Friday, January 30, 2009

Little Mommy


Briley is so sweet and so nurturing. She just ADORES her baby sister. More than anyone else- Olive is her favorite person. She always tells me how fragile Kayelyn is, and how we have to take care of her because she was so sick. And how she is going to protect her when she gets bigger. SO SWEET. Briley's other favorite person (besides her beloved Kitty) is her Cabbage Patch Kid Claire. She got Claire for her very first Christmas present from mom and dad.... For awhile she called her Little Claire Brewer, (Her cabbage patch birth cert. name is Claire Rose) but now she has been fondly renamed "ClaireB" after our darling little friend Claire Barrow. ClaireB has been dragged around and has taken quite a beating over the years. She feeds Claire and burps her and puts her to bed, changes her clothes and keeps her warm. Today, after giving Kayelyn a bottle I went to put her in her swing and look what I found...

It's so cute I left her that way and gave Kayelyn the bouncer instead. She EVEN strapped ClaireB in and had the music on.....

Sometimes that little girl does the cutest things that just MELT my heart again and again. I love her with all my heart.

Baby it's cold Outside

BURRRRR!
It has been SO chilly here the last few days.... We have had below freezing temps most nights....I know, it's nothing compared to whats going on NORTH of us.... BUT for Katy, TX... it's been cold and I am sick of it. I am ready for some warm humid weather... I am finally used to the climate here and now I am so wimpy it's ridiculous...
Ice on the car!

Frost on the roofs of the houses in our neighborhood! BURR!

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Interviewed!!!


Here's how it works:1. Leave me a comment saying, "Interview me."

2. I will respond by e-mailing you 5 questions.

3. You update your blog with the answers to the questions.

4. You include this explanation and an offer to interview others.

5. When you receive the comment from another, you will send them 5 questions.


Thank you, Lerin, for the interview!


1) Are you still loving your new job?


I adore my new job. Just love it. I couldn't ask for anything better. I am actually getting to use my degree, doing something I love in an environment that is wonderful. Who doesn't want to be in labor and delivery and postpartum and see the hundreds of miracles born each month, let alone take pictures of them.... It is such a privilege to do my job. I love seeing the joy in mom's face when I capture a cute face and they see their new little wonder for the first time on paper. I also love the freedom my job gives me. I don't have to deal with any corporate bologna, no micro-managing. I don't worry if people are mad at me all the time. I love the nurses and doctors and they love me. They tell me they envy my job. Most people do actually. All the moms and dads say "how did you get this job?" They say... it must be so cool. And it is :) I also love my Bow business Couture Bowtique and my photography business Snapped With Love. I have so much more freedom now than I did when I was stuck in corporate hell.... I have busy days and slow days and during the slow days I get to spend extra time with my girls. Which is wonderful. The thing I love most of all, is that God put me in the right place at the right time. As I mentioned in a previous blog, it seems like the major events of my life have run full circle and I am back to a place where my life was unbearable hard 7 months ago. Being at work, being in the NICU etc has healed me and I am at a much better place in life.


2) How did you choose Briley and Kayelyn's names?


Thats an easy one. For Briley's name I LOVED the name Riley and Bailey. One day Nathan and I were talking about names and I accidentally said "Briley" we both decided we loved that name and it stuck :)


Kayelyn is namesake of epic proportions. "Kaye" is my middle name and the "Lyn" came from our beloved friend that passed away while I was pregnant with Briley. She never got to meet our kids and she was so excited about them....


3) If money was no object and you could change one thing about your house, what would it be?

I would add on extra rooms-- more room to our master bedroom and add on more rooms upstairs on downstairs. I want an office and a craft room.


4) What is your favorite memory from your wedding?


Everyone who has gotten married and had a huge wedding knows to chaos you have to endure. A whirlwind of days of dinners and parties and appointments and eating.... Nathan and I barely saw each other for weeks leading up to our wedding. I was working full time for $8.00 and hour and trying to organize our apartment that was entirely too small. Nathan was working at the Poultry Science Lab on Campus making $13.00 and hour and taking classes full time- TRYING to take his finals early so we could get married and go to Mexico.... Like I said- between that and our wedding planning we NEVER saw each other. I was So nervous and so sick to my stomach the day of our wedding. I just wanted it to be over. The day flew by, Hair, Makeup, dresses, pictures, drama...... The moment came I walked down the aisle, said "I DO", Kissed my groom and walked back down the Aisle out the front door of the church and around to the side of the church. We had about 1 minute until the rest of the wedding party started pouring out of the church. It was the greatest ALONE moment of all time. We looked at each other and at the same time said "WE DID IT!!!" and started jumping up and down and hugging. I will never forget it. It was JUST the TWO of us and it seems like hours....I was at peace and all was right with the world.


