Kailey's 2nd Birthday

I am such a slacker. Kailey turned two two weeks ago! I can't believe how much my baby has grown up!! What a difference a few years can make. A child goes from COMPLETELY relying on their parents to feed, cloth, diaper, and bath them to being able to roll, crawl, walk... I mean, Kailey can put on her OWN socks now!! And she helps put things in the trash... things that before I would have to bend over to do... She does with such easy and willingness! :] I love my Kai Bug!!

The party went so great! :] I will post pictures soon!! I haven't uploaded them yet. I'm slacking on that too... But we had a blast! All the kids LOVED the park, and I for one, loved the easy clean up! haha. All the kids played until the food was done... well, some of them kept playing even then!

She got a great selection of toys from mess free coloring books and markers, to a ball, to an inch worm rider, to 24 month clothes (that are still a little too big for her lol)... She even got a graco set of doll items like a toy playpen, bouncy seat, play mat, and diaper bag/changing pad! It even matches the set that we bought for her when she was a newborn!! It's precious! Thank you P-Paw! :]



Kailey,
Two years ago, you were so tiny. You weighed in at a tiny 7lbs 9oz (I say tiny because your brother was almost 9lbs!!). I can't even begin to express how much I love you. You're beautiful smile, your long curly blonde hair, your big blue eyes... and especially those long luscious eyelashes! You are going to be one heck of a heart-breaker one of these days... But please don't grow up too soon. I cannot imagine my life without you. You are my world. I love you more than words could ever say. Every little thing you do (except when you get into your brother's formula!) makes me so happy that you are my child. I cannot wait to see you grow up and become a little lady! I love you my little Kai Bug!
Always and forever,
Mommy

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Tuesday morning around 3:30 - 4am, my husband got into a wreck... He fell asleep at the wheel and drove into a ditch. He is okay, but I can't say the same for our truck... The front drivers side tire ended up horizontal underneath the running board under the drivers side door. There is also several cracks in the frame of the truck. Not to mention that the bracket that the wheel attaches to the frame at is completely broken off. It looks worse in person since the drivers side of the truck is literally sitting on the ground. I'll post pics soon.
Anyway, we are in a rental. A brand new (straight off the lot) 2012 Mazda 6. I'm in love! If our truck is totaled, we WILL be getting one! ...lol... all that just to say that because we are in a rental, we were out with the kids on friday, and we usually don't stop and go inside to eat anywhere because it's very chaotic to do that with a toddler and an infant! ...BUT we had to since we are in the car... so we go into BK. Kailey and Cohen both put on the little paper crowns... SO STINKING CUTE!

I love my gorgeous little girl! Kailey didn't want to leave! lol.

Kailey will be TWO!

So for Kailey's second birthday, I have decided to go with a Ladybug theme. This is for several reasons...
1) I call her my Kai Bug <3
2) In honor of all the little girls who never made it to their second birthday. :[
3) It's so darn cute!
4) My dad used to call me his ladybug (selfish, I know, hehe!) :]

I made the invitations already!! Like 5 months ago! haha. :] Here's what they look like:

I just love it! :]

I have soooo many other plans! I've already made some decorations, too! I've decided that in order to afford two birthday parties within two months this year, I am going to be making all the decorations and food (even the cakes!)

My inspiration! : Ladybug themed party :] << That was sooooo cute! I won't be going all out like that since we are having it outside... but it's just so darn cute I had to share!

I can't believe that it's almost been TWO years since I had my little girl! Here is pictures from the hospital!

Here's one from infancy :]

and here she is as a toddler!

They grow up wayyyy too fast!

<3 Kayla

P.S. Sorry the blog looks a little funny. I'm in the middle of a remodel!!

If only...

If only I had more time in the day to do more things that I wanted to do.
If only I had less laundry to do...

...I were on top of things I would...
    ... post more on this blog
    ... take showers daily
    ... take my kids to the park
    ... take more pictures (I feel guilty because we have a MILLION pictures of        Kailey's first year... and only a HUNDRED of Cohen's so far... :[  )
    ... laundry
    ... dishes
    ... cleaning
    ... dusting, etc.

If only I had more time... But I don't. No one does...

However, I have my kids. I spend every waking moment with them. Who says I haven't accomplished anything? I feed my kids daily, change their diapers, put them down for naps, change their clothes, feed them some more, give them baths, brush their hair, brush their teeth. My children are thankful for that. A lot of children don't have the privilege of being able to spend even 15 minutes with their mothers... and some never get the chance to even meet them. I promised myself a long time ago that I was going to be a better mother than mine was. That's why I've chosen to stay at home with my children. I may not have a clean house, and dishes may be in the sink, but my children love me, and I love my children. I may have 6 loads of laundry to do, and I may have toys all over the living room floor, and crumbs in the kitchen, but -to me- my children are more important to me. Whats going to matter more 10 years from now? A clean house or memories with my children? I can deal with a little mess, and I can deal with accidents. What I can't deal with is not spending my time with my children. I can't imagine not being there the first time they smile, crawl, walk, or say "mama!".

