Chad

Thank you everyone for praying for my family back home. This is a picture of my cousin Chad who passed away on Easter, and his little girl. Your continued prayers would be appreciated.

Look!!!

Aunt Debbie's beautiful, crazy flowers!!! I want these!!!
And on a sad note, Caleb gets his shots today. . .poor little guy :(

Potty training at 2 months

In my dreams! But did I get ya there for a second? I just have to share my little story with ya. At 4am, Caleb woke up, not because he was hungry but because he had peed through his diaper and wet himself and his bed, and I mean the poor little fellow was drenched! I changed him, put new jammies on and fed him and tucked him in. 7am comes and he is ready to eat again. I put him in the bed with me, feed him, then he wants to lay there and smile and laugh and play for a while. That was until he decided to do a little poo poo, or so I thought. I went to go move him a little so that I wouldn't have a mess on my hands, but too late. He had messed all the way up his back and onto the sheets. I put him on his changing table, take his diaper off and before I can grab something to help me out, he pee pee's all over the place. At this point I am pretty much like whatever. I get him all cleaned up, and I decide he should have a bath. So I leave me little naked baby waiting for me while I ran and threw the dirty clothes in the wash (granted I literally threw them in, I didn't even start the machine!) I ran back to find that mister Caleb had pee pee'd again and this time is was puddled underneath him, all over his hair and everything else. What a mess. I picked him up and put him in the tub. After his bath, of which he thoroughly enjoyed, I laid him on his towel. Little clean Caleb, all cozy in his bath towel. Until. . . he poops again!!! All over not one, but two towels!!! Wow! My morning was spent cleaning up number one and number 2. How about yours? I spared you the pictures on this one. I think it is pretty disgusting to post poo poo pictures of your baby. One day Caleb will thank me for being so thoughtful :)

Aye yai yai

Wow! Today was so hot!!! I have my air set on 78 degrees (which is what the electric company recommended) and it is at 77 right now. My tile floor is warm enough to walk on barefoot which hasn't happened since I got here. My little Caleb has slept in short sleeved onesies with no pants the last two nights. I am wondering if he will wear his sleepers at all anymore until fall comes around again. I do love to squish those little chubby legs though :)
This morning we met my friend Lori and her little girl at the coffee shop and then went to the track. I was so glad to have an exercise partner! Lori is a fun one too. We talked the whole time so it didn't even seem like we were there as long as we were. We decided it was time to call it quits though when Lori's one year old daughter almost fell off her little car wagon because she was falling asleep (so cute):) Caleb sat in my pouch and took him a little nippy nap. Then we came home and he went down for a nap at 1:30 then I decided to take a nap with him. He slept from 1:30-5:30!!! He must have been completely exhausted from being out and about all day yesterday. I really love this weather and I can't wait until the waterpark on post opens!!! I won't go to the tanning bed anymore because I am afraid of skin cancer (plus, it makes me itch so bad I want to cry!) but I don't mind a few minutes of the real sun here and there (sounds retarded, I know). Okay, well I am thinking about going to bed, I hope I can since I took a good nap today! Tomorrow will be Caleb's last day of going to church with me. When we come back from Virginia (sister's wedding) he is going to the nursery for the first time. My little monkey is growing up!

Free Bee Fab Fri!

Its Fridayyyyy, again! I feel like I just posted my free bee fab fri. . .hmmmm. Well today I am posting this beautimous lexus. I have to tell you that this has been my dream car since high school! But that is exactly it, my dream car. Not like we could ever afford a lexus, but even if one day we could, this is the 5 seater SUV and since Caleb has joined our family, we have already found that our 5 seater Jetta is smaller than we thought it was! Maybe one day when the kids are having there own kids. . .that will give me plenty of time to dream :)



Okay, and yes I am greedy today. I have to give a shoutout to my etsy, so here is my dream etsy item. I found it appropriate with all the dreaming I will be doing today :)



It is $25.00 at ciliciahomeandhearth.

AND. . .
I forgot to post this picture last week of my little CEO.

Wallstreet is that way!


The happiest little CEO you will find anywhere

meet paula and percy

percy admires a tree


meet paula peacock


paula and percy peacock meet


percy makes an appearance


all prints available in my shop

Pretty Perched Painted Peacocks. . .Oh My!!!

My secret revealed!!!
Here they are and I am sooo excited about them!!!
They are $9.00 + shipping (unless you live nearby and I can bring it to you so we can drink coffee out of them ;))
You can find them on my etsy shop.

Shhhh. . .

I am working on something secret! I am working as quick as I can! Don't tell. . .

