Silly Sunday

Yesterday Scott watched the girls for a few hours while I did some grocery and Christmas shopping and apparently they all went a little crazy without me! No, actually Scott has been so sweet lately to let me escape on Sunday afternoons so I can have some alone time (despite his goofy appearance here, he is a pretty smart guy!). I was finding myself completely exhausted after getting everyone ready for church and then going through the whole routine once we were there that I was beginning to dread Sundays, which was NOT the attitude I wanted to have. And once we were home, I had no energy or patience left to sit down and play with the girls. So my sweet hubby began insisting that I take a few hours off every Sunday, and I must say that it has been stellar! It's amazing what a few hours can do to recharge you and help you gear up for the week ahead. Speaking of gearing up, I need to go wrap a few presents for our Christmas with the Bedicheks since we are celebrating it on Thanksgiving this Thursday! Pics of that are sure to follow next weekend.

Top Ten

After my afternoon and evening yesterday were filled with 2 tantrums and every excuse in the book to avoid going to sleep at bedtime (all by precious daughter #1), I decided to switch my focus onto the positive things about my children. Without further delay, here are my Top Ten Things I love About Avery and Kendall.


Top Ten Things I Love About Avery:
1. Her belly laughs
2. Her sweet spirit (Last week she actually thanked me for taking her outside to play!)
3. Her use of hand motions and her facial expressions when she talks
4. Her made-up songs
5. Her love for Kendall and the way she can make Kendall laugh like no one else can
6. Her intelligence
7. Her love of reading
8. Her prayers and the things she says about God/Jesus
9. Her (usually) good manners
10. Her love of shopping and pretty clothes, shoes, etc

Top Ten Things I Love About Kendall:
1. Her smile and smiley eyes
2. The way she hooks her arm around my neck and hugs me when I get her out of her crib
3. Her open-mouth kisses
4. How easily amused she is -- she'll play with a sock, a piece of paper, anything!
5. The way she worships her sister and laughs so hard at her
6. The way she waves at and tries to play with people sitting behind us in church
7. Her sweet baby breath
8. Her beautiful, soft skin (especially on her cheeks and neck-- so kissable!)
9. The way she "talks"to Avery
10. The way she can entertain herself while I am doing chores and other things around the house

When Scott saw what I was writing a minute ago, he asked why I wasn't doing Top Ten things I Love about him. So I think I'll take him up on that challenge, although honestly, it might be hard to narrow it down to 10!

Top Ten Things I Love About Scott:
1. The way he supports me in all areas of life and always tells me what a great Mom I am.
2. What a wonderfully caring, yet hilariously fun Daddy he is.
3. How hard he works to make the practice successful.
4. The diligence he puts into our personal finances as well as the business finances.
5. The way he always strives to learn and become a better individual.
6. His passion for football.
7. The way he always lightens the mood and makes things more fun!
8. The way he knows me better than I know myself sometimes.
9. The sacrifices he makes and sweet things he does for the girls and I on a daily basis.
10. How he's always striving to develop a deeper relationship with God, a deeper understanding of His word, and to be a better servant and Christian.

I am so blessed to have such an amazing husband and two beautiful, healthy, precious daughters!

Kendall 101

If you want to know all about Kendall at 9 months of age, here's a quick "course".


Favorite toys: Fisher price learning "house", ride-on toy car, play food and dishes, anything that Avery is playing with

Favorite foods: oatmeal, meat, banana puffs (meat & potatoes girl I guess)

Least favorite foods: several of the fruits and veggies (especially peas)

Favorite hangouts: Avery's room, outside, wherever Mommy and/or Avery are

Newest skills: crawling fast, beginning to "cruise" and stand alone for a few seconds, waving when the word "Bye" is just said, feeding fingerfoods to herself, giving open-mouth kisses, turning pages and lifting flaps on books

Favorite activities: playing with Avery, watching Avery and other kids run around, swinging, taking walks, splashing (big!) in the bathtub

