Preschool

Next week Addi starts her first round of preschool.  She is completely ready and yearns for some interaction with any sort of kid that will play with her.  I'm ready too I swear.  I think she will be much happier when she has something to do outside of me and what I have to offer her.  I was ready that is until the orientation yesterday.  All was great, the kids met their teacher and had a snack (Addi's is good at snacks.)  Then we went to reading time where they read this story:

I was good until then.  Then the teacher reads about this cute little raccoon that does not want to go to school so the mom kisses his hand and tells him to just touch his cheek when he feels alone and it will be like she is kissing him all better.
That's when I got all misty eyed and tried to pretend I wasn't crying over my 3 year old going to school and leaving me. 
Now, I will be fine, but it just shows how fast she is growing.  When did that happen?

By the way, she has a severe problem with looking at the actual camera with her eyes open.  I don't know why!  I cant figure the gal out.  I once heard that Native Americans said that the camera stole your soul....I think Ron said he was like 1/8th something so maybe it is the soul stealing she is worried about.

Back in session

School has now started which always makes me a little upset.  I like teaching, I do, but I also have a fondness for laying in bed with my babies and staying in pajamas till way too late in the day.  But I only teach every other day so dont feel too bad for me, I will do that by myself.
My sweet husbie has been 'given' (by that I mean forced) into taking over head coaching duties of the Roy High football team this year.  Knowing that we would be daddy-less once school started, we packed lots into our last couple of weeks of summer, here is our rundown:
Blessing:
We blessed our sweet little Elliette Love at the first of the month.  Ron did an amazing job and it was so fun to have friends there that we dont get to see all the time.  It was also nice to just be able to have everyone come over to our own home after.  I am however still quite angry at my husband, first thing he did when he got home was sprint like a woodland deer to our room and removed his suit in record time.  Even before I got to get the signature picture with daddy and daughter.  So ticked.  He promises that we will recreate the day sometime...Im still waiting.  So these are the only pictures we have until I do the recreation myself. 

This is sweet little Hallie, Addi's first friend, it was so fun to have there at the blessing before they moved to AZ

Bear Lake:
Addi has been asking to go to the beach all summer.  I dont think she really even knew what the beach was but by golly she knew she needed to go there.  The closest we could think of was Bear Lake so bright and early we packed it up and went to the beach.  She was in love.  I will lose her to California or Florida someday, of that I am sure.  She was a raving lunatic and could have stayed there all year.  I dont even think she took time to snack or anything.  She loved the sand, the water, every last bit of her was totally thrilled to be there. 

Ellie is slightly less impressed

Being burried by her cousins

Roy Days:
Anyone who knows me knows that I will forever be a Roy gal, even if I dont really live there anymore, it will always be a huge part of me, here is the day:

The parade...so hot, so many fire engins, Addi didnt adore this parade

At the Carnie with her cute friend Whitlee showing off their face tatts

Fireworks with my ma, bros, and nieces and nephews (and Mitch, Cauley's boy)

Anniversary:
This was our 7th year being married.  I am so lucky to have such an amazing husband.  He is eternally doing whatever he can to make me happy and has given me the two best gifts ever.  For this year we went to Little America with the gals and went swimming and eating.  Addi wants to live in a hotel.  I love you husbie.

My gals posing for some pics

After the hotel we 'Zoo-ed" it up for awhile.

Thanks for the great life!


IGNORE THE REST...IS ANYONE ELSE HAVING PROBLEMS WITH PICTURES OR AM I JUST TOTALLY LAME?

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Remember us?

It has been about 3 months since I have had a chance to get on this thing. I have missed it. I know I said that I was going private, and someday I might. I just really don't want to. I am proud of my family. I think they are great, and if someone wants to read about us and see our cute kids, I really don't have a problem with that...unless they are mean. So I will keep my fingers crossed that now that softball is over for the year, those people have found other ways to occupy their minds and will leave me and my family alone. (please?)

When school was finally over I thought we had about 5 weeks to get things taken care of before our little gal arrived in the world. I was planning on those 5 weeks to clean the house, play with Addi, pack my hospital bag. So when my water broke at 2:30 on June 5th, (when I was still 3 weeks away from my due date) I stood desperately in my bathroom trying to figure out a way to jam all that I had left to do before I had to go to the hospital. I even contemplated just ignoring it and going back to bed. Maybe it would stop if I ignored it long enough....it didnt. So with a towel between my legs I sprinted around the house trying to get things together, I didn't even have my stuff packed, I hadn't cleaned, I was still planning on taking Addi to the zoo again, or to the park or swimming or something. But, this baby was going to get her way like it or not.

