Kimber's Kitchen

Adilyn Ann

2014-05-02T13:45:00.000-05:00

Here she is our beautiful, perfect, calm, independent little girl Adilyn Ann. She was born on December 3rd, 2013 at 3:35pm after being forced to arrive! Labor and delivery with Adilyn was vastly different than Aubrey. I was induced the morning of December 3rd and when that didn't take effect like they had hoped they used pitocin and less than 1 1/2 hours later our sweet baby girl was born. When they placed her in my arms I remember looking at Adam and we both just went "wow...it's Aubrey!". She was 8lbs 10 oz and 20.5" long, almost a pound and 1 inch bigger than big sister Aubrey was. Aubrey handled becoming a bib sister great. She loves her little sister and helps out whenever she can, especially with putting diapers in the garbage and bottles in the sink.

Almost 5 months later!

2014-04-07T13:33:00.000-05:00

So almost 5 months since my last post and wow has a lot happened!!! Here is a very very quick recap on the last 5 months. And here is to hoping I can update this more frequently now!

We took Aubrey to her first ever movie theatre movie, Frozen. She ate a lot, and I mean A LOT of popcorn and was pretty quiet throughout the entire movie. I'm pretty sure she was completely enamored with it!

Baby Downs was due on November 23rd but that day came and went, so did Thanksgiving, and finally on December 3rd, after being induced...Adilyn Ann made her debut! Our beautiful little girl was a spitting image of her big sister (more details in another post all about Adilyn!).

We had an amazing Christmas with both girls. Sophia the elf on the shelf made her debut at our house and she sure did keep Aubrey busy in the morning searching for her and also kept Aubrey on her best behavior so that Sophia didn't need to report back to Santa!

Santa was very good to everyone this year, especially Miss Aubrey. Aubrey was very excited to see the new princess Jeep Santa left near the tree for her and even attempted to drive it in the house.

We spent New Year's Eve at home with my parents and it felt like old times when I was a little kid! Aubrey had so much fun eating the snacks and staying up late (til 10).

Aubrey started 2 1/2 year old preschool at the end of January and to say she loves it would be an understatement. On her very first day she had no reservations about me leaving, probably cause her buddy Jack was there, but then when I got there to pick her up she informed me that she was not going home!

We celebrated Adilyn's baptism with our immediate families and had some great food following. We even had a surprise guest, my Uncle Brent who was home visiting from Arizona.

I went back to work after maternity leave in early March.......insert super sad face here. The girls are left each day in loving hands of my mom though so that definitely makes it a little easier to leave.

My peanut

2013-11-06T14:48:00.001-06:00

Love this little girl so much....she will always be my little peanut!

From 5 days old to 2 years old!

Photos copyright of Blush Pictures, LLC

Go Pack Go!

2013-11-05T09:45:00.002-06:00

This baby sure is lucky! So far, baby has gotten to travel to Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Detroit twice (ok maybe that city isn't too exciting), has gotten to watch two Brewers games from box seats, and now, Monday night football for the Packer game at Lambeau field....1st row!

We had a great time at the game with Tom and Nicole (and baby Moniz too) even though Aaron Rodgers got hurt and we lost 27-20 to the Bears no less! The weather was perfect too!

37 weeks...and this mommy is ready for baby to arrive!

Just like mustache grandpa!

2013-11-04T14:34:00.004-06:00

Aubrey has quite the sense of a humor for a 2 year old, she even likes to poke fun of Grandpa Downs because of his mustache! Over Halloween time I bought a package of fake mustaches and she had such a fun time wearing them around and wearing them to show "Mustache Grandpa"!

Happy Halloween!

2013-10-28T09:45:00.001-05:00

Halloween this year was so much fun watching Aubrey enjoy the holiday and have a great time with her buddy Jack as they went from house to house getting candy!!

One very beautiful Cinderella and a muscular Spiderman!

I even dressed up too, thanks to Grandma Pam for making me the shirt!!!

Goodbye hugs!

Pumpkin Time!

2013-10-28T09:37:00.001-05:00

We've had our pumpkins picked out for over a week and something always kept getting in our way of getting them carved. We finally did it! Aubrey loved getting all the seeds and guts out of her pumpkin, but I think she loved the Cinderella that daddy carved even more!