KK!!!

Happy Birthday KK!!! Can you believe how old you are getting??? Haha :) Thought I would remind you of the old days and the new ones. We love you very much and wish we could eat some of your cake!

Your first babies (My sister Donna on the right and me on the left,June 1986)
Sorry Brother Seth, I didn't have a picture of you to put on here!


Your second baby.
Little Cammy 2005


Your third baby, and many more to come!!! hehe
Caleb Easton, February 2009


We hope you have a fun birthday and that you know how much we love you :)

Love,
All of your babies

What I can't believe

I can not believe that my little tiny Caleb is not tiny anymore!!! Today he is two months old!!! I truly truly can not think of where those two months have gone. He is such a little chunk monster now. My friend had her baby boy last Tuesday. We went to visit them and I was shocked at how much smaller he was than Caleb. I still see him as my little infant baby, but he is growing! He is out of his newborn clothes and fitting into most of his 0-3 month clothes. He is so much fun though the older he gets. He loves to look at us and smile and laugh and he has even started to try and roll from his back to his tummy. He sits in his vibrating chair for longer periods of time and has an interest in some of his little toys now. I am also going to have to adjust the straps on his carseat because he is getting too long for it! Oh I love my little chunky monkey :) Today he is wearing his "Future CEO" onesie with the tie. It is so cute on him. I will post pictures. I hope he wakes up from his nap in a good mood because today is his 2 month old photo shoot. Will I still be doing this whenever baby #2 comes? I don't know but I sure enjoy doing it with Caleb Easton. Okay, how much more mushy can I get? (Much more mushy, say that 3 times). I can't help it, I just love him. If you are so annoyed with all of my baby posts, then you had better stop reading my blog now because there will be way too many more to come. How can you not write about something so exciting??? Anywho, you guys have a good weekend and we will try the same :)

Over and out,

Kathlyn

It's Back!!! Free Bee Fabulous Friday!!!

I am just so excited that it is Friday, and a beautiful one for that matter, that I decided it was time to start Free Bee Fab Fri back up :)
For those of you who are new to this day, on Fridays I pick out something that I would love to buy, but won't or can't. Pretty much it is my day to imagine I am rich and I can have anything I want!



Here it is! Can it be any more gorgeous? This is on Etsy (did anyone know I LOVE that website???) It is a damask print clutch with apple green accents. What would I do with a clutch you say? Baby in one arm, unbelievable clutch in the other. Okay, maybe I really am dreaming. . .

If someone else wants to buy it, or drool over it ao3designs sells it :)

Sad Easter

Please pray for my family back home. On Easter Sunday, a family member was killed in a car accident. He was only 35 years old and had a 4 year old daughter. This made for a very sad Easter. Even though we all know that God knows what He is doing, it doesn't make it any easier when it comes to missing him. If you think about it, please say a little prayer for them today as the next few months and weeks will be especially difficult.

What to expect when you're not expecting. . .

When I was expecting Caleb, my every move revolved around keeping him safe in my tummy. My tummy that grew to an immense size in a mere 9 months! I watched what medicine I took, how much caffeine I had and a million and one other things that would nearly drive any woman crazy. But in the end, all of my worrying paid off when I first laid eyes on my little Caleb Easton, with the long fingers and toes (the first thing I noticed about him!). Then reality hits. If you think pregnancy is hard and stressful, try bringing your little baby home for the first time. In the last few weeks of pregnancy, you barely sleep because of all the bathroom trips and all of the anxiety of waiting for your little baby to get here. You think that you can't get any worse of a nights sleep than what you are getting, but boy was is that wrong!!! I have never been as tired as I was the first 3 weeks of Calebs life. I decided to make a little list of the things I didn't expect after I wasn't expecting.

1. I never knew that the labor and delivery would be the easy part of having Caleb. The long recovery afterwards is what no one warned me about. Coughing and sneezing in peace were luxuries of the past, at least for a few weeks.

2. Pee Pee Tee Pee's do not work! And this boy is not a sprinkler, he is a stinking water hose! I learned quickly to have the clean diaper ready for replacement and a washcloth in hand.

3. I had expected the very worst when it came to breastfeeding. All I had heard were stories of how hard it was and how painful it was. I already had braced myself for an awful first few weeks of feedings. However, I was presently surprised. I have had such a great experience breastfeeding and I am so glad that I didn't let everyone's horror stories change my mind. In fact it is going so good that Caleb will not take a bottle (okay, that would be something I would enjoy from time to time, but whatever!) At least I am saving us some major money right now.

