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One Plus One Plus One Plus One

Thursday, March 26, 2015

Lately my mind has been consumed with what it will be like adjusting to a family of four (family of seven if you count the pups). My feelings about this transition are part panic and part excitement. Although, I know millions of other families have done it and survived, there's a small part of me that is worried about how exactly it's going to pan out. How am I going to be able to function during the day when I'm sure we'll have our share of sleepless nights. How am I going to be able to divide my attention between a newborn, toddler and hubby. How am I going to be able to stay in the moment and enjoy each second before it passes in what I'm sure will feel like a blink of an eye. Although it's hard to remember, this isn't the first time these thoughts have popped into my mind. When we were expecting Parker, I had the same reservations only they were a little bit more intense because I knew nothing about raising a child. Luckily, we figured things out as we went and it has been the most rewarding, turbulent, exciting and joyous two and a half years of my life. I can't imagine how things could get much better but I know if my hesitations dissipate into the best days of my life much as they have before, we're in for one sweet, sweet ride. 

Pregnancy Update: 33 Weeks

Sunday, March 22, 2015

How far along? 33 weeks
Total weight gain: 25 lb.
I'm living in: Mostly maternity tops and fold over leggings on the evenings and weekends
Bellybutton in or out? Out
Sleep: Hello, third trimester insomnia. Getting to sleep isn't usually an issue, however waking up in the middle of the night and the early hours of the morning without being able to fall back to sleep has been an issue for me lately. I remember this happening when I was pregnant with Parker and it made me plenty prepared for the sleepless nights with a newborn. ;)
Food urges: I've definitely been on a soft pretzel bender the past few days. The hubs and I were shopping the other day when the aroma from the pretzel cart stopped me dead in my tracks. 
Food aversions: I haven't been too picky in the food department lately
I really miss: Being able to hold a conversation without getting winded. Lately I've been experiencing some crazy shortness of breath when reading stories to Parker, which she notices and looks at me like I might be a crazy person.
Movement: Still keeping up with the constant movements. I think she has been doing flips lately because sometimes I can feel her shift and then feel a huge amount of pressure in the lower part of my abdomen. 
Gender: Girl
Best moment this week? This was a HUGE week for our family. I turned 28 on Monday and we had a full week of activities with Parker. We took her to see Sesame Street Live on St. Patrick's Day. It was one of the best decisions we've made in a while because she's still talking about it. I can't even describe her face during the entire show. She was an angel amidst the majority of the crowds 8pm melt down. We also took her out for 'pink ice cream' and she got to stay the night at Meme & Papa's so Matt and I could enjoy a mini birthday spa/casino getaway. We both took Friday off of work and spent the day getting a few treatments followed by an AMAZING dinner. The next day we stopped to pick up some spring wardrobe essentials for the girls and eventually made our way home. After a stop for frozen yogurt of course.
Looking forward to? The nursery is getting painted this week so once that is finished we can start pulling everything together!! I can't wait to reveal the finished product!


Our Weekend

Sunday, March 15, 2015
Each winter we spend most of our weekends up at a mountain about an hour away. This will be our third year renting a place with Matt's sister and her family, and honestly it's one of the reasons we look forward to winter each year. We love it because it's like a weekly getaway that's a breeze to get to. Unfortunately, this past weekend was spent packing up everything at the condo and moving them back home. Although packing is always a daunting task, we made sure not to miss out on the fun while we were there.


I love seeing the slopes lit up at night. Parker was looking out the window and said 'Pretty lights! It's like a party!'


It's so cute watching Parker hang with her cousins the older she gets. They are total saints dealing with a somewhat bossy toddler hours on end and Parker couldn't love them more. 


Can't handle how long this little lady's hair is getting! 