The Little Farmer

2013-10-24T09:26:00.000-05:00

Adam and I took off last Friday to spend some quality time with Aubrey at The Little Farmer. We always in the past have gone on a weekend when it is extremely busy you and you spend a good chunk of your time there waiting in lines. Going on a Friday, was so different! There were no lines and a majority of the people there were under 8 years old! It was a bit chilly but we still had a great time feeding the goats, playing around on the playground, finding our way out of the corn maze, buying some baked goods to take home, and finally enjoying the caramel apples before heading home.

The Journey Begins....finally!

2013-10-10T10:02:00.002-05:00

We've been out of our house in Oshkosh since mid-April and living with my parents since, patiently waiting for our new home to be started. Well that day is finally here! Trust me, it has taken lots of patience but we are so happy to see it starting. Here are some shots of the basement hole being dug!

Married already???

2013-10-09T09:28:00.001-05:00

It really is true that kids say the darndest things. Here is a conversation that Aubrey had with my mom during the day and then one she had with me right before bed. Keep in mind, she is 2 years old!

Grandma was working on altering a wedding dress.
Aubrey: I want to grow up and wear a pretty dress and get married.
Grandma: Who are you going to marry?
Aubrey: Daddy
Grandma: But daddy is already married to mommy
Aubrey: I'll marry Jack!

Just before bed after saying goodnight and then kissing my tummy to tell baby goodnight.
Aubrey: Do you want to come live with my friend baby?
Me: Who is your friend you want the baby to live with?
Aubrey: Jack, he's my husband
Then Aubrey giggles and says: I don't think so...I'm just kidding!

Seriously...where does she get this stuff from???

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

2013-10-08T09:02:00.000-05:00

This new recipe for chicken cordon bleu casserole was super yummy and super easy to make!!! I will definitely be adding this to the list of dinners we make more regularly. I found this recipe off Pinterest and the original source is from Six Sisters Stuff. I stayed true to the original recipe but you could probably add in other vegetables if you wanted.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Casserole

Ingredients:

1 (6 oz) pkg. chicken flavored stuffing mix
1 (10 3/4 oz) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 tablespoon, Dijon mustard
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and cut into bite-size pieces
3 cups fresh broccoli florets
2 cups cooked, chopped ham
Slices of extra thin Swiss cheese - the recipe called for 6 but the package I had bought had 8 so I used all

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375ºF. Prepare stuffing as directed on package. Mix soup and mustard in medium bowl; stir in chicken, broccoli and ham. Spoon into 2 qt casserole dish or 9x13 cake pan sprayed with cooking spray; top with cheese slices and stuffing. Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until heated through.

32 Weeks

2013-10-03T10:01:00.003-05:00

Time goes so much faster when you're pregnant with your second baby! I remember with Aubrey taking photos every few months of my belly and recording a lot more of how I was feeling. Now that I have a two year old to chase around after, not so much time to do these things. This is the first photo I've taken of my belly! (Ok second, we just did maternity pictures with Blush and I can't wait to see those!). So here is my belly at 32 weeks. I decided to put on the exact same outfit I wore on my 32 weeks picture when I was pregnant with Aubrey....I don't look too much different, other than longer hair and not so much weight gain in my face this time. My bump this time is a little bit smaller but not too much. Overall this pregnancy has been fairly easy. Some nauseousness in the first few months but that went away. My cravings were all over the board, from cheese to burgers to now anything sweet. I would say the biggest difference I am noticing this time is that it seems like there is less room in there for baby to move around. Instead of kicks, I feel more pushing out. Hopefully that doesn't mean a big baby!

What's Cooking?

2013-09-19T09:41:00.001-05:00

Recently I pulled out my old kitchen play set from mom and dad's basement and got it all cleaned up for Aubrey to play with. To say she loves it is putting it lightly. She spends so much time playing in this kitchen! Here she is enjoying some cake! And below is a photo of me at age 3 when Santa gave me that kitchen set, 27 years ago!

Puppy Love

2013-09-15T09:46:00.000-05:00

It melts my heart when I see Aubrey cuddling and loving up on the dogs. I'm so glad we are able to provide her with a house that has pets in it and she can learn the true unconditional love that dogs have. One of her favorite things to do with the dogs lately is to give them a check up. She got a vet checkup kit for her birthday so it seems like the dogs are getting their eyes, ears, and heart checked all the time, followed up with a shot and some medicine.

Yum...who wants a kiss?

