The Magers Family

Halloween 2010

2011-03-21T12:41:00.002-05:00

The princess ballerina and the astronaut

Future baseball star

Pinata fun

Bounce house

Every year our neighborhood has a block party/chili cook-off for Halloween, everyone pitches in and we get a bounce house for the kids. It's tons of fun and has been going on for several years. This year there were three generations from one family there and they all had attended at some point. There was also a couple that came in from Oklahoma just for the party. It's great to see such love for a neighborhood. We are truly blessed!

Camping 2010

2011-03-21T12:25:00.002-05:00

Dad and his two favorite kids

4 month old Sampson, he can't do that now

Playing on the "rocket ship"

Already mesmerized by fire

Love the woolly caterpillar

We made our annual October camping trip again this year and again had so much fun. It keeps getting better as the kids get older. They love being outside and Jason and I get so much refreshment from being with Grammy and Papa.

My First Half-Marathon

2010-10-12T16:14:00.002-05:00

Finishing in 2 hours 5 minutes and 12 seconds

Smiling and a little sweaty

Dad and Isaac (Kadyn was there too, but didn't get any pics)

Our friends Jon and Linsie and Baby Chiles (who should be here any day!!!) supporting me at the race.

As some of you remember I started training for a half-marathon and changing my eating habits several months ago when I reached my max weight ever (except when pregnant, but still only 13 lbs lighter than my delivery weight with both kids!). My plan was a little derailed in May when I had my LEEP procedure and couldn't run or workout for ONE MONTH!!! I tried to eat healthy, but found that when I wasn't working out I wasn't caring as much about what I put into my body...but through it all I have lost a total of 12 pounds and feel great, not to mention I finished my first ever half-marathon on October 3rd and did it 5 minutes faster than my goal time. I felt great the entire race and only felt a little fatigued after sprinting the last mile! I do kinda regret not pushing myself the entire race, but the two weeks prior I had been fighting a cold and hadn't finished training like I would have hoped for so was a little concerned about injury and pooping out in the end if I pushed myself early. It really was so much fun and I can't wait to do my next one! It's been a week and my legs are itching to run again. I didn't do any weight training during my run training so I have returned to the gym and will be alternating weights and runs, but I am not planning on doing anymore crazy long runs until I start training again. I do have to say thanks to my amazing husband and kids, they worked around my run schedule and every week when I would reach a new distance milestone they would be waiting for me at the house and would start cheering when they saw me: it was a huge motivator to finish strong and I couldn't have done it without them! Now if Jason would stop suggesting ice cream at 9p.m., he knows that's my weakness!!!!

In The Wake of Sampson...

2010-10-12T15:46:00.003-05:00

The sweet, innocent, playful Sampson

The accidental bite from the above said dog...doesn't he look like a Precious Moments?

The bored kids waiting in the ER to see if we needed stitches

Dr. Pingle cleaning out the bite

NO Stitches!!!

Yes, yes, yes, I know what everyone is thinking...dog bites kid, dog goes away, which is what I completely agree with, EXCEPT when the dog is just jumping around and teeth and face accidentally meet, which is what happened in this instance. Anyway, Sunday morning (when I was getting to experience the rare joy of sleeping in since Jason was off and we were headed to the second service at 11) I woke to crying and I am not going to lie, I ignored it and tried to go back to sleep, but it got louder and I realized it's right next to me...so grumpily I rolled over to a sobbing boy and an apologetic dad. We took a look and consulted our favorite pediatrician Jon, who happens to be one of our closest friends, because apparently I can handle flying in a helicopter with a critically ill kid and be confident in my skills to keep them alive, but become retarded when it comes to my own children (thanks for pointing that out Jon!)...and after deciding that we didn't want to mess with such a good looking face, we headed to the ER. Luckily, after some numbing cream and a good wash out it was decided that no stitches were needed and it already looks much better! Ironically enough, that afternoon Kadyn whacked her head on a piece of trim we had on saw horses to paint and cut her face too, which of course was met with, "I need to go to your hospital too mamma." She's such drama!

Isaac's New Walls

2010-09-08T16:39:00.004-05:00

This house renovation has been a slow and tedious process. I picked out this color when we started last Oct (isn't that insane it's been almost a year!!!) and so when the kids were going to be gone over the holiday weekend I thought I would take advantage and get Isaac's room repainted! The only dilemma is that he really, I mean really, wanted his room to be painted green...but that just wasn't my vision! So, Jason and I worked hard and go his room painted, the baseboards almost finished (we are making them all the same throughout the house) and the doors switched out (again, so they're all the same). I have bedding picked out for when we find a full/queen bed we like, but since the only thing I can find that I love is at Pottery Barn Kids it's going to be another long process! The color for sure continues with our theme of dark colors, but I personally think it's amazing with the white trim, I am very happy with it! As for the fate of the green (Isaac was happy with his blue too) we are going to paint the inside of the closet green if he still wants something green.

First Day of School

2010-09-08T16:35:00.002-05:00

This is Isaac's second year at CCLS and with Mrs. Berner.

He loves going to school and has made lots of great friends.

We are still slightly undecided about what we are going to do

next year, but probably a third year of preschool only because

he would turn 5 in July and then start Kindergarten in August,

it just seems really young to me, but we're still talking so any

suggestions would be appreciated!

Sampson

2010-09-08T15:52:00.002-05:00

8 weeks

9 weeks

11 1/2 weeks

This is the general attitude of Annie ("Why does he keep sniffing me?")

There is a new boy at our house, his name is Sampson and he is going to be BIG! He is a Great Dane, Jason has wanted one for a long time and I finally conceded. I got the best end of this deal: I don't get up with him at night or in the morning when he wants to wrestle at 6am. He is a really sweet dog and learns very quickly and within two weeks was sitting by the door when he needed to go outside. The kids love playing with him and he is learning to keep his baby teeth to himself!

Family Camp and the Lake

2010-07-27T14:08:00.003-05:00

Crabby Pabby kiddos

Our residence for FC

Jason and Isaac

My studly hubby showing his skills

Kadyn tired from swimming

Warning: This is long! This year Jason had the opportunity to play in one of the worship bands for St. Louis Family Camp (stlfamilycamp.com) and I am sad to say, but that was probably the only way we would have considered going...so we made the decision to go. I was my usual cautiously optimistic self and found myself focusing on all the negatives: jason has to practice during the day preventing us from really having free time, we will be staying with 6 other families so the kids are going to never sleep, the kids are not going to sleep well, they are providing food so it's just going to be fattening junk, I am not going to be able to get my runs in, etc! So going into this I was already crabby, but Jason (being the amazing, go with the flow man he is) reassured me that everything was going to be fine. We left for FC on Friday morning and as you can see by the first picture the kids were mildly crabby. We had prepped them for some of the things we would be doing and we all prepared our hearts by listening to the kids worship CD from Seeds Family Worship (seedsfamilyworship.net), which is the band Jason was helping with.

When we arrived at Windermere (on Lake of the Ozarks) we were pretty excited about 4 days together and the opportunity to spend time with the kids doing new things. We got there early so Jason could help set up sound stuff and found that our living arrangements were pretty neat. We would be staying with 6 other families in one large house that had a common kitchen/eating area. We got settled in and Isaac was thrilled that there were bunk beds for him to sleep on! We tried to lay down for a nap, but there was too much going on and so started day one of no naps...despite my fears God completely worked in us and the kids were amazing to be around and there weren't any of the usual tired problems. We found that this house was so great for us, it gave us the freedom to put the kids to bed and still spend time playing games and getting to know other Journey families. The first night we heard from Bryan Chappell who is the president of Covenant Seminary and we knew that God was going to do awesome and challenging things through this camp in our family.

During the mornings we had family worship that was led by Seeds Family Worship (see above website, I mean really look at it) leader Phillip Morlan, who Isaac likes to call "Mr. Phillip," even now as we listen to the CD's, and his wife Jess and their 5 incredible kids. The entire basis of SFW is implanting scripture in children's hearts and this is done by writing songs that are entirely scripture. It really is amazing to see Kadyn singing scripture and already letting those truths grow in her heart. Not only during that time was this family amazing, but just seeing a family whose desire is for their kids to know and love God intimately was amazing. Morlans: we want to be like you someday, please move from Nashville to St. Louis! Everyone reading this should go to the website now and get all their CD's, it is an amazing way to worship with your kids!

