The Winklers' World

10 Months!

2015-03-10T17:51:00.001-04:00

I absolutely can't believe Cooper is 10 months old. He is a BUSY boy! He is officially crawling and pulling himself up. His favorite place to pull up is in the bathtub, much to my dismay! I just hold my hands under his arms so he doesn't fall and chip a tooth!

We went to Abilene with my mom the last weekend in February because she had some meetings there. It was really nice to get away and meet the people she works with. If the weather had been nice, it would have been a great trip. We stayed an extra day because the roads were so icy and dangerous. My birthday was while we were there as well. We ate out at some great restaurants and had a good time. Cooper officially started crawling on my birthday.

He is about 32.5" long and weighs about 23 pounds. He has 8 teeth. He likes to run down the long hall in the house and find me when I walk out of the room without him. He continues to be very happy and smiles all the time. He likes the song from Thomas and friends and likes when I sing "twinkle twinkle, little star" to him. He is quickly learning what "no" means, and so far is heeding warnings...I don't expect that to continue too long!

He LOVES cheerios and trying to feed himself. He has finally become interested in real food. The only thing is he doesn't like cold stuff. I have gotten him down to room temperature from everything being warmed up, so I think he will come around to cold pretty soon.

We got the preliminary plans for our new house this week. A few adjustments needed to be made, but we should have the working plan very soon. We hope to break ground by the end of the month on our new home. We're SO very excited!

pulling up to cruise around

cruising

10 months 3/8/15

10 months

I hope y'all have a great month!
Cheers,
Kelli

9 Month update

2015-02-10T18:26:00.000-05:00

So, I missed the 8 month update! I was just a little busy, since our house sold in 20 days! We got an all cash offer, so we closed and moved out super fast! We are incredibly grateful that everything went smoothly. I can't wait to get started building our dream house!

Cooper continues to be a wonderful baby. He now has 6 teeth, and at his 9 month check up (which was a little bit early) he weighed 21.5 lbs (70th percentile) and was 31.5" long (98th percentile). He loves to chew on hoodie strings, his fingers, and has a favorite coaster at my mom's house. He still loves his bath and will gladly let anyone hold him. He can entertain himself in his exersaucer or playpen while I make breakfast. He army crawls like a champ, and is thisclose to full crawling. He babbles a lot, smiles almost all the time, and is generally quite happy. We are so thankful that he is healthy and happy.

He did really well on the drive from NY to AR. We stopped about every 3-4 hours so he could eat and get out of the car seat. We had intended to leave directly from the closing at the attorney's office to head south, but the weather had other plans. It was snowing really hard, and traffic was backing up quickly. We stayed the night at our friends' house and left at 4:30 the next morning. We made it as far as Knoxville, Tennessee before we were too tired to continue. The next day was a pretty easy drive. We left Knoxville about 5 in the morning and made it to my mom's house at 5PM. We were glad to be done driving, but even more, we were glad we had a safe and uneventful trip.

9 months 2/8/15

He has changed so much!

My Younique business is doing well, February has a great customer Kudos, plus, any parties get double points for the month! That's huge for the hostesses! Twice the rewards for the same amount of sales!

Cheers,
Kelli

7 Month update

2014-12-14T14:46:00.001-05:00

Cooper turned 7 months old last week Monday. He continues to be a very happy boy, for which we are so grateful! He LOVES his walker and terrorizes poor Max. Pixie isn't bothered at all by him running up and down the hall, but Max hates it! He runs and gets on the couch whenever Cooper is in motion! He is SO tall. He wears all 12 month old jammies, shirts, and onesies. He can still wear 9 month pants. He isn't super chubby, just really long. He has just the 2 bottom teeth still and is pretty close to figuring out how crawling works. He gets up on his knees and elbows and rocks a little back & forth, but has yet to put it all together. He LOVES to face time with my mom! We call her almost every day and he just smiles and "talks" to her. He just babbles a lot right now, no real words yet, but he sure is telling stories!

7 Months old

7 months in one!

In other news, we listed our house on the market! If you know anyone interested in a move in ready ranch on the south shore of Long Island, NO HURRICANE DAMAGE WHATSOEVER, please let me know and I'll send you the link to the listing! We are hoping for a quick and profitable sale so we can get started building our dream house down south!

Cheers,
Kelli

6 Months...A Week later!

2014-11-15T12:19:00.000-05:00

So, Cooper turned 6 months old last Saturday!

We have been busy, busy trying to get our house ready to go on the market December 1st, and I haven't had a lot of access to my actual computer.

We have a friend who does home improvements, Bill at Prokesch Home Improvements, doing some finishing touches for us. Nothing too major; all the major work was done in the past few years. There were just some areas that needed touching-up. He's taking care of painting doors & trim, some spackling and fixing the sheet rock in our laundry room. He does great work. If you're on Long Island and need someone, let me know and I'll get his number for you!

In the past month, Cooper took another flight. This time to Arkansas to see Grandma and for us to meet with our builder for our future custom home, Jacob at Greenovation Builders. I've known him since we were 10 years old. He builds custom homes in Northwest Arkansas and just does gorgeous, high quality work, and is impeccably honest. Exactly what we NEED in a builder! I'm so grateful he will be building for us!

So, Arkansas! We ran, ran, RAN almost the whole time we were there. Cooper is, thankfully, a great little passenger. We got to visit with a lot of our friends, and even have a party at my Mom's house. It was a great, if quick, visit.

We had Cooper's 6 month and Christmas pictures taken Last week Sunday. I absolutely LOVE our photographer, Jennifer Sirris at Storybook Portraits. She has done all of Cooper's professional pictures since he was born. We also went to the pediatrician for his 6 month check-up and shots. He weighs 19 pounds 5 oz, and is 28 1/4 in. tall. His 2 lower front teeth have come in also. He has been teething since he was 3 months old, and I'm glad to see him making progress. His sleep was definitely changed while the teeth were erupting. It was like having a newborn again, and I can happily say, I'm glad he's gotten past that! I started giving him baby food with some regularity. As of right now, he really loves his baby cereal, especially oatmeal. I am still nursing him, so I just mix it with a little breast milk and he's a happy camper. He is just the happiest baby I've ever met and I'm so incredibly glad he is ours!

My business with Younique is going great, and I anticipate an awesome Christmas shopping season. I want all the ladies I know to have their 3D lashes!

The best mascara ever, hands down! Click here to get yours!
https://www.youniqueproducts.com/kelliwinkler/products/landing

I hope y'all have a wonderful November and keep warm!

Cheers,
Kelli

5 Months old...a busy month!

2014-10-08T20:35:00.000-04:00

I know it was just last week that we brought this sweet baby home from the hospital...How in the world is he 5 months old?!