2013-09-09T15:43:00.001-05:00

This is the aftermath of two 2 year olds who have just eaten cupcakes with blue frosting!

2 Years Old!

2013-08-19T12:36:00.002-05:00

Wow 2 years old, how is that possible? Here is a self portrait of our adorable 2 year old and some updates on what she likes and what makes Aubrey, Aubrey!

Likes: pancakes, peanut butter and jelly, sweet corn on the cob, popcorn, marshmallows, macaroni and cheese, practically any kind of fruit, Doc McStuffins, Princarella (Princess Cinderella), all Disney Princesses, Minnie Mouse, Clifford, campfires, swimming, singing, dancing, playing games, helping at the vegetable stand, taking photos with our phones, and shopping(already...uh oh!).

I'm so amazed at how well and grown up she talks! I swear sometimes I feel like I'm talking to a 10 year old! We are working on potty training and that is going extremely well! For some reason she likes to go even more when we are away from home, but I will take it as a start. Aubrey is excited to get a little brother or sister and already has guessed it will be a boy. Either way she says we are naming the baby Kendu!

An unexpected busy weekend!

2013-08-08T12:25:00.000-05:00

Sometimes the best weekends turn out to be the ones that on Friday you have no set plans. That was the past weekend for us! Aubrey and I spent some quality time together on Friday while daddy golfed. Then we were up early and ready to go Saturday morning for Ripon's Cookie Daze! We met Tom and Jack and the kids had a great time eating cookies, drinking milk, and doing activities. Aubrey even won 3rd place in the coloring contest for her age!

After a long afternoon nap, we headed to the Green Lake County Fair. Aubrey absolutely loved it and wanted to go on just about every ride! She went on the carousel three different times and also tried out the kid swings. Then it was off to play games where she won a blow up kitty picking ducks! She was one little tired girl after we left.

On Sunday we went out on Green Lake with Adam's parents for a band that was playing in Norwegian Bay. Aubrey had such a fun time dancing around in the water and just crashed when we got home.

Camping with Newbies!

2013-08-07T08:46:00.000-05:00

The last weekend in July we headed to the WI Dells area for a camping trip with great friends. One of the families are seasoned campers and for the other family this was their very first camping trip ever! I'm happy to say that when the weekend was over I think they had a really great time and they are even talking about a camper purchase sometime in their future!! Adam and I also hope to purchase a camper in the future and we've already decided to make this camping trip an annual one!

Aubrey was so excited to get to spend some time with her friend (and only girl friend she has!!!) Haveah!

We had a birthday celebration for Aubrey one of the nights we were there, complete with cake and birthday hats!

On Saturday we went to Mt. Olympus Park but unfortunately the unexpected cold weather didn't quite allow for any swimming. Instead we enjoyed the rides!

Family photo on the wagon ride around the campground.

Birthday Fun!

2013-08-05T11:58:00.000-05:00

Just like last year, we took Aubrey to the zoo for her birthday. This year we chose the New Zoo in Green Bay. The zoo is much smaller than Milwaukee's but it was perfect. It was a very hot day (which meant most animals were sleeping or hiding) so the shorter distances to walk between animals was nice.

She giggled so much when she fed the goats when their tongues would tickle her hand!

Of course we had to feed the giraffe!!!

This picture is so adorable....if only it were a real turtle!

Fun on the train!

Of course we had to go back to feed the giraffes with daddy this time!

Enjoying a rather large "kid's cone" at Dairy Cove after our day at the zoo.

Our Minnie is 2!

2013-08-03T10:29:00.000-05:00

We celebrated Aubrey's 2nd birthday a day early with all of our family. The day really couldn't have been much better than it was. Well ok, it did down pour an hour before the party and all throughout the party which made us move it inside, but otherwise it was perfect! This year was a Minnie Mouse theme for our little Minnie and I think I had just as much fun watching her as she had enjoying the party! Grandma VandeBrink did an awesome job with all the decorations and I made the cake!

Grandma VandeBrink even made this Minnie Mouse dress for Aubrey. She loved it!

The pedal car that Daddy painted and cleaned up for Aubrey. Here she is taking her first ride with her Doc McStuffins doll.

Aubrey loved having everyone sing to her. When we asked her how old she was she yelled two! I was actually surprised she got it right because all week she kept telling people she was going to be 4. I asked her why she wanted to be 4 and she told me it was because she wanted to be big!

