Je Déteste Travailler

Switching it up

2012-01-20T10:22:00.000-07:00

I have decided to give Tumblr a go. Head on over to my new page. See you there.

Visiting Santa

2011-12-03T22:15:00.000-07:00

Tonight we made a trip to the mall to see Santa. Lennon and I chat about him pretty regularly these days, so I honestly thought she would be totally fine with pictures this year.

Walking by him, she thought he was great. She would wave and say hello. She even blew him a kiss. We went to wait in line. Still good. Finally we were next. She was holding my hand, looked over at him, looked back at me and said, "All done, mommy." I explained we were going to take a picture with him and she said ok. On our way over, she stopped and started pulling back. We made it to Santa and I was carrying her at this point. I tried to put her down and she held on so tight I didn't even need to hold her. Pretty funny. After asking if she would like to sit on his lap, next to him, stand in front of him, etc...she agreed to sit on my lap. After this shot, I asked her if she wanted to try one sitting with him and she told me, "No thank you mommy. All done please." Can't argue with that.

The entire time, Marin was just sitting on his lap staring at him and his beard. It was all we could do to get her to look at the camera.

My apologies to the few that will get one of these pictures. Didn't mean to mess up the cuteness with my mug.

Happy birthday, Lennon!

2011-11-14T13:59:00.000-07:00

We had a great birthday party for Lennon this past Sunday. Friends and family came over to help us celebrate her 2nd birthday. I decided on a Dr. Seuss theme because those are some of her favorite books right now. It was the most homemade I've been making all the decorations, food, desserts, etc...I had some help here and there, but barely anything was store bought. Go me! I had a lot of fun getting ready for this and Lennon had a great day.

7 months old

2011-10-28T23:31:00.002-06:00

These have to be some of my favorite pictures ever. Marin looks so adorable in them that I can hardly stand it.

6 month family pictures

2011-10-28T23:29:00.000-06:00

Here are Marin's 6 month photos. We snuck in them to make a family shoot. They were taken at Happy Apple Farm and I think they turned out great. We may even have gotten a Christmas card out of the day.

Balloon Classic? Maybe next year.

2011-09-03T08:07:00.000-06:00

Kenny was so excited to take Lennon to see the hot air balloons this morning. I, on the other hand, like my sleep and would rather head down there in the evening for the glow. He has told me that one of his fondest memories is waking up early, getting orange juice, and heading out to see the balloons with his dad when he was growing up. He is really excited about starting this tradition with the girls. I will gladly join when they are old enough to remember me going ;) It just seems to me that those dang things are so unpredictable. This morning, it was too windy, so the ascension was cancelled. Their morning trip was all for nothing. I'm sure Kenny loved every second of it though.

If you have no idea what I am talking about, go here.

Guess who's 5 months old

2011-09-03T07:57:00.000-06:00

For the longest time, I felt like time was dragging a bit with Marin. I am not trying to rush time by any means, but I just felt like she was staying little. For too long. My little, adorable, sack of potatoes. All of a sudden, she's almost 6 months old. I remember 6 months being the time when, all of a sudden, Lennon was so "grown up". Marin is beginning to do new things every day. These are exciting days.

Here are her 5 month pictures. I am so excited for her 6 month pictures. The whole family will be included, and we will be taking them at one of the cutest places around.

Marin is 4 months old!

2011-08-02T08:01:00.000-06:00

Well, she's adorable. Just too cute. Our little M is 4 months old. Go here to check out her latest pictures.

Marin, 3 months

2011-06-30T11:40:00.000-06:00

Here is the link to Marin's 3 month pictures. There is also a link on that page to see the rest of her series thus far.

What.....a slacker

2011-06-26T13:22:00.000-06:00

It's been a while, Internet. Sorry. I've been a busy girl these past few months. It's been great. I love it. I get to wake up to this everyday.

And I get to play with this one.

Although everything runs pretty smooth on a daily basis, we are still working some kinks out. Mostly with the wee ones sleeping. Things are good though. No, things are great.

She's here!

2011-03-20T14:08:00.000-06:00

Well, I guess I won't be posting week 39 or 40 photos. Little Marin Vi McKee is here! She's tiny and cute and loud. You can go to the link on the right to see more pictures of her first few days. Labor and delivery went well. Nothing like the first time around, but overall, still an ok experience. And, this time my water broke at home, so that was different.

38 weeks

2011-03-16T10:39:00.000-06:00

Baby #2

Lennon

37 weeks

2011-03-09T10:52:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

36 weeks

2011-03-02T19:35:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

35 weeks

2011-02-23T18:40:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

Had a Dr. appt today and she said my last ultrasound looked normal. Baby M is just small. Even though I am smaller this time, I feel the opposite. My stomach is so tight. I am sore everywhere, all the time. Oh well! 5 more weeks. Just 5 more weeks(ish).

Round 2

2011-02-18T14:28:00.000-07:00

We just finished my preggo picts with Carly. Go here to check them out.

34 weeks

2011-02-16T15:49:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

M's room

2011-02-09T15:41:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of M's room. We are still missing the rocking chair and a few odds and ends. When I posted pictures of Lennon's room, we were missing the chair too.....and for the same reason. My mom is painting one for us. So, again, it may be a while.

