Forgot to mention...

So, I forgot to comment on Koralee's 4 month doctor appt last Friday on 12/5. WE ARE OUT OF THE TRIPLE DIGITS!! She was 26" long (97%) and 15 lb. 6.2 oz (90%). He said she was extremely neurologically advanced in regards to her head and neck control. She has rolled over twice now from front to back, but hasn't done it since.

And another thing, Nevaeh went pee pee in the potty!!! She prompted it and sat down and it started spraying everywhere. I was so shocked because we have literally sat on the potty about 100 times and nothing has ever happened. She looked shocked too and was trying to look between her legs at what was coming out, which didn't help the spraying everywhere. I was so proud of her. She got a sucker. Then today (Friday), she did her same old thing. No pee pee. Hopefully it won't take her long to get used to doing it.

We've had much fun lately...

My best friend stops through every year as she's on her way to Wichita for Thanksgiving and Christmas. My girls just love her so much. Nevaeh is still asking for Becky to this day.

Thanksgiving at Grandma and Grandpa Farwell's house this year was a blast for the entire family, and especially for Nevaeh and Malia. Half the time they just ran off together doing who knows what. We've been waiting so long for them to be at this stage, so it's fun to just sit back and watch them interact together. Once again, Nevaeh's vocabulary vastly expanded after her short visit with Malia. She is talking non-stop now. Even using full sentences.

Before we know it, all four of them will be running around together. We sure did miss our little man Blake. And Koralee should would have enjoyed Brenna's company. It's fun watching her have conversations with the other little baby her age at the babysitter. She talks WAY WAY more than Nevaeh ever did.

5 of the Farwell Grandkids.

Nevaeh sure loves her suckers. Halloween left us with a surplus of Dum-Dums. She has been getting one a day lately, and at this rate she has about a 2 month supply left.

Koralee loves her Grandma Farwell. I think that baby has some Meyer in her.

Who's hiding behind the Christmas tree? Or should I say "Tissmas Tee". We have been talking a lot about Baby Jesus lately. I'm going to do something special for Christmas this year. I have to work Christmas Eve, so will get off Christmas morning and get prepared for the holiday morning. Hoping to make the unwrapping of the presents into a 'find the present' game of some sort.

Bath time is much better now that we got our furnace fixed. Now that we look back, we don't think it has been truly working sine we fired it up this winter. I was trying to ignore the cold air blowing out the vents, contributing it to the temp of my hands. I know it doesn't make sense, but who wants to think about a broken furnace around Christmas time. Then it started getting colder out and we would wake up in a house that was 62 degrees with 3 space heaters going. We called and that morning they did a quick and fairly inexpensive fix. Our house feels so warm and cozy now! Not so much shivering after baths for the girls.

Why does my daughter find it necessary to act grown up already. I don't think I need to elaborate on this picture.

Here's the finished picture of the girls' wall. Very quick fix, and we think it looks nice. We have many left over so we are thinking about either doing the opposite wall to match, or doing some sort of design on the wall. If you have ever looks at Wall Pops ads, you can do the coolest things with just simple circles, squares, or stripes. I'm sure we can figure out something to do. But for now, the stripped wall border is no longer existent.

Gotta Love 2 Year Olds

My two year old did this. She is forever picking at the corner of things, can find the smallest cracks and crevices, and just tears things up. When she ripped the border off the wall, we had just barely enough to ghetto-style patch it up. I had looked online and cound find all the accessories to match the wall border, but no more wall border. It didn't look perfect like before, but it was going to have to do.

Well, she did it again, only this time longer, and we have nothing to patch it up with. I again got on the internet and searched for this border. Found one on ebay that had been sold in July. So a friend from work told me about Wall Pops that are sold at Lowe's. You can make all sorts of crazy designs, stripes, etc with this large stickers. We got a bunch of those to replace the border for their room. I went to tear down her border, and I just couldn't do it. I teared up and just walked out of the room. Shun and I worked so hard putting that up and we love the way it looks. The paint was bought to match that border, and we just don't want to have to redo the parts that look good still. Initially I told Shun that we couldn't only do just one wall with the Wall Pops because that would look stupid, but now after crying and not being able to tear down that border, that is our plan. I hope it turns out okay. I think it will be cute, just not what we intended to have in there.