Checking out her new backpack on her awesome Minnie Mouse couch that Uncle Josh gave her.

Crazy July

2013-08-01T08:04:00.000-05:00

For the 4th of July we spent the day together as a family, just like we did last year. In the morning we went on a bike ride along one of the trails in Ripon and even stopped at the stand to visit Great Grandpa and Great Grandma. Aubrey pretty much got to ride in style behind daddy with her snack cup and water. For dinner we went to see some friend's apartment and have a cookout with them before heading to the fireworks. Aubrey said her favorite fireworks were the purple ones but I think she was more interested in watching all the people around us.

The weather has been so great lately that we headed to the beach one day. We had a great time relaxing and it was actually hot enough to go in the water!

One day while daddy was golfing, Aubrey and I headed to the Schroeder's house in Waupaca. They treated us to a yummy brunch and afterwards we headed outside to enjoy the warm weather and sunshine. The kids had a blast running through the sprinkler, jumping on the trampoline, and getting pulled in the train wagon.

We are officially land owners! We purchased 5 acres in the country and are very excited to get going on building our dream house. Plans are all finalized and just waiting on a start date.

I got a new job at work! For the last four years I have been a product developer on our Depend brand and am now moving on to Kotex tampons. You would think I know more about products that I actually use but I don't!!

Busy summer

2013-07-19T16:04:00.000-05:00

Another 2 month late post! I really mean to update this more often but life has just really been moving fast!!! Here are some fun things/updates from June.

We helped our good friends celebrate the news that they are expecting a boy at their gender reveal party. I was fortunate enough to be the only person to know the gender ahead of time as I got to make the cake. The inside was colored blue to let the parents to be know they are having a little guy.

We experienced Road America for the first time with the Schroeders. It was a Nascar series race and below are the two cars Adam and I were cheering for.

We joined the Moniz's at the park for a benefit cookout that include lots of activities for little ones. Aubrey and Jack and a great time getting their faces painted!

We got to see baby #2 on ultrasound. Baby measured pretty tiny so because of that my due date got moved out 2 weeks. We chose to keep the gender a surprise so we won't know until the baby's birthday if we have a little boy or mini Aubrey!

To close out June I went to Country USA with my mom. We saw lots of great acts this year but I'm already counting down to next year when Carrie Underwood performs!

Play Ball!

2013-06-09T15:43:00.000-05:00

Recently Ryan and Nathan came over to spend the night and all three kids had a blast. Once it started to get dark we had a campfire and Grandma had glowsticks for the kids. They had so much fun making smores and then running around singing and dancing in the dark with their glow sticks. Aubrey kept singing "Everybody dance now", "Everybody clap your hands", and "I like to move it move it!". Finally at about 11pm the kids got to bed!

In the morning we heading to the park to for some baseball practice, which of course was followed by time at the playground equipment.

Mr. & Mrs. Bender

2013-06-04T13:42:00.004-05:00

After lots of preparing and planning, Amanda's big day finally was here. And it went by much too quickly!! Amanda looked absolutely beautiful and the day was just perfect. Even the little rain we got didn't bring anyone down. Here are some of my favorite shots of the day!

Helping Grandma get her dress just right!

Kevin did a great job pulling Aubrey in the wagon.

Mommy's girl

Mr. & Mrs. Bender!

Love these two!!!

Kisses from Jack!

Kisses for daddy!

Dancing the night away

She made a new friend also named Aubrey!

May already?

2013-05-21T10:33:00.001-05:00

I'm not exactly sure how 2 months just flew by! Lots to update since the last time. To avoid writing a book, here is what we've been up to since March.

We had a fun Easter! Aubrey had a blast finding Easter eggs and all the little animals inside them!
The other bridesmaids and I threw a bridal shower for Amanda and she got lots of nice gifts!
Aubrey attended her last day of daycare. She had a great day but for me it was very emotional! I cried when I dropped her off and again when I picked her up. The love and care she has been given while she attended there has meant a lot to us!
We moved out of our house on April 12th
Two miniature horses and 3 kittens were born at Grandma and Papa's house.
I traveled for work to LA and Detroit
I had a great time at Amanda's bachelorette party with some great girls!
I celebrated Mother's day by not changing a single diaper. Thanks Adam!!!
I brought in these to work to announce that we are expecting baby #2 in November!

And we spent a weekend in Madison with Kyle and Theresa!