Charis is 7 Months!

I just looked at the date and realized that Charis is seven months old today!! I really wanted to be more diligent about writing things down as she grew...but let's just say that has not happened. Oh well, it is never late to start, right??

Right now, Charis is so much fun. She is a great sleeper. She takes at least two naps a day, and she sleeps around thirteen hours a night!! So great!! She loves to smile and talk. I really thought that she was going to be the "quiet child," but I am not thinking so much. McKinley and I will walk out of the room, and she will immediately start talking. Its as if she is saying "hey, wait! Don't forget me!" Charis has recently realized that she has an older sister. Every time that McKinley walks past her, Charis' whole face lights up. McKinley, on the other hand, acts really annoyed. In fact, the other day, McKinley looked at me and said, "Mom, Charis is not my best friend because she is waaaay to loud." :) Good times! One of my favorite things is getting Charis up first thing in the morning. I will walk in the room and over to her crib. As I start looking down over her, she gets the biggest smile on her face. Sometimes, she even laughs out loud. Love it!! She had her 6 month appointment last week, and her doctor said that she looked wonderful!! We were so thankful for such a great report!

I love you Charis, Care-bare ( I swore I wouldn't use this nick name, and it is totally starting to stick! ), Care-Burrita ( this name comes from Mac....she got the "burrita part from one of Uncle Jake's songs! :). I can't wait to see what the next month of your sweet little life brings! You are such a blessing to all of us!!

But, mom...

As Chris left for prayer tonight, I thought to myself "McKinley and I should do something productive while he is gone." So I came up with the idea of starting to work on writing her letters. My idea was pretty much killed by a certain screaming 7 month old. However, when I did finally get the chance to mention it to McKinley, her response was "But I don't want to learn my letters...I want to PAINT!!!" It turns out that she does have some of my genetic make-up in her. And I love her dearly for that. :) We will get to the letters one day, but for now, painting totally works in my book!! Also, McKinley has decided that sunglasses ARE a necessary piece of attire when she rides her tricycle. Even if she is inside.

This is a picture that I took of Charis this afternoon. She loves her outfit from Aunt Kimbo. Yea for cute little lady bugs ;)!

I Don't Even Know Where To Start...

I think that it is safe to say that I decided to rebel against blogging for awhile. But, I am back, and hopefully for the long haul.

We have been doing great as a family of four. I absolutely love having two little girls. They bring so much joy into my life every single day.

McKinley turned three in December, and she has always got an opinion about everything. Yesterday, we actually got into our first mother/daughter fight about shoes. Lovely. We were at Target picking out new shoes because she seemed to outgrow every pair she owned over night. So, there we are strolling down the isle, and I see all these cute shoes. However, McKinley is only attracted to what I like to call "tacky shoes." We both left Target a little worn out and frazzled to say the least.

McKinley also is constantly saying really funny things. Today she asked Chris to get her some pudding, and he told her no. So what does a really smart and intelligent three year old do? Go to person number two, and that would be me of course. So I get her some pudding (with sprinkles) and she looked at me and said "Thanks mom! I knew I could count on you!" I almost fell over laughing. Where does she come from?

Charis is doing just wonderful! I took her to the doctor yesterday for her 6 month check up, and everything looked great! She is rolling over, chewing on her fingers and toes, and talking up a storm (McKinley has already commented several times that Charis is "being way too loud"). Charis is also starting to laugh out loud, especially at McKinley. So fun to watch. :)

Things are going really well at church! It has been such an exciting season, and the Lord continues to draw so many people to Himself. Chris and I both feel so blessed and humbled to be a part of what the Lord is doing. It seems like every day we hear a story about how the Lord has changed a person's life through Experience Life. My heart seriously jumps in my chest when I find out that more and more people are experiencing Jesus. There are really no words to describe the feeling, but I would say that pure joy would be close. :)

I spend most of my days doing laundry, loading the dishwasher, changing diapers, and picking up toys. Jobs that really get no worldly glory, but to me there is such satisfaction in it. I couldn't be more blessed by this season of life. Thank you Jesus!

Who Says White People Can't Dance??

Yesterday, I got on Facebook and found out that our worship pastor had posted this link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTBdqs5wipo

His comment was "This is Chris as a five year old."

Other people then posted their comments like "I bet this is the dance that Chris and Emilie did when they got to bring Charis home."

You guessed it. We are secretly thinking of auditioning for "So You Think You Can Dance." Be sure to look for us next season. :)

The Jury Is Out...