Then, she did this. I had received a shipment of nail polish in the mail and I was letting her play with them. I was watching her pretty closely, but I even thought to myself, what if somehow she cracks them together and nail polish spills out. But did I take them away for her, of course not. So then I went up to our bedroom to get ready for work. Nevaeh follows me everywhere around the house no matter what, so in a little bit, here she comes saying "Mommy! Look!" with a huge smile. There she was carrying 5 bottles of nail polish in her arms. I smiled really big and said "Wow, you are holding 5! That's awe......." And then she drops them and they crack togther on the carpet. Bright red polish on cream carpet. Shun has been wanting new carpet in our bedroom since we moved in, so when he got home from work, I told him that I think he got his wish. First of all, it looks aweful and we need new carpet. Second of all, we would never be able to sell the house because it looks like somebody was murdered. As you can see, I started trying to clean it up, but it was hopeless. I don't think there is anything in this world that could get that out of the carpet. So lucky us, we get new carpet!

We've got some catchin' up to do

It's been since Halloween that I posted any pictures of my girls, so here are some recent ones. Koralee is becoming more fun everyday. We are out of that "rough stage" and she is much more smiles, sleeps well, and doesn't have to eat non-stop. Her hair is much curlier than Nevaeh's. Here's a photo of her flat top fade. Back is straight, top is curly and stands straight up. It doesn't help that she has been pulling her hair lately, that just makes it stand out even farther.

Side view of them chunky cheeks and the Farwell receding hairline. She is already wearing 6-9 mo. clothes. She is wearing sleepers that Nevaeh wore when she was walking because the feet are all dirty. Crazy.

Chunky body. She feel like she has to be sitting or standing at all times. If she's in your lap, she does not like to be cradled. She will lie there and do crunches until you sit her up so she can look around. Same way in the car seat. Hates tummy time because she is still pretty gassy, but we are working on getting those arms strengthen to match the legs.

Nevaeh is all about girly things. Loves high heels, jewelry, make up, purse, etc. She decided to make earrings and bracelets out of her link toys. I can already picture her wanting to wear big ole dangly earrings someday. She asked me for a ring the other day so I found an old adjustable toe ring that fit around her index finger. She was walking around all day holding her hand up with her finger sticking straight out.

Whazzup? You got a problem with me?

And finally, last but definitely not least, WE GOT NEVAEH IN HER BED!!!! It really wasn't that hard. We tried it for nap time and she got tearful so I sat in the rocking chair for about 10 minutes and then left. She was fine. Did that the first couple of times she slept in her bed, and since then we just lay her down and walk out just like always. It's great! And best of all, we also got Koralee across the room in the crib sleeping very well also. She started in the crib on Friday night. So far, so good. Nevaeh likes her bed, but she always has to have Baby and Bear Bear. She has had to have those two for a long time now. Since being in her bed, we've added the giant pink Bunny too. Guess they help keep her warm with our old drafty windows.

Not so pretty this year

Previous years, our maples have been so beautiful in our front yard. We have the only house on the block with bright red trees in the fall.

Last year, they stayed bright red for what seemed like a really long time.

This year, not so vibrant. They just kinda started out dark red and seem to be turning orangish/brown. Too bad. Maybe next year they will be prettier.

Our First Halloween

I have always worked on the previous Halloweens, so this was our first outing as a family on Halloween. Nevaeh was a 'Pumpkin Cutie Pie', Shun ended up who we think looked like Kimbo Slice, and I was a punk rocker. Koralee just 'wanted her mummy'. We went to Mall-o-ween at West Ridge Mall and then headed to a Trunk or Treat at a local church. Afterward we headed to my work and met up with some other kids dressed up. The weather was absolutely gorgeous, but it was a long night. We were all very tuckered out by the end of it.

This first pic is Nevaeh trying on mommy's Halloween wig. Don't think she can sport the mullet.