We had the opportunity to spend time together as a family at a place that Jason has so many memories at and that was incredible too. Jason worked at Windermere for two summers so he let us in on all the little hiding places where we could completely stand in awe of our amazing Creator. Jason and Isaac spent some time playing on these giant inflatable water toys, I didn't get any pics b/c I forgot my camera, but they had a blast. We got the opportunity to go out on a boat for the afternoon which was tons of fun. Isaac went tubing for the first time, which he wasn't super thrilled with, but was a trooper none the less...Kadyn said "no thank-you." Jason spent some time skiing and tubing and I just sat in the sun (one of my favorite things to do!)

After four days at camp we headed to our friend's house (Jamie and Andy) for a few more days of lake time. This was total relaxation! We hung out at the dock, did some fishing, and swam in the lake. The kids were totally exhausted!

Coming home from FC we have been challenged by how we parent. God is our ultimate Father and looking to him to see how to love our children as the ultimate example is challenging for most of us. Expecting our kids to be sinful should be in our minds and the unconditional grace and love shown by our Abba will change you. We are excited by what God has shown us through our kids and hope that more families can experience this next year!

Isaac's 4th Birthday

2010-07-27T14:00:00.003-05:00

The spread

Isaac and Graham chowing down on jello aquariums

Friends helping with the presents

The cake

This year for Isaac's party we headed to the pool. The kids and I spend lots of time at the pool so it just fit. We had tons of our friends there and everyone had a great time. It was a great day for those not wanting to swim, I think the high was 89 and breezy, which for July 10th is AMAZING! It was almost cold in the water! We had a picnic dinner and then an amazing fish cake for dessert (same lady that does all our cake/cupcake needs...wish I could take credit, she's amazing!) I can't believe I have a 4 year old! Happy birthday buddy, you are a wonderfully made kid, God does great work!

4th of July

2010-07-27T13:42:00.002-05:00

Learning about water and dirt

Our super silly boy

The ultimate princess

Racing for candy at the 4th of July

Like last year the kids made the trip to Springfield for the 4th of July. They had a blast and got to attend several days of my parent's VBS, which they loved. The night before we came down (I came down with the kids 2 days early b/c Jason was in Nashville for a few days) my parents had a flood in their kitchen. So when we arrived the restoration people were taking out everything from the kitchen so we spent lots and lots of time outside. Thankfully it was a gorgeous week and we spent tons of time in the pool. The kids stayed the weekend and enjoyed the parade and fireworks while mom and dad enjoyed sleeping in until 10am!!!

Kadyn Turned 2

2010-06-20T12:52:00.003-05:00

Kadyn turned two at then end of May and her princess themed birthday party was a blast. I have the most amazing cupcake lady and she outdid herself this time (you can see from the few we had left. I got so caught up in eating them I forgot to take a picture of all of them!) I can't believe Kadyn is two until she begins to display her independence and then it all comes rushing back.

KC Vacation

2010-05-08T14:36:00.006-05:00

I had more than two days off in a row for the first time since Jan this past weekend. We were originally going somewhere on vacation for Pat's birthday, but decided to retreat to KC instead. It was such a treat! We arrived on Friday and got to spend some time with Pat and Claudia just relaxing, I got in a great run complete with a cow escort as they ran with me down the fence! Claudia told us that we had to ready to leave on Sat morning by 8:30, but wouldn't tell us what we were doing. She and Pat had gotten the four big kids hot stone massages! It was the most amazing hour I have had in a long time, they had to pour me in my clothes after it was over!!! We headed back to the house to get ready and then went to the Richmond Mushroom Festival. It was your typical small town fair, complete with lots of mullets and funnel cakes (yes, I ate one!). After we were faired out we headed home to change into dinner clothes. Claudia arranged for two of her sisters to come watch the kids so the adults could enjoy a fabulous dinner without saying once "(insert name here) take a bite." Thank you so much Laura and Cindy for your willingness to watch the kids! After and incredible dinner we headed to one of KC's fabulous jazz bars and enjoyed some jazz before heading home. On Sunday we relaxed and spent some time fishing at Papa's freshly stocked pond. Isaac had a blast and got to reel in several! Their house truly is an oasis, I believe the grass is greener and the sky is bluer out there, you will agree after looking at the pics!

Daddy and Isaac fishing

The diva in her sun hat provided by Grammy (see what I mean about it being greener and bluer!)

Such a doll

I am not sure what was being said, but their faces indicate it was something gross! Those two crack me up!

Isaac holding a fish (I think I caught that one, but it's nothng to brag about!)

2010-05-08T14:21:00.004-05:00

Bar Lights

Same view prior to wall coming out and kitchen being extended

Counter tops

Before if you need to be reminded of it's nastiness!

The kitchen is getting sooo close to done.

The walls are going to be painted a light green color

(dark green in top picture going away!) and then

some finish work and we should be done!!!!

2010-05-08T13:57:00.003-05:00

The backyard transformation was going to be low on the priority list, but that was before spring arrived with all it's crazy out of control bushes lining our property! It all started with the removal of a bush in front of our house. The "all" I am referring to is Jason realizing his truck isn't as wimpy as we originally thought. Don't get me wrong, it's still a 4 cylinder when you mash on the gas on the highway, but tying a chain around a bush and pulling it out with the truck appeared to be a piece of cake (and a huge testosterone filled activity for the sexy hubby!) So, when we started planning for our friends surprise 30th bday party at our house, we decided to do some major overhaul in the backyard, thanks Hessel's for the motivation. Jason and the kids enjoyed it, and I do have to admit that it was tons of work, but well worth it! See for yourself how much nicer it looks, well, will look once we get the privacy fence up and some grass grown in the bare spots! We might have even cleared enough out for me to have a garden, woo hoo home grown veggies- at least that's going to be next summer!

Before

During

Afterish (next summer will be the final unveiling!)

The Flood

2010-05-08T13:41:00.004-05:00

Some of you may know about my recent experiment with getting up for a workout with some great friends at 5:45 three mornings a week...it isn't fun until about halfway through, mainly because that is about the time my body stops saying, "why am I awake right now" and starts to realize that I am going to get sooo much more done in the day! Anyway, one of these fabulous mornings I awake at 5:15, get dressed, walk past an open window and grumble because it sounds like it's pouring outside and head to the truck (all in a sleepy haze). When I step off our deck onto the driveway I notice that I am standing in water and again grumble about it raining so hard...but then I realize that only my feet are wet, I am not getting rained on at all. I continue walking only to notice a river running down our driveway and sloshing at my feet...I am still confused. It is only when I get in the truck and turn the headlights on and see what is in the bottom picture (a nice little fountain) coming out of the ground under our driveway, which apparently is the water main for the street!! I shut off the truck and do what every tax paying citizen would, call 911..don't condemn, it's Webster at 5:15 in the morning, they were looking for something to do! They politely told me they would call the water company and take care of it. I then go back inside and calmly wake my sleepy hubby (who naturally grumbles) and we go to find 3-4 inches of standing water in our garage (first pic about 2 hours later and after making a barricade to prevent more water coming in!) and the base of our steps on the finished side soaking wet. We began to move stuff, which was thankfully all of pallets so nothing in the garage was damaged. Once the water guys got here (two hours later!) they told us to stop working, their clean-up crews were on the way. They took everything out of the garage, cleaned it up, put it back (in a much more organized manner) and took out carpet and drywall in the play room that was wet. We're still waiting on our check from the water companies insurance people, but all in all we came out pretty good since the water company guy said they routinely buy new cars and houses for people!!!

Just Like Daddy

2010-04-29T21:22:00.003-05:00

Kadyn is a strong little lady. She loves

her daddy and he loves her. Watching

him with her makes me love him more,

it is really beautiful. Jason has worked

really hard on our entire house, and he

didn't skimp when it came to the yard.

He spent several days wrapping a chain

around trees lining our fence (they were

really ugly and overgrown) and hooking

them up to his truck to rip them out. I am

pretty sure that most of it was testosterone

driven, but the kids and Jason had a blast.

Kadyn thought hooking up Isaac's tractor

would be fun too and I couldn't help taking

this pic of her looking so cute in her pony

tail. When I asked her what she was doing

she said,"working, like daddy." She's got

him wrapped!

Outdoor Kid

2010-04-29T21:08:00.002-05:00

Isaac is growing up so fast! With all of the yard work
we have been doing, it has been fun to see him
exploring and learning about the outdoors. This
is a caterpillar that we found. His whole goal with
his new "pet" was to not squish him! He was very
successful at that, but the dropping of the "pet"
was another story! We found a nice new home for
the little guy after much discussion about how
caterpillars do not like living on the inside of houses!