2 days old and headed home!

5 months and getting so big!

He wears all 9 month clothes, and is growing like a weed. He continues to be very happy and content. I had to move the straps of his car seat to the highest setting this week...There's NO WAY he will make it to the recommended 2 years in the rear facing seat. He weighs about 20 pounds and is probably 28-29" long. I won't know for sure until his appointment next month, but he is a talllll boy. As if he had any other option! ;) He started having a bottle of breast milk with infant cereal this month as well, and this week, I started trying some infant stage 1 foods. He has had green beans, which he is fairly ambivalent about. Today, I gave him bananas. In case anyone is keeping score, he does NOT like bananas. He was a little dramatic about it, pretending to gag, and he spit out every bite I gave him. I don't think he swallowed a bit! I tasted them to be sure there was nothing wrong with them, and they tasted good to me...Also, spoon feeding an infant is akin to herding cats...I sincerely hope this gets easier. I took a cute video of the banana embargo, but as usual, blogger won't load it...Grrrr...

he wears green beans well

He had a very busy month. We had his baptism on Sunday, September 14th at the Cross of Christ Lutheran Church. It was a very nice service. My mom flew up, as well as Cooper's Godfather, Jimmy. Marc's family was all here, too. We had a reception at our house to celebrate. About 95 of our closest friends and family came over to share in the festivities. Thank the LORD we had absolutely beautiful weather, because there is NO WAY everyone would have fit in the house. We made all the food and Marc's mom bought Cooper's cake. It was a really great day and I am so thankful for everyone who came to see our little man.

It was delicious!

Pastor, Marc, Cooper, & Me

Water on the head, Amen! :)

Cooper and his Godparents, Jimmy & Jenn

Cooper & his Godparents

Jimmy & Cooper

Our little family

Cooper & Grandma

Marc, his parents, and Cooper

4 Generations

Uncle Billy, Cooper, Aunt Eve

Cooper completely outgrew his countertop bathtub. I LOVED being able to stand and bathe him without having to stoop over, but seeing how happy he is in the big bathtub is worth a few minutes kneeling each day. He LOVES his bath! He splashes and kicks and is just the happiest little guy in the water. I should get him enrolled in swim classes soon!

splish, splash!

Happy baby

Relaxing with Max

Looking sharp in my overalls!

Om nom nom

I like my walker!

We have been enjoying the gorgeous weather and watching a lot of football. Both the hogs and Giants are viewed here every week. Cooper really seems to like watching all the movement and bright colors on the tv.

Go HOGS!

WOO PIG SOOIE!

got my GIANTS jersey!

Proud papa

Sunday Funday at Chuck & Lois' house

Hanging out with my buddy Jason

Cheered so hard I needed a nap!

Marc had a birthday last month, so we took a drive out to the lighthouse in Montauk. It was a nice day to go for a leisurely drive.

The Lighthouse in Montauk

Marc at the Lighthouse

I started a business! I get to work whenever and wherever I like, it takes no time away from Cooper, and I REALLY love the products. I became an independent presenter for Younique cosmetics. Younique is the fastest growing direct sales company around, and I am SO proud to be a part of it!

seriously the best mascara ever

We have amazing cosmetics, all are natural based, with most of them being ALL NATURAL! The 3D Fiber mascara is a game changer for ladies! My lashes have never been so long and full, and I don't have to waste time gluing false eyelashes on! Please message me for more info or how to order! Christmas is right around the corner and the 3D mascara makes an awesome gift!

https://www.youniqueproducts.com/kelliwinkler/products/landing

Shameless plug, I know, but it's my business and my blog!

We've got a trip to Arkansas coming up soon. We can't wait to see all of our friends and family and for them to meet Cooper!!

Hope y'all have a great month!
Cheers,
Kelli

4 Months Old

2014-09-08T17:33:00.001-04:00

I don't know how, but Cooper is already 4 months old. I remember thinking that my senior year of high school was the fastest school year I could remember. Every year since then is quicker and quicker. Months go by in what should be a week. Not too long ago, we were counting the years until Marc would retire and now we are counting months. Crazy. It's gone by even faster since Cooper arrived. He is such a happy little man, truly a delightful baby. He's really easy-going and will let anyone hold him and snuggle. He started blowing bubbles this month, and can very easily roll in either direction. He is sleeping pretty well, usually 8 hours for the first stretch, then he wakes up to nurse and goes back to sleep for 3-4 more hours. He nurses quickly and goes right back to sleep, so I'm not awake for long at night.

4 months old and getting so big!

watch me grow!

I took him to the pediatrician today for his 4 month check up and shots. He is 27" long (97th Percentile) and 17lbs 2.5oz (90th percentile). He got 2 shots, and only squealed for a second. Last time he cried. I had given him a preemptive dose of children's tylenol to help with the tenderness. He fell asleep as soon as I put him in the truck to go home.

We had pictures taken on Saturday with Jennifer Sirris at Storybook portraits. She did Cooper's newborn shoot, and is a dream to work with. We have one more session with her scheduled in November for Cooper's 6 month pictures and our Christmas pictures. She sent me a sneak peek of a few of the pictures last night. I can't wait to get the CD in the mail and see the rest of them!

looking sharp!

big grins!

Our little family

So cute in my hat to match Dad!

Rockin' and Rollin' all night

After Pictures on Saturday, We drove in to Brooklyn to try a little place I had seen on the cooking channel's "the best thing I ever had". There is an old fashioned soda fountain and ice cream parlor called "Brooklyn Farmacy". I ordered the Mr. Potato Head Sundae. It is vanilla ice cream, homemade peanut butter, potato chips, caramel sauce, & homemade whipped cream. Oh my goodness, it was SO delicious! I substituted hot fudge for the caramel sauce because there is nothing that goes better with peanut butter than chocolate! Delightful. We're adding it to the eating tour of Brooklyn.

Mr. Potato Head Sundae....Yummmmm!

Cooper watched his first Razorbacks Game Saturday before last. He seemed to really enjoy the bright colors and all the motion. It's too bad we opened with a top 10 team. We played a great first half, then forgot what was going on in the second half. Oh well, we can't win them all.

This little piggy says "Woooo!"

Watching the HOGS with Momma

Marc's mom came over Labor day weekend and watched Cooper for us so we could go out to dinner with our really good friends, Steve & Liz. It was so nice to go out to the movies and dinner. We saw Sin City 2 and then went to Teller's Steakhouse for dinner. It was a fun evening out with great friends.