This next picture is Nevaeh getting her face painted by Daddy. She had black triangles around her eyes and a green nose. Most of it was wiped off by the time we got to the mall.

Koralee's shirt says: "I want my mummy". She got called a boy all night.

Daddy's wig and beard/mustache. Isn't he one fine lookin' man.

And finally, Mommy and Nevaeh at the mall. Koralee pretty much slept through the entire mall, which was nice.

That's all for Halloween 2008. We sure did have fun, but I hope that someday I can take my children trick or treating around the country where I grew up. It sure would be a hassle right now with the car seats, but I remember loving driving around to all the neighbor's houses and walking up to their front doors, looking out for dogs. Some people had the same candy every year. I wonder if they would still have the same candy now if I brought my kids?

Curly-Q

I just love this picture. She had that one curly-Q all day hanging down on her forehead. Everyday is something new with her hair. Now when she takes baths, it is down to the middle of her back when it is straight.

$2.79???

Gas is $2.79/gallon here. What's up with that? Wonder how long it will last. What's it like in your areas?

Okay....

So we had Koralee's 2 month appointment on Friday. She was 24" long and weighed 13 lb. 4.5 oz. Dr. Thompson said, "Well, she's officially off the charts. 102% in height, 100% in weight". I know she's a big girl, but WOW. He said, "Whatever you are doing, it's working". Wonder how long it will take for her to outgrow Nevaeh.

Whoops...

I put these pics in a different file and forgot to post them on the previous. As I'm posting this, Nevaeh keps saying "Rrrr-kah, Rrrr-kah". That's her "Erika".

What a good dad. I loved how Kenton's mouth was always open with drool coming out.

Drooling mouth pic #2.

Already geting ready to crawl!

I love my nieces and nephews so much. I wish we lived closer together because they are becoming such good friends, as cousins should.

Weekend of Family Fun!

This weekend we went back home to G&G Farwell's house, along with the Sapps and the Sabetha Farwells. We sure did miss the Iowa Farwells, but they had quite the fun weekend of their own from what I read on their blog.

Grandma pulled out the swings for Nevaeh and Malia. They had so much fun playing outside with each other and Grandma.

Aunt Annie had nap mats that the girls put together as their "house". I think Nevaeh was putting the final touches on nailing it together. I think she's only seen me hammer once and it was awhile ago, but she knew exactly what it was for.

Just threw this pic in for fun. I have the best family! What a great daddy.

Aunt Annie is great with kids. Enjoying a good book.

Koralee got to meet her Great Grandpa Farwell.....

and her Great Grandma Farwell.

It was fun watching Nevaeh and Malia play together. They are 2 mischevous girls. You can tell already how much they love each other. Nevaeh's vocabulary has expanded even more since being home. Malia talks in full sentences, and it seems like each time she's around Malia, she advances a little farther. I'm starting to hear much longer phrases now! Nevaeh and I went to Walmart last night after we got back to Topeka, and we just talked to each other the entire time. It was so fun.

Auntie Annie's Apple Pie

Auntie Annie gave me the recipe for the apple pie she brought to the hosital when Koralee was born. It is the best apple pie I've ever tasted in my entire life. The crumb topping is what sets it off. I suggest if you ever need a good apple pie recipe, you contact Annie for her recipe, or if she doesn't care you can get it from me. It is a very simple recipe, especially if you buy the pre-made pie crust.

Grandma Farwell came down on Monday night and stayed until Tuesday evening. She stayed up for quite a while with Koralee that night. She was wide awake absorbing her Grandma time. It allowed me almost 6 straight hours of sleep! Huge blessing. We also did a lot of cooking the next day. My first apple pie I made a few days earlier turned out charred on top. My oven is hot and I should have lowered the pie a little more in the oven. Mom and I made another one and it turned out fabulous. Just melts in your mouth. I can't stop eating it. Shun is telling me my "slivers" of pie I keep eating are going to leave him with only a sliver. I just keep saying, "I can make another one". Took a picture, but it didn't look as pretty half-eaten already. I'm sure there will be another full pie soon.