Potty Time

2010-04-07T14:53:00.002-05:00

I am not a fan of posting revealing pics of Kadyn on the internet, but with this she is completely covered and I just couldn't resist!!! This is her new princess potty chair Mimi found. Apparently when the child goes potty in it there is a song that is played. We wouldn't know, all Kadyn wants to do is sit on it or make her puppy go potty in it. We are not close to potty training with her (I am too tired for that!), but it's available. I know I am partial, but I think she is super adorable!

2010-04-07T14:44:00.000-05:00

Easter Cross cake/baskets made with Mimi

Miss Kadyn on stage after church

The best family picture we could get, Isaac was hyped up on sugar and Kadyn was exhausted!

Kids

2010-03-22T15:06:00.003-05:00

Isaac trying to figure out the concept of hide and seek, he's hiding and counting

Still falling out of bed, and apparently not being bothered by it!

Miss Kadyn

"working"

Please forgive my lack of posts recently. I have been working crazy mandatory hours at work, like 60-72 hours a week crazy mandatory hours due to low staffing, that's right, we are trying to hire people in this recession! While it has been amazing for the finishing of the house, it has been detrimental to all other things in my life. Thankfully I have an amazing husband who has told me multiple times "we can do anything for a season." I am just hoping this season ends soon! So, the few hours I do have at home (and am awake) have been dedicated to more important things than this blog. Anyway, here are some pics of the kids from the last couple of weeks. Both kids are growing up so fast. We can see Isaac moving closer to the more mature age of four and Kadyn getting closer to the more defiant age of two!

Almost Done Kitchen

2010-03-22T14:54:00.002-05:00

It was pretty close to bedtime so Isaac just brought his pillow out to "help"

Making sure there aren't any leaks from the new dishwasher

We are so close to being done with the kitchen!!! woo hoo!!! we have all our new appliances installed and they look great. We replaced the ceiling fan and only have painting and a counter top left. The newest paint swatches are sitting behind the sink. One wall will be a muted bluish/green and the walls behind the cabinets will be a light green...maybe! I've changed my mind about fifty million times. This time Jason made me buy paint samples of the colors to actually try. We are still struggling with a counter top, but hopefully in the next week I can make my mind up with that too!

Magers' Weekend

2010-02-26T13:50:00.006-06:00

Kadyn and Jonah

Isaac being a good helper with Jonah

Sassy Kadyn

Crazy hair

Last weekend Jason's family came to town. We met at the Magic House on Saturday and had a great time. It was fun to see our kids and Jonah play together since we don't get to see each other that often now. He is an amazingly funny, happy child. He is always smiling and is a real joy to be around. Our weekend was too short, but it was fun having everyone in St. Louis and kinda nice to not need to pack or drive! Thanks Pat, Claudia, Nate, Danielle and Jonah for coming, we love you!

Come on Summer

2010-02-13T09:23:00.002-06:00

I was going to change the background to something St. Patrick's Day, but I can't tolerate any more winter! I am so tired of cold and snow, global warming my tush! Anyway, enjoy the summer background, I am lusting after warm breezes, sitting on my new deck drinking a glass of wine with my wonderful husband, and thunderstorms that I can sleep through with the windows open. If any of you missed my tweet/facebook post the other day I would like to again express my feeling of God calling us to church plant in St. Thomas!! On a side note, I have a couple of good recipes that I want to post that are good for the waist line and I have lost 3 pounds in a month. I am trying to keep in check my expectations and remind myself that losing as much as they do on the Biggest Loser every week wouldn't really work for me!

A Little Bit of Kadyn

2010-02-09T20:44:00.003-06:00

Kadyn carrying around Isaac's balloons from his surgery (which went on for two days!)

Not even letting go to lay on the floor

Scary nap hair!

Kadyn is amazing, she is such a sweet, determined little girl. She loves everything "girly" and is already a huge daddy's girl. She is talking tons and is able to communicate whatever she wants. Her brother's love of reading has rubbed off and she is constantly bringing us books to read. I am so excited to see how God has intricately made her and to see what He plans for her life. I can't believe she will be two in three short months, time has flown by!

Isaac's Surgery

2010-02-09T20:31:00.003-06:00

Isaac watching TV while getting his pre-surgery vitals

Showing us how to use the strawberry scented mask

After surgery and a popsicle, getting to pick a prize

Eating his much anticipated ice cream on the way home

Crashed at 5pm!

On February 1 Isaac had his tear ducts probed. He was a great sport and mom and dad did remarkably well! We had to be at the hospital at 6:45 (which is way early for our family!) and when we woke Isaac up to leave he was in a great mood, he was singing and dancing on the way to the hospital. We got checked in and he chilled on the bed and watched some TV. He eventually got bored and he ended up riding a bike around the halls of Same Day Surgery. The staff was fabulous and we had a great experience. I tried really hard at just being a mom and only got frustrated once when I realized it took them two tries to get an IV! He had an immediate improvement with his excessive tears and snot drainage from his eyes, he looks like a new kid and we are ready to get Kadyn's done at the end of the month. Thanks for all the prayers, we appreciated it!

Christmas 2009

2010-01-20T13:23:00.005-06:00

Isaac got a gift card from my Nana and he picked out these planes and loves them

Kadyn being a good momma to her new baby (also bought with Nana money)

Isaac and Kadyn got a kitchen for Christmas and Isaac knew how to iron immediately, not sure where he learned that...not from us!

I know, January is almost over, but I really haven't had much time lately. Especially now that Isaac doesn't really nap and doesn't really understand the concept of "rest" time...or how mom needs it almost more than he does! We were fortunate to be able to have Jason's parents over from KC the weekend before Christmas and my parents over the weekend after. It was a relaxing time and the kids had a blast. Here are a few pics from Christmas.

A New Me

2010-01-07T14:24:00.003-06:00

When we were going through our home reno I felt like I couldn't take time to eat right or go to the gym, I felt like I needed to be at the house as much as possible. While this is true, I think for our sanity it would have been better for me to take a break and work out. I have mentioned this before, but I really do like working out. I like being sweaty and the sense of accomplishment after I'm done, it makes me a happier, more patient, more relaxed wife and mom. (fast forward to the beginning of December) I restarted the gym (as you can recall, Kadyn smashed her finger on 12/2 which was day one) but really wasn't getting that much out of it. I have always enjoyed the classes at my gym when we went to a different location (www.clubfitness.us) and finally decided to start some of them here in Webster. So starting two weeks ago, making sure that it was BEFORE New Years so it could just be a change and not a much hyped resolution, I decided to start food journaling. I did not eat healthy at all, we ate out way too much and my caloric intake was rather high....so I checked out what it should be using a highly sophisticated resource on the internet...which I found via google (what would we have done before google?) I knew I had gained a few pounds (14 since before I got pregnant with Isaac to be exact), but when the bold print popped up stating I was OVERWEIGHT for my height I was a little bit shocked. I'm no Kelly Ripa (don't really care for her except her fabulously toned arms), but I'm not what I consider "big" in my mind. So this is my challenge...to lose 14 pounds. I am revamping what we eat in our house and hitting the gym for an hour 5 days a week. I am continuing to count calories, mainly as a way to keep in check and this fabulous website: thecaloriecounter.com is a great help. The kids have even joined in and snacked on carrot sticks while I was fixing dinner last night, and they actually asked for them! Jason is not a fan of the redone menus, but if we find any great ones I'll be sure to post them too!

Little Bit of Santa Love

2010-01-05T17:03:00.004-06:00

I know it's a little late but printer complications means that the unveiling of the 2009 Santa pic is happening today! I thought it was hilarious that Santa got in the festive mood right along with Kadyn. Isaac was smiling like a champ. Did anyone else notice how inflation has jacked with Santa pic prices? My goodness it's a rip off, but we did get a great shutterfly gift card for $10 so that made up for it a little bit! In case you need a refresher, here are the last two years of pics:

http://jnmagers.blogspot.com/2008/12/santa-pics.html

Anniversary Night

2010-01-01T18:09:00.003-06:00

As many of you know our wedding anniversary is December 31st. This year we celebrated four amazing years of being married. Our friends Tracy and Micah offered to watch the kids for us so we could have a night out (thank you thank you thank you!). We dropped the kids off at 4:30 and headed to Mango for dinner. Mango is an amazing Peruvian restaurant that had a great four course dinner for New Years Eve, which we got to enjoy. (I would highly suggest everyone in St. Louis reading this try it out. I would also suggest that you guys support the Shewsbury location because it's very nice and intimate inside instead of the Washington Ave spot...) okay, back to our night...we took two hours to eat dinner and enjoy some great dessert and drinks while having a conversation that didn't include "stop putting your fork in your hair or take another bite please." It was incredible and so very refreshing. We then went and got the kids in time to put them to bed. After getting them put to bed my amazing husband read me the most sincere love letter he wrote for our anniversary! I am blessed more than I can ever imagine, Jason is an incredible husband and father and I am so excited to spend many, many, many more years with my man. I only wish we got a picture of us all dressed up...maybe next year.