5) Name three things that you hope your daughters learn from you.


  • HUMOR- Anyone that knows us knows we laugh and we laugh a lot. We joke about everything. In the midst of crisis we try to find humor in everything and always find a reason to make each other smile. I hope they learn that there is a time to be serious and a time to be solemn.... But that there is always room for a smile and for humor. It makes life bearable and fun.

  • FAITH- Believe in God and that through him all great and wonderful things happen and happen for a reason that while we may not realize it at the time, there is a reason and that's all we need to know. Believe in miracles and know that the power of prayer is stronger than anyone can comprehend.

  • GIVE- Give, give & give some more. Volunteer your time to help others even if you never get anything in return. People appreciate things you do for them. Help them run errands, clean their homes or offices if they are unable or too busy, make things for them, give gifts for no reason it all, help with home repair when you are able bodied and young and able to do so, cook for them, spend the extra time they need to you to, and give your time to others. It's an invaluable resource and there even when you're broke.

*****


If you want to be interviewed, leave me a comment with "Interview Me"


and I will get right on it. :) I hope SOMEONE responds.... This is really fun!!

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Chore Time!!!

We started giving Briley some chores. Our main reasons of course, are to teach her responsibility and how to save her money. For Christmas Grandmama got her a bank that keeps track of what you save. She LOVES to put coins in it. Every time she does a chore she gets a quarter for her bank. Her chores consist of Feeding the Dogs, picking up the dogs toys and putting them back in the basket, Swiffering the kitchen and bathroom, and making her bed each morning. She LOVEs her chores. If we are in a hurry and don't have time to make the bed, she crys. She is just like her momma. A made bed is a better bed :) So I have to start my day accordingly to allow enough time for the bed making process....
Here are some pictures of her swiffering the kitchen. She just loves it. I dread the day she outgrows it, because she is really good at it and very helpful to boot......

Yes, she does have pants and she was wearing them until she spilled her dinner on them. Then she took them off and refused to put them back on....


Tuesday, January 27, 2009

More Toofers


Kayelyn is getting more teeth. I see three. The front one, the one to the left of that and the other one on the right side of where the other big toof will be. No wonder she has been cranky- cutting all these toofers at once would make anyone mad! As soon as these all break, she will have 5 teeth!!




Every Princess Needs A Pony...

Or a Dog.... That works too.

Cute, crazy little Co-sleeping Critter

We are still losing the Co-Sleeping battle. We have tried everything. It's not working. Olive refuses to sleep anywhere else. We even sent her to grandmama's and she had the same issue.

Cute

Crazy

Critter

She is so adorable

Daddy Being Silly with Kayelyn

Monday, January 26, 2009

The Fresh-Food-Feeder

I am sure all of you who have kids have seen the fresh food feeder. The little net thing that holds REAL solid food for baby to chew on and enjoy. Well as nasty and messy as they are, I love them. I think it's a great tool to teach baby how to chew and how to enjoy real food, not liquid food. Olive loves hers. Just loves it. Here she is enjoying bananas.....

Apparently Sully dog liked it too, after Olive threw it on the floor this is what it looked like.
Dang dog.



Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Baby Madison Avery Brewer!!


Madison Avery Brewer was born today. She was 6lbs 2 oz and 18 inches long. Mom and Baby are perfect and healthy.
YOUR PRAYERS WORKED!!!
Jennifer had a super easy delivery, she didn't even have to push!! Madison literally slid right out!!! Jennifer is feeling great and Travis is Elated. Haylee loves her new baby sister :)






Tuesday, January 20, 2009

My Second Niece is ON the way!

Hello Friends and Family!!!

Today Jennifer had her doctors appointment and Her doctor sent her to the hospital for further tests because her protein was high. Her blood pressure had been high but today it was OK. The doctor determined that she is developing preeclampsia and decided to keep her overnight and induce her tomorrow morning at 5am!

Please pray for Jennifer, that she has a safe, pain-free :) and healthy delivery!! Hopefully this time tomorrow I will be able to post pictures of Madison Avery Brewer.... the FOURTH Girl in our ever-growing brood of princesses :)

This is super special for me because she is being born at my hospital!! I get to take her first formal infant portraits!! How FUN!