33 weeks

2011-02-09T15:34:00.001-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

I went to the Dr. this past week and they said I am measuring a bit small. I have another ultrasound scheduled next Friday to double check growth. She said M is probably just thin and tall, but they want to double check.

32 weeks

2011-02-02T14:15:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

31 weeks

2011-01-26T17:08:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

30 weeks

2011-01-19T12:45:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

Mr. Roboto

2011-01-12T12:54:00.000-07:00

I seriously listen to this at least 10 times a day. Lennon likes to play it on my iPhone while dancing. Over and over and over. Thanks, Uncle Karl.

29 weeks

2011-01-12T12:11:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

28 weeks

2011-01-05T12:22:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

This is the one week I forgot to take a picture when I was preggo with Lennon. So, no comparison this week!

My resolution? Um.....

2011-01-04T20:35:00.000-07:00

I would love to say I make resolutions for the new year, but frankly, what's the point? It's just something else stuck in my head that I will absolutely fail. Making life more simple seems to be a constant goal, so we will just say its an ongoing resolution.

I have officially gone into "M mode". I totally just hinted at the name of the new little one. Can you believe it? I didn't want to do anything until after the holidays because we had company and I wanted to keep our last available guest room as long as possible. Well, the holidays are gone and so is the guest room. I've started to get the room ready and I am pretty excited about my purchases sofar. I ordered this rug and this print yesterday and cannot wait until they arrive. Fortunately, there isn't a ton more that we need, so I should have this wrapped up in the next couple weeks.

Then it's onto the rest of the house. Clean, clean, clean. Like, spring cleaning clean. Go through everything and clear out whatever we aren't using. Everything should be ready for M by February, then we can just sit back and wait.

It's getting close. We are excited, but I am sad too. Sad that I will now have to split my time. I know it's going to be fine, but I can't imagine not giving Lennon my full attention. She's so great and I love hanging out with her everyday, just the two of us. I am trying to take advantage of that every day.

27 weeks

2011-01-02T15:58:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

Again, the picture is messed up. I don't get it.

26 weeks

2010-12-22T15:37:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

Not quite sure what happened to the second picture, but you get the idea.

25 weeks

2010-12-17T15:29:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

We have had a lot of company sofar this month that will continue through the holidays. That means Lennon is used to be held by someone for 24 hours a day. That is also why she is no more than 6 inches away from me in this picture. That is going to be fun come January when everone goes home.

24 weeks

2010-12-07T09:41:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

Driving about

2010-12-05T10:05:00.000-07:00

23 weeks

2010-12-01T13:00:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

Last pictures for L

2010-11-24T12:50:00.000-07:00

Here is the last blog post from Carly for Lennon's "Don't Blink Project". I am going to miss having her picture taken every month.

22 weeks

2010-11-24T12:47:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

I hope that everyone has a safe and happy thanksgiving. And, it's totally fine if you eat too much. Doesn't count tomorrow. Cheers.

21 weeks

2010-11-17T16:04:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!

2010-11-15T13:23:00.001-07:00

Lennon had a fantastic day on Saturday. It still blows my mind that she is one already. The link to the right will take you to her party pictures. We had an ice cream bar and had had family and close friends over to help celebrate her day.

Happy birthday, Pumpkin.

2010-11-10T12:55:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe my Lennon is going to be a year old on Saturday! Happy birthday, Lennon. We love you so much!

20 weeks

2010-11-10T12:18:00.000-07:00

Baby #2

Lennon at 20 week

Half way there. I had my ultrasound this morning. Another girl will be joining the McKee clan! Super excited she will have an older sister and two other girl cousins to grow up with, all so close together in age. Going to be crazy when they all get a bit older.

19 weeks

2010-11-03T09:18:00.000-06:00

Baby #2

Lennon at 19 weeks

It's been requested that I post these again. I don't know that I was going to actually, but I am here to please. Here is week 19. This is when I started taking pictures with Lennon. For a starting point, I posted a picture of me with Lennon the same week..

11 months

2010-10-23T15:13:00.000-06:00

I cannot believe we will be taking her 1 year pictures in less than a month. Go here to see my girl and her grandmas.

10 month pictures

2010-09-28T08:04:00.000-06:00

It's hard to believe we've only got two more months of photos. Then Lennon will be 1. Amazing. Go here to see her 10 month photos and the updated slide show.

Because I don't have enough to do

2010-09-09T15:37:00.000-06:00

Another one is on the way. I decided it would be fun to be pregnant from 2009-2011. Sounds perfectly logical, doesn't it? I always said I would like to have kids close together, so I got my wish! I am hoping it's another girl, so it's probably a boy. Which wouldn't be so bad either. I kind of thought we had decided 2 kids was a good number, and the other day Kenny said that if we have another girl, he would like to try for one more, to maybe have a boy. Uh, what? Yeah. Let's see how this one goes first.

Kenny and I are super excited and Lennon is, of course, clueless. My due date is march 30th.

9 months old!

2010-08-19T11:36:00.000-06:00

Here is Carly's blog post with Lennon's 9 month pictures. So cute.

Where are all the manners?