Happy New Year everyone!

Skipping Church

2009-12-27T11:30:00.003-06:00

This morning as we were walking out the door Jason called to tell me to stay home with the kids because the snow was making the roads slick pretty fast. The kids were already dressed warm so we decided to stay in the porch and play in the snow for a few minutes. Isaac was a good big brother and taught Kadyn about eating the snow. It is so exciting to see them start to enjoy being around one another, even though it only last for brief moments before someone is screaming!

Christams Traditions 2009

2009-12-27T11:18:00.003-06:00

Finished gingerbread structure (it's too bad to call a house!)

Working in the gingerbread

Christmas PJ's

This year Jason and I decided we were going to start some family traditions (the conversation was on Christmas Eve so not too much prep time). We decided on making a gingerbread house, but as you can see we needed a little more prep to make it work, it was pretty bad. We also took a picture of the kids in front of the tree in their matching Christmas PJ's, but Isaac's pants were wet in the washer so that didn't go too well either! We rented a Christmas movie and ate popcorn while watching it. That was pretty good, Kadyn actually sat through most of it...it was Santa Buddies (don't waste your money, it's not work the dollar at redbox!), but since it had puppies in it she liked it. We learned that we need to talk about this earlier next year! It was actually the best Christmas we've had so far, it was very relaxing and low key. I am looking forward to next year being a little more organized.

Before and Afterish

2009-12-27T10:59:00.003-06:00

Kitchen/Dining Room After

Before

Hallway after

Before

While we still have tons to do before things will be completely done, but we have come a long way. The major part that has changed is the kitchen. We removed a wall and made the kitchen bigger and added several more cabinets. We have one wall painted but can't decide on the other color, so any suggestions would be appreciated! The hallway just looks so much better painted to I had to include that.

Christmas Tree Decorating

2009-12-17T14:10:00.002-06:00

Kadyn helping with the lights and showing us her smile

Family Fun

We actually put the tree up earlier this year (last year I think it was a few days before Christmas!) and the kids got to help. It was fun, but I had to put aside my OCD tendencies and let all the distribution of ornaments not be perfect!

Thanksgiving Pie Lover

2009-12-17T13:54:00.003-06:00

All of us love a little pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving, but Kadyn went to town! She wouldn't pick it but instead didn't waste any time and just ate it straight off the table! She also really loved the whipped cream (which must be made from scratch!) We had a good Thanksgiving with my parents in town and missed the Magers' side of the family!

Growing Up

2009-12-04T15:23:00.002-06:00

Isaac has recently been obsessed with growing up. He has been questioning when he will be a dad, who his wife will be, and what his kids names will be. He has also reminded us multiple times that when he gets a job he's going to buy a jeep and a tape measure. We have been patient with him, explaining how his name will still be Isaac when he's a dad (he thought that it would change to Jason) and how God already has his wife picked out for him and that he just needs to be patient and prayerful about who she is. Last night when he was getting tucked into bed I noticed that his little chin was quivering and his eyes were tearing up. I asked him what was wrong as this wasn't his usual fit throwing cry, but a sensitive, sincere one. He responded that he didn't want to have a wife and be a daddy if that meant that he couldn't still live at home with mommy and daddy! Talk about taking away every frustration experienced throughout the day, my little boy melted my heart and I was reminded how precious, sensitive, and perfect God made him.

Smushed Finger

2009-12-02T13:43:00.003-06:00

I love going to the gym, being sweaty, and then not feeling guilty about what I eat (which happens to be a root beer float at this very minute made with some great ice cream we got at walgreens that tastes pretty close to homemade ice cream)sorry, I get really excited about good food, or any food...anyway, but the whole house rehab thing has really put a damper in my workout time. Since two good friends and I were planning on running a 5K this fall we actually worked really hard this summer, but then one of us moved to stinky ohio and then I fell off the wagon, which incidentally coincided with most of my close returning to that dreaded painted on look! So, good intentions in hand, Kadyn and I headed to the gym after dropping Isaac off at school on Monday morning. Since we had not been there before I went to the desk to find out if I needed to change any info in the system since I am now going to a new location and Kadyn is gazing outside at the balloons that are tied out front. As I turn around to make sure she isn't running around I see a guy open the door and then hear Kadyn screaming! She has her poor little finger smushed in the hinge of this HUGE glass door. I immediately open the door and get her finger out! The desk chick was really nice and got us an ice pack and thankfully the gym is only a few minutes from home so we headed home. Kadyn cried off and on for probably an hour and then I laid her down for her nap. When she got up we utilized our good friend Jon, who happens to be a pediatrician, for a consult and decided to take her into the ER b/c her fingernail had popped out from under her cuticle. It is really great having connections and we were in and out in less than an hour! They decided not to do anything b/c the edges of her fingernail weren't damaged so now we just wait for it to grow out! Now we will see how she does when we return to the gym, hopefully next time will be less eventful!

Week One Down

2009-11-29T19:40:00.002-06:00

So many of you that know me know that I place cleaning (the real get on your hands/knees scrubbing kind...well most any kind actually) very very low on my list of important things to do. I enjoy things being sorta picked up, but I really like living in a house that is lived in. There is nothing I hate more than walking into a house and it looking like a show house, not like someone actually abides in it! Maybe part of that feeling is just plain envy that I can't have a house that looks like its from the pages of Pottery Barn, but I really think its just because I like "homey." Jason and I have rented our prior two residences so I haven't been overly anal about cleaning them, but now we have our own place that we have struggled through making it our own and we love it! So after having the carpet installed for one week, it got it's first vacuuming with my super fancy vacuum (which doesn't get tons of use, but I love my dyson and suggest that everyone buy one, they are so worth the money!). I truly wonder how long it will last, but I feel some accomplishment about the success of week one!

Fall Fun

2009-11-24T12:00:00.003-06:00

Kadyn enjoying some leaf time

Throwing leaves

Isaac's great smile after he jumped in the first time

Rehabbing and moving into a new house that has a HUGE tree in the front yard would have been amazing in the summer, but moving in November means that the leaves that fell off that huge tree really had no chance of making it anywhere but on the ground. That would be fine in my eyes, but everybody on our street has some fancy "tool" to take care of their leaves (or they just pay someone else with some fancy tool to do the work!)...that is until we moved in! We really just kept putting it off and then when we were walking out one day and one of our neighbors, who happens to be a college student renting the house next to us with two of his college student buddies, asked me if it was okay if he raked our leaves!!! So, he raked all of our leaves for us and told Isaac that he would jump in them with him when he was done. We did go out and help put them in 12 giant construction trash bags after some fun time with the kids. It was a great opportunity to meet one of our neighbors and great to see a 22 year old college kid (coming from the 27 year old!) being generous!

Isaacisms

2009-11-23T17:52:00.002-06:00

Isaac is ever changing. It amazes me to see him becoming an independent little man. Here are two cute things he said when we were getting ready to move that I had written down and put in a place I wouldn't forget!!! That usually means that I won't be able to find it for at least a month...it only took a week this time, so here they are...

"Mom, I'm finished with this box, we've been working really hard, let's take a break."

"This would be much easier if we used a fork lift, next time we go to Lowe's that should be on the list too."

2009-11-20T19:26:00.001-06:00

Living room painted with carpet

Kitchen getting closer to being completed

First several nights in our new bedroom were like this, I felt like we were camping!

Our bedroom with carpet, furniture and our great computer closet!

Will get some more pics posted later, have a great Thanksgiving!

Forgive me

2009-11-19T17:50:00.002-06:00

We just got the internet at our new house so I promise I will get some pics updated soon. We are moved in and got our carpet laid yesterday which was a HUGE relief, the playroom is already in full use. Our bedroom and the living room are painted and look great, we are excited to get the rest of the walls painted too. The kitchen is beginning to be usable, but hopefully we will get a chance to finish our make-shift counter tops tomorrow and the cabinet doors will be done in the next few weeks. We are all exhausted, but the kids have adjusted relatively well. We are looking forward to having the parents over to this side of the state for Thanksgiving, they just don't know it's really going to be a "work day" and wish that Nate, Danielle, and Jonah could come too!