We arrived at the hospital at 4:30 and she rushed into the world (even before my mommy got there!) at 8:28 am. It only took three pushes instead of the 3 HOURS it took with Addi. Such a good girl! (I love these pictures when they look like they have just been in the ring with Ali or something)

Elliette Love Koford

7 lbs 7 oz

20 1/2 inches

Oh my goodness she is sweet, and her sister likes her too!Once we got home the fun started. My 3 year old who had been stubbornly rejecting potty training decided that the time had come (pretty convenient right?...not really) Plus she is more K9 than anything and wanted to learn how to do it on the porch. Seriously, she was peeing on the porch. Luckily we don't have houses across the street from us yet or they would have been given a show. I cant wait till I publish my book on how to raise and potty train your children, I will make millions. I will spare you those pictures and save them for some day when I need to blackmail her into doing something. (The pictures are not working with me today so just know these are totally out of order)

(this is Ellie in her 'tanning bed')
Ellie kept us home while she baked in her billi suitcase. She had some jaundice and needed to be in here 24 hours a day. We were glued to the house. Which gave me time to totally let my hormones freak out and I spent about 2 weeks crying over everything. I was a total mess. I was (and still am) so freaked out that I have two to take care of now. How do you do that? Seriously, how!??? But I will just love them and rely on our families a lot while I learn what the heck to do when Ellie needs to nurse and Addi needs eggs. Do I risk scorching my nursing baby over the stove or go crazy while Addi claims to be so hungry her stomach is eating itself and she my die right then and there? Who wins?

But we do love them so each moment is truly wonderful. I love how wonderfully sweet Addi is with her sister. She is silly proud of her and tells everyone about how cute she is. We have been trying to do the normal summer stuff. Swim lessons have been fun, fireworks are a huge hit, we even made it to the river for some fun.

Mostly we just bask in the cuteness. We bask a lot.

I have been forced into it...sorry

If you want to come and see my blog, please send me your email, I would love nothing more than good people to look at my random posts but there are people out there who are simply spineless and cruel on family blogs that I simply can not put me nor my family through.
Sorry!
My email:
amkoford@weber.k12.ut.us

I will go private next week so let me know as soon as you can.
Thanks!

Easter...just a tad late.

Have I told you how much I love Easter? Seriously, by far the best holiday. Don't believe me, here is my list of reasons why:

1. Candy. You can not possibly name another holiday where the candy is half as good. Cadbury mini eggs, bunnies that you can bite the heads off of, jelly beans in all sorts of to die for variations. It is just so good. I tried these cookies, next year you need to try them too, that is if you can forfeit a bag to crush and pour into cookie dough.

2. Spring. Not too hot, not too cold, cute little buds on the trees. Just the name makes you think of baby sheep grazing in a field or chicks bouncing up and down. How cute is spring? Plus the main decoration is eggs. Eggs that you spend about 30 minutes of pure messy fun decorating and cracking countless eggs to get your basket full of colorful awesomeness. Addi has wanted to dye eggs every day since.

3. Baskets. That's it, that's the big push. Not stockings, then presents, then family presents, then neighbor gifts. Christmas can be a little too much stress all around, but that bunny doesn't need all that stuff, just an awesome basket to load with above mentioned candy and spring toys like bubbles and kites and chalk. Every part of the basket screams, "Hey Spring, nice to see ya!" Addi got some Barbie stuff, a Zhu Zhu, sand stuff and lots of her favorite candy, anything where they combine chocolate and peanut butter. Ronnie got a couple shirts and his favorite candy selections, Snickers and peanut M n M's. The bunny brought me some new jewelry since I am the size of a motor home and do not need anything to put on or in my belly.

I simply love this holiday and have tried hard to make Addi see the truth about its awesomeness. She is still a little confused and asked if Santa gave the Easter Bunny a ride on his sleigh to come to our house, and I think she got terrified to think of a giant bunny hopping through our house, but you will see, one day I will bring her to my side.

Breaking the Habit

We did it. I really feel like a parent now. Remember how in my last post I swore that I would take that binkie from her soon? Raise your hand if you really believed me? (There should be absolutely no hands raised. Not only would you look foolish raising your hand to your computer, but I myself didn't believe that I would really have the guts to take it away!)