Sunday, January 18, 2009

THE GROCERY GAME!

Let me introduce you all to the BEST Money Saving tip ever......
I used to do this a long time ago, in college. Some of my dear friends who read my blog know about it because we did it together!!! It's the greatest!
The Grocery Game was discovered by a California Woman (California Women are ever-so Brilliant) Named Teri. Teri Mastered the Art of Coupon Clipping and using those coupons against the store's weekly specials and in-store coupons to almost Steal your groceries. Forget double coupons-- how about TRIPLE AND QUADRUPLE!!!
The Grocery Game Teaches you to buy in bulk and stock pile. Which for me, is AWESOME because:
#1- I hate Grocery Shopping
#2 - Who has time to Grocery shop all the time??
I am a meal planner. I plan my meals at least a week in advance so this game works perfectly for me. I able to stock pile freezable items and meat and snacks and other wonderful things like toothpaste, deodorant etc. Like right now, I have 5 tubes of toothpaste. This stuff cycles so toothpaste will not be on the list for awhile but I have enough toothpaste to last a good while. This makes me happy because what is worse than running out of toothpaste during a critical moment??
The Grocery game covers name brands & store brands -- you name it, you will eventually be able to buy for 50-100% off. Yes-- 100%. Every week Teri Generates a list for your favorite Grocery store. You clip the Paper's Coupons and compare them to her list. She tells you which coupons to use and which to save for later. Each week her lists consists of :
  • "Black" Items: Items that are a good deal but don't buy unless you HAVE to....
  • "Blue" Items: Items that are a GREAT deal-- buy the number she tells you to buy and start stockpiling!!
  • "Green" Items: FREE ITEMS! Yup. 100% FREE.

Yes, your next question is how much does this cost?? Well for the first 4 weeks, it's $1.00. After that it's $10.00 every 2 months.

$5.00 a month.

Not so bad considering............

KROGER


Savings after the Grocery Game $70.28

THIS IS WHAT I CAME HOME WITH

HEB
Savings after Grocery Game $60.52

THIS IS WHAT I CAME HOME WITH....
A CLOSER LOOK
CLOSER....
CLOSER STILL!! Don't forget the paper products and Bleach! I normally buy these things at Sam's but it was cheaper to do this... The Paper Towels and toilet paper were 55% off and the Bleach was free with purchase of the Paper products!!
SO, now I have enough groceries to last at least a month, I know because I planned my meals at the same time I cut coupons and read the list..... So I got all major Groceries for meals and snacks for at least a month for a price that most people easily pay weekly.... I will make a couple of trips back in between for Milk and eggs because they go bad and can't be stockpiled.....
I buy Diapers and Formula at Sam's Club- Those don't count. They are a different part of the budget called "BABY"


TOTAL SAVINGS BY PLAYING THE GROCERY GAME: $130.82
I know you Envy me.. ;) and so did the pissed off people behind me line after I finished scanning my hundreds of coupons. The lady behind me said, and I quote (With a blank stare and jaw dropped).... "WHOA. That was worth it.... how in the hell did you do that??" I told her and now we are BFF.
It takes a bit of time and dedication to play this game, but I think it's worth it... With the Economy the way it is, we all need to save a buck where we can!
If you want to sign up go to her website: www.thegrocerygame.com and tell her Missy Brewer referred you.
Then we both get cool things.
Have a fabulous night.
Ciao!


Saturday, January 17, 2009

Please Pray

I ran across a blog today, I don't even know this person. Her name is Kelly. Her husband is Scott and they recently had a baby girl named Harper. Harper was born Full term- 9 lbs... Like Kayelyn and has the same issues Kayelyn had when she was born. She was life-flighted to Tulsa and was supposed to go on ECMO. Just like Kayelyn, she has started to improve and will not be placed on ECMO at this time. She is very critically ill.... Do you know how rare this is??

Please lift Harper and her family up in prayer, as I know the exact feelings Kelly is feeling and how hard this for them.
The past couple days have been rough... yesterday I saw a Preemie being lifeflighted out at work and had a chance to chat with her mom..... Her name is Carol. Please pray.... She is down at Texas Childrens....
This and Harper's Story has reopened some freshly healed wounds. I still get so emotional everytime I see a sick baby or hear of it. I wonder how long it will be until I am healed enough to not cry every time this happens.....