Pretty Tile

2009-11-09T22:33:00.005-06:00

Here is a video of our crazy kids dancing on our new tile (love miss kadyn's booty dance). It is beautiful to see both our home coming together and our family together again, we have really missed being with one another. I worked today at 11 so this morning we just spent some time together and actually got to relax. Jason and the kids were cuddling in bed reading books while I was getting ready and it brought tears to my eyes to see/hear how much our kids cherish their daddy. He is an amazing husband and father and all the work he has put into making our new house our home has been priceless. Our parents have been working every weekend, which is appreaciated, but my husband has been there every day even when he was sick and we can't wait to enjoy all his handy work, we love you!

Almost Done

2009-11-09T21:47:00.003-06:00

We are almost done!! We have gutted the kitchen and replaced everything (including finishing the cabinets ourselves and moving around the sink/appliances), torn out walls between the master/4th bedroom, put in new walls for our new bathroom (to be done when money allows) and walk-inish closet, closed off the door between the master and the hall bath, put new tile in kitchen and dining room, rewired the entire house, installed 18 new can lights, new lights in the dining room/kadyns room and it seems like there is more. All the project have just finish work to be done, but we are getting really close and it's a good thing, we move in this Sunday!!!! Our carpet won't be in before we move in b/c it's on back order, but oh well...we can manage! The kids have been troopers, but as you can see, Kadyn is a little tired of not getting our full attention. I will get more before/after pics up as we finish stuff, but we are really excited about our first house and making it all our own. Thanks to both of our parents and our good friends Jon, Linsie, and Jeremy (and his dad Rusty) for taking so much of their time to help us out!

Rushed Halloween

2009-11-04T14:19:00.002-06:00

This year we were a little rushed and only picked out costumes when we met up with my parents at 4 on Halloween night. Thankfully my mom had a huge box of costumes from my childhood and from my cousin Alex. We threw together Isaac and Kadyn's "magician and rabbit" pretty quickly, but they were pretty cute! We took time out from working on the house to go to a few houses on our new street and that was enough for them. Kadyn was very excited about the whole idea and spent most of the time squealing at the top of her lungs! Jason was generous enough to buy two HUGE bags of candy at Sams (he LOVES candy so I'm sure there was no selfish motives there!) and now every time we get to the house both kids want to eat some.

Cabinets

2009-11-04T14:14:00.002-06:00

Our new kitchen cabinets have been installed thanks to my incredible husband and dad, they did an amazing job and I am so excited to see everything come together. There is still lots left to do, but having the cabinets in makes it feel more like a "real" house. I am sooo glad we took out the wall and made the kitchen 2 feet bigger, it doesn't seem like much, but it really made a huge difference. The tile is being put down starting today so I am excited to head over and see how it is coming!

Working Hard

2009-10-26T20:25:00.003-05:00

Dry wall fun in the kitchen, Isaac loved "helping" out!

Our new wall into the new bathroom (formerly the fourth bedroom upstairs)

Closing off the door into the hall bath, on the right is the old closet which we are making into a computer closet, which my dad and Jason so wonderfully wired an outlet and light into!

We have the studs up for closing off the door between our bedroom and the hall bath and also the wall between our bedroom and the new bath, Jason is working on the closet wall as we speak and then we should hopefully be done hanging/mudding dry wall this week. My dad got most of the house rewired over the past 5 days and we are anxiously awaiting his return. Jason and our friend Jon got our new can lights put in (all 16 of them) on Sunday afternoon. The kitchen is almost ready for the new cabinets! Things are getting closer.

Safety First

2009-10-26T20:21:00.004-05:00

Masks for when mom is sanding the dry wall joints (which she NEVER wants to do again!)

Ear plugs for safety!

Tow Truck

2009-10-26T19:07:00.002-05:00

We have just gotten home from another long day at the house and after dinner and baths we are just hanging out while I am checking my email when I hear from the background,

"I need a tow truck mom, you know you can just go to the store and get one, that's where they come from."

After me not responding:

"Mom are you seriously not listening to me, this is important."

Three year olds crack me up!

Little Helpers

2009-10-21T14:55:00.003-05:00

This is the cabinet that Isaac helped stain, I wish I would have gotten a pic of him doing it, but I was elbow deep in stain too, he was so very proud that he got to help and he was so patient, making sure he got it almost completely covered! He would have done the middle, but I was standing on that side doing the edges. On side note the cabinets turned out beautifully. With the cost of custom cabinets we knew that wasn't an option so we got unfinished oak ones at Lowe's and stained them ourselves. I couldn't find a color that I truly loved so my mother-in-law and I bought two and mixed them together for this deep chocolate with just a hint of red, I can't wait to get them up!!!!

Kadyn playing in the unfinished cabinets, she thought the garage was her personal jungle gym and was a little frustrated once we started staining/varnishing and she couldn't climb all over the cabinets.

Isaac HATES loud noises so I told him I would bring my "special helicopter" ear plugs home from work for him to wear. After a few hours he was fine with the noise and I needed to replace the actual ear part!

Kadyn crashing after another 13 hour day at the new house! Both kids have been great. The last couple of days we have been at home more and Isaac is having some struggles with rules being present, but he will figure it out.

Progress

2009-10-21T14:11:00.002-05:00

The fireplace has been removed, and now they are working on taking out the brick

Jason found this written on one of the pieces of sheet rock, made me kind of sad that we were tearing up their hard work, but I'm sure somebody will do it to ours at some point!

The sheet rock out between the kitchen and dining room

No more wall, the support beam is up!

We have made some progress on the house, it is coming along. Jason's parents were up last weekend and our friend Jon came over on Saturday and they did tons of stuff. My dad is at there as I am typing this so I'm sure that more will be accomplished over the next 5 days while he is here.

Isaac's Words

2009-10-12T14:03:00.002-05:00

Since I don't really have a "formal" baby book for either kid (I have one somewhere with maybe 2 pages written in for Isaac...) I need to document all my favorite things about my kids on here. Isaac is a very articulate kid, but he has some words that I just love to hear him pronounce so here's my list just for me to remember when he is older and we are facing other trials than just being three!

Screv: screw
Mwater: water (this one is getting more "normal" and I am pretty sad!)
Panino: piano (one of my favorites!)

I'm sure I will add more as I hear them.

Kadyn is using more words everyday, but her favorite remains "eat" she eats more than Isaac at most meals!

What Has Taken Over Our Life

2009-10-10T15:59:00.003-05:00

The Front

Our backyard that needs some grooming

Basement play room waiting for carpet

Wood stove/brick that Jason is taking out

Kitchen that is going to be completely redone

Today we began a new phase of our lives...remodeling our new house. Well, it's not officially ours until the 15th, but thankfully our friends are letting us begin early since we have pretty high hopes for all that we can get accomplished in one month before we have to be out of our current residence! So it is day one and I already pulled the sad, whiny, please don't leave me with the kids routine as Jason was leaving to go remove the wood burning stove that takes up 1/3 of the living room. I know, pathetic, but I just didn't want to handle the kids on a few hours of broken sleep...but, if I want my wonderfully accommodating husband to get everything done then I must suck it up and realize the next month I am going to be flying solo most of the time! More pics will come later!

Friends

2009-09-24T09:04:00.005-05:00

We have made some great friends in St. Louis! We tend to spend a lot of time with Tracy and Micah and their two great kids Roman and Kate. These are some pics of our last outing to the park together and then the kids trying to look over the fence for the neighbors dog!

He's not talking to me...

2009-09-14T12:21:00.002-05:00

Today Isaac fell at school and got a very small cut on his hand. He has had many of these before and when Isaac questions how they will get better, we always tell him that God can heal his owies and he is fine with that. Today we went through the whole conversation again and then from the back seat I heard a frustrated little voice say:

"He's not talking to me"
M: Who's not talking to you?
I: God in Heaven is not talking to me, I'm telling him to fix my owie, but why isn't he talking back?
M: (stammering, trying to figure out how to explain this to a 3 year old) God talks to us in other ways than through a voice.
I: How?
M: (thinking: seriously kid I'm running out of answers) He talks to us through people in our lives, so mommy and daddy are helping him take care of you and your owies
I: Oh, okay. Well, I'm going to talk to him some more then so you can help too

I know I've said this before, but I love seeing how innocent and pure kids can be. We are called to have childlike faith, but so often our faith is jaded by past hurts, our own desires, and self protection. How would our world be changed if we changed let all the crap go and just followed the most perfect and holy God, who wants nothing more to love us. Hmmm...