Cooper & Marc

Cooper and me

Marc & Me at Teller's

That's about it for the past month. We have Cooper's baptism coming up this weekend. We have the church in the morning, then are having the reception at our house in the afternoon. There are about 85 people coming to our house, so please, please, PLEASE do the NO RAIN DANCE!!

Cheers,
Kelli

3 months old & Vacation!

2014-08-13T09:40:00.002-04:00

We flew to California last week to celebrate my Grandparent's 60th wedding anniversary and our 6th anniversary, also. Marc and I got married on my Grandparent's 54th anniversary. It is nice to share the day with them.

Great Grandma & Cooper

Great Grandma...She's the best!

4 generations

3 generations

4 Generations with Great Grandpa trying to "share" with Cooper

Our outbound flight left at 2:30 in the afternoon and arrived at 5:30 pm in Long Beach. Cooper was an excellent traveler. I wore him in the baby Bjorn and we used his stroller to wheel our carry-on luggage. That was our best idea yet! My back was a little sore from wearing him, but he seemed to like it very well and fell asleep while we were waiting in line for security check. On the plane, I was in the very front row so I would have more room to move around with him. The flight attendants and many of the passengers on the plane commented to me on what a sweet and good baby he is. He only made happy noises. I pumped 2 bottles before we left and gave him one during take-off and another during descent and landing. He didn't cry once!!

We stayed with family and enjoyed our trip. We also celebrated my grandpa's 89th birthday while we were there. Cooper got to meet his great grandparents, and they loved meeting and holding him.

Cooper turned 3 months old while we were there. I didn't take his "official" 3 month picture until we got home, though, so I could put him in the same rocking chair and put his football beside him to see how much he has grown...And boy, has he! He began rolling over on 8/10/14 from his tummy to his back. My mom watched him but I missed it. Fortunately, on 8/11/14 he rolled from back to tummy and I got it on video the 3rd or 4th time he did it. NO more leaving him in the center of our king sized bed when I run to the laundry room anymore!! As I write this, he in on the nursery floor playing with his little baby gym. I tried to load the video but Blogger is not cooperating.

He gets his bath between 6:30 and 7:30 PM, then nurses until he falls asleep. He sleeps about 7-8 hours the first stretch, then I nurse him and he goes back to sleep for another 2-3 hours. He usually wakes up between 6:30 and 7:30 AM. He wears all 6 month size for onesies and footed pajamas. He will likely outgrow those int he next 2 weeks. He is so tall! 3 month shorts and pants still fit him in the waist, but the pants are too short for him. I had bought him 2 pair of shoes in June or July in a size 2 thinking "surely his feet are going to be this big by August"...Nope. They flopped all over, so he has remained barefoot thus-far. Good thing it's summertime, and shoes are definitely non-essential. I haven't bought a scale yet, so I am guessing he weighs about 16-17 pounds, and he is about 26-27 inches long...That's my guesstimate, we will see his true stats in September at his 4 month check up.

For our flight back to New York, we took the red-eye and left Long Beach at 9:20 pm and arrived at 5:20 am the next morning. Cooper slept from the time we got in line to check our bags curbside until just before takeoff, (I jostled him to wake him up so I could nurse him for takeoff) until just before we landed. We had already descended when he woke up so no inner ear issues, thank goodness. He was so good, we really are so lucky! He's a very content baby and only cries if he is hungry or having trouble passing gas. Even in the morning when he wakes up, he generally plays in his crib and makes happy noises.

His Baptism will be September 14th. We are having the party afterward at our house. We are looking forward to seeing everyone!

Happy Boy!

Grandpa & me celebrating his 89th birthday

Grandpa, Grandma, Marc, me, & Cooper after our anniversary dinner

Marc & Cooper after church

1 Month

2 Months

3 months

Hope y'all have a great week! Only 18 days until Razorback football starts!!

Cheers,
Kelli

2 months

2014-07-10T09:34:00.001-04:00

Cooper is 2 months old already. I really don't know how time passes so quickly, but I sure am enjoying every moment with my little guy. We went to the pediatrician on Tuesday and he got his first round of shots, as well as getting weighed and measured. He is 14 lbs. and 24 3/4" long. He is in the 96th percentile for height and 94th for weight. He is very healthy and growing like a weed. He wears all mostly 3 month clothes, and some 6 month. Everything 3 month fits him in the waist, but he is too long for his 3 month pajamas, so he is wearing 6 month pajamas. I think he would be wearing all 6 month clothes if it weren't summertime; he wears a lot of shorts. I bought him some 3 month creepers 2 weeks ago, and he's getting his last wear out of them this week. He's so tall that they start to pull at the neck. I already packed up all of his 0-3 month and a lot of his 3 month clothes and put them away for future baby #2 (no, not pregnant, just hopeful!)

Here are 3 pics of Cooper: one from the hospital, then 1 month old and 2 months old.

1 day old

1 month old 6/8/14

2 months old 7/8/14

Hope y'all have a great week.

Cheers,

Kelli

Cooper's nursery

2014-07-06T16:47:00.001-04:00

Cooper's nursery has been 90% complete for several months. We got his furniture right around Christmas and I had it all laid out and mostly decorated from that point on. Once my baby shower came along, I received many of the larger items that he will need, but doesn't need just yet, so they were all stored in his crib. I moved him out of the bassinet in our room and into his room and crib this week, and I finished decorating the nursery so I took pictures of his room. It is decorated with football stuff. The 2 pictures flanking the window are of Marc playing football for St. John's University. They were professional shots that we had framed. I like that it's not just generic football pictures, or some professional athlete; it's Cooper's Dad. The afghan that sits over the back of the rocking chair/glider was made for Marc by his Grandma when he was playing in College as well, so it's got sentimental value.

When we had Cooper's newborn pictures taken, we had the photographer take one in the Razorback hat I bought for him, and that picture is in the football frame above the rocker. The painting hanging from the shelf says "how to really be a Razorback" and it lists the Fayetteville game traditions of our HOGS. The nursery has to play double duty as my office, so I bought a corner desk that sits behind the closet door and doesn't take up much room. The curtains were made by my mom and me, the football plays were drawn by Marc, and I made the monogram sign and the "thinking" sign. We also bought a framed print of Vince Lombardi's speech "What it takes to be Number 1" and hung it by the crib/changing table. I custom ordered his bedding from Etsy.com and ordered the 2 football rag rugs on the floor from Wayfair.com. I like that I was able to make several of the items that are in his room, and ordered the ones I couldn't make myself. The lamp on the dresser is a football also, and I ordered a football bank from Zulily.com. I'm still waiting for that to arrive.

I really like the way his room turned out, it's my own design and unique, and I hope he loves football as much as we do!