On our last day, the ski lodge was hosting a princess breakfast. We had all intentions of arriving on time but as life usually goes, we showed up just in time to get pictures with the princesses and participate in a royal march around the banquet room before the event was over. Parker spotted Elsa across the room in no time, but once she showed her any attention, she buried her head into my shoulder. Eventually after a minute or so, she warmed up and went to Elsa so we could snap a picture. The highlight of her morning was seeing Cinderella. She just recently started watching Cinderella so she was quite the celeb in her eyes. When Parker saw her, she walked up to her and said in her excited squeaky toddler voice, 'I watch you all the way to Greek Peak!'. Her little smile says it all and I was nearly in tears when I saw her eyes light up while looking around at all the princesses around her. I'm not entirely sure how I'll be able to keep it together when we decide to take her and her sister to Disney for the first time.

Pregnancy Update: 30 & 31 Weeks

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

(30 weeks)

(31 weeks)

How far along? 31 weeks
Total weight gain: 22 lbs.
I'm living in: Most of my work tops have officially been dominated by this bump so I had to cave and get a couple maternity dresses. I'm sad I waited so long because we have a little more than 2 months left and won't get as much use out of them as I would have liked. But (good) maternity clothes are so amazing and flatter in all the right areas.
Bellybutton in or out? Out!
Sleep: Lately, I've been waking up a few times throughout the night to switch sides since it now takes an exorbitant amount of effort. The bump nest sleep pillow has come in SO handy this pregnancy, I don't know how I ever did without it. In the next couple of weeks I plan on putting together a post spotlighting a few of my pregnancy must-haves for all of you mamas to be, if you're interested!
Food urges: Vegetables, summer rolls, graham crackers (I raid Parker's stash on a daily basis) and sweet breakfast foods like cereal, waffles and pancakes
Food aversions: I seem to be on-board with just about everything lately so, none here!
I really miss: Mama is missing her cocktails and some good, real-deal sushi
Movement: Always consistent in the movement department. We are experiencing kicks and adjustments all day long. Even though I can feel parts of her body, I am clueless as to what part I'm feeling. I can never understand doctors who feel around and can pinpoint the leg, arm, butt, etc.
Gender: We're having a girl!
Best moment this week? Parker has been cracking me up lately. If you follow me on Instagram (@kerilululouise) you'll see that I posted a short video clip of Parker. The other morning while I was getting ready for work, I put her at the table with a huge chocolate frosted doughnut (there was some serious self discipline being put into action here) so I could take 5 minutes to finish my beauty routine. After she was done with her doughnut, I saw her pass the bathroom where I was getting ready, and walk into our bedroom where we have a full length mirror. From the other room I heard her say to the mirror 'Aw man, I have a man-stache!'. I lost it and then had to see what she was talking about and then of course had to document it and post it on Insta to share with all of you. There's hardly a moment that she isn't cracking me up with what she says, and it just gets better each day.
Looking forward to? We're coming down to the wire so it's about that time that we dig out and start going through Parker's newborn clothes and baby gear! I'm sure it will make me sad and excited all in one big ball of emotion.

Parker 29 Month Update

Monday, March 9, 2015

More often times than not, I find myself staring at Parker taking in everything that makes her, her. Whenever someone has a baby, they always talk about how quickly they change. That change beings to slow down a tad when they make the transition to toddler, however I am blown away with how much Parker has come into her own in the last few months. From the things she says to her preferences in clothing, I am obsessed with the tiny person she is becoming to say the least.



One of the things I love to do is to initiate conversation when Parker goes into deep details about her day or makes up stories and I sit and just listen. When she wakes up from her naps, I sometimes sit and cuddle her in her bed and ask her about her dreams. They typically involve her blankets but sometimes they are something crazy that involve bears in the bathroom. Other times she randomly spurts out the weirdest things like 'mama, I have a diamond ring up my butt.' (there was no ring up her butt, for those of you wondering)

The older Parker gets, the more she loves to test our patience when we're gathered around the table for a meal. For a while she would eat whatever we were eating, but lately has been getting gradually more picky or will only eat a bite or two of her dinner before she is telling us that she's finished. Not all hope is lost though, since most of her favorite foods are healthy albeit less than substantial. Some of her go-tos include macaroni and cheese, grilled cheese, soup, tuna ('tune-off'), pasta, oranges, bananas, steamed vegetable medley, cereal, hummus and her above all favorites, berries! She tends to pick around the bread if she's eating a sandwich and she's quick with her spiciness radar. I'll try to put together a toddler food post since I know I am always interested to see what other mamas are feeding their minis.