The bone and the baby

2009-09-13T10:23:00.002-05:00

Kadyn found her belly this week, which means there is lots of laughing and lots of belly button exposure around our house. The other day Isaac and I were sitting on the couch and he was inspecting his belly button and reminded me that we were connected there when he was in my belly. So, seeing him process his thoughts the conversation went:

I: Did the doctor take Miss Kadyn out of your belly last night?
M: No, she came out on her birthday
I: What did the doctor do with her when she came out?
M: She gave her to me so I could hold her.
I: No mom, she put the bone on her belly and fixed her, then you could hold her.

I'm not sure where he has ever seen a cord clamp on a baby or would put the two together, but that kid amazes me every day with how much he absorbs!

15 months

2009-09-08T11:02:00.003-05:00

We had Kadyn's 15 month check up this morning.

Weight: 19 1/2 lbs
Length: 30 inches

Still in the 15th percentile for weight, but sprang up to the 40th for height!!! She might get to be front facing in her car seat by the time she's 2, but who knows!

Miss Kadyn's Black Eye

2009-08-25T22:34:00.004-05:00

The kids spent last weekend in KC and survived 11 acres, a pond, a playground, and three kittens without anything more serious than Isaac getting some scrapes on his legs from the rose bushes...but, within 5 minutes of being home Kadyn had face planted into a chair causing a small cut on her eyelid and the resulting black eye/bruise on her forehead!

First Day of Preschool

2009-08-25T22:10:00.007-05:00

Isaac in front of his school

Isaac in front of his cubby

Isaac after his first day of school!

Isaac began preschool last Friday. We took it as a good sign when he threw a huge fit complete with crying when we had to leave "meet the teacher day" the Wednesday before. He is loving school so far, but we will see! He is going three mornings a week and it already has been a nice break for mom and it's great to spend some time with just Kadyn! I didn't even get teary!!!

Forgetting Miss Kadyn

2009-08-15T11:52:00.003-05:00

The story goes something like this (or so I'm told since I wasn't there!):

Jason takes the kids to the grocery store (south city shop n save) for a few items. Isaac is walking and Kadyn is sitting in the seat by where you push. They finish getting the groceries, Jason takes the grocery bags out of the cart, puts the cart back, and heads to the car. They get to the car, Jason puts the groceries in, tells Isaac to get in his seat and buckle in, proceeds to walk around and open Miss Kadyns side and realizes....there is no Miss Kadyn!! So, after grabbing Isaac and running back into the store he finds her right where he left her...sitting in the cart, swinging her chubby little legs, talking to a nice lady who had stopped to make sure that "the momma" came back for her!

Walking, Etc...

2009-08-15T11:30:00.006-05:00

Miss Kadyn can walk, but does she choose to? The deciding factor for Miss Kadyn to walk is the proximity of her brother. If Isaac is anywhere around her, she would rather keep a low profile and crawl...it is much faster if she needs to get away from him and well it basically hurts less if he unintentionally (or intentionally for that matter) body slams her onto the ground. It is pretty cute, but seems to just further her already serious case of independence that is brewing deep in her soul. Sorry for the sideways video, we keep forgetting that we can't rotate with our new camera!

Botanical Gardens

2009-08-06T16:38:00.003-05:00

Looking out of a "beehive"

Isaac expelling some energy

Getting ready to pull some flowers

Still happy at the end of the night!

We spent Wednesday evening at the Botanical Gardens for the final night of free jazz in the Garden. It was so much fun! We met our friends Jon and Linsie there and enjoyed some fabulous KFC and some okay jazz (we didn't really listen!) Isaac and Kadyn had fun running around and keeping Jason busy. Both kids are growing crazy fast! Isaac starts preschool in two weeks and Kadyn is trying to walk.

More Napping Issues

2009-08-06T16:08:00.002-05:00

As you can see Miss Kadyn has been having some "I refuse to sleep in my own bed" issues yet again. We are not really sure what to do about it, but she seems to be doing okay as long as she isn't anywhere near her bed!

Dear God

2009-07-27T13:00:00.002-05:00

Isaac from the backseat of the car while driving to Columbia MO (see next post!):
"God, please make it rain so I can see the water."
I am ever amazed at such a pure sense of literalism that is displayed by kids.

Allergy Testing

2009-07-27T12:50:00.002-05:00

Last week we traveled to Columbia MO to the MU Vet Teaching Hospital to have Annie seen by a dermatologist...yes, we took the dog to see a dermatologist! It is our last effort at getting some control over her allergies, we have tried everything so we thought we should give this a try even though Pat so graciously offered his pet hospice program to us!! So, off we went at 7:30 in the morning, two kids and one itchy dog in tow! Annie had to be off all of her steroids and medicines for the past month so it has been pretty torturous for all of us! She has spent most of her time in her kennel wearing a cone and some times wearing a t-shirt to keep her from chewing and scratching herself to a bloody mess! Anyway, we arrived and after seeing the doctor he felt that her only option was to get the skin testing so after we decided what heroic measures would be taken to save her if she tried to die during the procedure (sedation was used and yes I was WAY more willing to do everything to save her than Jason, but we did come to a reasonable compromise!) she was whisked away to get her side shaved and 67 allergens injected into her skin to see what she is allergic to. Jason and the kids and I spent the day shopping in Columbia and eating at an ice cream place called Sparky's downtown (which I would highly highly recommend if you're ever in Columbia, all of their ice cream is homemade and FABULOUS!!!) We picked Annie up at 4 and were told that she is generally a pretty allergic dog, but that she is very allergic to basically any type of insect or bug. This has confirmed our suspicious that she would not survive in the wild for any length of time!! So, now we are waiting for her specially formulated allergy shots to arrive so we can begin to desensitize her to bugs! I know it seems crazy, and it seems even more crazy now that I am actually typing this out, but oh well...what is done is done and now hopefully Annie can enjoy her time here a little bit more fully!

The Princess Cozy Coupe

2009-07-27T12:46:00.002-05:00

As previously mentioned...there was quite the competition for time in the police cozy coupe. So, instead of waiting for Christmas or her 2nd birthday Mimi went ahead and gave into the drama that Miss Kadyn is already perfecting and pre-purchased the Princess Cozy Coupe. I wish I could say that it solved all the problems, but now they just want to play in whichever one the other one is in! We are at least able to put one kid in each coupe however so that is nice. Sorry for the poor quality of pic, it was taken with Jason's phone since we haven't replaced the camera broken by the sweet boy! It is on order though and should be here Friday! Woo Hoo!

Quiet Voice

2009-07-27T12:37:00.004-05:00

On Saturday nights Jason runs through his Sunday set once before going to bed...usually it isn't a problem...but at about 9 o'clock Isaac's door opened and he came to tell me "Please tell Daddy to use his quiet voice." I always joke with Jason and tell him he doesn't know how to sing quietly, but maybe now he will believe me!

The Death of A Camera

2009-07-20T14:41:00.003-05:00

The video explains so much. This morning Isaac woke us up to tell us that the camera was broken...and sure enough, it's done, even after trying every "fix" we found after searching for the error on all major search engines! So I decided that I wanted to get all the pictures off the memory card before we messed with it too much...and this is one of many that I found!

Cozy Coupe

2009-07-14T12:30:00.006-05:00

The Cozy Coupe was a great addition to our toy collection and both kids really like it...but the sharing part is just too much sometimes! The progression in these pictures tell the whole story! My favorite is the middle one b/c I think this pretty much captures the male/female relationship perfectly: males: "why are you so emotional about this, its not that big of a deal" females: "do you really not understand what I am thinking right now, but refusing to say!" At least it seems that way in our life!

Miss Kadyn

2009-07-14T12:22:00.006-05:00

I had to post some pics of my favorite little girl on here too! She is trying to walk, but won't take any steps on her own yet! She enjoyed the painting, but most of all she enjoyed having her own little cup of frosting to eat!

Isaac's Birthday Party

2009-07-14T11:18:00.010-05:00

This past weekend we got to enjoy some time with family and friends as we all went to the Magic House for Isaac's third birthday. We had a blast and got to do some really fun activities. Both Grammy and Papa and Mimi and Granddad got to come up as well as Aunt Alice and Alex. Several of our friends from church got to come and we had fun exploring the Magic House and then got to do some activities before the kids got to decorate their own cupcakes. Here are some pics from the fun day! Isaac had fun doing most everything, but I think his favorite part was getting to run around and have the least amount of restrictions! All the kids got to make paintings use paint and various types of trucks. They also got to decorate a hard hat and then got their own cupcakes and could put icing on all by themselves! It was a fun and exhausting day!