2010-08-10T20:38:00.004-06:00

We went out to dinner tonight with some friends. They go to this place often, so they know a lot of the people that work there. The owner's mother (I believe) came over to our table and started to talk to Lennon. She was rubbing her cheek with her hand. Does anyone else find this incredibly disgusting or is it just me? I don't really want strangers touching my baby, and especially not on her face. A bit later she came back with a carrot. A raw carrot. She tried to hand it straight to Lennon and I intercepted it right at the last second. No thanks, lady. I am going to go ahead and say no to the choking hazard. Thanks. Then she decided she wanted to hold her, so she picked her up and walked around with her. The woman asked me her name and then turned to Lennon and said (in a baby voice), "WOW. Why would your mommy give you that name? You don't like it, do you? Nooooo." I could care less if people don't like her name, but is it really necessary to insult it two seconds after being introduced to her?

I totally expected people to be inappropriate when I had kids. I see it all the time with my friends. But, it still amazes me when it actually happens.

Wiggle worm

2010-07-13T08:34:00.003-06:00

Today Lennon turns 8 months old. She has become so much fun. I am not saying I hated when she was a tiny sack of potatoes, but I do have to say that I like this stage so much better. When they are developing their little personalities and figuring out how to do new things every day. It's great to watch. She has always been a strong, active baby. Ready to run since the day she was born. I walked into her room yesterday to get her up from her nap and saw this (above). The only problem is, she hasn't figured out how to get back down yet. Our other challenge is changing her diaper. Holy Lord. I have to pin her down with my left arm and try to change her before she wriggles out-and she does! Extra speed is needed when it's a poop diaper. My arms look fantastic, great muscle tone. Carrying around a 20 lb baby will do that to a girl, I guess. I just wish I could carry her with my ass. Tone that shiz up.

8 months old

2010-07-12T11:21:00.002-06:00

We had a pool party for Lennon's 8 month pictures. Go here to see them-enjoy!

7 months

2010-07-01T16:08:00.002-06:00

Please go here to see Carly's post with a couple of Lennon's 7 month photos.

6 months

2010-05-24T20:18:00.002-06:00

Please go here to see Lennon's 6 month photos and also a slideshow that I LOVE.

Peas? Gross!

2010-05-06T18:58:00.002-06:00

I'm sure babies do it all the time, but I thought it was hilarious that peas make Lennon cringe. I've seen babies gag on new foods, but never shiver with disgust.

Sidenote: Her face is not usually this messy. I do, in fact, know where her mouth is.

5 months old

2010-04-22T10:34:00.003-06:00

Here are a few picts from her 5 month photo shoot. Enjoy!

The food revolution

2010-04-19T07:33:00.003-06:00

If you haven't watched Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution, you are missing out. He went to Huntington, West Virginia to try to change what schools are serving their kids. He is trying to help schools get away from the nasty processed foods that our kids are being served daily and make a switch to healthier, made from scratch, choices.

I have a link on the right side of my page where you can sign a petition. Jamie would like to take his petition to the White House to show the President and First lady how many people really care and ask for their support.

For more details, go to his show on ABC.com or click on the link to the right.

Well.....Um.....

2010-04-18T09:59:00.002-06:00

This whole blog thing of mine has really been in the pooper lately, no? All that gets posted anymore are sad tales or monthly pictures of L. The reason? I have this thing where I am afraid to voice when things are going well with Lennon. I don't like to talk about it with other people and I especially don't want to blog about it. I am afraid that the second I voice it, it will change, and not for the better. When people ask me how she is, I just say great. I don't want to get into specifics. It's totally ridiculous, I know. I can't help it. But, if something is not going well, I figure no harm in talking about it. So, to sum it up that is why my blog sucks as of late. I guess you could say it's a good thing really.

I need to just write about other things and then it won't be an issue. I could talk about the fact that we get to go to St. Thomas in less than 2 weeks. Or, that Kenny now works in the Springs again and instead of having an hour drive to work, he is only 7 minutes away. Or, I could talk about the fact that his birthday is coming up pretty soon, but he gets no present from me. Why? Why am I a horrible, mean, uncaring wife? Because of wheels and tires. That's why. Ask him for details. Thank God the wheel and tire situation is over. It was becoming totally divorce worthy (not really).

Alright. I will try to be better.

My living science experiment

2010-03-24T13:34:00.002-06:00

I feel like, lately, my baby is a science experiment. .8mL Zantac first thing in the morning. Feed her but then give her 2oz. of formula. She may drink it. She may not. Up for an hour. Nap time. Does she need .3mL of Mylicon today? Have I tried the Karo today? A tsp. per bottle. Oh she won't drink that? What about the Miralax? A teaspoon of that in 2-3 bottles/day. Right. Then make sure to apply her ointment (prescription) when I change her diapers. Another nap. Then feed and maybe another bottle. Repeat one more time. Ready for bed? .8mL more Zantac and ointment on the diaper rash.

My days are consumer by measurements and clocks.

4 months old

2010-03-24T09:18:00.003-06:00

As you all know, this month has been a little rough on all of us. We are still trying to work the kinks out. I hope to have my happy little girl back soon.