Mom also helped me put together some "Really Good Potatoes". It was from a recipe book I got from a lady at work. I made some Ceasar Pork Chops to go with them last night from the same recipe book. Both were really good. Definitely will be making that pork chop recipe again.

All in all, we had a fun time with Grandma. Nevaeh was very sad when she left. Kept asking for "pee-pah". But her face lights up when I tell her we will see both Grandma and Grandpa this weekend at their house, along with several of her cousins and aunts and uncles. We can't wait to see you all!

Looks nothing like Nevaeh

I don't think Koralee's profile looks anything like Nevaeh. Love the cute little pug nose.

She's dealing with some baby acne right now, but she's still smiling. Too bad for the pimples, we are getting the girl's pictures tomorrow.

Here is one amazing girl. I am in awe at her vocabulary and creativeness more and more everyday. She catches on to things so quickly. She can draw circles, but not so good at the squares and triangles yet. Trys to write letters. She loves coloring and staying in the lines. LOVES to draw faces (or have me draw the faces for her and then she traces it).

And she continues to be an excellent big sister. Helps change diapers, retrieves the binky or bottle without being prompted, loves to hold her, loves to snap her in the swing and carseat, and so much more. She just has to be involved in Koralee's care. We have fun.

The last few days...

they haven't changed too much. Koralee is still wanting to eat very frequently, up awake much of the night. She sleeps great from about 6:00 am to 12:00 pm, so we just need to get those hours shifted a little earlier. What little we have supplemented with formula, we changed to soy-based in an attempt to help her gassiness. We even added about a tablespoon of rice cereal to the formula to thicken it up. We will see if it helps or makes it worse. I think she did just a little better last night. But I finally gave in and swaddled her in the boppy in our bed and napped beside her with my hand holding a pacifier in her mouth.

Here's a pic of me trying to nap with Koralee. Nevaeh wanted to nap with us.

Yesterday was my 6 week postpartum appointment. I was very curious as to how much Koralee actually weighed, so I had them weigh her for me. Already to a whopping:

12 lb. 7.5 oz.

I looked in Nevaeh's baby book and she weighed 12 lb. 8 oz. at her 4 month appointment. I think Nevaeh will have one BIG baby sister growing up.

Just one more picture for now. Koralee doesn't enjoy baths as much as Nevaeh did. Here is a calm moment.

The Jones Family is planning on going to Grandma and Grandpa Farwell's next weekend (9/27 - Aunt Katie's birthday). It is my last weekend before returning to work. :(

We would love to see everyone! I know the Sapps talked about going up there around the same time. Will the Sabetha Farwell's be around? We are planning on going to great G&G Farwell's as well. Then probably church in the morning. Hope we can see you all.

It's weird...

I never thought I would have a tall child, but Koralee is. She is so long. Her legs hang off of me when I feed her. Gotta be over 10 lbs. already.

Our Weekend

We had visitors over the weekend! Unfortunately, I forgot to take any pictures. Grandma and Grandpa Farwell along with Uncle Rod, Aunt Annie, and Cousin Kenton came to visit Sunday afternoon/evening. We had a taco supper and banana splits for dessert.

Here is a picture from that day. Nevaeh is playing with the puzzle she got for Christmas from the Sapps. She is getting very good with her numbers, letters, and colors.

One thing is for sure. I have the two cutest nephews in the world. Blake and Kenton are both a lot of fun to be around, and they both love to laugh. I really enjoyed the time with the family.

That night wasn't so much fun. Shun and I were up til 5:30 am with Koralee. She was wide awake and having a dandy ole time hanging out with her parents. Kinda gassy, but mostly just wide awake. So last night I decided that if I had to strip her down and open all the windows to keep her awake, then thatis what I would do. She was going to stay up in the evening. Well, I think she liked the cool air on her skin because this was the result. TKO.

We eventually got her back awake and she slept much better last night. She still wants to eat every 2-3 hours on the dot, but at least she slept in between those feedings. I sure hope we get her on a better schedule before I go back to work or Shun is going to have some rough nights. :(

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