Well we did. I did my research last week and looked at the post from The Idea Room (thanks Kate, I saw it too.) Liked some of the ideas but finally decided to go with one about Build-a-Bear. Knowing my husband would only go for this type of a place on a special occasion like this (seriously build a bear, you are a little pricey, I bought Addi's swimsuit for way less than this one!) And I knew Addi would be so thrilled to make a stuffed animal of her own. So, with thousands of knots in my stomach, we dove in.

I had talked to her all morning about what we were going to to and I have this weird way of scaring her (and scarring her) all at the same time. I told her she was getting so big and that she would be going to school before she knew it, but the kicker was when I told her that it was making her teeth funny. That did it, she looked at me and spit that cute little mouth piece out right then. Kinda like the time that I told her she had to hold my hand in the street so that cars wouldn't hit her and now she wont step on anything black for fear that a speeding car would immediately arrive out of no where and plow into her. Good solid parenting people. I will write a book later.

ANYWAY, I let her have the binkie while we played in the fountains and while we looked at a few stores; I let her have that sweet bink for her last hurrah. Every time I would look at her and her cute little binkie face I would feel the guilt pulse in my gut. Finally in the store she picked out her cute monkey and I held my breath as she shoved her last remaining binkie into the animal. All was good, she got a cute monkey, she dressed it and named it and was happy as pie....for about 3 minutes until she asked to have her binkie back.

(Final binkie taking the plunge)

(I think this is when she realized the mistake that she had made)
(this is about 3 minutes after when she asked for her binkie back...and my heart sunk)

I wish that I would have a clicker to mark how many times over the last few days she has asked for one. She has even asked to open the monkey or go to the store where we can just buy more binkies, and despite the fact that I have often times wanted to rip open the monkey myself, we have hung in there. Sometimes I picture her sitting in a corner with scissors in her hand and the carnage of the monkey around her with her binkies all in her mouth. We will see how long it takes to break the bond. Naps and night time is hard and I liken it to a smoker, she just cant seem to relax without her 'fix' but we are very proud of her and how she has handled it all. I however, am exhausted! I miss the binkie so very much but I vow that when little sis comes she will NOT have her binkie this long. Addi is much too verbal and too convincing now (even more so at night when she is used to being soothed so now she has long in depth conversations at night and I don't have her 'off' button anymore!) Next time I will need to make my attack when she is young and cant convince me otherwise.

Finished product!

Oh Georgie!

This past weekend was the annual St. George trip for our softball trip. I always freak out thinking of all the ways that the trip could go wrong. Being responsible for not only my little family (the treats, the movies needed, the amount of apple juice/coke, don't judge, my fetus love caffeine), but I am also responsible for 16 other gals that are sometimes rather needy (again, treats, drinks-rockstar in this case despite their coaches warnings) I don't know how those crazy Duggers do it, crazy I tell you.

Despite the worries, it was a good weekend. Addi has discovered the love of Barbi movies so she was captivated by stories of mermaids and fairies and me and Ron were pumped that she loves her new headphones so we didn't have to hear the phrase "Let's do a makeover!" one more time. She is also kinda nuts when it comes to trinkets so each place we stopped she would pick up a rock....

(see rock in poised right hand, also see hand that had to be held during ride, my shoulders hurt so bad by the end. Also notice binkie...swear people, this week, but each time I bring it up that the binkie fairy is coming she freaks out and acts like Satan himself is coming to steal her soul. I'm scared. Calling for reinforcements her people!)

We spent the weekend swimming and traveling to and from ball parks. The gals did good and won all three games (would have played more but the skies opened up and dropped gallons on us.)

My poor sweet husbie got to spend his 36th pretending to like softball and dealing with stress case mommy. This was our hotel celebration:

Ron is terrible to buy presents for! Seriously sucks! He tells me that I should be thankful that he is an unwanting fellow. Why is it that I want everything: New clothes, shoes, jewelry, liposuction, an absence of pregnancy induced hip dysplaysia, an automatic hair washer; you get the idea, I want stuff. So for HIS birthday, he bought ME this baby. Oh how I love it. We watch movies, have cool kid apps that help Addi spell and match stuff, and my favorites: Bejeweled

and Doodle Jump . I love this thing, I try to hide it under the covers at night so I can sneak in a couple games and increase my high scores. He is such a little sweetie for buying me his birthday present!

