What a sweet hubby

Jonathan and I have begun sleep training as they call it. Jennifer J. recommended a book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child." It had some really good research on sleep training so we started last night. We have been letting Kylee "cry it out" for about a month but this is how it goes. Night routine: bath, stories, feed, songs, put to bed. After 15 minutes of crying we go in and check on her. Then we let her cry for about 20 more minutes hoping that she will go to sleep. She usually doesn't so we go back in and I let her nurse and then she finally falls asleep. Our little angel will not take a pacifier and will not be rocked to sleep. If you even try to rock her she stands up and arches her back, trying her hardest to leap out of your arms. So nursing is the only time I ever get to cuddle with her.

But back to my sweet hubby. Last night Kylee cried for an hour and 15 minutes. The new method we are trying is to teach her to fall asleep without our help. Which means that we have to let her cry for as long as it takes (our limit is a little over an hour). So last night after about 45 minutes I was really having a hard time not checking on her. Jonathan thought of an errand-he needed gas for the lawn mower. So I left and when I got back she was asleep. Tonight it happened again, he sent me for super glue. I was glad to leave.

Monday he came home from work with a bag for me. It was new pajamas. He bought them for no reason at all-what a sweetie. I am always hinting that I would love for him to surprise me with something and he finally got it. My love language is acts of service, I don't really care what he gets me, or if he gets me anything at all. It is the act of thinking of me that I treasure :)

Firsts

So here are some firsts that have happened around here:

• Kylee had her first baby food. I pureed some bananas and she loved them. She got mad when they stopped coming and tried to lick them off of her bib when she was done.

• Kylee rolled over for the first time from her back to her tummy. Now she can go both ways. She seems to think that she can do anything now. She tried to take a nose dive off the couch yesterday so that she could reach the red carpet below. I call her my strong monkey. We had Lexie over the other day (she is 9) and she asked if Kylee was part Hulk? I think that describes her very well :)
  
• Kylee is now taking her medicine straight with no milk to change the taste. What a big girl.
  
• Kylee likes to type on the computer and yesterday she crawled (scooted) all the way across the bed so that she could reach my computer!
• I got my hair cut and highlighted. I was a little scared b/c I have never had any coloring at all, but I really like it. Jonathan wasn't sure if he liked it at first, but he has come around.

That is about it for what has been going on around here. Here are some random pictures of sweet Kylee.

Oh here is something very random. The doorbell just rang. It was our mail carrier. He had an envelope for Bryan from the church. They hadn't paid enough postage so I had to give him 41 cents. Weird!

Father's Day

Happy Father's day to all of you Fathers out there. Jonathan and I went down to Austin to spend Father's day with our dads. Kylee got to go swimming for the first time with Papa. Here are some pictures!




She really loved the water. She was so laid back and relaxed. I thought she might cry b/c the water was cold, but I think she was in there for like 45 minutes. Don't worry she had a had and I bathed her in sunscreen. He had seemed very big and kept covering up her face, but that made it cute.

For girls eyes only

So I know this might be a little weird to blog about, but here goes. My legs are cramping and I know that it is about to be that time of the month. I have lived without that time for over a year now so I am dreading its return. I just shared this with Jonathan and told him that he might need to run out and get me some tampons. To his credit, he has bought them before. In fact he would rather buy those than shaving gel for some reason. But anyhoo back to this story. So he said that he really doesn't feel like going to the store b/c it is so late and all.

He is madly going through the house from top to bottom to see if there are any tampons anywhere. He started in the bathroom, logical right. Then he looked through all of my purses. He moved on to my backpack and other various bags that he found. Now I just heard him go into the garage to have a look. Why would I keep tampons out there? So he has spent about fifteen minutes searching the house, about the same time that it would have taken him to just run up to Walgreens.....men.

She came out of the closet!

Last night we decided to let Kylee come out of the closet :) Since I have been working, we have been letting her sleep in our closet. It is very convenient since she has still been eating in the middle of the night. Now that I am not working, we decided to put her all the way across the house (remember that we have a huge house-1250 whole sq. feet). So we did our night routine with her: bath, eat, 2 stories and laid her down about 7:40. She cried for about 30 minutes and was still not asleep. So I picked her up and held her for a minute and then was ready to lay her back down. We realized that she was looking all around the room and it seemed to be keeping her up. So we hung a blanket over her windows and she laid her head down and went right to sleep! She was used to sleeping in the very dark closet.

After she had fallen asleep we heard her cd acting weird. The music was going really fast like someone was pushing the fast forward button. It was very strange. This morning we figured out what happened. Kylee scooted all the way across the bed and was pushing the buttons on the cd player with her head (Daddy had placed it in the crib with her). What a silly girl!!!

