saving me

the sickness did not leave our home. kendall got a fever (we're talking 103.1 kind of fever) at 2AM sunday night and again monday night. these were horrible sleepless miserable nights. poor baby. after talking to my FIL (who is a pediatric nurse practitioner) i decided to take her into the doctor. they tested her for the flu but luckily it came back negative. it's a mystery, this virus. i hate it. and i want it to go away. 

after the doctor visit, i got myself some caffeine, and put on a brave face and called my mom. i gave her the update and how the appointment went. i was so down. and just plain exhausted. we are going on week three of sickness around here. no sleep people. serious. a couple hours later she called me back informing me that she and my dad were on their way down to help me. to save me really.

they ordered take out from the mandarin, and took care of everything. my laundry got folded, my dishes done, things straightened up, and of course, they held and loved my girls. they were good company too. james had school until 9:30 so it really meant more than they know to have them come. i was an inch away from having a meltdown/breakdown, but they swooped in and saved the day. brooklyn loved having them there to give her all sorts of attention, and kendall appreciated having someone else hold her besides her mommy. 

i could spend the rest of my life trying to repay my parents for everything they've done for me and i wouldn't even come close. they truly are the greatest and i am so lucky they're mine. 

thanks again mom and dad. i love you and am more grateful for you than you'll ever know.

fingers crossed that maybe we are on the downside of all this yucky sickness...

come on wednesday!

so...

like i mentioned on tuesday, james has been sick. still is a little bit. he's been banished to sleep in brooklyn's room the last two nights. the girls have been sleeping with me and i've ended up sandwiched between them. james has picture proof if you really want to see it. anyway, the cold bug just won't leave our house. it's out stayed it's welcome and we are not happy about it. january has been beautiful and we've been cooped up at home being sicklies. luckily for this mama, i've avoided the worst of it. knock on wood eighty times i don't get it!

the girls are playing together more and more and i love it. kendall gets super bummed when brooklyn is playing with her and then up and leaves the room. she wants so badly to get up and chase after her. darn it. that'll come way too quickly i'm afraid. 

having both of them in high chairs has been awesome! brooklyn really struggles to focus, sit at the table, and eat a meal. keeping her in a high chair really is for the best. she loves kendall's company and vice versa. at night before bed, kendall gets really giggly, and brooklyn can make her belly laugh so hard. it makes james and i laugh so hard, and soon we're all laughing. good happy times.

tonight, we scored some furniture at saver's that i'm way excited about, including this chair that will quickly (hopefully) become our birthday chair. i've wanted to do this since before brooklyn was born and i've always been on the lookout for a specific kind of chair. i was stoked to find it. plus, it was 4.99. not too shabby.

and of course, when i explained to brooklyn what we're doing with it she was so excited! 

h a p p y  t h u r s d a y !

sick week.

happy monday! and hooray for a new week! we spent most of last week sick. kendall with croup, brooklyn with a cold (that came with a fever), and me with exhaustion and sore throat. not the best week we've had. 

and it's sad because last week started out really well. we went to dinner at brooklyn's favorite join, pizza pie cafe, and all was well.

then as soon as we got home, the croup cough came out of kendall's mouth and i wanted to crawl in a hole. croup terrifies me! so, we prepared for a long night. my MIL is still here, and thank goodness, she took the first shift and let james and i go to bed. that was definitely the worst night, though the next two weren't much better. tuesday brought a trip to the instacare so that we could at least get some steroid medication in her system. poor sweet baby. and really, we didn't really leave the house much after that.

kendall wanted to be held all day long, except for right after her first nap. she was pretty happy and willing to sit in the high chair for a little bit while i got a few things done. not many though. brooklyn also needed me every second of the day. there was whining and crying, wiping noses, refilling humidifiers, giving medicine, taking temperatures, and snuggling these sick girls of mine.

there were lots of little walks outside the house as well. kendall all bundled up, to breathe in the cool air, and i was grateful to breathe some fresh air too.

the morning i woke up feeling the worst, i was determined not to get any worse than i already felt. so i made a big pancake breakfast and seriously felt better. pancakes can fix a lot of things. so can a shower. every day after breakfast, the girls and i would hop in the shower to get nice and clean and also to let kendall breathe in the steamy air. even if we all just crawled back into jammies afterward. brooklyn loved it. showers with all three of us at the same time takes some planning, coordination, and might i add, skill. but we did it. we won't be doing it again soon, but good to know i can do it if it came to that again.

i was so happy thursday night when the girls really seemed to be at the tail end of their sick days because friday morning was my cousin kileigh's wedding. i didn't want to miss it. my MIL and SIL watched the girls while i went to the ceremony (so nice to be 15 from downtown slc!) and then i went back home to get them ready for the luncheon. james joined us and we had a great afternoon visiting with family. so much so that we decided to drive down to springville for the reception later that evening.

finally, the 6 of us all together!!!

it was beautiful! but i wouldn't expect anything less with my aunt kayelani being in charge. the newlyweds were happy and of course exhausted, and we loved celebrating with them!