Least favorite activities: riding in the car, diaper & clothes changes, getting her nose wiped

Sizes: size 3 diapers, size 2 or 3 shoes, size 6-9 or 6-12 month clothes (although pants are often big in the waist)

Sleeping habits: night: 8 pm- 7ish am, naps: 2, sometimes 3 a day (about 2-3 hrs total)

Nicknames: Ken, Skinny-mini

So that's Kendall in a nutshell. She is a sweet baby who is so smiley, so much fun and so funny when she is happy. As a friend at church put it, "Your youngest really lights up the room!" But watch out, because she is quite a spirited little thing who can go from happy to sad or mad and back to happy in 5 seconds flat! As always, she is not afraid to let you know when her world isn't right. She is growing and learning by leaps and bounds these days-- and Scott and I are looking forward to all the milestones, like walking and talking, that lie just around the corner for her!

Giddy-up!

Kendall and Avery were both cowgirls this year for Halloween. Unfortunately I was unable to find matching outfits, but at least their skirts matched. Actually, Avery wanted Kendall to be a pony "so I can ride her" as she put it, but I couldn't find a cute pony costume. We settled on both of them being cowgirls instead and on getting Avery a stick horse. Our church had a trunk or treat, but we opted to check out the carnival at Richland Hills C of C, which is a little closer and is where Avery goes to school. We figured that with it being "the mall church" as we call it, they would have a pretty good carnival. We got there a little later than we had intended and Avery was coming down with a cold, so we actually didn't stay too long. Just long enough for Avery to play a few games, get some candy, and go through the petting zoo. One random, funny thing I have to mention is that when I put Kendall's bandana headband and bow on (which my Mom made just for the occasion) Avery said, "Oh, is she a bunny?" That girl keeps us laughing for sure. Avery liked dressing up as a cowgirl so much that we have already made plans to go to the rodeo here in Ft. Worth in January (I think) so Avery can enjoy wearing her cowgirl get-up again. Yee-haw!

Pumpkin Patch

Last Saturday we took the girls to a pumpkin patch in Grapevine at the Hall Family farm. They had lots of cute picture taking set-ups w/ pumpkins, hay bales, benches, scarecrows, etc. They also had a house made of hay, some tractors the kids could get on, a little playground and an actual pumpkin patch where you could see them growing on the vine. We opted against the corn maze, and the hayrides were only after 6 pm, so maybe we'll do those another year. Kendall had just woken up from a nap and was being clingy and not smiley. Avery had a good time though, especially in the house made of hay and the tractors.

the corn was much more interesting than the camera

quiet Kendall

futile attempt at a sister's picture

playing on the hay bales

family photo

"Peek-a-boo" through window of hay house

Avery the farmer

Avery liked the small pumpkins the best

Swinging

We have been having nice fall weather this week here in Fort Worth, and the girls and I have been trying to enjoy it as much as possible. The other day I decided to snap a few pictures of them swinging in the backyard, which is something we do nearly every day. Avery has always loved swinging and would do it for hours if she could. Kendall is also really enjoying her swing since we hung it up a few weeks ago. She just laughs and smiles and then sometimes gets sleepy after awhile. Speaking of Kendall, in the past week or so she has started pulling up on everything! One of my biggest challenges is keeping her away from the pottys when I am helping Avery in the bathroom because apparently they are the perfect height for pulling up and oh so interesting! Gross! She has also started playing with the dog dishes a little bit, so between the potty and that, I've officially started having to say "no" to her. Whether she understands or not at this point is highly questionable, but I know she will soon. Besides pulling up, she is also drinking from a sippy cup now when she eats her baby food and has figured out how to click her tongue-- getting so big! Avery is getting so big too. She is now paci-free at night-Yay Avery!

Don't let the orange fool you. . .

