Potty Pride!

So, it's been a little over a weeks since we started Kellen's potty training. And I am proud to report that it has been quite a success! He is doing so well!

Kellen is potty training very differently from Makenna. With her, as very typical of Makenna, you could not tell her to go sit on the potty and try to go. She had to go on her own accord...of her own deciding. It was frustrating for awhile, and we had A LOT of accidents because of it. But once she got it, we were golden.
Kellen is very different. He needs to be reminded every 40 minutes or so to go. As long as you tell him to go potty every so often, then he does fine. But if you leave it up to him to tell you when he needs to go, you will most likely have wet undies. He has signaled on his own a few times. But mostly he is relying on us for reminders right now. I know eventually he will take on that responsibility himself. And I think this is the more "classic" potty training technique. I am just happy to have not had a diaper on him for 8 days now, and very few accidents. He either has no accidents these days or he has just 1, maybe 2 on a bad day. So good job Kellen boy! It is going to be exciting having him in a toddler be and potty trained by his 2nd birthday.
We love you Kellen! Way to go stud muffin!

He looks so cute! Little boy undies are awesome! Love it!

Dear Makenna,

Today was a rough day. You know how to push my buttons and you surely pushed a lot of them today. Throwing fits in the morning. Fits that put your 2 year old brothers temper tantrums to shame. Teasing your brother. Teasing the dog. Not listening more than listening to what I asked of you. Coming out of bed 4 times tonight and not falling asleep until almost 10 o'clock.

It's funny because it is these days that I most often remember....

"KC, grab her!" "She's blue! She's blue!" "Call 911!"

Knee's hitting the floor- "Are you serious?!"

"Please! Come Quick! My Daughter is dying! She's dying!"

Watching mouth to mouth. No movement. Her lips not blue, but more a dark shade of purple. The whites of her eyes blue.

"Save her! Please, save her!"

Her hand twitching.

More movement.

A breath.

Her trembling body in my arms. Her arms flailing....eyes searching. Hearing "MAMA!" through her screaming! The most beautiful sound ever heard.

"She's okay. She's going to be okay."

I have never been more grateful to have my buttons pushed and be driven crazy.

With all my heart.

Conner 2 Months Old

Really? 2 months? What the heck? At least it is a huge compliment to him and my other children to say that the 2 months has flown by. I was not expecting that at all. I thought that the first couple of months with Conner was going to be rough. Kellen being such a mama's boy and all, and everyone saying that going from 2 to 3 was the Worst! But for me it has been heaven! Everyone is doing so well. Conner is such a sweet little monkey. We all love him so much!

Conner is doing really well. He is growing like a weed. Not quite as big of a weed as Kellen was, but right behind him. His stats at 8 weeks were 12lbs 14oz (82%) and 24 in long (90%). So obviously the little boy is thriving, which is always a big relief.

Some other things about Conner at 2 months:

-He is smiling a lot! He is happiest in the morning, but loves to be talked to and smiled at any time and he will surely give you a big smile back!

-He is cooing and squeaking and making those ADORABLE baby noises! Love them!

-He is sleeping about 5 hours at first at night and then sleeping 3 more and then gets up for good in the morning around 8ish.

-He does not really have a predictable day time napping schedule and it is driving me a bit nuts. I don't know if it's because of him or because of our hectic schedule, but I will be working on that a bit more in the month or so to come.

-He is starting to really enjoy his bouncy seat and swing.

-He watches toys and follows them with his eyes.

-He holds his head up really well.

-He likes tummy time, though he doesn't do a lot of lifting his head. He knows how to, he just chooses not to :)

At Conner's apt we also found out that he has a hemangioma (an irregular collection of red blood vessels that form a red blister looking thing) on his upper lip. It has been there since a few days after he was born. It has gotten darker in color and a little bit raised, but it really has not grown which gives us hope that it won't grow and will eventually go away. Most all hemangioma's go away by the time a kid is 5, but it could take up to 8 years old or so. We are to just watch it closely and if it does start to grow then they will treat it since it is located on his face. Otherwise we just let it take it's course and go away by itself. Hopefully that is what happens, but we are prepared for either. It has become a cute little part of him to us and I am just happy to have a healthy, and adorable, little boy

A very typical Conner expression

Smiles! And those cheeks of his have sure gotten chubby! I love 'em!

His hair is also really coming in. I swear he has close to as much hair right now as Makenna and Kellen had at 1! No Joke!

I know both of these are sort of goofy pics, but they do a good job showing his blue eyes!

Conner and Momma doing the laundry. He is a much better help than his older brother is :)

Really? Can my kiddos be cuter? So lucky!!!

Here is a video of Conner smiling. Such a sweetheart already!

Oh Kellen!!!

It seems like lately Kellen has fallen a bit out of the spotlight. Lots of other people have been having birthdays or special events...like being born :) And I just feel like Kellen hasn't been the main subject for awhile. So bud bud, this post is all for you!

Kellen does have a lot going on for himself these days. He has really transitioned into a new phase for himself. Some of it is nice...some of it is not.

I don't know if his personality changes are due to all the excitement and change around the house and coping with a new baby brother. Maybe it's just because he is almost 2 and he feels he should behave as expected of a 2 year old. Maybe he is just taking upon him that "Boy" attitude that all my friends who are mothers of boys have warned me about. All I know is that my sweet little boy has now turned into my sweet, feisty boy. He is a total whirlwind these days. He is into everything! And I mean Everything. He loves to make messes of things. I believe that there is actually order to it in his mind, because he gets upset if you come and move things around. But to me it just looks messy. He is picking on his sister a lot these days. At first it was sort of funny in a karma sort of way. It was strange seeing Makenna on the other end of the teasing and abuse. But now it has just gotten a bit frustrating. But even when Kellen is being wild and crazy, he somehow does it with an air of sweetness. You can tell he is not mean or a bully or wanting to make you upset by him not listening. I think he is just enjoying his new power and vigor and he really just finds himself quite amusing. He's just a crazy kid!