4. In my mind, for the 9 months I was expecting Caleb, I had imagined what our days together would be like. He would nap while I leisurely took my shower, got ready and cleaned the house. Whenever I wanted to go shopping I would just put him in his car seat and push him around the stores in the stroller or cart. When Seth and I wanted to go out to eat, we would take our peaceful, sleeping baby into the restaurant in his carseat and have a nice dinner while little Caleb took his nap. How wonderful does that all sound? If you think too wonderful to be true than you are very right. After I get Caleb down for his nap, I run to the shower and get ready as quick as I can. Then I run around like a mad women getting the housework done, or as much of it as I can before Caleb is ready to get up. As far as as shopping goes, my infantino 3 way baby carrier is my life saver. I never thought that I would be wearing that everywhere we went, but honestly it wouldn't matter how silly of a contraption I would have to wear, as long as Caleb is happy and I can get my groceries in the cart. Going out to eat has turned into, "What can I order that I only have to use one hand to eat it?" Even then, Seth and I still have to take turns holding Caleb so we can both eat. No one told me that not all babies are content in their carseats, and this little booger hates his!!!

Okay, so I could go on and on but I will stop here for today so I don't scare too many of the expecting mommies. It is just so funny to me to look bad at all my dreaming for 9 months and to think now that none of it turned out the way I had planned. But you know what I never thought of? I never thought about how much I would love one little human. I never knew how much joy I was going to find by seeing my baby smile and laugh. My favorite time of the day is when Caleb first wakes up from his nap and he smiles at me. We just sit together and play until he gets fussy to eat and I would not trade those times for anything. All the work I didn't think I was going to be doing has become habit now. I don't even think about how difficult it will be to go out to eat or go shopping. I just do it and hope for the best. Sometimes he is great and I get to stay out longer, other times he just wants to go home so I cut my errands short and home we go! I have come to realize that being a mommy isn't about getting your baby on the perfect schedule and getting him to sleep through the night and making sure he is wearing fancy Pampers and stylish clothes. It is all about not being selfish anymore. It is about making him smile and making sure he is taken care of before yourself. Most days, my first bite of food comes at about 11. That is when I have fed Caleb, played with him and put him back down for his nap. They just want to be loved. A lot of my friends have asked what mommyhood is like and I would be stupid to not let them know that it is not glamorous. I walk around the house with spit up glued in my hair and a shirt that has been peed on sometimes. Some days (okay, most days!) I don't have the luxury of drying my hair or changing my outfit if I decide I don't like what I have on, and these are just the things I have realized in the first 8 weeks! But you know what? At the end of the day I am happy knowing that my little man is happy, warm and tucked in his bed and even if I am a complete mess I realize that one day I will be able to focus on myself a little more, but today someone else needs me more than I need my hair blow dried.

Easter Easton :)

Video and Epiphany

So, I found out one day that Caleb likes this silly song I sing in my man voice. 90% of the time he laughs at it, but then there is that 10% when he does this pitiful little thing.




I signed up to receive devotions via e-mail from the Proverbs 31 ministry website. Sadly, I resorted to having my devotions e-mailed to me because I kept forgetting to pull my own devotional book out myself. I decided that since I most always check my e-mail, having devotions e-mailed to me would be the best way to remind this airhead to spend some time with the most important person in her life (why should I have to be reminded of that???) So with Caleb sleeping on me, I read my devotions when I check my e-mail in the mornings. For some reason, I was sent this devotional two days in a row. I really enjoyed reading it yesterday and even thought about it last night before I fell asleep. When I opened it again this morning, I skimmed over it and knew there was a reason why I was sent the same devotional twice so I thought I should share it with you guys.
I am always trying to figure out things on my own. I try to take shortcuts instead of doing things the right way. I am always trying to solve all of my problems myself and this was such a great reminder that God is always there just waiting on us to realize He wants nothing more than to help us. If you want to make your life a little less stressful, hand your problems over to God because He wants to carry our burdens :) The hardest part is remembering that!

Here is the devotional:

"The Lord said, 'It is because they have forsaken my law, which I set before them; they have not obeyed me or followed my law.'" Jeremiah 9:13 (NIV)

The car was packed; the gas tank full; a cooler stood chock-full of sandwiches for the long ride. This was it! My three kids and I were excitedly off on a summertime adventure. In the midst of a stressful and busy move and while waiting for the kids' bedrooms in the basement to be finished, we threw caution to the wind and took my friend Marybeth up on an invitation to join her at an ocean beachfront home she was being allowed to use for free.