We will go to the pediatrician on Tuesday for his 2 month check up and first round of shots. He was 8 weeks old this past Thursday and will be 2 months old on Tuesday. I'll do a post with his stats and a picture then.

Hope y'all had a safe and fun Independence day!
Cheers,
Kelli

1 month old already!

2014-06-08T15:34:00.000-04:00

Cooper is one month old today. It has gone by so very quickly. We are incredibly lucky that he is such a sweet and content baby. He only cries if he is hungry, so there's no mystery as to why he is squeaking!

1 month old with a little grin!

I don't own a scale (it's on my shopping list) so I haven't weighed him. I would venture to guess that he is about 12 to 12.5 pounds though. He has certainly grown in height. He is wearing all 0-3 month clothes, but they are all getting to be too short. He'll probably be able to wear them for a week or so before I have to switch them out for 3-6 month clothes. The pants are all too big in the waist for him still. He hasn't gotten a lot of rolls yet, but his cheeks are getting chubbier by the day. I love it!

He sleeps between 3 and 3.5 hours at night. I'm hoping we can stretch 3.5 to 4 hours this week, but we will see how it goes. He doesn't miss a meal! I am nursing him exclusively and seem to be producing plenty of milk for him, for which I am quite grateful...Formula is expensive, and it's nice for helping to drop weight as well!!

We have gotten Cooper's baptism planned and have a couple of trips coming up. As fast as this month went by, they will be here before we know it. California in August, Baptism in September, and Arkansas in October. Busy, busy.

Not too much else going on, just trying to establish our daily routine. below are just some pictures I took of Cooper...

Telling me a story

I HAVE THE POWER!!

Snuggling with Dad

My favorite little face

Thinking...Probably tooting too!

napping while Mom watches me sleep!

Have a great week!
Cheers,
Kelli

Cooper's Birth Story

2014-06-01T18:30:00.001-04:00

We had a baby! My labor started about 11:45 pm on Wednesday, the 7th, which was my due date. I'm glad he came on time, because my mom came up here so she could help me with the baby and we wanted for her to have as much time with him as she could. She arrived on the 3rd, so we didn't have to wait too long for Cooper to arrive!

39 weeks, 5 days pregnant...Tuesday 5/6/2014

I started having contractions at 11:45 Wednesday night (5/7/14) . At first, I thought it was just the baby stretching, but they became more frequent, so I called my doctor. She told me when I had 3 contractions in 10 minutes to call back, and she would tell me to go to the hospital at that point. It was about 4:30 in the morning before the contractions reached that point, so we called and then headed to the hospital. The nurses brought me back into the delivery room, and the Dr. came in to check me. I was dilated less than 1, but was having regular and painful contractions, so she ordered the epidural for me. Oh, thank GOD for epidurals. She also ordered pitocin to help me dilate more. They did an ultrasound because I had a little bleeding, and said the baby looked to be about 8 and a half pounds, but that the ultrasound could be off by a pound in either direction. We had anticipated Cooper being about 8 and half pounds, so that was no news for me.

Around 6:30 AM, the anesthesiologist came in to give me the epidural. I was so tired, because I hadn't slept at all the night before since I was having contractions. The epidural allowed me to sleep off and on for most of the day. My mom and Marc were there with me in the delivery room. Marc was sleeping on the tile floor...I knew my labor wasn't progressing quickly at all, so after the Dr. came to check me again and I was still dilated to 1, I sent Marc home to sleep and check on Max & Pixie. The Dr. didn't come back in for about 6 hours, and when she checked me the next time, I was finally making progress and was dilated to 5cm. This was about 4:30 PM, so Mom called Marc and told him to go ahead and make his way back to the hospital. My Epidural was wearing off and I was feeling every contraction again, so the anesthesiologist came back in and added a little bit to make me comfortable. The Dr. came back an hour later, and I was dilated to 10 cm. She told me to ring my call bell when I felt like I had to push. By 10 minutes to 6, I called in the delivery team and was ready to have this baby!!

I pushed about 12 times and at 6:07 pm they placed a huge baby on my chest!! I couldn't believe how long he was...I mean, I know Marc and I are both quite tall, but it was still a surprise. Cooper had to have been so balled up inside of me, because he took up the entire table where the nurse was weighing him!

9lb, 8.5oz, 22.5inches. Welcome, Cooper!

He weighed 9 pounds, 8.5 ounces and was 22.5 inches long. He was nice and pink and all filled out. he truly didn't look like a newborn! He has blonde hair and his eyes are currently blue (I hope they stay that way!). He has my fingers, Marc's nose, ears, eyebrows and toes. He is adorable and we just love him to pieces!!!

The nurses took Cooper to the nursery while 2 doctors worked on me. I was bleeding a lot and they were working to get that stopped. Thankfully, they were able to do so pretty quickly so there were no real complications. The hospital was SO busy with babies being born that I had to wait in the delivery room for 3 hours before they had a regular room ready for me. I didn't get to see or hold Cooper at all during that time. In fact, I didn't get to hold him prior to them taking him to the nursery because of the aforementioned bleeding. I wanted to see MY baby! Finally, around 10 pm, I got to my room and they brought my gorgeous baby boy to me. I cried. It surprised me how quickly you can love this little person so completely.

Happy tears!

I can't believe I grew him! :)

Sweet baby boy

We stayed in the hospital 2 nights and came home on Saturday the 10th at about noon. It's been a transition for sure, but I can't imagine our lives without him. My mom was the biggest help, I would've been lost had she not been able to come up for the 4 weeks she was here. I really didn't want her to leave, but she has a job and a dog who need her too. Bummer. ;)

First car ride.

Wore my Giants gear for Dad!

Now, I'm trying to get him on a schedule. He sleeps about 3-3.5 hours at a time, so it's not terrible. I am nursing him, so I get up and take care of business. He is a very happy and content baby. He goes right back to sleep after his nighttime feedings, which is truly a blessing. The sleep stretches are getting longer, I think in a few more weeks he will be sleeping about 5 hours at a time, which is not too shabby!

We had newborn photos taken of him when he was a week old. We used Jennifer Sirris at Storybook Portraits. She is amazing to work with; so calm and patient with the babies! She took the pics right in our living room! I can't wait to work with her again in the future when Cooper has pictures taken.

Go Hogs!

I have my momma's fingers

Little football

Kisses!

3 generations

One very proud Grandma!

Pouty face

Baby feet!

With Dad's uniform

With Uncle Justin's photo and Dog Tags. Cooper Justin's namesake & guardian angel

love his sweet baby face

Future Arkansas Razorback!

Cute Koala

Sweet sleepy baby

So peaceful in Black & white!