Thats pretty much all I'm going to say about that... :]

<3Kayla

Coxsackie?

First off I want to say that I feel horrible! On Tuesday I took Cohen to the pediatrician. He has a ringworm on the back of his left leg. This is his second one in his 7 (almost 8) months of life! Poor guy! Anyways, the pediatrician walked out of the room to write his prescription. I turned around with one hand on Cohen's leg and was grabbing a diaper and the wipes because I smelled poopy... Low and behold what happens?? Before I can even think about what is happening, Cohen FALLS off the table!!! I immediately pick him up and comfort him because he is screaming louder than I've ever heard him scream before... He starts to calm down and I notice a HUGE blue and red spot on the right side of his forehead. I went out of the room and looked for the pediatrician. She took him away from me and looked at his head. We walked back into the room and she leaves to grab a bag of ice and a pedialite ice pop. As I sit there holding him, all I could do was cry with him, as I'm trembling from fear. I felt horrible. This has NEVER happened before. Yes, he's fallen before, but only from the couch and it's definitely NOT as tall as that table was. So when the doctor came back she said we had to stay for about 15-30 minutes more so they could keep an eye on him... She told us about 20 minutes later that we could go home, but to watch to make sure he was eating and playing like normal. Needless to say, he was okay. Even though I was shaken and he has a huge bruise on the side of his forehead, he is okay. My poor baby... I am sooooo sorry!!


So the day after that incident, he developed a fever and a runny nose. Since all was okay with the bump on his head, I just kind of assumed that I was just a cold because Kailey had the same thing the week before. I treated it with tylenol and we kept an eye on it. Yesterday he wasn't any better, so I called the pediatrician (who's office was closed so I had to talk to the on-call nurse). She told me to watch him for 20 minutes and try to get him to play and she'd call me back. He wouldn't play, he just fell asleep in my arms like he had been doing the past couple days (which is not normal for him. He hates being held when he is trying to fall asleep normally.) So the nurse said that with his symptoms that she thought it would be a good idea to go to the ER. So I call my husband, who is on the way to drills for the Army, and since Cohen was asleep we decided to wait through the night and see how he was in the morning.


Well, this morning we woke up and he still had a fever and runny nose. He slept with me on the couch in my lap all night. So I call my hubby and he comes home and we drop Kailey off at Blake's grandmothers house and take Cohen to the ER. I'm skipping the whole waiting parts because we have a pediatric ER at our hospital and it only takes like 10 minutes to see a doctor!!  ... When the doctor comes in, he examines Cohen and checks him mouth. Turns out he has a virus called Coxsackie. I was like COXSACKIE?? What is that?!? It sounded horrible!


Basically it is a virus that causes blisters (and ulcers) to form in the mouth and throat. It is also sometimes called "hands foot mouth" or "Herpengina". Either way it can also cause blisters on the feet and hands. And in some cases can lead to Meningitis!


What's the cure?
Wait it out! They did tell us to use a concoction of Maalox and Bendryl..  which will numb the soars in his mouth and allow him to eat...


Symtoms:
High fever (100+ *F)
Loss of appetite (due to the blisters)
Trouble feeding
Vomiting
Diarrhea
Difficulty breathing
Convulsions
Unusual sleepiness
Pain in the chest or abdomen
Sores on the skin or inside the mouth
Severe sore throat
Severe headache, especially with vomiting, confusion, or unusual sleepiness
Neck stiffness
Red, swollen, and watery eyes
Pain in one or both testicles


However, the child doesn't have to have all of these symptoms... They could only have one! :[


Long story short, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE trust your mothers instinct when you think something is wrong take them to the doctor. It's better to be wrong than to ignore it!


G'Night everyone!
<3 Kayla


P.S. Today Kailey is 21 months old! Only 3 months before her 2nd birthday! My little girl is getting sooo big! (Update on Kailey- She seems to be gaining weight. Although we haven't weighed her lately, she feels like she is getting heavier! YAY! She's on her way to having her surgery to fix her broken heart :] )

Auction of the Heart

Hi everyone!

We went to the doctor this morning! Our pediatrician put her on a high calorie diet. Meaning whatever I feed her I have to put butter/mayo/sour cream/grated cheese/cheese sauce/gravy on it. Anything to give her extra calories. I was told to also give her "Boost Formula" to help her gain weight. This is a high calorie "milk" drink (like pediasure). She labeled Kailey as "FTT" or Failure To Thrive. :[  But told me not to worry because that is a general term meaning that she's not growing at the same rate that she was as a baby, or growing as they would like to see her on the growth carts... BUT she DID gain 2 more pounds since last month!! (she's at 24 lbs now!)

All of this is because she needs to be a certain weight before they can do the surgery. Not exactly sure what the goal is here... but probably somewhere between 25-30lbs. So, she's getting close! :] And with all the extra calories, she will be there in no time!