Go here to see her 4 month pictures
Password: shakespeare

Board up the doors and windows and cut the phone lines

2010-03-21T10:56:00.002-06:00

Well, my Lennon is still not 100%. The medication she is on for the reflux seems to be helping (it's the second one we have tried), but she is still always tired and is not eating that well. I tried to go about my day yesterday and we went to lunch. That lasted about 15 minutes and then she started to cry. So, we came home. This is so not normal for her. I haven't talked to my family or friends in a couple weeks and I just don't want to do anything. I want for her to be back to her normal, cheerful, adorable self. We had another rough night last night too. I'm not sure what's going on and it is so frustrating that I can't figure it out or fix it. When I tell the Dr. that she is always tired and not eating much, he seems to not be too concerned about it. I know this will pass sooner or later, but it's really rough on everyone and just makes me so sad.

My poor girl

2010-03-16T16:23:00.004-06:00

The good news is I did not break my baby. The bad news is that we think she has reflux. We went to the Dr. on Friday and she's now on medicine for it. It has not started to work yet, but we should hopefully see some improvement in the next couple days. Fingers crossed. It's been a long couple of nights. We are on night #3. Wish us luck.

She did it!

2010-03-11T08:35:00.003-07:00

Two days before she turns 4 months old she decides to roll over! Big day at the McKee household!

I've already failed as a parent

2010-03-10T09:32:00.004-07:00

Approximate schedule before last Wednesday:
Wake up at 7:45am. Naps at 10 and 2 which she took in her crib. Only fussed for a second and then fell asleep. Adorable and smiley during the day. Barely fussed at all, if any. Bedtime at about 6 so that when the time change happens this weekend, it will be 7. I was planning ahead.
She was great sleeping through the night waking up once or twice and then going right back to sleep.

Last Wednesday to last night:
I was trying to get her to go to bed on her own. I would put her down and she would cry. I would check on her every 10 minutes to reassure her. It started to get better, then it got worse.
During the day she was always tired. Naps were messed up. She wasn't smiley and was always rubbing her eyes because she was so exhausted. Last night I put operation "cry-it-out" on hold until she is older. I went and got her and held her until she fell asleep, about 10 minutes. Then she woke up at 2:45am. I fed her and put her back down. She cried and stayed awake until 5am. Not normal. I have totally wrecked my baby.

Today, Wednesday, a new day:
She woke up at 8am and I just put her down for a nap. She fussed for two seconds and is asleep (I think). I will put her down in her crib tonight for bed and if/when she starts to cry, I will get her. I will hold her and rock her until she falls asleep. Then I will walk her up to her room and put her down. Hopefully, I will get my happy, non-exhausted baby back.

I've already failed.

UPDATE: Not asleep for nap. Screaming.

Music to my ears

2010-02-22T11:34:00.003-07:00

Today's the day. Today is the day I got a giggle out of my girl. I have been waiting for this moment since the day she was born. Nothing is more adorable than a giggling baby! And not just one, I got her to do it for a good minute! She's been on the brink for a few weeks now, but it broke loose today. So stinkin' cute.

3 months

2010-02-20T15:16:00.004-07:00

Lennon is 3 months old! She is just a doll and growing like a weed!
To see all her pictures from this month go here.

Password: shakespeare (case sensitive)

Angel Hair with Roasted Fennel and Mozzarella

2010-02-15T14:12:00.001-07:00

So good I had to post it! I also added chicken.

1 medium fennel (anise) bulb
1 whole garlic, cloves peeled (and cut in half if large)
2/3 cup diced canned tomatoes
1 Tbsp fennel seeds
1/8 - 1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 lb angel hair pasta
1 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup - 1 cup of diced bocconcini cheese (fresh mozzarella)
1/3 - 2/3 cup of fresh grated parmesan

Cut fennel into small pieces (omitting frizzy parts and cutting out the core). Toss fennel, garlic, tomatoes, fennel seeds, half of the olive oil and the red pepper flakes and then spread on a baking sheet. Bake at 400 to 450 (depending on your oven) for 35 to 45 minutes. Fennel should be tender and a bit browned. Cook pasta, drain and toss with remaining olive oil, roasted mixture, basil, mozzarella and parmesan.

Babies are not like dogs

2010-02-08T09:24:00.004-07:00

I have caught myself thinking, more than once, "Oh, Lennon is asleep. Now would be a great time for me to run to the grocery store." Like, I should leave her in her crib to run to do errands. Yeeeaaaaaaaah. Clearly, I have not done this because I am a fantastic mommy and I know you can't leave babies in cribs to go out and about. Even is they can't get out of their crib. And even if the dogs are really good babysitters.

Artichoke & Spinach Alfredo Chicken Lasagna

2010-02-02T08:17:00.000-07:00

Jar of Alfredo sauce (I use 1 1/2 jars)
3 cups cooked, shredded chicken
14.5 oz artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 tsp garlic powder
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
4 oz crumbled feta cheese
10 prepared lasagna noodles
2 cups packed raw baby spinach leaves

Combine chicken and next 4 ingredients. Spread small amount of alfredo sauce in bottom of 9x13 pan. Top sauce with 5 noodles, 1 cup of spinach leaves, 1/2 chicken mixture, and 1/2 remaining alfredo sauce. Repeat layers. Bake at 350 covered with foil for 45-50 minutes. uncover and bake an additional 10-15 minutes.

Snip, snip

2010-01-20T10:20:00.003-07:00

I am talking about me, not Kenny (Kayla!). We would like to have more children...

Last night around 7pm, I got the urge to chop my hair. I wanted to do it months ago, but was told to wait. Everyone said cutting your hair when you're pregnant never ends well. It would have been fine, but I took the advise of well-intentioned friends.