. . .we are still Sooner fans! We did, however, begrudgingly agree to attend the OSU homecoming parade while in Oklahoma this past weekend. One of Scott's friends from Perio residency lives in Stillwater and thought it would be a fun family activity to go to the parade. A few times a year we meet up with two other families from Perio residency to let the guys talk business and to enjoy some family fun. Despite the fact that we were wearing the wrong color, it actually was fun and the kids really had a good time waving at everyone in the parade, seeing the horses, firetrucks, etc and of course getting some candy. While the guys went to the game on Saturday, my girls and I headed back to Edmond to spend the afternoon with the Williamsons, our friends from church there. Their little boy Carter is a few weeks older than Avery. They had a good time playing together. As you can see in the pic, they spent a lot of time in the inflatable jumping thing the Williamsons had. We were able to go to church at Edmond C of C Sunday morning and see lots of people we had not seen in almost a year. After a delicious lunch at Hideaway pizza (my favorite!) and a little more jumping for Avery at the Williamsons' house, we headed back across the Red River. It was a fun weekend and we'll always have a special place in our hearts for the Sooner State!

"A Lot of Kendall" (8 months worth!)

Saturday morning as we were eating breakfast I commented to Avery that Kendall was now eight months old. She responded, "That's a lot of Kendall!" I guess that's her way of saying that Kendall is getting big and has now been around for awhile! Avery and Kendall are interacting more and more these days. Kendall is constantly laughing at everything Avery does, which is great entertainment in the car especially. Kendall loves to wave at people and claps now when she sees someone clapping or when you cheer. Although she's not the best crawler, she does stay up on all fours more now and she can certainly get where she wants to go. As I'm writing this, she keeps crawling off her blanket in the living room and getting under my chair here at the computer, finding the most miniscule crumbs and pieces of dirt on the tile. She is pulling up to a stand some now and when I try to sit her down somewhere she keeps her legs straight and just tries to stand up instead. It seems like she has always been ready to move on to the next stage or milestone before she even has the previous one perfected. About a week and a half ago I had to take her to the doctor for an ear infection and she weighed 16 lbs 4 oz. She is wearing size 6-9 mo or 6-12 mo. clothes, size 2 diapers (but not for long I think) and size 2 shoes. She nurses 4 times a day and eats solids at all 3 meals including cereal, fruits, veggies, and meats. She goes to bed around 8 pm and wakes up between 6 and 7 am. She takes about a 45 minute morning nap (occasionally as long as 1.5 hrs) and then about a 1.5-2 hr nap in the afternoon. Occasionally she takes a 3rd nap around 5 or 6 pm too if her other pm nap was short. She is still toothless and is still in her separation anxiety phase, although she will actually stay in the church nursery now after a few minutes of boisterously voicing her opinion on the matter. But what can I say--that's my Kendall!

Big Stuff

My girls both think they're big stuff lately-- Avery because she recently got to ride my sister's new horse Kola, and Kendall because she just started pulling up on things. Last weekend Scott went out to Possum Kingdom with some friends for a bachelor party type thing and so the girls and I spent some time with my parents. Saturday morning my parents picked us up and took us out to Justin, TX (about 30 min. away) where my sister boards her new horse, Kola. Ever since she was a little girl she has wanted a horse of her own, so we are all really happy for her. Kola was great to let Avery ride her and pet her and brush her. Amy is still working on training her and everything, but she is a really sweet horse and seems to be doing great so far.

taking a ride with Amy

brushing Kola

checking out the tack room

petting the barn cat

all smiles after her ride

Kendall has been pulling up to her knees for a few weeks now, but just this week she started going all the way up to a stand. This morning she pulled up on her Leap Frog table and stood there playing for the longest time. She is still a little wobbly, but I resisted the urge to go over and sit there so I could catch her if she fell. It wasn't too hard since both girls were playing so well by themselves and I was busy making breakfast or doing dishes or something. Last night I had a dream that she was eight months old (which she almost is) and was walking! That's a bit of an exaggeration on the reality, but still, she is getting so big so quickly now and I feel like her first year is whizzing by!