4th of July in Springfield

2009-07-13T16:53:00.001-05:00

4th of July parade

Isaac hanging out at the parade

Playing the "little guitar"

Building a helicopter with granddad

Riding the 4 wheeler with granddad

This is what the kids got to do while staying with my parents over 4th of July. They had a great time and came back worn out and ready to sleep! I think my parents were worn out and ready to sleep too! My mom did say that she would never again say anything about my house not be perfect ever again b/c now she knows what it is like to have two kids running around all the time!

Happy Birthday Isaac

2009-07-07T14:15:00.002-05:00

Isaac turned three today. It has been an amazing time being his parents. He is an incredibly active and enthusiastic little guy. He goes at everything will all of his might. Even when he is disobeying he does it with such passion that it is sometimes hard to not laugh at him! He is wonderfully sensitive and loves to look at flowers and thinks that almost everything is beautiful! It is a trait that I hope he never grows out of. It has been a joy being your parent Isaac, we love you and are praying for you.

Springfield Vacation

2009-07-02T17:47:00.001-05:00

This past week my Nana was in the hospital in
Spfd so we all headed down to see her and to spend some time at my parents prior to leaving the kids there for the weekend (woohoo). Anyway, we were at their house for all of 30 minutes (long enough for the sunblock to start working) before we were in the pool. My mom has a tradition of buying ridiculously huge pool toys and here is Jason riding the whale with his "sword" ready for attack. We had a great time and enjoyed being out in the country breathing the fresh air. Every time we come back from either of our parents house we are a little sad that we are leaving the quiet of the country and returning to the noise! I know I would get nothing done if I had rocking chairs sitting on my porch!! I would be sitting there with my coffee and reading while the kids played outside and there would be NO house work done by me.

Isaac's swim lessons have been paying off. He wore his life jacket the whole time, but was WAY more daring in the water. He would jump in from the side and not want anyone to catch him.
I am already dreading putting this picture up, but yes..I am in a bathing suit on the blog. I couldn't help but show everyone how much fun "the girls" were having. Annie has enjoyed the pool the last two summers and actually spent some time swimming this year. She is pretty funny to watch. She mostly enjoys sitting the raft getting some sun.
Miss Kadyn loves being in the water. She is so funny. Whatever she sees her brother do she wants to do too so she was splashing tons and kept sticking her face in the water. She was shivering by the time we got out both days and still was unhappy about being taken inside.
When we talk about going to Granddad and Mimi's house Isaac always talks about the frogs in the pool. In the evening they come and hide under the edge so he was excited to see them and Jason, being the great dad he is, caught one and put it on Isaac's head...he didn't think the frog was that great when it was sitting on top of his head!

More Springfield Pics

2009-07-02T17:29:00.000-05:00

Isaac running in my parents front yard wearing only underwear!

Isaac in his new police cozy coupe, early bday present from mimi and granddad

Isaac and granddad planting flowers for mimi

Miss Kadyn showing Isaac how to eat watermelon

Miss Kadyn continuing her love for music and playing the piano

Caught Sleeping Again

2009-06-28T15:37:00.001-05:00

Miss Kadyn has found another
"comfy" place to rest her pretty little eyes. This one was caught by our babysitter who went to use the bathroom and came back to find the princess sleeping in what was Isaac's (now her) frog chair. We are just letting her be, but good news: yesterday she fell asleep not once, but twice in her crib! Who knew this could happen! The only good thing about this is that her anti-bed feelings have not bled into her bedtime, she still dives for her crib when it's time to give it up at night!

Funny Man

2009-06-24T17:53:00.000-05:00

Mom, Isaac, and Kadyn went to the park and on the way home:

Isaac: Where are we going now?
Mom: We are going to go home to eat lunch
Isaac: I think we should go to McDonalds and get some lunch, does that make sense?

How am I supposed to not agree with that?

My Morning

2009-06-24T17:46:00.000-05:00

So for those of you who do not live in a city that employees men to mow yards that are "overgrown" please understand that St. Louis is one of those cities! We have had these friendly old men come once before and it cost us a "reasonable" 95.00 for their services...so today when my babysitter unexpectedly came an hour early and I noticed one of these nice men sitting on their HUGE tractor in my yard, I ran, bra less, screaming, waving my arms, and jumping up in the air trying to get his attention. I did get his attention (miraculously without anything falling out of my tank top) and informed him that I was going to mow the yard right now and asked him to please take his tractor and leave!!! So, my initial thoughts of relaxing and reading with the kids before going to work turned into me mowing the yard and needing to take another shower before rushing off to work....

Miss Kadyn

2009-06-23T13:27:00.001-05:00

Miss Kadyn is developing quite a personality. She refuses to eat anything that does not look exactly like what we are eating. We fought this for a while just on the simple principle of safety, but now we gave up on protecting her from choking and give her almost everything whole! As you can see from the picture she can devour a piece of pizza with no problem! This week we have started learning the word "more" and have actually cut back on most of the screaming! She has a huge appetite, Jason insists that she eats more than Isaac does and it's quite possible! She has started shaking her head "yes" or "no" for pretty much everything she wants or doesn't want. At first we just thought she was being silly, but she is pretty adamant about both responses, so we usually listen to her! The one thing that ALWAYS gets a "no" response is taking a nap. This girl does not want to sleep! As you can see in the next picture she will go until she can no longer stay awake! I do not understand how she needs less sleep than Isaac does, but it's working right now so we'll see. This day she hadn't taken a nap at all and fell asleep while we were cleaning up from dinner! We are enjoying see her develop and start to talk. I'm pretty sure her favorite thing to say is "no" and when she does it she slaps her hand on her leg, just like she has seen her brother do sooo many times!

Fat Dog

2009-06-23T12:53:00.000-05:00

Since the kids have been born Annie has taken a back seat in our life, but I couldn't resist putting this picture up. This is her dog bed (without the cover on it) and she just looks ridiculous, what kind of pug is this fat? I guess one that we let get this way...but still

Croup

2009-06-23T12:42:00.000-05:00

Last Tuesday we made a trip to Children's to have Isaac treated for croup. He started coughing on Sunday night and started with the fever on Monday. By Tuesday the poor kid wasn't really even able to follow me in the grocery store without being out of breath. On Tuesday afternoon he had another febrile seizure and then after that was pretty bad. We took him in and he got some oral medication and then a breathing treatment. He was better after a few hours so we got to go home. Miss Kadyn did great and was excited to get to eat cafeteria food all evening! As for the seizures, one of the docs there told us that since he's had more than two he will probably have them every time he has a fever. We are praying for healing in this area.

The Best Daddy Ever

2009-06-21T16:45:00.001-05:00

Daddy and Isaac

Daddy and his little girl

Being a human jungle gym

Today is Father's Day and I have to post something about the best dad ever. Both of our dads are amazing and Jason and I are blessed to still have them in our lives, but there is something breathtaking about seeing the man that I love the most in this world be a dad. I knew from the time we found out we were pregnant with Isaac that I and our children had been given a man that would surpass my expectations when it came to being a dad. His never ending love and devotion to us is overwhelming. He is our protector and the glue that holds our family together. We are all better people because he is in our lives. Jason you are amazing and watching you love our children makes me love you more than I could ever imagine! (And no, this is not trying to make up for forgetting it was Father's Day until at church this morning, hopefully giving into all the "it's my day" whining has taken care of that!!!!)

Birthday Party

2009-06-13T21:28:00.001-05:00

Tonight we had the joy of getting to have a BBQ for Kadyn's First Birthday. We had our great friends the Malones, the Starks, and the Moores over to our house. We also got a surprise visit from Mimi and Grandad (however way too short as they only came up for the day, but no amount of thank yous will express our thanks for your help today) and our favorite neighbor TJ came over too! It was an absolutely beautiful evening and the kids enjoyed being able to spend some time outside and the adults enjoyed being able to relax with one another! We had burgers and hot dogs for dinner and then had some great cupcakes. Thanks to everyone that came, we had a blast and we are looking forward to seeing most of you this Wednesday for some jazz and dinner at the Botanical Gardens!

The Starks and the Moores

Puppy cupcakes

Kadyn eating the head of the puppy off

The story of the night: Noah the gentle one, Lee being nervous, Isaac wanting Yuri's attention, Yuri being attentive to Isaac, and Kadyn longing for her mama...

The birthday girl playing in the water with her Mimi.

Swim Lessons

2009-06-09T13:54:00.000-05:00

Isaac started swim lessons last week. He loves being in the water, but isn't too crazy about the silly games we play. He just wants to swim! Jason got to come this morning and got some pictures on his phone, but we'll take the camera next week to get some more.