Please follow Kelly's Blog: http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/


And PRAY PRAY PRAY for this little baby and her family...


Thursday, January 15, 2009

Stuck in a massive parenting dilemma.....


So we are stuck in a massive parenting dilemma..... For those who know me, you all know I am a very strict, by the book parent that keeps my kids in check as much as I can. With Briley is has been easy in some spots and challenging in others. For example, Briley was always a GREAT sleeper and started sleeping through the night at 6 weeks and never quit. She still sleeps about 12 hours every night in her own bed..... She LOVES her bed and never complains..... On the other hand she challenges us daily with her smarts. She talks back and spends a good part of her day in the corner..... Then we have Kayelyn. While only 7 months old, she is challenging us, this time with her separation anxiety, sleeping habits and other little things that I find perplexing....

Kayelyn was sleeping through the night for about 3 weeks and suddenly stopped, waking up in a complete frenzy, acting scared to death, like she was having a night terror, which we have experienced with Briley. Thinking it was a faze we dealt with it- and are still dealing. She doesn't want to lay down... thinking she had reflux we had the doctors checked it out and said yes she has slight reflux and to treat her with meds and give her highly filtered water... apparently our water was SUPER high in chlorine..... higher than our pool- ick. So we did that she she still doesn't want to lay down. Unless you are with her. It doesn't matter where, she just wants mom or dad all the time. This is not everyday run of the mill separation anxiety. Briley had that for a bit and "crying it out" and a bit of patience fixed that..... Kayelyn actually acts TERRIFIED if you put her down. when you pick her up she cuddles in your neck and hangs on. She is happy if she is by us. We tried to cry it out and I thought she may end up back in the NICU, the fit she was in she could barely breath she was so upset. The other odd thing is that she completely flips out when you dress her and put clothes over her face or try to wipe her face with a cloth that covers her mouth or nose. I am not talking about acting annoyed or whining like most kids do when they have their face wiped, she starts breathing heavy, trying to catch her breath and her eyes are as big as saucers - she looks SCARED to death. So I asked the doctor about it and he said, that while Kayelyn doesn't likely remember her stint in the NICU, she missed out and nearly 2 months of crucial bonding that included holding, cuddling, hugs, kisses, nursing and feeding out of a bottle... This can cause her to be extra clingy and almost scared to be away from us.....He also said that having the tubes on her face and up her nose and down her throat along with the blindfold to keep her calm and dark in the NICU could cause her to have recollection of the feeling and make her panic if she thinks she can't breath....


The MORAL of our story.... We are trying overcome this..... Not the Wiping of the face as much, but the separtion anxiety and sleeping habits. Right now Nathan and I have been forced to do what we said we would never do-- put her between us in bed. If you know me, you know I really DO not like this and vowed to never do this.... But two things are for sure.


1- We need sleep
2- I don't want to stress Kayelyn out. If she truly is having issues because of her NICU experience, the last thing I want to do is make it worse.

Anyone have any advice??????????

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Good Bye Fun Phone, Hello Go Phone.

Ok, so a lot of you know my phone sob story. My phone got left outside during Christmas and was ringing in the street as it got run over by a car. Our darling neighbor watched this happen and brought me my phone but it was a bit too late. One side of it was smashed. So for the past few weeks I have been babying this phone TRYING to get it to work long enough to finish my contact with AT&T so that I can switch to Verizon…. No luck. It crapped out tonight so now I have a cheapie Go phone from Wal-Mart until June…A really really cheap go phone. So cheap it struggles to ring..... Please either email me or text me your phone numbers- home, office, cell—so I can get them into my new fabulous Go phone…..
Thanks and Gig'em

Monday, January 12, 2009

Briley the Aspiring Photographer

Briley wants to be a photographer like her mommy.
She has a Fisher Price Digital Camera that gets lugged around everywhere we go.... Below are some of her photos.
She is very proud of them and we have a folder on my PC just for her work....
Some of these are, well..... Abstract I guess would be a good way to put it. Enjoy her work.















Baby Food Chronicles - Continued

We have been behind on our publishing of the baby fod chronicles and for that we apologize.... Below are pictures of Olive trying new foods and her initial repsonse....

PEAS-- She loved them

Carrots-- Not impressed

Carrots again- Still not impressed


Peas and Carrots- Not loving it


Green Beans- Completely bored by the beans


Carrots again.... maybe she likes them more this time??


We will be starting meats this week.... It could get ugly.