Fall Pictures

My Mom took the day off work today to spend time with the girls and I, so we headed over to Portrait Innovations this morning and had some fall pictures taken. I mostly wanted some new pictures of Kendall since it has been 2 1/2 months since her last ones and she is growing and changing so fast. It was a little easier posing her this time since she can sit up on her own, although since she is crawling now she didn't want to sit still for long! I had some really cute matching outfits, so of course we got some of the girls together and some individuals of Avery while we were at it. We didn't have too much luck getting a really good one of them together, but I really liked some of the individual ones. Before I share the pictures, I have to tell a quick Avery story. About a week or so ago I was asking Avery about some of the kids in her class at school. After she told me the names of several of her friends, I asked her who her best friend was. She answered, "Kendall. She's my best friend in the whole wide world!" I thought that was so sweet and it made my heart so glad! And judging by the way Kendall lights up when Avery is around and cracks up at everything she does, I'd say that Avery is Kendall's best friend too :)

A Day in the Life

My sister-in-law, who is a Creative Memories consultant, used to (and maybe still does) include a monthly calendar and/or daily schedule in her scrapbooks so she could look back and remember what day-to-day life was like for their family. I always really liked this feature and so I've decided to try and include something similar in our blog from time to time. This time I think I'll share just a typical day for the Bedicheks at this point in our lives. Hang on because it's likely to be a long one!

Monday, September 22, 2008

6:15 AM Kendall wakes up and starts playing and making noise in her crib. I ignore it since she's happy and try to get a little more sleep.
7:00 AM Scott brings Kendall to me before he leaves for work. I nurse her in bed, still trying to sleep a little bit.
7:30 AM I throw on some clothes, brush hair, put on some makeup (my personal hygeine standards are a little lower these days). Get Kendall dressed.
7:50 AM Wake Avery up for school and get her dressed. We all eat breakfast.
8:35 AM Can't find keys! Begin frantically searching for them so I won't be stuck at home all day w/ both children! Call Scott and leave message asking what he did w/ them after church yesterday.
8:55 AM Found keys- yay! Take Avery to school.
9:25 AM Leave the church to run some errands. Target- I scored some new shoes w/ my b-day $ and picked up a few groceries. Linens N Things and Kohls- looking for decoartions for the girls' newly decorated bathroom. Got Kendall a sound machine on sale.
11:00 AM Return home. make a few phone calls and perform damage control on the house from this morning.
11:30 AM Nurse Kendall and do a few chores.
12:15 PM Kendall and I eat lunch.
12:30 PM Put Kendall down for a nap. I get on the computer to take care of some financial stuff, read e-mails, begin this blog entry.
1:40 PM Wake Kendall up so we can go get Avery. Wonder why the drop off AND pick up times fall right during Kendall's nap times!
2:00 PM Pick up Avery. We hang out at the church for a while since Avery has a 3:00 Dr's appt. for a repeat urine culture.
2:45 PM Drag Avery away from the playscape so I can change Kendall's dirty diaper before we go. Avery cries and whines almost the whole time we're in the bathroom. I have a lurking suspicion that her not taking a nap at school is a major factor in the whining. Remind Avery that no nap means early to bed.
3:00 PM Attempt to catch Avery's tee-tee in a tiny cup at the Dr's office. Feed Kendall a bottle while we wait 45 minutes for the Dr. to come in and talk to us. Thankfully, Avery actually likes going to the Dr. and is very cooperative the entire time. Avery chooses a sucker that makes her lips and mouth turn blue. On the way home, she tells me about 5 times how good it is.
4:15 PM Return home and play with the girls.
4:30 PM Attempt to get Kendall down for a 3rd nap so she won't have a meltdown later when I'm trying to cook dinner. No luck!
5:15 PM We go out to check the mail and for a short walk.
5:30 PM Start making dinner with Avery's "help." About 5-10 minutes in, Kendall begins having the aforementioned meltdown.
5:45 PM Scott gets home and puts Kendall down for a nap. Yay for husbands!
6:00 PM Dinner.
6:40 PM Wake Kendall up and pray that the late nap does not cause her to stay awake too late.
Feed Kendall dinner.
7:00 PM We all go out back to play.
7:15 PM I come in to give Kendall a bath.
7:45 PM Avery and Scott come in. Show Scott and Avery Kendall's new "trick"- waving back at you! Scott gets Avery ready for bed while I feed Kendall and put her to bed.
8:05 PM Read and sing to Avery.
8:20 PM Eat ice cream that Scott just picked up at Braum's and talk about his day.
8:45 PM Finish this blog entry and time for me!