I love all of the pictures she took so much, I didn't post every one of them, but a lot of them.

I'm glad to have a place to write everything so I don't forget! As I get a routine set, I should be able to update more regularly.

Have a great week!
Cheers,
Kelli

Nothing too exciting

2014-04-20T20:29:00.001-04:00

This week was pretty routine. Just working around the house and in the nursery making room for all of Cooper's stuff. He needs a much larger bedroom and he's not even HERE yet! I got his clothes all organized by size both in his dresser and in his closet. This kid has more blankets than you can imagine. He'll probably get his dad's inner thermostat and never ever want them. Marc is pretty hot-natured and just radiates heat 99% of the time. I'll probably make my hospital bag sometime this week. I want to get some new pajamas and stuff to take with us.

We cleaned out the kitchen cabinets and the 2 linen closets to make room for baby stuff. We donate everything that's useful to the AMVETS. They've seen us already about 5 times this year. I've never had the time or energy to dedicate to a yard sale, so I'd rather donate everything and just take the tax write-off at the end of the year. Good riddance!

We went to dinner at our Favorite German restaurant last night in Queens. It's called Zum Stammtisch. It is so delicious. Definitely stick-to-your-ribs food, but so, so good! I can't wait to go after Cooper is born so I can have the steak Tartare appetizer. Yum!

Today we went to Easter dinner at Marc's parent's house. We had ham and veggies and 2 rounds of dessert. We are back at the house now watching the pups wrestle...I meant to go to Target on the way home but I forgot. Oh, well. It'll still be there tomorrow or next weekend when I get around to it!

Hope y'all have a great week and enjoy the beautiful spring weather that FINALLY arrived!

Cheers,
Kelli

Keeping busy

2014-04-13T21:24:00.001-04:00

This week wasn't terrible busy outside of the house, but I got a lot accomplished at home. Since our bathroom remodel, it has really been bothering me how dirty our grout in the kitchen floor had gotten. I bought a shark steam cleaner a few weeks ago and decided to steam clean the kitchen floor grout to see if it would take out the stains so I could seal the grout properly. I never sealed it when we had the kitchen remodeled, so it has been soaking up stains for 4 years now. EEW!

Top left corner steamed, the rest not...ICKY!

Before steam. GROSS!

The first day, I worked for about 3 hours and got about 3 square feet done. The steamer was working well, but it was taking several passes over the same area to get the stains to come up. I had seen on Pinterest that you can use carpet cleaner on grout and it will magically lift the stains with no scrubbing. I must have had the wrong brand, because there was no magic happening. It did help a little bit, but nothing significant. I decided that I would finish the floor the next day and I would try a more natural cleaner to see if it worked any better.

On Day 2, I mixed 3/4 cup of white vinegar with 1/4 cup Dawn platinum dishwashing soap. I used my turkey baster to put the solution into the grout lines and let it sit for several minutes. I even left it for an hour one time while I went to the couch and took a nap by the puppies. After soaking, I'd wipe up the vinegar solution, then steam over the grout. It worked much faster and I was able to complete the kitchen the second day. I'd work a couple of hours then get up and stretch, go put my FAT feet up on the back of the couch, or sit outside to enjoy the beautiful weather we've been having. I'm really glad that the vinegar solution worked; it is cheap and effective for so many household chores!

After steam cleaning. Pretty as new!

Marc finished up a class he was taking for work that had him extremely busy for the past 3 weeks. He had class all day then still had to go to his office to keep up with his normal workload. He was tired, to say the least. He finally got to be home for a whole weekend this weekend, which was great. We did some work inside and outside the house and took the puppies along on all of our errand running. They love going in the car or truck. We donated a couple pieces of furniture that we didn't use, and frankly, didn't have room for in the house. We seeded the lawn, then spent some time soaking it down with the hose. It was way too gorgeous to just let the sprinkler run, so we watered with the spray nozzles and enjoyed some sunshine. Spring weather is fantastic after such a long and snowy winter!

The puppies were super snuggly this morning. Pixie came to get me out of bed at 7AM, which she does every day. I sit on the couch and she usually climbs right in my lap, but today, she climbed right back on the couch by Max and curled up and went back to sleep. They are SO adorable, I just love them to pieces. I thought that since they were both asleep that they wouldn't really care if I snuck back to bed to snooze for a little longer, but I was wrong. About 2 minutes after I got up off the couch, they decided it was time to have full wrestle mania, with furniture rearrangement as a complimentary side just for me! It's always interesting to see where the couches will end up once they've finished the wrestling match! :)

Snuggle babies

I see you!

Sleepy babies

Snuggly Pixie & Max on the love seat with me

I have been in the mood to cook some of our favorites, so yesterday, I made Shepherd's Pie for dinner. I made a huge batch so we would have left-overs and Marc could take a full pan to work. This morning, I made a recipe I had seen on Trisha Yearwood's show on Food Network. It is called Country Quiche. Very easy, and VERY tasty! I had 3 slices!

Some of our friends had a cookout this afternoon and asked that we bring dessert, so I made a 4 layer chocolate delight. It is one of my favorite desserts, and it was a BIG hit!

Hope y'all have a great week and enjoy this gorgeous weather we're having!

Cheers,
Kelli

36 Weeks

2014-04-09T16:17:00.000-04:00

Today, I had my 36 week appointment and ultrasound. The technician took all of her measurements and said all looks well for Mr. Cooper. He is weighing about 6lb and 14oz right now, and will probably be 8lbs and change at birth. She double checked that he is, indeed, a boy. (I know someone who was told all along she was having a boy only to turn out to have a girl!) I wanted to be sure! There were definitely testicles on the monitor. The only pictures she printed for me were of his profile. He is being a good little boy and is head down, and face down in preparation for delivery in a few short weeks. He had his hands in front of his face, so the picture isn't fantastic, but you can make out his little nose, which is just too cute.

Cooper's profile at 36 weeks

After my OB appointment, I went to meet with the pediatrician we will be using for Cooper. They tell you at about 28 weeks that you need to choose a pediatrician. When it's your first baby, you're like..."Ummm....how do I choose a baby doctor?!?" I asked some good friends of ours who live close to us who they use and decided to go to the same pediatrician they use. I liked the office a lot, and there are 4 doctors and a nurse practitioner there. Another item checked off my list.

My OB gave me a prescription for the last round of blood work that I have to do while pregnant, so I went to the lab and had that drawn today, since I was already out and about. I had plans to meet Katie for lunch and needed to kill some time, so that worked out perfectly. After the lab, I went to my old office and went to lunch with Katie & Jackie. We went to the usual pizza place right by the office. It was SO good! I hadn't had pizza in a few weeks and it definitely hit the spot. Now to decide what to make for dinner...