She slept all the way from 8:30-5:45! I actually got 7 hours of sleep in a row. It was great. Then I fed her and laid her back down at 6:20 and she slept until 9:00! It was a good night. Now I need to find some blackout curtains for her room.

Pictures

Here are some cute pics that Karen took while we visiting them a couple of weekends ago :)

It's official

Well today was my last day at Timber Ridge! I will definitely miss my job and the people that I worked with, but I will also love being home with Kylee. I am planning to teach music at our church's preschool this fall. So that will give me some adult interaction :)

I am looking forward to doing some organizing, but I know that Kylee might not allow that to happen as much as I'd hoped.

Bryan is here!

We went to pick up Bryan last night. We also got his sister to come home for the weekend. When we got there he ran out to the car and gave us a big hug and said that he missed us so much!! It was so good to see him again.

On our way home we passed the drive-in in Gatesville and decided to stop. We got to see Indiana Jones. Bryan thought it was really neat that the sound comes in your radio. We had a great time and it was perfect weather. We got home around 11:30. When he got here he had to run all over the house and make sure that everything was the same. He asked if Kylee was walking yet (she was asleep when we got home). We said no but that she could yell and make razoos.

Bryan gets to stay until Tuesday. I didn't realize how much I missed him until I saw him again. Now he gets to start coming home once a month and since it is summer he can stay for a week next time. I'm not looking forward to Tuesday when he has to go back, but I know that is the right thing to do.

I will try to post some pictures next week!

God provides!

As most of you know Kylee had a nine day stay in the NICU when she was born. We were sweating the medical bills, but we had more important things on our mind. I quickly added her to my insurance so I knew that she would be covered no matter what happened. We got her bill in the mail. Ten pages later we found the total, over $37,000! It said everything was still pending with insurance. We got a bill this month for $1,000. I called S&W and asked them if that was the total that we owed. They said that it was our copay. I thought not bad for such a big bill. Then today we got a refund check from our tax appraisal that will cover a third of it. God always provides!

Way to go Daddy!

Jonathan works at John Deere and they have to be open year round. When there is a holiday, half the staff gets the holiday off and the other half gets the day before off. So Jonathan had today off and I have Monday off. So my mom left last night and Jonathan kept Kylee all day by himself. I was worried that he might be nervous, but he seemed fine. He called while I was still at school to ask when I would be home. I asked what was wrong and he said that he was ready to take a nap. Ha! Shouldn't I get to be the one who takes the nap?

He said that Kylee had only slept for 30 minutes at a time and he never got to take a nap. I understood that. I asked how many bottles she had and he said 4. 4! That's a lot since she usually only has 3. But at least she was well taken care of. Besides, she's got to keep her rolls up.

Jonathan is still looking for a job so please keep us in your prayers. He has gotten a few calls back, but they are either paying too little or they want someone with more experience. He might just have to continue in the parts department for a while longer. He is really liking his new shift, 6:30-4:00. He gets home at the same time I do and we actually get to spend some time together with Kylee.

Not much else is going on with us. We are still trying to find a weekend that Bryan can come home. They are going to a lot of camps so it is hard to find a free weekend. I am hoping that maybe next weekend will work out. We sure do miss him.

School is winding down. I took a few things off my wall yesterday. It is kind of sad that I am leaving b/c I really do like my job. But I am looking forward to staying home with my sweet Kylee. I've heard it is the greatest job in the world and I can't wait to start.

I hope all of you are doing well :)

Lots of Stuff

Sorry it has been so long since I updated, here are some snippets of what has been going on....

• We are in Dallas with Karen and Scott this weekend and we are having a blast. If we do have to move for a job, I hope it is here!
• Kylee got her shots on Friday and did very well. Daddy got there right before she was about to get them so that was nice to not have to do it by myself again. Kylee is up to 15 lbs! No wonder my back hurts :)
  
• Kylee also went to the doctor on Tuesday and was diagnosed with acid reflux. They started her on Zantac and she has been a new baby. She was a very fussy baby before (because she was in pain) and now she smiles a lot more and spits up a lot less. We actually enjoy our evenings with her more
• My friend Kristi kept Kylee the past two weeks (bless her). We found out that Kylee is pretty sensitive and lets just say it...picky! I had to take one of my sheets and one of my shirts to help her sleep. Kristi was an angel and took great care of her. It was also nice to have her across the street from work. Thanks so much Kristi!! My mom is coming back this week to keep her.
  