Now this was no small undertaking. It was going to be a 17-hour trip with three kids in the car. Besides the necessities we needed to pack, most of all we needed directions. We had to see on paper just how to get from our little home in the middle of Michigan to sunny Ocean Isle, North Carolina, without getting lost!

Should be a piece of cake in this era of online sites that spit out detailed directions, right? Of course! So I printed them off, tucked them in a folder and revved up the car's engine. Before I left, however, my father called me. He winters near Ocean Isle and he wanted to give me verbal directions since he has traveled that course twice a year for the past 18 years and is very familiar with how to get there.

I reluctantly wrote down his instructions, complete with highways to avoid and exit names, etc. Then, I tossed the directions into the glove compartment. I thanked him for the gesture but assured him I probably wouldn't need it since I had the newest, slick Internet directions already. But "Father knows best!' he assured me. I smiled and headed off.

About half-way to our destination, I noticed that the exit number and name on the Internet's directions didn't match up. I began to panic. Should I take the exit number it gave or the exit name it listed? I chose the exit number. Soon after that, we became completely lost. None of the directions made sense any more. We got off the exit, headed back to where we'd made the turn and tried again.

But this way didn't work either! We were soon heading north instead of south and there wasn't an exit in sight for miles! When we finally got off, I popped into a gas station and asked for help. The attendant smiled and handed me a piece of paper with corrected directions already written on it. It seems that the Internet site does not completely have the directions. In fact, the station gets dozens of lost souls wandering into their establishment everyday longing just to get back on the right track. They were ready with printed directions to give out to such weary travelers.

Worried that the rest of my Internet directions might be wrong as well, I quickly fumbled through the glove compartment to find my father's handwritten instructions. I ran them by the gas station attendant. "Perfect!" he commented. My father knew the way without any wrong turns. "Just stick to your father's instructions and you won't be lost" I was told.

Like so much of life, we hear of new fangled shortcuts, ways to find happiness or even new paths for getting to heaven. Celebrities say they have found new spiritual dimensions or perfect peace in a New Age practice. We must resist the desire to trust these so called 'new ways' completely and instead follow our Father's original instructions: the Holy Bible. His ancient words ring true. He is the way, the ONLY way, and following His instructions will never result in our souls being lost.

Perhaps it is time we did away with the new and went back to the old. God's instructions are never wrong. They lead to peace and contentment and a home with Him in heaven forever. Why, that is even better than a week at the beach!

Dear Lord, help me to get and stay forever grounded in Your ancient instructions, the Bible. May I follow only Your holy ways. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Isn't it time you decorated your fridge?

I finally updated my etsy shop. Here are a few of my latest creations. They are fancy shmancy magnets!

What is that noise?

Saturday night, before I could fall asleep, I heard this really funny noise outside the bedroom. I wasn't sure what it was but after listening carefully to see if I could hear it again, I just blew it off thinking that it was probably the water heater or something. At about 3:00am, Caleb woke up hungry. As I was feeding him, I heard the noise again! But this time I heard it several times in a row. I was very nervous so I shook Seth and told him to wake up and listen. He heard it too and he said that it was the same noise he heard before we went to bed, but he thought it was me doing something in the bathroom so he didn't think about it. We were both very worried because whatever or whomever was making this noise kept on and on! We stayed in our room trying to figure out what it was. I thought it was either an animal or our heat system was broken and making a weird noise. The noise sounded like someone beating on something, but it was the same noise over and over, sometimes it would be louder than the previous time. We realized that the baby monitor was on, so I unplugged it so that the intruder could not hear Seth and I planning out how we were going to get him! After trying to figure it out and having no luck, Seth decided it was time to go get em'. I was so nervous and scared!!! What was out there??? I stayed in the bedroom with Caleb. I heard Seth opening closet doors and checking the outside doors. I had my cell phone in hand ready to call 911. Then, Seth comes back in the bedroom with a helium balloon that had been given to us when Caleb was born. It had somehow made it's way downstairs to the living room and was getting hit by our ceiling fan everytime it drifted up to the ceiling. It had been doing that since we had gone to bed! Hahahahahaha. Needless to say we were very relieved! But we also felt like complete idiots. So now our joke is that we need to keep our doors locked so as not to let any more balloons come wandering inside in the middle of the night.

Happy Birthday. . .

Sorry I am a day late, I was pretty tired and kinda fussy yesterday. I am sending your present in the mail! I wish I could come to your party and have a piece of your birthday cake, maybe next year. Have fun! I miss you!!!

Love,
Caleb

April Foolsies

Caleb April fooled me. Please notice his fist in the background.



Nana nana boo boo! I'm going to punch you!

April fools :)