I went to Babies R Us yesterday because I had received a few gift cards and I also had a 20% off coupon for the entire order, so I wanted to get a few of the items off of our registry that we didn't receive. When I went to check out, the clerk told me that if I got the store credit card, I would get an additional 15% off the entire order, so 35% off. That sounded like a deal to me, and I ended up SAVING $245 overall!! I'll just pay off the card when the bill comes in with the money we received as gifts at the shower. I couldn't believe they let me combine the offers! I was very proud of myself! The savings was more than enough to pay for the large car seat and an additional base for the infant seat, so we will have one in each of our vehicles. It's the little things that make me happy!

Go outside and enjoy this beautiful weather. I spent about an hour watering the front and back yards with the hose and sprayer instead of the sprinkler because it was just too nice to sit inside.

Hope y'all are enjoying your week!
Cheers,
Kelli

A Baby Shower!

2014-04-07T11:03:00.000-04:00

This past Saturday was my baby shower! I can't thank my friends and family enough for their generosity. Baby Cooper will be well dressed and cared for with everything he received! A huge thank you to my dear friends Kathleen, Katie, and my sister-in-law, Jennifer for hosting the awesome shower. The food was delicious, the cake is still being devoured, and the decorations were adorable. You three are amazing, and I love you!! All of our friends and family who came to celebrate with us are so incredibly generous. We received all of the big items off our registry, like baby monitor, bassinet, stroller, car seat, swing, high chair and so much more! We only have a few smaller items left to buy. Thank you all so much for your wonderful gifts, we are so very grateful to have y'all in our lives.

That's red velvet cake under the cream cheese icing. MY FAVORITE!

Cooper's hat is a little small for me!

Visiting

Marc is so excited about the Giants clothes! We have a bunch of Razorback clothes, too!

This was made by Marc's grandma & Great-Grandma. Heirlooms like this are priceless!

Decorations in the room

The Diaper motorcycle that Jo-Anne made! I'm never taking it apart!

Me & my Momma...SO glad she came up!

My mom called me on Tuesday of last week and told me she would be flying in for the weekend. I'm so glad because she didn't think she would be able to attend initially due to her work schedule. Luckily, her boss is understanding and she found a great rate on airfare and flew in on Friday. We had a great weekend. Mom, Marc, and I went out to dinner on Friday night at Uncle Jack's steakhouse in Bayside, Queens. It was delicious!! I had prime rib, and it was so succulent and juicy. You truly can't beat a great steak!

Now, Cooper's nursery is full of boxes and bags and I've got to figure out where to store everything until we actually need it. I can't wait until I have a nice, big house with lots of storage space!! It's getting difficult to get creative with storage here in our tiny house!

Hope everyone has a fantastic week!

Cheers,

Kelli

Nothing exciting

2014-04-02T12:24:00.000-04:00

So, I have nothing really exciting to report right now. I've been trying to get the house back in order since last week's remodel. There was dust on literally every surface in the house. I vacuumed everything off on Sunday, and am now kind of going room-by-room to get it all dusted and polished up. Vacuuming off all the tables made a huge dent in the amount of dust, so it doesn't feel as messy and urgent. Right now, I'm physically unable to clean the entire house in one fell swoop, like I preferred to do before pregnancy, so I do a little bit and then take a break for a while. It'll get done, or I'll go crazy. Stay tuned to see which happens first! ;)

I have been cooking this week, since I can get into the kitchen and not have sheetrock dust in the food. I made Nasi Goreng Monday night. I've posted on here how to make it before. It's a delicious Indonesian curried rice dish that we love. I hadn't made it in a while, so I made a LOT so we would have left-overs.

Last night, I was going through the freezer and fridge to see what we had in house, and I came up with pork tenderloin rolls stuffed with sautéed garlic, onion, broccoli, & mozzarella. I am a believer that if something sounds like it would be good together, then it likely will. I did not use any recipes, just went with my idea. I pounded the pork chops thin, seasoned them with salt & pepper, then stuffed them with the sautéed broccoli mixture. I secured the rolls with toothpicks. I then dredged them in a little flour, romano cheese, salt & pepper and browned them in vegetable oil. Once they were all browned, I put them into a baking dish and topped them with marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese, then baked them at 350 for 20 minutes to make sure they were cooked throughout and the cheese was golden and bubbly on top. I served these with rotini pasta and marinara sauce, or butter and a fresh mozzarella caprese salad. It was delicious. Sorry, I forgot to take a picture. It was totally experimental, but Marc loved it and said to please make it again. We will probably have left-overs tonight. Back to the never-ending dusting and laundry for me.

Cheers,
Kelli

Viola! It is finished!

2014-03-28T17:28:00.001-04:00

5 days of hard work by a great crew and we've got ourselves a brand new bathroom that I LOVE instead of loathe! The crew was so great about our needs of having a toilet placed each night. I only had to spend one night away from home, and Marc was able to stay so we didn't have to relocate the dogs as well.
If anyone lives on Long Island and needs kitchen or bathroom work done, please call Joey at Complete Kitchen and Bath in Commack. (631) 462-6141. He is such a nice and reasonable guy. He knew our goals for this remodel and didn't try to "upsell" us on fixtures and finishes that we didn't need. His prices are reasonable, and he will even tell you when you can get an item less expensively at home depot to order from them. It's very nice to work with someone as honest as he is. We used his team when we remodeled our kitchen a few years ago and I have nothing but great things to say about them. And, in case you're wondering, I was not paid for that endorsement!

I'm so happy to finally have a pretty bathroom in our house. It was the last eyesore. Now, I have to dust every. single. surface. in the house and get the bathroom organized. Dusting is the bane of my existence; however, it is worth it to have this great new bathroom in our house! I'll post pictures from pre-gut all the way through finished product.

The dogs were so good throughout the process as well. They only got into a few things, and it was when they had been cooped up in our room for too long and they got bored. Pixie killed our cable remote control, and they both got into the pile of stuff on Marc's night stand. Other than that, they were awesome. Not barking at or bothering the crew and taking nice long naps during some relatively loud construction. I'm proud of them!

Cheers,
Kelli

Original 1960's bathroom.

Day 1: gutted to the studs and subfloor

day 1

day2 Durock and sheetrock almost done!