• I have to officially turn in my resignation this week. I have mixed feelings, but it is a little scary to think about the lack of income. I know somehow it will all work out and at least Kylee and I still have ins. through KISD until the end of the summer. Then we will have to switch to J's
• Because of my resignation and the fact that I will no longer have a computer, we went to the Apple store yesterday and got me my own laptop. I love it!! The switch over was amazing. As soon as I turned it on it asked me if I had an old mac to transfer, I said yes and it did it for me! It only took two hours and everything looked exactly like my old mac; right down to the stickies!
• Bryan is doing better. I talked to his house mom yesterday and she said that he is having the same issues he had with us. The main one is social. He has no problem making friends, but always seems to sabitoge them. She said that he will have to learn those skills this summer b/c he will be in such close quarters. She said to be prepared that this summer will be hard for him. Kids can be cruel, but in this situation they are the best teachers!
• Well I know lots of other stuff has happened, but that's all I can think of for now. I hope all of you are doing well.
  

Bryan

We have really been missing Bryan this week. Last night Jonathan and I were watching a TV show and we were missing Bryan "flying" through the house like he always does. It used to get on our nerves, but now we miss it. I was doing laundry today and I felt like I didn't have enough to do.

We have talked to him twice. He does miss us a lot which honestly surprised me. So that reassures us that he did bond with us on some level. We can bring him home with us in six weeks and I can't wait!! Here is a conversation from the other night (abbreviated of course)

Becca: "Hi Bryan are looking forward to your weekend?"
Bryan: "Yes and Becca I don't have to go to school on Monday!"
Becca: "That's great!"
Bryan: "Its a bad weather day and I think its coming your way so you better stay in doors that day."
Becca: "That is sweet of you to think about us we will be sure to stay safe."
Becca: "Are you looking forward to your camping trip this weekend?"
Bryan: "Yes but they said that you couldn't come. I asked them if you could and they said no."
Becca: "I'm sorry that we can't come maybe we can camp out on the trampoline when you come home."
Bryan: "I have to go the bell is ringing" (I think this signifies its time for a devo)
Becca: "Okay I love you and miss you a lot!"
Bryan: "I love you so much, I love you more than the world."

Crying it out

For those of you who have met her, you know that Kylee is a strong willed child. I always thought that I would have a cuddly baby, but I soon realized that she would only be cuddly until she was strong enough to fight it. Now she always wants to be sitting up and looking around. Which is great, I'm glad that she is actively curious. But sometimes I just wish I could snuggle with her like I did when she was tiny. I secretly look forward to the feedings in the early morning because it is dark and she is sleepy so I actually get to snuggle with her.

Kylee has been a typical baby in every way. The downside was that we didn't know what typical was :) She had been staying up late at night and going to sleep somewhere around 10:30. Well that was better than midnight, but it left no time for Jonathan and I to even have a conversation. So Monday night we started letting her cry it out. It was very painful and I cried too, but after 30 minutes she was asleep. And not only was she asleep, but she slept for 10 hours!! I woke up at 4:00 panicked b/c she hadn't gotten up all night.

We do go in after 15 minutes and if she isn't asleep one of us picks her up and tells her that we love her. She holds on so tightly that I have a hard time putting her down. My sister RA told me that tip to reassure her that we were still around. Last night was one of the hardest nights because after the second cycle of 15 minutes she was still not asleep. Jonathan went in the first time and I went in the second time. But after about 35 minutes she was out. It seems to only take her 10-15 during the day for her naps, but the night time is the hardest. I think that she knows it is time to sleep and she is afraid she will miss something.

Thanks to everyone's advice that has really helped me. I knew that I would eventually have to let her cry it out, but I just wasn't ready yet. I think we waited the right amount of time and I am going to write it in her baby book so I can remember for the next baby.

Update on Bryan

Thank you for all of your prayers we could really feel them on Friday. Jonathan and I decided to take Thursday off and spend a "fun day" with Bryan before we took him to Stephenville on Friday. We got up and had donuts for breakfast. Then we went to Killeen to go bowling and have lunch. We ended the day by playing at the arcade at the mall and watching "Nim's Island." We did have a lot of fun.

When we got home we spent most of the evening packing and we had lots of hugs and we explained to him again how much we love him. Friday morning we got up and packed a few more things and headed out to Stephenville. He seemed like he was in good spirits and when we got there he was very excited to show off his toys. We talked to the houseparents about some of the concerns that we had and they seemed to be very familiar with all of them. When it was time for us to go we wanted to take him on a walk and talk to him one more time, but he didn't want to. He wanted to say a quick good-bye and go back to playing the x-box. I'm glad that he wasn't sad, but Jonathan and I were very upset. I hid it until I got to the car so that he wouldn't see.

We both miss him a lot and the house it quiet without him. I can't wait to see him again. But I know that the home will a place where he can learn some of the social skills that he desperately needs. Please continue to keep all of us in your prayers.

Just for a Little While

January 30, 2006:
We have been blessed with a guest in our home. Our seven year old nephew is going to stay with us for a little while. We are excited about him coming. We have started our prepartions: new room decor that does not have pink flowers, new bathroom toiletries that won't burn the eyes, an evening schedule that might be more for us than him, but most of all prayer that this will be the best place for him even if it is just for a little while.

