everything is going smoothly so far. 

I am not looking forward to the unpacking and organizing, but I know it will be all worth it once it is finished. 
I know that we made the right decision to move back to Illinois, not only for our financial well being but for my emotional and physical well being.  The year to come will be filled with every emotion from tears to joy, but because of our family and friends and faith, we will get through this! Thank you!

Tasty Tuesday

Cheesy Ranch Potato Bake.

YUMMMM!

Ingredients


4 pounds russet potatoes, cut into 1/4 inch cubes

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

3 tablespoons butter, cubed

1 (8 ounce) package shredded colby-Monterey Jack cheese blend ( we used more cheese, and it was still just as delicious.  I have never heard of more cheese making a recipe worse!)

1 (8 ounce) bottle Ranch dressing

Directions

1.Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a 9x 13 inch baking dish.

2.Place the potatoes in the baking dish. Season with chili powder, salt, and pepper. Evenly distribute the butter over the potatoes.

3.Cover dish with aluminum foil, and bake 1 hour in the preheated oven, until potatoes are tender. Remove from oven, and mix in the cheese and Ranch dressing. Continue cooking 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly.  I let mine cook a bit longer until it had a nice brown, yummy crust on top. 

-Sorry for the lack of pictures...We ate it too fast!

The day came and went.  It was all so surreal.  I still am in denial.  Maybe it's because I am still able to text him as long as he is in the states.  I am somewhat in the anger stage because they made me drop him off at 5pm for a midnight flight and then ended up not leaving until 3am.  Angry because I left, not knowing that I could have stayed there with him for a while longer because of the later flight, and upset that he never called me to come back because he didn't want me to have to load up the girls and come back.  But I would have in a heart beat.  Next stop? Maine? Germany? I am not sure.  I don't know if I will hear from him.  I have not deactivated his cell phone yet, in hopes that maybe he will have a layover out east and I will get to talk to him again.  After that I am not sure how long it will be before we get to talk to him.  It takes time to get things set up, get internet into the room, get settled, unloaded etc.  I set him up a Skype account before he left. We are so lucky to live in an age of technology where seeing each other half a world a way is possible! I plan on getting him a Skype phone number so he can call us when he has down time and don't have to worry about being in front of the computer all of the time.  I am going to miss him so much. 

It breaks my heart when Lauren walks from room to room saying "dadda, dadda" or when she found his favorite Minnesota Twins - Joe Maurer shirt on my bed and carried it around for a good ten minutes, dragging it like her blankie, saying "dadda, dadda".  It hurts to know that Kaelin won't really know her daddy the first year of her life.  Maybe it's a good thing though the kids are so young.   They don't know what is going on.  I know Lauren will be excited to see Kevin on Skype and when he comes home, but there will be that distance with Kaelin, because he will be so much of a stranger.  I pray that they can develop a strong bond like he and Lauren have, when he gets back.  I am overwhelmed with emotion.  I have this constant struggle going on inside of me.  My head says " There is nothing you can do about the situation, so suck it up and be strong" ...but my heart just hurts and sometimes I just cry, for no reason other than I think about him.  I can't think and countdown a year, it seems too long.  I am going to have to count down in small amounts to get through the year.  365 days sounds too long, but 15 days til Thanksgiving, then 30 days til Christmas, then 7 days til New Years ..and so on.  Marking the milestones one by one, instead of overlooking them for the whole year. 

So now begins another journey in my life.  My year as a yellow ribbon wife.....

Tasty Tuesday

Skillet Apple Crisp

Ingredients:

6 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 tablespoon of vanilla extract

3/4 cup (packed) light brown sugar

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

Finely grated zest of 1 lemon

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, diced, at room temperature

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.

2. Place the apples in a large bowl. Add the vanilla, brown sugar, cornstarch, zest and juice of first lemon, and cinnamon to the apples and toss to coat. Transfer the apple mixture to a 10-inch cast-iron skillet and set aside.

3. To make the topping, in a medium bowl, stir together the flour, granulated sugar, oats, baking soda, salt, and zest. Add the butter and use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour mixture until there are no pieces of butter left larger than small peas. Sprinkle the flour mixture evenly over the apple mixture.

4. Bake for 1 hour, until the apple filling is bubbling and the topping is golden brown. Serve warm.

Daddy's Hands

Daddy's hands were soft and kind when I was cryin´.

Daddy´s hands, were hard as steel when I´d done wrong.

Daddy´s hands, weren´t always gentle

But I´ve come to understand.

There was always love in Daddy´s hands.