the highlight of brooklyn's night! she is obsessed with weddings right now. getting to hold the bride's bouquet put her right in her happy place!

the food was delish: we're talking paninis & soup, fancy desserts, and steamers. not to mention this super fun photo booth. safe to say, the girls weren't quite sure what to do. i don't think their expression changes once. ha!

i loved spending time with cousins, aunts & uncles, my siblings, grandparents, and of course my little family. i also love when my girls get to play with my cousin's kids. i love love love it!

kileigh was a beautiful bride and i am so happy for her!

we're excited for this week to unfold, more organizing and unpacking to do here at the new house, but mostly excited that we're all healthy. i'm going to be pulling out the rest of our valentine's decor and hopefully getting all our laundry done tomorrow. there's a lot of it! i can't say enough how grateful i am that i was able to be home this week with my sick girls. that i didn't have to go into work or have other obligations. that my focus could be on them. i don't thank james enough, and even though he said all week that he was glad he was at work and not dealing with a hectic sick house full of girls, he would have been home too if the grown up world allowed. so thanks hun! thanks for taking care of us so that i can take care of our girls! it's my dream come true.

h a p p y  m o n d a y 

we've been a little sick over here...

our weekend started off great, great, and wonderful.

we loved hanging out with family at a cousin's wedding and luncheon. kayla and i (brookyln too of course) even got a little shopping in at city creek between events.

^^^the happiest girl on the planet because she got to hold a bouquet.^^^

friday night was super relaxing. we ordered dinner in and just hung out in the backyard until it was time to go to bed.

saturday, we got a few things done around the house, including turning our swamp cooler on for the summer (thank goodness!). we had jc&e over later that evening. we had chinese, made a target run, and ended the night with some girl talk up in my room.

then, i got sick.

way sick.

aches, chills, nausea... the whole nine yards. ugh. it was miserable. sunday morning came and i knew i wouldn't be able to teach my lesson. brooklyn was super stoked to go to primary, so i enjoyed a couple hours of alone time at home. not super great when you can't sleep though. i was so sad about that. i could have made up for lots of lost sleep, but it didn't happen.

when they got home from church, brooklyn immediately stripped down to her undies and james made me soup.

what a guy. i could only eat a few bites, but it was so sweet of him to do that for me. brooklyn was so good for the rest of the day. james relaxed, and i was in bed, and she was so good to entertain herself. at one point she said, "daddy come see my cool trick!" he hurried upstairs and found her doing this:

blowing bubbles on one foot. such a great trick! she was also being well behaved because she had a deal going with mommy and daddy that she had to be a good girl all weekend to earn a nightgown/dress from costco. she totally did her part and earned it for sure. she even has had a little bit of the sickness that i've had and she hasn't been whiny about it at all. for her, that's amazing.

monday morning, and i was still sick. she was good to just hang out with me or do her own thing. i loved all the snuggles i got and the occasional question from her with her hands on my face, "mommy how you feelin?" little sweetheart.

we also got our carpets cleaned that morning. that was one of the last things on the to do list before baby comes. it feels so good to have clean carpets!

she was patient until about eleven monday morning, and then asked when we were going to go meet daddy at costco to get her dress. i really didn't feel up to making that little trip. but she totally earned it and i couldn't let her down. so james agreed to meet us and go inside with her while i waited in the car. she was so excited she could hardly stand it!

and i wish i had a picture of them coming back out the car. it was the same scene as above, but brooklyn was holding her blue princess dress in one hand with the biggest smile on her face. i couldn't help but laugh. she was definitely excited, and was ready to put it on the second she got in the car.

that night for fhe, i decided i could handle a short little drive and that we should go check out the waffle wagon in kaysville. i couldn't really eat any of it, but it was totally worth it. i shared with brooklyn so you can guess what we got our waffle topped with. yep. cookie butter.

james got the nutella and bananas and said it was really good. 

and brooklyn devoured ours, so i think it's safe to say we'll be going back to the waffle wagon.

because i was feeling pretty ok, we extended the festivities and went and fed some ducks. brooklyn shocked us with how brave she was doing it. she got right in their faces and wanted them to basically eat the bread right out of her hand. she was also cracking us up because she was trying to make it fair for all the ducks and when one would steal a piece from another she was sure to scold them a little bit for it. 

^^^and yes, she spent a good 24 hours in her new nightgown/dress.^^^

tuesday rolled around and i was still not feeling 100%. i was bummed too. i thought for sure i'd be better. but dang it. i did venture outside with brooklyn for a little bit to watch her blow some bubbles. definitely her obsession right now. again, she was so good for me all day. she took a good nap and was fine to just be with me on the couch watching movies. 

as much as i've loved all the snuggles and attention she's given me because i haven't felt well, i am so ready to feel better. i have a dr appointment and i really want to feel better for that. i can't wait to see baby girl!

and for brooklyn's sake, she needs her mommy back!

h a p p y  w e d n e s d a y 

happy + full weekend

instead of doing the baby bump update last, i'm gonna go ahead and do it first. sometimes i almost forget to post it. oops.

here i am at 27 weeks with brooklyn...

and with baby girl #2 (her name has been decided but probably won't be shared on the blog until she's born)...

this week was probably my most uncomfortable week so far. sleep is getting rougher, and major cramps in my back are almost always lingering. i guess that means baby is getting bigger and so much closer to joining us on the outside! i seriously can not wait to meet this sweet little baby. every ache and pain is ABSOLUTELY worth it.