As most of you know, I am the owner/designer of Little Teapot Designs. I would like to host an auction on my facebook page in order to help pay some of the medical expenses associated with my daughters up coming surgery. If you would be interested, I will be auctioning off baby items that I make. Such as:
Baby blankets,
Tag blankets,
Rhinestone onesies,
Tutu's
Bows,
Diaper cakes,
Diaper Bags,
Cloth baby shoes,
Burp cloths,
Wash cloths,
Cloth diapers,
Name blocks,
Alphabet blocks,
Keepsake box,
Wipe case,
Diaper carry case,
Car seat canopies,
Invitations,
Announcements,
ETC...

Please let me know if you will be interested. And let you're friends and family know about it too please! We really do need all the help we can get!! Thanks!

Edited to tell ya'll that I forgot to mention that Cohen got his FIRST tooth today!! Yeah I know, a little late huh? haha. He is 7 months old... and Kailey did get her first tooth at 5.5 months... so I think he's going to be slow on a few things... my little fatty! Oh, that reminds me, he now weighs in at 22 lbs!! Only 2 lbs away from Kailey!! haha. I <3 my Chunky Monkey Man! (his initials are CMM--Cohen Michael Mote--Chunky Monkey Man!)

<3 Kayla

New OB

So, yesterday morning I went to a new OB/GYN to have a consult for Mirena! I really think I like this guy. We got to discussing my previous pregnancies, and how the deliveries went... And as I told him about how my epidural didn't work with Cohen's delivery he got rather angry that my doctors wouldn't try to put in a new catheter. He really seems like he cares about THE PATIENT and not just getting paid. He even said that in 2008 he switched hospitals that he delivers at because the one he was at wasn't catering to the pregnant ladies needs as he would expect them to!

anyways... lol. about my Mirena! I have to wait until I take out my NuvaRing on the 7th. Then I can call them and schedule the appointment to get it placed!! YAY! I'm so happy! lol. I don't have to worry about it anymore! for 5 whole years! Woo Hoo! haha. anyways. The reason for so much excitement is that since my husband lost his job in February, we don't have enough money to pay for NuvaRing anymore ($80 a month!). So now that I'm getting this, we won't have to worry about the money issue with my birth control. I'm also excited because I got pregnant on Yaz and was scared that I'd get pregnant on the ring too... lol. But Mirena really is 99.9% effective since it blocks the Fallopian tubes! :P


On another note... I brought Kailey's old Exer-Saucer upstairs for Cohen to play in... Well, Kailey decided she wanted in it. She started bouncing up and down really fast and Cohen started screaming at the top of his lungs!! It was hilarious! Every time she jumped he screamed and stiffened his arms out in front of him! He looked absolutely terrified! Poor baby... and all I could do was laugh!

Kailey has some new words!!
-Meany (mimi)
-beep beep
-night night

And after her dentist appointment last Tuesday she used the potty!! She's getting so big so fast!! She'll be 2 in four months!! Cohen had his follow up hearing screening (since he failed it in the hospital) and he passed!! :] They BOTH have to get shots on the 28th!! :[

Well, hope everyone has a good Easter weekend!!

<3 Kayla

We need to fix it

As you all know, Kailey had her heart check-up today. they took an ultrasound of her heart which confirmed the size. It is 1/3 of an inch!! Which on an adult heart, isn't so big... but on my small daughter's heart it is. This means that they are going to have to close the hole by the time she turns 3. We go back August 17 to check it again, that's when we will have to schedule the procedure...

I was almost at a loss for words when i heard the cardiologist say "we'll absolutely need to fix it". I think my heart almost fell out of my chest. My precious baby girl has a broken heart- literally... That breaks my heart. My little girl is going to have to go through a procedure to fix her heart before she is even 3 years old. I know that this is the best option for my girl. I know that this will improve her life. This will help her in so many ways.

The risk of NOT doing the procedure compared to DOING the procedure is higher. If we do not do this procedure now, then the pressure and strain that the murmur is putting on her heart could cause significant damage to her heart. I can also cause the heart to weaken, in turn causing her heart to not pump her blood as efficiently. Thus as she gets older it will cause more stress and more weakening. And as she gets older and starts to have children of her own, that will also put lots of stress and pressure on her weak heart. Also the extra oxygenated blood that is flowing back into the lungs from the hole can cause blood vessel damage in her lungs. So obviously we need to do this procedure, but we will definitely be getting a second opinion.

On another note, the cardiologist says that he doesn't suspect that the hole is causing her insignificant weight gain. She has only gained 2 pounds since her first birthday. He thinks that she might have a problem absorbing fat from her food. We have to see a nutritionist so see if we can fix her diet...

So, hopefully, my sweet baby girl will be okay. Please send us prayers, we need them dearly. :]

My beautiful Kailey

<3 Kayla