I got online and began to look for a cut I wanted. I looked though my magazines. I had an idea, but I wanted an updated version of it. I called/texted/emailed friends and family to get their advice and opinions-thanks guys!

It can be a good or bad thing to have a mom that used to cut hair for a living. I called her up, and she came over around 9pm. I think I may cut a bit more off in the next couple weeks, but we will see how this works out first. It's not the exact style I wanted, but I like it. I just have to figure out how to do it.

Having my hair long was stupid. I couldn't just wash and go. I had to actually do it. It's curly, but needed to be tended to if I wanted it that way. I think I did it once in the past two months. It took me a good 30-45 minutes to blow it dry and then I had to use a straightener, which took another 20 minutes. I do not have the time or energy for that. I have always liked my hair long, but I need someone else to do it for me every day. (Sidenote: my mom did my hair every single day until I was well into middle school, I would say. I never knew kids did their own hair! She would blow it dry and style it 7 days a week. Wish she would still do that now, actually.)

I will post a picture when I actually get ready and do it. Today, the three of us are just hanging out. Pictures will not be taken.

Domesticated already

2010-01-18T08:50:00.003-07:00

I have decided that I am going to make weekly menus. I have always wanted to do it, but never have. I am actually really excited about it. I am trying to stay price conscious though. I can't get carried away, which would be easy to do. The scallops for $25/lb are going to have to wait.

If you have any great recipes, pass them along! I will also post some of the good ones on here from time to time.

2 months

2010-01-16T16:54:00.003-07:00

Carly was here this past week to take Lennon's 2 month pictures! And since she was baptised beginning of the month, I had her in her dress for most of the time. The link to the left has some more pictures!

She also went in for her 2 month appointment on Thursday. It was shot month...so sad.
She is 64% in weight and 89% in height. Who knew she would be tall?

Best.day.ever.

2010-01-13T08:33:00.003-07:00

On Sunday, Kenny and I sat down and took a look at things. And when I say things, I mean our finances. Last week I wrote about how I did not have a choice when it came to going back to work. My good friend (thanks, Linds!) pointed out some other options that could possibly work out so I could stay home. Well, they worked out! I get to be a stay-at-home mom! Money is going to be a little tight, and I am still looking for something to do part time from home, but we can make it. It is going to be so worth it for our family and I could not be more thrilled about the whole thing! A huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders, and I have no stress anymore. I was so worried about trying to get her on a schedule before I headed back to work. I was worried about a million other things like what I would need to buy for the woman that was supposed to watch her to worrying that everything would go well from day to day when I wasn't there.

I am so grateful that I am now able to raise our daughter, Lennon, full time. I have the best job ever.

Mom brain: Part deux

2010-01-07T22:32:00.004-07:00

I have turned the corner and am now a full blown idiot. This morning, when getting ready to feed Lennon, I set my cup of coffee down on the bed. It was not an empty cup. We can all see where this is going. Not two seconds later, the entire cup spilled, soaking into the relatively new temperpedic mattress. Why would I think that a cup could stand upright on a mattress that I was sitting on?

About an hour ago, I was getting ready to do some laundry. I had on a green robe that was rather disgusting so I took it off right before I started the load and threw it in. Along with my cell phone which was in the pocket.

So now we have a new Bissell green machine (that I used to clean the mattress) and I am without a phone.

I can't do it

2010-01-07T07:27:00.000-07:00

I can't do it. I can't go back to work. I absolutely have to go back, but I just can't. I don't want someone else watching her. I don't want Kenny watching her. I am sitting at the dentist office right now waiting for my appointment. It is Kennys first time with Lennon, alone. Is he capable? Completely. Does he have a single clue on what to do with her? Not one. He is a fantastic dad and helps out with her when he is home with me, but I am always there and I know what she needs. Before I even walked out the door this morning, she was crying for way longer than was necessary. She was hungry and Kenny was just lovingly rocking her trying to put her back to sleep. I know he will get it figured out-practice makes perfect-but I don't want him to have to. I want to be with her every day. Me.

The only way this is going to happen is if I:
1.Find a work from home job
2.Find a job where I can bring her
3.Win Powerball

Everyday I get more and more depressed about the fact that I have to go back to work the beginning of February. It breaks my heart.

Mom brain is in full force

2009-12-26T20:34:00.000-07:00

Wow. Sometimes I even amaze myself. My brain is no more. I heard this would happen, but I can't say I believed it really would. I have turned useless.

Three times now, THREE times, I have forgotten shoes. SHOES. Yeah, and it's winter. I could maybe excuse it if it was summer, but not winter. One time I was even in the car driving away. Completely ridiculous.

Kenny used to rely on me for important dates and events. Now, if it isn't written in the planner, I am not responsible nor does it even exist as far as I'm concerned.

This does not mean that when wanting to hang out with us, that Kenny should be your main contact. Bad idea. Keep me on speed dial for that one. As long as its written, it will happen.

1 month old!

2009-12-18T09:38:00.003-07:00

Here are her one month photos. There is also a link to the right. She was a bit crankier this month. First she was hungry, then tired. Still got some good ones though!

