Kade

He climbed up on the platfrom under our dining room table and yelled,
"I'm hiding, Mom!"

Oh, this little boy.  He sure is quite the character.  Always on the go.  Always pushing the envelope.  Always pushing his Mama's buttons (and the buttons on the dishwasher, washing machine, etc). He is so incredibly inquisitive, determined, and independent.  I admire those three qualities in him so much, yet they are also my biggest challenge.

 I struggle daily with parenting this cute little fella.  I want him to grow up into a man of God and to use these qualities in a way to glorify Him.  I know that it is Marc and I's responsibility to try to get Kade to that point.  I just wish there was a road map guiding us along the way.

I would never want to change anything about Kade. His exuberance is contagious.  But, he needs rules, discipline, and consistency. So much time right now is being spent correcting him.   Sometimes, I even feel a bit bad for being on his case all the time.  He is usually not doing anything that is outright wrong or mean spirited.  Normally, it is Kade being curious, pushing the limits, and having zero fear.  That is what makes it such a huge challenge for me. Finding the line of correcting him just enough, but still letting him be who God made him to be.

I am far from the perfect parent. I have my less than stellar moments and get upset and frustrated, although I am really working on it.  Slowly, my patience is growing.  Once again, God is using one of my children to help teach me a lesson in patience. The days can be exhausting.  Often, I feel like the only thing I accomplished all day was correcting Kade.  But I know these days are numbered, and I wouldn't trade them for anything. I pray that by investing the time now, in his early years,  we will make things easier down the road.

Getting ready for KSU Football

Last night, Marc and the kids were getting ready for some KSU football.  They watched K-State videos for almost an hour.  I'm not sure who was pumped up more, Daddy or the kids!  Here's just a few short videos.  

This one was towards the end.  Kade showcases his great footwork (future KSU lineman, right there), and then is so tired, so he is playing in Sissy's hair.  

Poor, Marleigh.  She basically gets mauled by her little brother.  She is so tolerant of him.  

You can hear Kade yelling, "Purple!"  

I missed the very beginning of them watching the KSU videos.  Marleigh spotted the cheerleaders, and was so excited, "Daddy, look!  The K-State Cheerleaders!  That's what I want to be when I grow up!"  Looks like instead of cleats and a mit, we'll be needing skirts and pom poms!  And that's fine by me.  You can be whatever you want, sweet girl!  

Eye Check Up + Weekly Weigh In

Yesterday, we headed back to Wichita for yet another eye check up for Miss Marleigh.  We have still been patching her left eye every day for two hours.  I can't say it enough... I am so impressed with how well she does with wearing her eye patch.  I have patched one of my eyes just to see what it is like, and it is very challenging, and I have near perfect vision.

I am thrilled to report that her eyes are now both 20/20, while wearing her glasses.  Please keep in mind that just ten months ago, her right eye was 20/70.  I almost jumped up and down I was so excited!  We will continue the course we are one right now, patching 2 hours each day.  We will check her in October, and if she has maintained the 20/20 in both eyes, be will begin slowly reducing the patch time until we find the perfect maintenance level of patching.  If we patch it too much, her good eye may become weaker.  If we don't patch it enough, then it will more than likely grow weaker again.  The doctor said we want to for sure maintain the 20/20 in both eyes for a while, then try to gradually taper off wearing the eye patch to see if her eyes can maintain on their own.

What trip to Wichita is complete without a little shopping?  Marleigh is getting more and more opinionated about what she wears.  She has been begging for some sparklie shoes, so I obliged.  She was over the moon happy about them and wore them the second we got out of the store.  Hey, they weren't my first choice, but her reaction was well worth it.  Little girl is growing up and should be able to pick out some of her own clothes.  :)

She wouldn't take them off once we were home, either.  And then had to try them on with her jammies!  Love how something as simple as shoes can make her whole day!  

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Two weeks into my little mini challenge to be healthier.  I am down another 2 pounds!  Yay!  Mainly I ate a little better, but also exercised twice, which is huge for me.  Still no running, yet.  That is this weeks main goal.  Make myself run at least once!  

Kade 2 year well check

Yesterday, we had Kade's 2 year well check.  He is 40 pounds and 38 inches tall.  Still off the charts in both categories.  The doctor was impressed with his verbal and motor skills.  About half way through the exam, Kade looked at him and said, "I'm done. Come on, Mom.  Let's go."  He just isn't one for sitting still more than a few seconds.  :)


Very grateful for my strong, big, healthy boy!

Week 1

How did week 1 go?   Fail!!!  

The idea of putting it here on the blog for some accountability?  Success!!!  I feel awful for letting a whole week slip by and doing NOTHING.  

I did eat a little better and when I weighed myself I am down 1/2 lb.  I guess that is better than gaining!  Onward and upwards for week 2!!!

Lake weekend + More Birthday Celebrations!

This past weekend, we met up with our Johnson side at Lake Toronto.  It was about halfway between us and where Marc's oldest sister lives, and it worked out perfect!  We took our camper and the rest of the family rented cabins.  The weather Friday and Saturday was perfect!  We also celebrated all 6 grandkids' birthdays because they all have June or July birthdays except for Marleigh.  We had such a great time together!  

Please, no one tell the curly haired little boy that we gave him an empty
thing of bubbles! ;)  He was so happy and content "blowing" bubbles!

Opening his first present!

Love that smile!

Cinderella Barbie was a huge hit!  

Grandma brought an awesome pinata with all their names on it.
The kids LOVED it!

Dividing up the loot!  

Breakfast!  The five older cousins at the table, and Emersyn can barely
be seen clear on the right edge.  

Cousins are the best!

I didn't manage to get any pictures of us in the water.  I know Aunt Rina did, so I'll hit her up for some to share.  ;)

It rained Sunday.  All day.  Boo!  So our fun filled weekend was cut short, but that's okay.  We will do it again next year for sure!  

A little motiviation

Okay, so I'm putting it out there: 

 I AM GOING TO START BEING HEALTHIER!  

I feel like if I put that here on the blog, I am now accountable!  While I fully realize I don't have a ton of weight to lose, I am far from healthy.  I don't exercise at all, except for the Coed Volleyball and Softball I play.  And over the past 2-3 years, I can almost literally feel myself aging!  I want to be fit and get some muscle tone and flexibility back.  I really don't eat horribly, but for sure not as well as I could.  I don't want to try any diets or fad pills, etc, just actually try to be healthier!  I'm not sure what exactly I'm going to do, but as of today, I am making a commitment to do it!  

So, for the next 4 weeks, I'm going to try to update on Mondays as to how it is going. Might be a little boring for you guys, but hopefully it will be just the motivation I need.  

Goals for the 4 weeks

1.  Lose 6 pounds

2.  Be able to jog 1 mile

3.  Have more energy

4.  Tone, tone, tone!!!

Losing 6 lbs doesn't seem like much, but I wanted a realistic goal.  Right now, I am about 12lbs lighter than my pre children weight and about 12 lbs over what I weighed the fall after I had the girls.  While I don't know if I'll ever get back down to that number, I think I'd be happy with losing the 6lbs and toning up!  

For anyone that knows me, #2 will be a MAJOR challenge.  I always joke that the only way I would ever run is if someone is chasing me.  I hope I can stick to this one!  ;)

Numbers 3 & 4 will be hard to measure, but I would still like to feel like I have more energy and less flab by the end!  

Okay, ready, set, go!