But he has also had a lot of success lately. He is now in a toddler bed and has been for 2 weeks. The transition was actually quite a breeze and mostly uneventful. He has taken to it really well. He stays in there really good for the most part. Only a few times has he really tried to come out of his room and test it. He has just done wonderful. And best of all, he is now sleeping in a bit longer too! Hallelujah!!!

Just today we started potty training with Kellen. He has been periodically using the potty for Months now. But I am had not been ready to take on all the difficulties and challenges of potty training for myself. Now, finally, we are both ready. And he did a great job today. Only 2 minor accidents which in my mind is a huge success. It is very exciting to think of being back to only 1 kid in diapers! Woo hoo! Wish us continued success!

Kellen continues to do a great job with his little brother. He just loves him to pieces and thinks he is the cutest thing. He is a great helper with fetching items for him, giving him his binky, bringing him blankets (whether he needs them or not). You can tell he really adores him. Occasionally he does get annoyed by me holding or feeding Conner and will tell me to put the baby down or put him in his crib or give the baby to daddy, which I find quite hilarious. But that is really the extent of his annoyance.

We just love our Kellen to pieces. He is such a good boy and really has the kindest heart! He brings a lot of love and sweetness to our home and our family. He may be a whirlwind at times, but he is the cutest, kindest whirlwind around.

Part of Todd and Kellen's ritual every night is that after we read books together Kellen climbs up on Todd's lap and stands up really big and says "I TALL!!" You just have to hear it. It is ADORABLE and he looks so proud. I love it!

Doesn't he look so happy sleeping in his bed? :)

It's funny because Kellen actually looks bigger than Kenna in this picture, but I promise he is still smaller than her. Not by much, but she still has a head up on him....for now.

Kellen and his buddy Gretta, sharing a little snack. Too cute.

Along with Kellen loving to make messes, he also likes to make piles. He will bring a bunch of toys to the middle of the room and put everything together...drag toys of shelves, from the living room, out of the toy boxes and drawers, etc. Then he will tell you that it is all his "stuff" which is actually pretty cute to watch.

I always like a boy that can look good in a hat!

This is another thing Kellen does....lines up toys or blocks. Silly boy.

Poor Conner just looks a bit frightened. But really, he loves his big brother! Kellen just has a lot of enthusiasm at times.

A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words...

And I am ridiculously behind in the blogging world! So I am going to be smart and let the pictures do most of the talking.

Conner is changing and growing soooo much! He is the sweetest little thing! Such an easy going baby. And he sure gets a lot of love and attention from his siblings. Makenna said this the other day: "Conner sure is lucky! He belongs to us because we are his family!" I totally agree!

Kenna has been working very hard at not sucking her thumb! These roller skates were one of her earned rewards. Very proud little girl!

There was a fair amount of this, but overall she did amazing. The girl has absolutely no fear with this type of stuff....she just goes for it!

There is just something so soothing and peaceful about a sleeping baby!

Todd turned 40 a couple of weeks ago and we had a great party for him! It was a blast. Here he is with the kiddos blowing out his candles. So cute!

Kellen has learned how to say Cheese for the camera. Love the cheesey smile!

He's a big brother with a big amount of love to share!

I just love this little guy! He really is as sweet as he looks...mostly :0)

And this little girl! Such a Makenna smile!

Kellen showing off his big brother skills and his ability to help with baby "k-k" as he calls him

Makenna has learned how to hold onto the rope swing and swing into her pool. Like I said...no fear. Isn't it supposed to be the boys doing this sort of stuff???

Does it get any sweeter than this. She really is a huge help and such a great Sissy. She has taken on a very mothering role with Conner....it's touching to watch her with him.

He's getting so big! I don't have the official stats until next week, but he is definitely over 13 lbs already...he is only 7 1/2 weeks old!

Daddy is such a pro this time around. He's a natural now :)

Conner is making all sorts of new faces and has the sweetest little looks. Here are a few to enjoy.... I know I do!

Right about at 7 weeks we started getting this. I just LOVE the big, open mouth, gummy smiles! Not much that makes you feel happier than this!

Special Day

Recently Conner got to have another day of being in the spotlight. On Sunday, August 22 Todd blessed Conner at church. It was such a sweet and special blessing....Todd did an amazing job. It is such a touching day as a parent having your child given his name and blessing. Conner did a great job too and stayed content throughout the whole thing.

We are so happy to have Conner in our lives. He is such a special little boy with such a sweet little spirit already. I know that he is going to add to our family in ways that only he could. We are so blessed to have him here with us and I am looking forward to seeing the boy and man this little guy grows up to become.

The men that participated in the blessing: Kip Robinson, Bishop Pulsipher, Daddy, Papa Wyrick and Pa Carlson

The men of the hour!

In addition to it being Conner's blessing day it was also my Dad's birthday. It was neat to be able to have him here from Utah to participate and nice to share that special day with him.

Brookie and Rah Rah, hanging out in the halls at church. That's where you tend to be when you have a 1 year old :) At least they are cute as can be doing it!

A big thanks to Grammy for making this beautiful outfit. She made the vest and pants for him and did such a great job. What a studly little man!