Country Fun

2009-06-09T13:38:00.001-05:00

This past week we got to spend several days in KC with the Magers'. It was a wonderful time to get to reconnect, especially since Nate (Jason's brother) was off for most of the days. The boys did some work for Pat and the girls got some shopping in with Claudia. On Friday we visited the KC Zoo and then on Saturday night we had a combined birthday party for everyone in the family who had summer birthdays. We made tons of food and finished it off with homemade ice cream and individual car and train cakes. We had a great time and all of us were sad when we had to head back to the city after our wonderful time out in the country!

Where we spent most of our time

Kadyn enjoying an apple

Beautiful Baby Jonah

Part of Claudia's large collection of roses

Kadyn checking on the flowers

Zoo Fun in KC

2009-06-09T13:27:00.001-05:00

Dad and Isaac with the giraffe

Happy Baby Jonah

The beginning

The end

We spent Friday morning at the zoo and while Kadyn enjoyed part of it, she crashed at the end. It was a beautiful day and we had a great picnic lunch before going home.

Pool Time in KC

2009-06-09T13:10:00.000-05:00

Isaac and Kadyn enjoying the water

Kadyn showing how independent she is

The fam

Baby Jonah getting some pool time

Thanks to Auntie DD for letting us bring Jonah's pool up to the house for all the kids to enjoy and the adults to cool our feet with occasionally! It was way too small for any of us to fit ourselves into!

Birthday Cars and Trains

2009-06-09T12:41:00.000-05:00

Claudia found cake pans in the shape of cars and trains so we headed to Mr. Bulky's and bought every kind of candy possible to decorate them. Thanks to Aunt Cindy who had an enormous box of cookie decorating equipment so we could add some detail. It was very fun, but my type A tendencies got the best of me and I found myself being too detailed!

Starting of the car cakes (notice the marine tattooed arm in the upper left???)

The sisters hard at work

Finished car cakes

Finished train cakes

Note: The one Jason did is the one completely covered with candy!

Happy Birthday Miss Kadyn

2009-05-27T06:16:00.000-05:00

Happy birthday beautiful girl. You are such a blessing to your dad and I. You bring us such joy and I am excited to see the woman that God has created you to be. We are praying for you.

First Cardinals Game

2009-05-25T08:23:00.000-05:00

View from the top

Pooped out Miss Kadyn sipping on some water in Megan's arms (Jordan focused in the background)

Isaac showing off his candy

The fam

Jo, Glen, Jordan, and Megan (my aunt, uncle, and cousins from KC) came over on Sunday for the Cards vs. Royals game. We ended up having great seats behind home plate even though they were on the very top row! It was an amazingly gorgeous day with a beautiful breeze that kept us cool and comfortable. Kadyn and Isaac did wonderful. To top it off the Royals came out victorious (yes, the kids and I were wearing Cards stuff, but we were really rooting for KC)

Baby in a Box

2009-05-25T08:20:00.000-05:00

Annie had to endure this kind of treatment before Kadyn came along, but I guess now Jason thinks that b/c she is so small she should be put in any box he can find! She is pretty cute.

Dirt

2009-05-12T15:17:00.000-05:00

Isaac hates being dirty. If he falls down he holds him arms and legs up in the air and flips out until someone comes to help him up instead of touching the ground with his hands. If we refuse to give into his cries he will get up eventually, but only to very quickly wipe his hands off and inform us that he is dirty. So, when we went outside for some fresh air the other day I was wondering what Kadyn would do in the dirt. She wasn't crazy about the grass touching her legs, but she was all about crawling in the dirt. She loved it. I can't wait for her to start walking so we can explore outside more!

Sharing

2009-05-12T15:09:00.000-05:00

I'm sure in other posts I've shared about Isaac not really enjoying his little sister the way I envisioned it, but oh well...she's here so he might as well get over it. We when we went to Springfield I got the privilege of seeing them reach across their car seats to hold hands. He was pretty excited about it so here is the blurry pic I got while driving down the road in the rain (no, not the safest, but how could I miss documenting such a momentous occasion!!)

The other pic is one of sharing sacred ice cream. We, as a family, are huge fans of Cold Stone Creamery...so much so that we all signed up through their website for free ice cream for our birthdays (everyone should sign up, it's great!) Anyway, we went on Monday night to celebrate my birthday (the 16th in case any of you reading this hasn't gotten my present yet) and here is a pic of Isaac sharing his ice cream with Kadyn...maybe we are making some progress.

Grass

2009-05-04T14:58:00.000-05:00

Before in case you couldn't remember how dreadful it was!

WE HAVE GRASS!!! WOO HOO!!!

Kadyn's Springfield Birthday Party

2009-05-04T14:46:00.000-05:00

Traffic jam courtesy of Granny (Isaac got his tractor for is 1st bday and Kadyn got a horse)

Not really enjoying the texture of the cake

Attempting to eat it without touching it

Forgetting all about her aversion once she ate some

Kadyn really enjoyed the balloons and decorations saying "ooohhh" over and over again

The kids and I headed to Springfield for the weekend (yes, you read that right...no daddy) and had a great time catching up with family. We had the 5th annual Williams' Game Weekend and yet again, I did not come home with the trophy. I got second by only 60 points, very disappointing!!! We celebrated Kadyn's first birthday while we were there and enjoyed her personality and some great food and presents!

Water Hyacinth

2009-04-29T14:29:00.001-05:00

Our water hyacinth bloomed yesterday and here is a picture of it...we've lost two minnows, but all of our other fish are doing well and I am super excited to see all the other flowers in bloom. This one is beautiful, the picture really doesn't do it justice

As a side note: I just realized that I am really excited about flowers, which is something I swore I would never be because I have lots and lots of memories of traveling with my grandparents and stopping to take a picture of this or that flower....and here I am....turning into my grandmother who is a wonderful, Godly woman...but I never thought I would be the "flower" type!

Fireman

2009-04-27T18:24:00.001-05:00

The next picture is very very blurry because I was running away since Isaac turned to tell me something and didn't turn the water off! I was very wet, but luckily the camera was salvaged!!!

Weekend Projects

2009-04-27T17:12:00.000-05:00

Jason and TJ filling in the pit

Isaac in a place that is out of the way...

Flowers

Herbs: Parsley, Rosemary, Cilantro, Sweet Basil

Empty pond

Pond plants (and leaves already)

Some of our fish

Our landlord had started a garden pond and I'm not sure if it ever was actually finished or not, but I drained all the water, washed it out, and now we have fish and plants in our pond! Our hope is that this will help with the mosquito infestation that we had last year that prevented us from being outside for any length of time. Isaac got to pick out some fish and we got lots of generic ones so if any die (we've only lost one minnow so far) they can easily be replaced.

We also finally put grass seed down and we hope that we will eventually have a "real" yard that we can enjoy. I also got all my potted plants started for this year with the addition of a selection of herbs to enjoy. I really would like a large garden, but I just settled for some herbs!

Jason and TJ (our neighbor) also worked on filling in the sink hole in the side yard with more dirt. I think we are almost to the point of having an area that can be seeded and hopefully enjoyed this summer! We had a busy weekend, but it was great to be outside enjoying the beautiful weather.

Head Trauma

2009-04-23T15:43:00.000-05:00

On Monday night we went over to Erin and Jeff Moore's house for dinner and Isaac fell down the stairs only getting a little scratch and bruise on his head....well today while we were at the vets office Isaac ran right into a 2x4 that was on top of a half wall...in almost the exact same spot. The picture isn't the best (b/c Isaac was refusing to get it taken), but here are his injuries!

Annie

2009-04-23T15:38:00.000-05:00

Annie has had itchy feet for a really long time...but recently she has had an itchy booty. Without going into many details we have taken her to Petsmart several times to have her anal glands drained (the cause of itchy booty) and every time they've told us they were fine and nothing came out....well it has gotten progressively worse with the culmination last night being her rubbing her entire back legs raw trying to scratch, causing blood to be all over the carpet. This morning the same thing happened but it was on our back deck...so off to the vet we went....and 200 bucks later...she finally has her glands really cleaned out (which are also infected) and is on tons of meds to help her now infected skin heal. Sorry for the gross story, but the pic of Annie wearing one of Kadyn's socks and a bandage just wouldn't be the same!

Phone Lover

2009-04-23T15:35:00.000-05:00

Kadyn loves the phone and talking in general. She is really starting to babble constantly and it is pretty adorable! She tries to hold the phone between her head and her shoulder and I couldn't get a great pic of it, but here is one that is pretty good!