Addi is very into picture taking and wants to make silly faces constantly, too bad she is not very good at them and will not look at the camera.

Pregnancy

I remember when I was in high school and I used to fantasize about being pregnant. I would picture myself blissfully eating ice cream while my husband rubbed my feet and we watched while our fetus gently poked at my barely large belly.
I also thought that I would never pass gas in front of a boy and that I would fix every meal nutritiously for my family.
Needless to say, I was not right about everything.
I have to admit that this pregnancy is better than I remember the first one being. I am not CRAZY tired like I was with Addi, but I think that working only part time is the reason for the increased energy. Plus with one kid, you really don't have the opportunity to sit around all day on a Saturday and watch movie after movie. (ahh, those were the days.)
So although I really do feel pretty good this pregnancy, lets talk about things that drive me crazy. Most of my friends are skinny little girls. I always just pretended to be a skinny little girl but it really was just all in my head. I'm not skinny. I have accepted that. What I cant accept is when SERIOUSLY skinny girls place weekly pictures on their blog about their upcoming births and how BIG they are getting when they still have their pre-prego pants totally on until birth. I look pregnant. I often want to lie to strangers when they ask how far along I am just so I don't have to admit that I am really just big. Heaven forbid you have to grunt when you pick things up at 5 months because you really have something in the way, not just kinda in the way, but really in the way.
Last week I found this show on TLC or something called Obese and Pregnant. I loved it. I suddenly felt thin and thought how I would totally be the envy of them. Just them, but that was enough for then.
I am just nervous. I know most of you out there have two or more children....so how did you do it? I am pooping myself thinking about having to nurse all night and then still act with it enough to make Addi's morning meal of hot dogs and eggs, (don't judge, she gets protein and carbs and fat all in one), anyway, how the crap am I going to do that?
The first year with Addi was just tough for me. Will this one be just as bad?
Lie to me people. Lie to me about everything. Tell me it will all be super easy and that this baby will sleep through the night, (this still does not happen with Addi thanks to an increasing number of nightmares about lizards, spiders and snakes) and when you see me tell me I look so crazy skinny that you think I may need to eat a sandwich and then we can go eat together. Deal? Thanks.

Vomit can be so cute.

(this picture was as close to looking like she was throwing up that I could find, I think we were really just trying to make funny faces)

Addi is pretty sweet...most of the time, but when she is sick, she is seriously the sweetest thing ever.

I always thought that having your baby throw up would be scary, that they would be scared that crazy stuff was being heaved from their mouth and would send them into a complete panic. I think Addi kinda likes it.

Seriously.

Not even a problem.

So a couple nights ago when she woke us as 2 o'clock (yes, she was in our bed, get over it.) So when she woke us up with a spray of chunky red (strawberry crystal lite and various foods) I was not very surprised that it just makes her a little jabber jaws.

Conversation is as follows:

"Oh Addi, I'm sorry does your tummy hurt?"

"No I feel all better."

"Good, lets clean you up."

Changed Jammie's, let her wear her cow ones that I try to hide because she wants to wear them 24/7. While me and Ron were scrambling trying to change pillows and sheets and get goopy blankets out of the way, she says:

"Oh mommy, I'm so very, very sorry."

"Addi, you don't have anything to be sorry for, you are the best girl ever"

"Oh, I am? Alright."

Ron went off about how I have taught her the immense guilt that I always feel for each and every thing regardless of it had anything to do with me. I would blame my mother for teaching me this guilt ridden path, but I would feel bad for putting the blame on her so I wont. I guess it is a chain that cant be broken.

Then we cuddled up again and went to sleep. How cute can vomit be?

It's a....

At our last doctors appt the doc asked if he wanted to know what the gender of our baby was.
Lets list the pro's and con's of each:
Girl:
pro--they are sweet, seriously, Addi is tender and loving and all the things girls are, at least until they turn 12, then they change into what I teach and that is on the con list.
con--they are a little TOO tender. When I tell Addi not to do something, she usually sticks her lip out and cries.
pro--we have all sorts of adorable cloths from Addi.
con--there are so many more adorable things that I want to buy.
Lots more but lets get on with this:
Boys:
pro--I have always wanted a boy. They are tough and cool and stuff.
con--I don't know how to raise boys! I am so intimidated by having to make them manly and athletic and all things boy. What if I raised a wimp, how would that go over in my family?
pro--I would get to buy all new baby boy stuff with alligators, and lions, and monkeys and stuff like that.
con--Ronny does not want to buy all new stuff, alligators or not.