Lacking in the post department

2009-12-10T09:00:00.003-07:00

Dear Internet,

I know I haven't posted anything in about a month. As much as I have been enjoying my time as a new mom, there hasn't been too much going on. Nothing exciting enough to report. My days pretty much consist of:

1. Lennon eating

2. Lennon sleeping

3. Lennon crapping/peeing

And, repeat

Though, the holidays are here and company is coming! I am sure I will have more to share soon enough!

Regards,
Lauren

Lennon: Newborn

2009-11-25T12:13:00.003-07:00

Carly, who took my preggo pictures, is doing a project with Lennon. We are going to have her pictures taken every month until she is a year old. These are the photos from this month.

I am going to have to find a different way to save the planet

2009-11-23T18:27:00.005-07:00

I have learned that I hate cloth diapers. I love the thought of them, but actually using them sucks. When we were, Lennon would wake up every hour because she felt whatever masterpiece she created on her skin. It didn't even cross my mind that it was the diapers until one night we used disposable because all the diaper covers were dirty. She slept for hours at a time. Thinking maybe it was a fluke, we tried again the following night. Nope. The stupid-ass cloth diapers were keeping all of us awake. We were already on the fence with them, but this was a deal breaker. We have been using disposables ever since and they are so much better it's ridiculous. Blowouts have been reduced by 90% and sleep has been increased by a good 3-4 hours per night.

I still think that they are a great thing and some people really do love them. I think that they would work a lot better when she isn't so small and messy. We may go back to them. Probably not, but it's an option. I just want to keep an open mind not to upset Mother Earth. I tried, lady. I tried.

Labor story

2009-11-16T11:54:00.004-07:00

I have to say that I have been extremely lucky with this pregnancy and delivery. Everything has gone well, and I feel so fortunate for that. I don't take one second of it for granted and there are truly no word to describe it.

First, I was scheduled in at 8:30am on Friday morning to be induced, so this all happened at the perfect time!

Kenny and I were watching tv on Thursday night, just hanging out. Around 9pm, I felt like my contractions were somewhat consistent. I have been having braxton hicks for months now, so they were nothing I really paid any attention to. They were about 15 minutes apart but still painless.

We headed to bed around 10:30 or so. I woke up at 2am and was unable to get back to sleep. They were still relatively painless, but just enough to keep me awake. At 4:15am, I woke Kenny up and said, "Hey. You don't need to get up or anything, but I just wanted to let you now that I am going to go downstairs and watch tv. My contractions are about 4 minutes apart and I can't really walk or talk during them." He then reminded me that that is our queue to head to the hospital. I totally spaced out on that part. I thought they needed to be a lot closer together. Thank goodness for Kenny!

We showed up to the hospital at 5am and they were surprised I made it at home that long with as strong as my contractions were. I was already 5cm as well. (Sidenote-Kenny and I had a discussion a couple of days earlier about how I could totally see myself staying home too long. I have a pretty high pain tolerance and don't like to waste people's time. I told him how I would hate to go to the hospital too early just to get sent back home. Well, it happened! Totally waited longer than I needed to.) They admitted me and I got an epidural not long after I got there. I LOVE those things. It was amazing and made my experience pain free. I am not even kidding. Totally painless. The Dr. came in at about 10am to break my water. I was progressing well, and only knew I was having contractions when I looked at the monitor that said I was. The moms visited as well as the Bingman's. Noon rolled around and they told me I could start to push-so with just Kenny and I in the room, that's exactly what I did. We chit-chatted and had fun conversations (about what song she would be born to. We had some music on and were taking bets with the nurse) in between contractions. That's why the pushing takes so long, which I never realized. Since you can only push during those, there is a lot of time (couple minutes) between to rest or chat ;) Lennon was born at 1:31pm, about 5 minutes after the Dr. came into the room.

We let our visitors come back in and visit for a bit and then Kenny went to the nursery with her for her bath and a few tests.

It was a great experience, and a pretty short labor overall. We are on day 3 of her life and it's been wonderful. We are adjusting well and I am so happy to have Kenny home with us for the first week. He has been amazing and I love our new family.

She's here! She's here!

2009-11-15T13:36:00.004-07:00

Lennon Bernadette McKee was born on November 13th, at 1:31 pm. She weighed 7lbs 7 oz and was 19 1/2 inches long.

The link to the right has some pictures of her first few days. I will write more later, but just wanted to post a quick update to say that we are all doing well!

40 weeks

2009-11-12T15:19:00.002-07:00

This is it! The last week of being pregnant! I honestly have no (real) complaints about being pregnant. It was pretty great, actually.

Exactly what can we make out of this?

2009-11-11T17:32:00.004-07:00

Kenny had the day off today. We went out to lunch, did some errands, visited a friend, and I had a Dr. appt. The entire day, I was trying to convince Kenny to go to the grocery store with me. We have no food in the house and I figured we needed to stock up before L arrives. I honestly thought it would be a couple hundred dollar trip. Here is a picture of what we ended up with. Really? What the hell can we make with any of this?

Tortilla chips
Summer sausage

Butter

1 can of pumpkin

1 can of soup

String cheese

Potatoes

English muffins

Creamer

1 box of club crackers

2 lbs of ground meat

That's it.

Pathetic. We are totally screwed.