Day 2

Puppies napping through construction

Day3

pixie-1 remote-0

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5: Complete!

day 5

Day 5

DAy 5

Day 5

Progress

2014-03-24T17:24:00.000-04:00

The bathroom remodel started today. The crew showed up at 8:15 am and was ripping out the countertops by 8:20. They got it ripped down to the studs and subfloor. The tile that was on the floor was on top of the original tile, which was set in concrete and chicken wire. They had to bludgeon it with hammers, but they finally won and got it all out. They got the electrical wires run, the hi-hat light for the shower installed, and the exhaust fan installed as well as sheetrock on the ceiling. We ran into a minor snag at the end of their workday. They opened up the box for the new commode and discovered it was cracked, both on the base and the water tank. They are doing me a favor and mounting the toilet every day so pregnant me doesn't have to pee in the back yard...One of the guys and I ran out to home depot and bought another toilet, and Marc and I will return the busted one when he gets home from work.

Yay! A new white toilet!

Hi-Hat light in the shower

a functional exhaust fan

the space where the medicine cabinet/mirror will go

I was somewhat worried about how Max and Pixie would react to all the noise going on with them demo-ing the bathroom, but I am SO proud of them. I brought them into the master bedroom with me, and they slept on their pillows on the floor. They were so good!! They'll get some kind of special treat tonight.

snoozing through the chaos of demolition

Tomorrow, the contractor will finish drywalling and get the cement board down so he can start doing the tile for the floor and the shower area. We may have to spend 1 night away from home when he does the tile on the floor, because it has to sit for 24 hours so the thinset will set up. All in all, I am SO pleased. They are professional, clean, and courteous. Can't wait to see tomorrow's progress!

Here we go! Before pics

2014-03-23T15:46:00.001-04:00

Today I cleaned all of our things out of the bathroom because the contractor will be here at 9 am tomorrow to start the remodel. I took a couple of "before" pictures so you can see what an improvement is being made. We aren't changing the layout at all, just new fixtures, flooring, paint, & tile. Marc bought the house a few years before we met, and it has been on his to-do list ever since. The problem is that it is the only bathroom in the house, and beyond being really ugly, it's completely functional. We decided to go ahead and do it now because (A) the baby is still-a-cookin, and (B) the house is going on the market next January, so it needed to be done before then, and we don't want to do it with a newborn.

blue formica counter with gold flecks, blue sink...the vanity stands only about 27" tall...Did I mention that Marc is 6'5" and I am 6'0"?

Blue tile, blue tub, blue toilet and hideous floral wallpaper, crappy tile ceiling

and you can see that the medicine cabinet/mirror has the same blue formica with fold flecks.

We did the kitchen a few years ago, then 2 years later put crown moulding, new baseboards, and new white interior doors throughout the house. Last year, we did outside work. We put up a white PVC privacy fence around the back yard (the front yard already had the PVC picket fence), ripped out the deck and cleaned off the cement patio that was below, had a new brick & concrete stoop and new walkways put in, sod laid down, brick flower boxes in front, and put a new shed in the back yard. The house has definitely gotten a lot of improvements since we got married.

Every year, we use our tax return to better the house instead of planning a big vacation. The house will be move-in ready when it goes on the market next January. It really is a perfect starter house, but not large enough to have a family grow with. It has hardwood floors throughout, with the exception of the kitchen and bathroom, a wood burning fireplace with stove insert to heat the house if you want to, the windows were replaced when Marc bought the house, the siding was done right after we got married, the roof is in great shape, and the house DID NOT FLOOD during hurricane Sandy. That's right!! We are SURROUNDED by water here. We live on a little island, there is a canal 2 blocks north of us, a canal BOTH east and west at the end of the street, and the Great South Bay is 5 blocks south of our house. We are unbelievably lucky that our house did not flood. We live in the middle of the block and the house sits up kind of high. There was SO much damage in our neighborhood. Some people still haven't finished repairing and renovating from that storm. I'm really so grateful.

Yesterday, I had to take Max to the vet for a check up appt. He is due for some booster shots, so I loaded both dogs in the car and headed to the Vet. Our vet's office is inside Petsmart. We got there and parked, and I left Pixie in the car so I could take Max inside. It was a gorgeous day outside and she was content to be outside. Max dragged all 8.5 months pregnant me across the parking lot and into the store. Thank GOD he doesn't get great traction on tile, or I would have been dragged all the way to the back of the store where the vet is located. We got back there and he nicely got up on the scale to be weighed (125 lbs., by the way) and the receptionist told me our appointment isn't until NEXT week...Oh Goody. That was a super fun workout for no reason at all. I called Marc and told him he was taking Max to the vet next weekend, because that dragfest through the parking lot was more than I need to handle right now. He laughed at me, but agreed to take him. I love that dog, but he sure is freaking strong!

That's about all for now. I'll post pictures of the progress on the bathroom throughout the week. I can't wait for the finished product!!

Cheers!

Looooooooong time, no post!

2014-03-22T17:34:00.000-04:00

What can I say, I got busy & bored with it! This is a catch-up of sorts, and there will be a lot of pictures at the bottom...I'll try to be a good blogger again!

There are some pretty major changes headed our way, so I figured I had better start documenting again. Marc and I are expecting a baby boy in early May. His name will be Cooper Justin. My brother's name was Justin, and we wanted to honor his memory, so it will be Cooper's middle name. I have decorated his nursery with Football stuff, and even found him a onesie that says "I'm told I love football..." So cute. I am just waiting on a few more items to hang on the walls, then I'll post completed nursery pictures. I am loving all the football stuff. Marc played football in college at St. John's University (unfortunately their football program is now defunct) and he had 2 large professional pictures of himself in games, so we had them framed and hung them on the walls. It's nice to have a personal touch and not just generic football stuff to go in the nursery.

We also have another puppy. Her name is Pixie and she's a boxer. She is so funny and energetic, and Max loves her. They play together really roughly. It sounds like they're fighting, but they're just wrestling and arguing over toys. She gets me up every morning at about 7:45 to snuggle on the couch, and I wouldn't trade a second of it!

We bought 2 acres of property in Arkansas back in November to build our dream home once Marc retires from his job here in NYC! I've got a pinterest board full of ideas for the house and really can't wait to get started building, but it will have to wait until our house sells here in NY because floating two mortgages is SO not happening!

We start the remodel of our one and only bathroom on Monday! I'm so excited! The bathroom is original to the 1960 house and is powder blue. Everywhere. The tub, the tile, the toilet, the sink, the countertop...UGLY! It's our last major house project and should only take the contractor about a week...Cross your fingers for me!

The house will go on the market early next year, and hopefully sell quickly. If that's the case, the baby, the dogs, and I will go to my mom's in Arkansas and get the house building started while Marc finishes up his work time here. :)

I think that's about it for now. I'll post before, during, and afters of the bathroom remodel as we go!

Cheers!