In Addi's eyes it had to either be a girl or a puppy.
I try to make my daughter happy.
We are very excited. Ron wanted Addi to have a partner in crime and I am just excited to put more bows on the heads of our little baby. Everyone is thrilled.

Finally...a new post!

We have been busy. Really it's true. Ron keeps asking me when I am going to update so it is finally here. I'm updating.

1. We finally moved! Yippie! Our house is alas done (kinda) and we are living there. No we do not have blinds yet (lucky neighbors) nor mirrors in anyone but Addi's bathroom, and we do not have toilet paper holders yet (they are in some closet somewhere) but we have heat, we have food, we have cable so our lives are good.

This is the front, door still needs to be painted, but it is awesome, I still feel proud driving up to it.

Here are some of my favorite things:

My kitchen, ahhh. I love my kitchen. Ron totally spoiled me in this area. I love my ovens, I love my big giant sink, I love my cabinets and bar. Sadly, the thing I am most armored with is my ice maker/crusher. Our fridge is the bomb. It can make snow cones! But I love the crushed setting. I have never drank so much in my life, sadly for those of you that know me, I do not like ice WATER, so what I drink with my crushed ice daily is not exactly healthy....

This is our great room, I love our giant cozy fireplace and big windows. You can tell a chick made this house because our TV is totally dwarfed by the giant hearth.
This is my sweet claw foot tub, sadly our plumber sucks and has still not hooked it up. Sucky plumbers, plus without blinds the show would be wild so I guess I just have to stare at it till its all resolved. Sigh.


Addi's room is getting done for Christmas, she gets her big girl bed and all that jazz so I will get pictures of that later.


Our house really feels like home now. The first couple of nights were a tad rough because Addi misses her Grandma (and her grandma's bed) so very much, but I think she likes that everything is all on the one floor so she knows I cant hide from her like I used to. I love this place and I feel so lucky to have a husband who works this hard for us.


Speaking of hard work....
2. Thanksgiving Picture:
We wanted to share with everyone why we are so Thankful this year...

If you cant read her shirt is says BIG SISTER! We decided that since we cant afford furniture for our house, we might as well fill it up in other ways! Our new baby, or (Addi's baby) like she says will come to us in late June, (good timing Ronny!)Addi is pumped, she has been a good little nurse and is so cute when my face is in the toilet. She will say:

"Does your belly hurt mommy?"
"Ya, I don't feel very good."

"It is the baby?"

"Ya, I think it is the baby."

"It's a big baby hu?"

"Not yet but it will be."

"I want to hold her."

Then she cries until I tell her that we cant hold the baby yet and she thinks I am mean. But soon enough she will get to hold the heck out of it, I promise!

yesterday

Yesterday we went to the library to have toddler time. We went once last year with Cheyenne and Hallie but it was kinda rough...Addi was only about 1 1/2 at the time and would rather run around than listen to anyone tell her anything. I quickly gave up.

A year later I realized just how much she really needs to learn how to be a big girl (sigh) and sit in a class, so off we went to the library. She loves the library on a regular basis, we go once a week to play with blocks and puzzles and get me a book to read while she watches Phineas and Ferb for the 8 millionth time (she still makes me sit by her the entire time...unless I tell her I have to go potty...then I sneak away to do laundry or something until she notices that it really does not take that long to pee and beckons me back). By the way, if your kids like P & F, you really should buy the music CD. Addi jams so hard in the backseat when we listen to it. I don't think she knows what "like a ninja of love repealing down from above" really means, but she sings it like she does.

Anyway, toddler time. We went last week and she loved it. She was still a little wander-ie, but good. Yesterday she was so crazy cute I could not handle it. She told me to sit in the chair and she went far away from me to sit on the carpet with the other kids.

I sat there watching my little girl learning about dinosaurs and interacting with the teacher like she was in real school. Crazy but my eyes quickly filled with tears thinking that she is getting so big. I know, what a wimp hu? But when did she get big on me? I had images of her as a 5 year old heading to Kindergarten, then as a 12 year old heading to 7th grade, then as a 15 year old entering high school. How did this happen, and why did she choose to wear that to her first day as a sophomore I thought.

Then she came over after it was over and asked for her binkie and my 2 year old came back to me again.

I guess everyone goes through this, but it was crazy to see her get so big right in front of me. Sigh.