39 weeks

2009-11-06T09:00:00.003-07:00

Sorry I am posting late. I took these last night as we were headed out the door. Went to see So You Think You Can Dance. It was fun! I honestly thought I was going to miss the show (when we bought the tickets) because I would be in the hospital. No such luck!

Come on, already

2009-11-02T08:32:00.003-07:00

I have 10 more days until my due date, but as I have said a million times before, I am convinced that L is coming early. As I have also said, I am pretty sure it is more of a wish, but whatever. I have all these plans made between now and the 12th and I have been secretly hoping (until now) that I can't make any of it because I will be having a baby. Sofar, it is not going so well. Still pregnant. I do not do well with patience.

This may be a life lesson for me and I don't appreciate it. I would rather learn it some other time.

Spicy food with a side of castor oil, anyone? Think I will just go for a walk instead.

L's room

2009-10-29T12:44:00.005-06:00

If you click on the link to the right, there are some pictures of L's room. My mom is refinishing a rocking chair for me and painting it bright pink. I figure that should be done around her 3rd birthday. No hurry, mom. You only offered to do it 6 months ago. Take your time.

38 weeks

2009-10-29T12:37:00.004-06:00

Please excuse the pj's, but it's my first day off and I didn't feel like sprucing up for you all. Right. Because, I am off until February. Not sure if I've mentioned that.

WOO HOO

2009-10-28T08:23:00.000-06:00

Today is my last day of work for 3 ½ months and what better way to start it off then to have Kenny try to sabotage me this morning? First, he turned my alarm off by accident. Then, while being super considerate, he took both car keys leaving me with no way to get to work. When he called to let me know what he had done, he was already 45 minutes away from home. Luckily, I was able to find rides to and from work.

No problem!

Doesn’t matter to me!

Don’t sweat it, Kenny!

It’s my last day! Did I mention that? LAST DAY.

Dipped cones are the devil

2009-10-26T08:19:00.000-06:00

Dipped cones are my nemesis.

I would have to say (and Kenny would agree) that, for the most part, I have been pretty ok as far as mood swings go. The only other time I remember being completely ridiculous was here.

Well, to add to the dipped cone files…

We went to an Avs game this weekend. Kenny asked me if I wanted anything and I told him I would like a lemonade. He left to go buy some goodies and I left to go use the restroom. When I came back he was sitting there with two dipped cones and no lemonade. NO lemonade. I sat in my seat, took the ice cream, and said thank you. My eyes started to well up and my lip began quivering. I knew I was being completely irrational, but couldn’t stop the waterworks. I sat there silently waiting for it to pass and Kenny looked at me. He said he knew I loved those and so he thought it would be nice to get me one. Granted, it was very considerate, and any other time it would have been perfect, but not this night. All I wanted was a damn lemonade.

I ended up giving my ice cream to a kid in front of me and the lemonade guy walked by as though he knew he would be saving the night from disaster. Crisis averted. Narrowly.

37 weeks

2009-10-22T17:31:00.003-06:00

When I compare last weeks pictures to this weeks, it looks like the kid has dropped a bit. Not a significance difference, but lower for sure. 3 weeks to go!

36 weeks

2009-10-15T20:17:00.003-06:00

This week I feel bigger. I am still able to do everything, but L is making it just a bit more difficult. I had a dr. appt. today and was told that she weighs about 6lbs. 9 oz. right now......um.....so, she can come any day then as far as I am concerned! I know people who have had babies that weigh this much. Good Lord, how much more is she going to gain?

35 weeks

2009-10-09T16:20:00.001-06:00

This is serious

2009-10-07T11:42:00.000-06:00

Yesterday, the water pressure in the entire building where I work broke. Meaning, all the bathrooms were deemed useless. For hours. And hours. An email was sent out saying we could go to the building next door to use the restrooms there. For someone who has to pee every 3 minutes, this simply doesn’t work. It was like my hell. I even left to go home early for lunch just so I could use the restroom. By the time I got back to work, it was fixed. Oh man. It would have been a rough afternoon had they not repaired it.

Aaaaaaaaaand, we just got another email saying that it is broken again today. I am going home-this is an unfit working environment. Totally unacceptable.

We shall call her L

2009-10-06T14:39:00.001-06:00

It’s not like I am posting L’s name everywhere for all to see. I get that. I don’t want it all over the internet, on Facebook, my blog, or Twitter. But, if asked, I will more than likely tell you. More than likely. Unless, I don’t really know you. Then I just say, we haven’t narrowed it down yet. I think this is completely different than the people who absolutely refuse to tell anyone the name of their unborn child. I think that if someone is going to do this, the name better be damn impressive.

I know someone that has done this recently. It’s more annoying than anything, because you know the name isn’t going to be great anyways. And, in this particular case? It totally wasn’t. It wasn’t unique, original, or different in any way. This person was super tight lipped about it too. I am not sure she even told her closest friends. And for what? A huge letdown when it was finally revealed?

At the same time, I also wish that people would keep their opinions about chosen names to themselves. Really? You mean to tell me that you don’t like the name we picked when you have named your son/daughter one of the top 10 names of 2007? What a surprise!

It’s so much better telling someone the name we have picked out when I can see their faces. People are horrible at hiding expressions. I have gotten a lot better with it, but at first I didn’t want to deal with the reactions. Why should I have to explain my choice? It’s not like we chose to name her Toboggan Snowflake McKee, or any other name including an inanimate object. So just remember, it could be worse.