So there you have it. The good and the bad-- a day with the Bedicheks!

Seven months

Today was Kendall's seven month birthday. She is working hard on learning to crawl right now. Actually, she's got the whole mobility thing down to quite a science. She gets up on all fours and moves forward a "step" or two and then lunges forward onto her belly. Then she army crawls some and then repeats the whole process again and again until she gets where she wants to go. All the while her little hands are reaching, reaching for whatever they can find. Oh, and sometimes she throws in this bear walk move where she gets up on her hands and feet, and then there's the occasional roll as well. It's pretty entertaining to watch her make her way across the floor to get ahold of a toy or check something out. She also pulls up to a kneeling position now and can go from lying to sitting by herself. She's quite the mover! That's probably part of the reason why she is still in size 2 diapers and can still wear some of her 3-6 month clothes. But she is eating and sleeping well and her reflux seems to be getting better too. She is finally off the Bethanechol, which basically helped her food to digest quicker, but is still taking Axid, an acid reducer, twice a day. I think after her 9 month appointment we are supposed to take her off that as well, so we'll see how that goes. A lot of people comment on how much she smiles and how happy she is, which is so true most of the time, but Scott and I always laugh when someone says that because she can also be quite the little "rager" as we say. When she is mad or upset she is not afraid to let you know about it! As difficult as it can be to deal with, as her mother I have to believe that I can somehow nurture that "rage" into a positive quality one day. She has recently been experiencing separation anxiety, especially when I take her to Bible class. She is usually OK for a minute after I leave, but when she realizes I am gone, she screams and cries so hard and nothing calms her down but me. How did I end up with two Momma's girls? I love it, but sometimes it's not such a good thing. Luckily we had a breakthrough last night at church and they actually were able to calm her down after a few minutes and they said she was happy as a lark for the rest of class-Yay! For the most part though, she is just getting to be more and more fun. She laughs and interacts with Avery, babbles and talks to you, and is so easily amused and entertained. As always, I am enjoying this stage but looking forward to watching her grow and seeing what the future holds!

School Days

First Day of School- Sept. 08 (2yrs. 5 mo)

First Day of School- Sept. 07 (17 mo.)

Today was Avery's first day of school for the year at Richland Hills Church of Christ. I decided to take her picture this morning in the same spot I took it last year so I could compare. It would have been better if she had been standing up in last year's picture, but I remember thinking I was doing good at the time just getting her to sit there for me to take her picture at all. It's amazing to me how much older and bigger she looks this year. She is becoming a little girl and is losing her baby look! I took my camera up to the school today with every intention of taking some pictures, but it is just so crazy with all the kids, strollers, backpacks and nap mats-- plus I was more concerned about telling Avery's teachers a few last minute things and getting her all settled in. She had such awesome teachers last year that it was a little difficult to give them up! Actually, it was probably more difficult for me. Avery gave one of her teachers a hug this morning and then gave her a high five and said and waved goodbye this afternoon, so I think she was fine with the transition. She has a lot of the same kids in her class this year and she is actually in the same classroom that she was in this summer, so I think that made it easier. Although she says all the time that she wants to be a doctor when she grows up, I'm not so sure there's not some teaching in her future with the way that she enjoys pretending to be her teachers and instructing her pretend class how to make things. I think she is going to have a great year and I am looking forward to hearing about her days at school and seeing all the new things she is learning!