WEEKEND RECAP

it was so fun to wake up friday morning and have haley at our house. brooklyn was feeling better, so that started our day out right. unfortunately, she started acting sick again a couple hours later, so we put plans we'd made on hold until james could come home to be with her. i hated the thought of making her go shopping when she felt a little miserable. but that girl loves to shop.

so we kept ourselves busy by making some flower arrangements. ok, i didn't do that part, but haley's good at it, so i put her to work on my bouquet of flower from trader joe's. brooklyn wanted to be right in the middle of it.

i love how they turned out. it makes my front room look so happy and much more like spring than it does outside.

when james got home, we lunched, and then haley and i headed out to do a little shopping. we ended up doing a lot of shopping by the end of the day. it was so fun to spend the day with my baby sister. we talked about going off to college, life decisions, past memories, and everything else in between. she'll be joining the adult world in just a few short months and i can hardly believe it. but i'm excited for her. as soon as we got back to cream gables she hit the road. an early morning track meet had her getting up nice and early the next day.

when i got home, brooklyn was enjoying a late afternoon nap. she needed it. as soon as she woke up, we packed her into the car and we were off to dinner to celebrate a promotion james got at work this week. this promotion is something he has worked for and been hoping for since he started this job. it is truly a blessing for our little family. we were happy to all go out and celebrate together!

he was nice enough to let me choose the restaurant. this pregnant wife of his gets specific cravings especially on the weekends. my cravings were for sweet potato fries and a big juicy burger dripping with teriyaki sauce. so, we ate at rumbi grill. oh my gosh those fries. brooklyn loves them almost as much as i do.

and that burger, perfection.

even though we had to roll ourselves out of the restaurant, we made the short little jaunt over to sweet tooth fairy to get some dessert. a cupcake for me and cake bites for james and brooklyn. 

we ended the night with a little more shopping. i was in desperate need of some maxi dresses and my sidekicks were more than nice to wait around while i tried on lots. 

saturday morning we were up and at 'em and heading different ways. james to a huge sports warehouse sale and brooklyn and me to a double bridal shower at my aunt's in pleasant grove. we picked up kayla on the way and got to enjoy her company the rest of the way to the shower.

we enjoyed some yummy food and loved getting to visit with lots of the women in the family. i love get togethers like these, and that is exactly why i can never move away. i hate missing these things! brooklyn loves them now especially that she gets to see and play with cousins. those cute little girls enjoyed cruising around in addie's little princess jeep. adorable. 

brooklyn had the time of her life! those of us that got to watch these toddlers try and drive this around were absolutely entertained. so funny and just cute.

they had lots of help and tons of spectators back at the house. 

^i have GOT to start taking more pictures with my camera. these cell pics just don't do these pictures justice.^

that night, we ordered a pizza in and snuggled up on the couch. brooklyn started acting a tad bit sick again but nothing i was too worried about. ugh. saturday night was miserable. especially for james. brooklyn kept waking up crying and she wouldn't stop. james would take her to the bathroom, give her a drink, get her back to sleep, and an hour later she would wake up. it was not a night of great rest. sunday morning came and i wanted to cry. brooklyn woke up with a cough and a horrible runny nose. so it was decided, no church for her. james got ready and went to sacrament meeting and then to teach his lesson, and i went for the last hour and a yw meeting. brooklyn was very disappointed that she was not going to nursery. but after lunch and a tiny nap, she woke up to snow coming down like crazy. she was pumped. i was awakened from my sunday nap to a toddler and her daddy squealing with excitement over the snow.

brooklyn promptly put on what she thought would be good enough to go outside and play in that cold white stuff.

after a laugh, daddy helped her get dressed head to toe in her snow clothes. such a good daddy.

while they played outside, i finished watching the general women's broadcast. all great messages, such a sweet spirit felt, and i am so excited they have started this new tradition. the whole time i was watching it, i had visions of me with my two girls (maybe more in the future?) attending this conference in our best dressed and being spiritually fed (also, dinner and dessert afterwards). to me, this is what it's all about. being taught and feeling the spirit together as daughters of God, has to make our Heavenly parents so happy. it's a beautiful thing. it made me so excited for general conference this upcoming weekend. such a good precursor!

during each talk, i tried to focus on one message, and came up with one quote for each.

these messages are simple yet powerful. i hope i can remember them even a couple months down the road. they are so so important!

h a p p y  m o n d a y