34 weeks

2009-10-01T18:40:00.003-06:00

This past week I had my baby shower, went to a dr. appt, and we bought a new-to-us car. I have organized the house (just need to clean, like, really clean), made lists of things that need to get done, and put in for my last day at work before my 3 1/2 month leave. My last day will be October 30th, and I could not be more thrilled! 6 more weeks, which is 42 more days...holy crap!

My baby shower

2009-09-28T09:58:00.001-06:00

OMG! Presents!

This past Saturday was my baby shower. It was lovely and I am so grateful to have friends who took time out of their busy lives to host it for me! It was fun and I really got some great stuff. I think we are ready for L to arrive. Sunday, I washed, assembled, and removed tags from everything and put it all away. It’s all organized and ready to be used.

The link to the right has all the pictures from my shower.

One of the things Kenny is better at than me

2009-09-25T07:11:00.004-06:00

FYI, if there is ever a bug in our house it is best if Kenny is there to take care of it. Spiders are the worst. Let me break it down for you.

How Kenny handles it:
1. Kill the spider
2. Throw the spider in the trash

How I handle it:
1. See the spider and then freeze in fear
2. Stare at it for another minute or so to make sure it isn’t going to move
3. If the spider is not going to make a crunching noise when I kill it, go to get one of Kenny’s shoes. The sheer size of his shoe alone almost guarantees that the spider will not be able to climb on the shoe and touch me
4. Stare at the spider some more to plot its demise
5. Oh my God. It looked at me. Back away from the spider
6. Throw the shoe at it in hopes the weight of the shoe will crush it
7. Argh! It looked at me again
8. Throw the shoe a second time because I missed
9. Look at it all crinkled on the ground
10. Put Kenny’s shoe on and step on it again, just to make sure it’s dead
11. Get approximately 1 entire roll of paper towels to pick it up and flush it. I can’t just throw it away, it could come back to life, climb out of the trash and touch me
12. The next 10 times I use that bathroom, I check the seat and bowl just to make sure it didn’t crawl back up the pipe and onto the seat to have its revenge. You never know if you killed a spider with scuba skills
13. Walk around the house for the next week, month, year will eyes peeled waiting for the next one and just hoping Kenny is home to take care of it

33 weeks

2009-09-24T19:40:00.004-06:00

People have been asking me if Kenny has put on any sympathy weight. My answer to that is no way. He looks great! No extra pounds for him!

Non-pregnant pregnant pictures

2009-09-21T15:08:00.004-06:00

Kenny and I had some non-pregnancy preggo pictures taken this past weekend. You can see ALL of them here! So, basically, they are just pictures where I happen to be pregnant. No tummy holding here!

32 weeks

2009-09-17T18:07:00.002-06:00

8 more Thursdays until L is here! Yesterday I woke up sore, sat through work sore and came home feeling sore. I haven't felt achy for an entire day up until now and I hope it was short lived. It was draining! Today I am a little better, but still a tiny bit uncomfortable. With 8 (ish) more weeks to go, I hope this is not going to stick around from here on out.

This weekend, Kenny and I (and the girls) are going to have some pictures taken. A friend of mine is going to take some "non-cheesy" preggo pictures for us to hang up in L's room as well as a few other places. We are really looking forward to it. I have been wanting to do them for weeks now but wasn't allowed because I wasn't "big enough". She even asked if I wanted to push it back some more. No way!

31 weeks

2009-09-10T15:42:00.003-06:00

This is my 31 weeks picture and my birthday all rolled into one!

(I feel like I looked bigger last week.)

Happy birthday to me!

2009-09-10T07:32:00.001-06:00

It's my birthday today!

Latest ultrasound

2009-09-08T07:06:00.004-06:00

Our cousin, Amanda, owns a business called Miracle in Motion and when we were out visiting she offered to do a 3D/4D ultrasound for us. I was not planning on getting one, but I am so happy that I did! I can't believe that she only weighs about 3 lbs right now and she's already got those chubby cheeks! We had the room filled with family and it was a really good time. If you want to see the rest of the pictures from my appointment, they are on the link to the right.

Vacation pictures will be posted soon as well. My home computer didn't download everything it was supposed to last night. Stupid computer.

Back to reality

2009-09-07T12:24:00.000-06:00

Kenny and I are sitting in Chicago waiting for our flight back home. Since we have a 4 hour layover, I thought now a good time as any to recap on our trip. We had a really great time and are sad to be heading home already. Aside from the 3,427 mosquito bites that I have, we could not have asked for a better trip. We got to spend time with great family, that we just love, and just have a good time. Between the great company, delicious food,a million laughs, and the party, we couldn't have planned a better visit!

Oh. Well I guess I have one complaint. Aunt Patti should have raised a better son. One who isn't a big, fat cheater.

30 weeks

2009-09-03T17:55:00.003-06:00

30 weeks, people. 10 more weeks (ish). I decided to switch it up and take a bare and clothed stomach picture. I'm so crazy!

Kenny and I are headed to Indiana tomorrow for Labor Day weekend to visit Aunt Patti and most of Kenny's family from his dad's side. She has a Labor Day party every year and it also happens to be a milestone birthday for her, so it's a double whammy! We will be back Monday evening.