April 25, 2008:
Our prayers have been answered, Bryan has been a huge blessing in our household. He has brought us so much joy and taught us many lessons that only kids can teach. I am watching him play lego starwars right now and I am thinking back to the weekend when we first got him. Jonathan and I were sitting on our couch biting our nails, not sure what we were going to do with a seven year old. Would he like us, could we help him, were we too young, were we ready to be parents?

I know now that we did make the right decision. He has come a long way. He smiles and has learned how to give great big hugs. He says "I love you" for no reason and sometimes he just can't stop talking. He is very different from 2 years ago. I am crying now thinking about tomorrow. Bryan is going to Foster's Children's Home in Stephenville tomorrow. I have been dreading this day since the day that I decided that I couldn't handle it all anymore. I have to turn it over to God. We are only two people and we can't do everything.

Jonathan and I were willingly thrown into the world of parenting, but we had no idea what lay ahead of us. Bryan has some emotional problems that we were not prepared to deal with. We hope that in time we will get to an emotional place where we can give Bryan everything that he needs, but we are unable to at this time. Please pray for him as he is anxious about tomorrow and I am dreading 4:00 when we will have to leave him in the hands of other parents, knowing that no one will love him like we do.

First week back

Thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers on my first day back. I only had a two day week and Friday was a half day because Fort Hood had some sort of celebration. I made a dvd of Kylee for my kids to watch because I knew that they would all want to see her.Tthat made for a really easy way to get back into teaching.

My kids were all very excited to see me, I got lots of hugs. The principal acted like he didn't recognize me :)

It was very hard to leave Kylee :( But luckily Jonathan's sister came down to watch her, so I knew she was in good hands (Thanks Shara). The first morning she cried for 30 minutes when she realized that Shara wasn't me. When I got home she nursed pretty much all evening (I think it was a lot of just sucking). Today she wouldn't take her bottle, but gladly nursed when I got home. I don't want her to miserable, but it felt good that she missed me.

Next week is only a four day week. It was hard to leave her, but it was great to see her when I got home!

Work

I'm back at work and pumping. I already miss her. Pray that this day will go by quickly!

She does sleep....sometimes

Kylee likes to sleep when she wants to. I am really trying to get her on a schedule since I have to go to work next week, but she doesn't necessarily want to conform to my schedule. She is going about 2 1/2 hours between feedings so that is better! Please say a prayer for me next Thursday I know it will be one of the hardest days of my life. Luckily a girlfriend is keeping her that day and she lives right across the street so I will sneak over there during lunch to see her :)

I let her sleep on her belly during the day because she sleeps so much better. Don't worry, I
check on her a lot to make sure that she is still breathing. She still sleeps in the closet, its perfect: she is close, but I can turn down the monitor and only hear her cries. Please notice how she loves to put her face into the chair. Oh and she is up to 15 lbs, I can't believe it.

Kylee was very fussy on Sunday after church. She had eaten and wanted to go to sleep, but wouldn't give up. So I bounced her on my knees for about 5 minutes saying a rhyme and she fell asleep, isn't she cute?

Easter

I hope that everyone had a great Easter! Sorry I'm just now getting around to sharing about ours. We all ended up in Austin which of course thrilled the Grandmothers. Brittney was down from the home in Stephenville and everyone really enjoyed seeing her! We have quite a large family and we have basically outgrown everyone's houses so we ended up having our Easter lunch at the church building and then we hid the eggs in the auditorium. It turns out that there are lots of really great places to hide eggs in there, it took the kids about 20 minutes to find all of them-the longest egg hunt ever!

Here are some pictures from that day.

Here are all of the egg hunters, the tall one on the right did not get to participate on account of exhaustion

Emily was a great hunter, she even bent down and looked under all of the pews, good thinking!

Here is Marj dashing to find an egg.

Here is how Kylee feels about all of it!

Eating

Kylee is definitely eating better! I took her for her 2 month check-up and she is up to 11 pounds. She has a buda belly and thick legs, she is precious. She had to get her shots and taht was not fun to watch. She slept all day afterwards and cried in her sleep. I felt so bad for her.

She has been eating every 2 hours for the past couple of days. She is going 5 hours in the night so I think she is making up for it during the day. Right before she goes to bed she eats at 6, 7:30, 8:30 and sometimes even 9. Jonathan and I usually stay home at night, we haven't had much of a social life. It is just too hard when she eats so much. But we don't mind spending extra time with her when we can.

Bryan finished basketball and had a lot of fun. I would highly recommend Upward Basketball to anyone with kids. It is a Christian program, only practices one night and week, and all of the games are on Saturday.



She was about 6 weeks here.