Charis posing with Chris' baby picture and my baby picture
Charis at three weeks
Mckinley at three weeks


I think the number one question around our house is "So, who does Charis look like?"
Some days I think that she looks just like Chris, and others I think maybe, just maybe she looks like me. What do you think?

Mckinleyisms...

Life has definitley been an adjustment over the past week. Charis is a great baby. She sleeps all the time! Mckinley was in shock when she came home from school to find such a sweet surprise. Things were going great until she realized that I actually had to care for Charis too. Here are some of the things that she has said this week that have really given us all a good laugh.

1. Mckinley to me as I am holding Charis "Put her down mom. It's my turn to eat."
2. Mckinley to Charis as she is crying "It's okay sweetheart. Mommy pix (she can't say the letter "f") you."
3. Mckinley to me when I asked if she wanted a spanking (she has been asked that NUMEROUS times this week: "It's okay mommy, I don't do spankings."
4. Mckinley to both of us as we were trying to get her to bed: "I need go to the hospital. My nose is broken, (meaning she couldn't breathe out of it).
5. Mckinley to Charis the first time she saw her (Charis was still in NICU at this point): "What in her nose?," referring to the feeding tube the poor thing had to have for a week and a half.
6. Mckinley telling other people what is wrong with her Aunt Sarah "Her lung broke. So she in hospital." Sarah got admitted this week for a pulmonary embolism. Good times!!
7. Mckinley to Chris when he told her that he loved her "Okay dad. I lub you for thirty minutes."
8. Mckinley talking about bugs: "I don't wike bugs. Their diculous (ridiculous)."

Life sure is fun with two girls!! :)

Recent Happenings...

Mckinley getting ready to go into her class!
Chris and Mckinley getting ready to eat Thai Pepper!
Our little peanut getting ready for her ride home!
Leaving the hospital!


So much has happened since my last post! Wow!!

The last post attempt (which includes only a title) is in reference to the fact that Mckinley started Parent's Day Out this summer. My title was going to say "Parent's Day Out is not supposed to equal sleep deprivation." But it did. Not for Mckinley. But for me.

The first few times were really rough for both of us. She cried so hard on the way to school. Then she went through every member of our family that she thought would come to her rescue. She would yell out "I need Gigi, I need Grammy, I need,"..well, you get the picture. Her "school" as she calls is, took a two week break in between the summer and fall session. This week she started back, and she was not too thrilled. However, I am in need of a break because of the newest addition to our family.

Charis was not supposed to arrive until September 3, 2009. However, she is already showing us that she has a mind of her own. On August 10, 2009, I started having really bad contractions. I didn't really think much of it since I had all ready had experienced this during my pregnancy. It was around 11:00 a.m., and Chris and Mckinley were both requesting ice cream (from two different places.) Chris had a legitimate reason for wanting a milkshake because he had three teeth filled that morning (communication was definitely interesting;)). So, we all piled in the car, and drove to ChicFilA and Sheridan's House (as Mckinley calls it...she really thinks a girl named Sheridan lives there and makes all the frozen custard!). On the way home, I could hardly drive because I was in so much pain. I came home and called the doctor. I had to leave a message. I waited for a hour, and didn't hear anything. At that point, I felt like a bomb had gone off in my stomach. Chris talked me in to going to the hospital, so we grabbed a few things and left. The only thing I remember about the car ride is waiting at a light at the Marsha Sharp Freeway for approximately 92 minutes, and the fact that we parked in the wrong place so I had to walk at least a mile to get to the Family Birthing Center. Lovely. We got checked in, and they hooked me up to some machines. We then found out that I was having contractions every three minutes.

After about 12 hours of labor, I was finally wheeled into the O.R. for a c-section. Chris and I were both excited and nervous. Charis arrived at 11:18 p.m.. She was 4pounds and 11oz, and 17 and half inches long. She was immediately rushed to NICU because she was not breathing properly. After two long weeks in the NICU, we finally got to bring our sweet baby home. I could not be more thankful for the Lord's great faithfulness through this entire experience. There were times during the past two weeks that both Chris and I were reminded that we are not in control of our life. While our daughter was in great hands with doctors and nurses, we knew that the only one who could see us through this time was our Heavenly Father. We prayed, and we asked others to pray. Now, thanks to answered prayers, we are home as a family of four. I couldn't be more excited and blessed.