This girl has had wild child hair since she was a baby. It's never been cut so naturally it's getting pretty long. Her hair is extremely fine so its rare that a pony tail or pig tails last throughout an entire day and it doesn't take long until her long bangs end up in her face. On the days when she goes to school and I can't always control her hair situation during the day, I try my best to do a secure high bun or pony tail. On the weekends and my days off, I love to keep her hair long. It has great natural shape and volume and it's such a cute look on her. She still won't leave headbands in longer than two minutes so my options are extremely limited. Thanks to Frozen, she is a fan of having her 'Elsa braid'. We use the tiny Goody elastics because they don't cling on and rip out her hair with each use. We've just recently switched over from using exclusively Aveeno shampoo to using the delicious smelling tangerine-vanilla shampoo and conditioner. Using conditioner on her hair has been a game changer! It makes brushing so much easier and her hair is so much shinier and has movement that I'm jealous of. Also after switching to the Honest products, I've noticed her skin has been much softer which I love! I think we're going to try the lotions/body oils soon.

We've almost completely overcome the hurdle of potty training (YEAH!). When we decided it was time, we went for it and never looked back. We're still putting diapers on her during the night but just ordered potty training pads for her bed after a couple incidents. She is mostly letting us know when she has to go and for the times when she is occupied and forgets to say anything, Matt and I have learned a few of her pre-potty tendencies so that we can rush her to the bathroom once these start coming in to play.


She is also officially sleeping in her big girl bed. She's been sleeping there exclusively ever since we started her toddler room makeover. There are some nights still where she will immediately venture out of her bed and walk out with a little mischievous smile to wherever we are, but typically gets the idea after one or two times of putting her back in bed. I was a little hesitant at first because this girl used to be a mover and a shaker while she slept. I thought for sure that she would fall out onto the floors on a nightly basis. With a little help from her foam mattress wedges, she's thankfully been keeping put all night and gets a full nights sleep.

We are so excited to see our spunky little ball of energy make the transition into responsible big sister. Our hope for Parker is that she keeps her spark and continues to spread happiness wherever she goes. She is so the light of our lives and we couldn't love anything more. 

Easter Round Up

Saturday, March 7, 2015
Happy Saturday morning. It seems everyone woke up with good intentions but that quickly has gone down hill and its barely 7am. There is a PO'd toddler at the dining room table crying at the table because we gave her the pancakes she asked so sweetly for 10 minutes ago. There's nothing like the wailing cries filling each room of the house to wake you up and get started with your day! ;)

Today we're talking Easter! With the weather we've been having lately, the warmer temps (and by warmer I mean above 15 degrees) feel something close to summer. So when picking out little gadgets for Parker's basket this year, I couldn't help but grab some cute and bright items! 

Parker loves to create little masterpieces especially with stickers and markers, so naturally picking up a fresh sketchbook, bright neon marker and festive stickers was a no-brainer. The stickers are my favorite thing ever! How cute?! I also scored this cute little coral flower necklace on sale, which is almost like the kid-friendly version of my necklace she likes to hoard and hide from me. We will be taking our twinning to the next level with accessories, so watch out! ;) Also one of her favorite activities is 'helping' me bake which includes things like stirring, dumping ingredients into a bowl and throwing whole eggs into the mix. Adorable, yes. These cute little cupcake wrappers and star toppers are right up her alley. 

And here's a little glimpse into our Easter year's prior. It always makes me a little sad to see how much has changed in just a few years but I know that even more will change in the upcoming year.



We're so excited to put together her basket and seeing her face when she finds it has always been one of my favorite moments ever. 

 
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