21 weeks

27 weeks 4 days

33 weeks 2 days

Marc's grandma made the afghan when he was playing football in college

Cooper's crib...Thank you, Mom!

My mom and I made the curtains for the nursery when I was in Arkansas for Christmas. They're adorable! The rugs I bought from wayfair.com

I made this monogram sign for the entry to the nursery. It pays honor to my brother and keeps the football theme going!

My aunt bought the mobile for the crib, and you can see one of Marc's "action" shots in the background from when he played college football.

Cooper's crib bedding that I found on Etsy. SO cute!

This is a "papoose" and hat that a sweet lady from my community made for Cooper. I can't wait to take newborn pictures of him wearing this! He will be a football!

This is Miss Pixie. She thinks she can drive.

Pixie again. She has the funniest personality, and she isn't scared of ANYTHING! She gets right in Max's face and growls and him and boxes him, even though he outweighs her by 75+ pounds!

Pixie and her bone "cigar".. I have a similar picture of Max!

Marc & Max relaxing on the couch. Both pups think they are lap dogs, and we wouldn't have it any other way!

the ultrasound from my 20 week appointment

The curtains Mom & I made for Cooper's nursery!

It's a boy!

Pixie had to bring the rug from the front door all the way onto the couch. It's better there.

Two trips to Arkansas, a Birthday, and a Maximus update!

2012-03-07T21:20:00.000-05:00

I took a little blogging break recently. Maximus doesn't like to grant me time alone on the computer, he gets jealous and then rambunctious (in that order).

In January, Marc, my brother-in-law Jason, our friend Steve, and I went to Arkansas (home sweet home) for the guys to go duck hunting. It's our 2nd annual wild game weekend. We had a few more friends join us this year, and the guys have now an unofficial duck club called the Fat Mallard Duck Club. It's led by the Phantom Guide, Hugh. His wife, Priscilla, has been my friend since we were 10 years old. She and Hugh live right in the middle of the Atlantic Flyway and there is some really good Duck hunting to be had near their home. We were also joined by another lifelong friend, Derinda, and her boyfriend, Paul. Jacob came down from Northwest Arkansas to hunt with the guys. We had a great time visiting, cooking, and hanging out in our PJ's and the guys had fun hunting each morning. We love that we have this little tradition with our friends!

Me & Marc with a few ducks

Priscilla & Derinda

Jacob, Brandy, Me & Marc

The WHOLE group at the DU banquet

Brandy, Me, Priscilla, & Derinda

Class of '98 good friends, good times...Brandy, me, Jacob, Priscilla & Derinda

Steve, Marc, Hugh, Jacob, Jason & Paul at the Ducks Unlimited banquet

Hugh, Paul, Jason, Marc, Steve, Jacob & Drake(The Dog)...and their Ducks for the weekend

The day after we got back from Arkansas, Marc got rear-ended in his Kia by an older fellow who wasn't watching the road. He hit Marc so hard that he was pushed into the car in front of him at the stop light. Marc's car was totaled. Thankfully, No one was hurt, but we did have to buy another new car. This time, we went big. We bought a 2008 Dodge Ram bighorn with a hemi. It's big and loud and we love it.

I drive it back and forth to work because my commute is 3 miles and Marc's is 40. He has weekend visitation and I have custody. Ahh, it reminds me of home!

Maximus has been busy growing like a weed. He has tripled his weight since we got him. Remember what he looked like?

It's hard to believe how little he was, because we're pretty sure we should have named him Frank the Tank. He's huge! He weighs 74 pounds now, and there's no way I could hold him like a baby anymore!

My favorite spot on the couch

Just relaxing in the sun

I LOVE the sunshine!

Waiting for Marc to get back home

He had his appointment today to get neutered. Marc dropped him off at the Vet this morning early, and we went to pick him up around 6 this evening. The Vet said he was a really good boy, but that he has to wear the cone of shame for about 7-10 days. He looks so pitiful in the cone, and it completely freaks him out when he bumps into something with it. He's really unsure of how to handle it. Hopefully tomorrow is better when he is less groggy from the anesthesia.

my poor baby in the cone. I feel so bad for him.

My birthday was at the end of February. Marc took me out to dinner at one of my favorite places, The Old Homestead Steakhouse, in Manhattan. 8 of our friends joined us for dinner and it was one of the best birthdays I've had to date. So much fun, so much great food and wine, and wonderful friends. The wine we were drinking was Eponymous Cabernet Sauvignon, and I have GOT to buy a case of this for the house. SO DELICIOUS!!!

Marc & Me for my Birthday

Me & Eric

a very giddy me

Marc's steak before...

Marc's steak after...Eric said that Marc eats steak like a surgeon

Truffle Mac & Cheese and WINE!

the very full dinner party

Brent & Me!

Vinny, Eric, Chris, & Mike

Vinny, Me, Eric, & Chris

Mike, Me, & Danielle

Eric, Me, & Chris

Me, Russ, & Brent

Chris & Marc

Tex was there too, but apparently was outside when we had our little photo shoot. Grrr.....

This past weekend, We went to Arkansas again for a memorial for my brother, Justin. The Oden High School Fellowship of Christian Students raised money to dedicate the flag pole to Justin's memory. It was very sweet of them, and the result of their hard work is priceless to us.

This year, March 5th marked 5 years since Justin and 6 other soldiers were killed in Iraq. The Ceremony at Oden School was on Sunday, March 4th. Members of the community, the Patriot Guard Riders, and the VFW were present to honor his memory. It was a beautiful day with just enough wind to keep the flags waving gently in the breeze. It was gorgeous, and the kids worked hard to make a lovely memorial for Justin.

The Stone Memorial. The other three sides read: THE FREEDOM OF THE MANY IS PROTECTED BY THE BRAVERY OF THE FEW. FCS 2012

Heidi, Jacob, Paul, Derinda, Me, Marc, Priscilla, Hugh, Sarah, Dessie, Christian & Blake

The whole crew

One of the State Representatives, Mom, & Me

Me reading Justin's Silver Star Narrative

The VFW color Guard

Mrs. Couch, the FCS sponsor and organizer of the dedication

Flagpole with flagline in background

The Flags in the wind

Flagpole

The Patriot Guard Riders' Flag Line

We couldn't be more grateful for the students of the FCS for honoring Justin's memory, the Patriot Guard Riders for supporting our fallen without fail, and our fantastic community members who show up to remember Justin with us whenever we call. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!!!!!

And I know that was a REALLY long blog, but I had a pretty long hiatus to catch up on. I hope you all have a great week and I'll try to be better about keeping caught up on here too!

Cheers,
Kelli

A Gold Star Sister

2012-01-14T01:48:00.000-05:00

I decided to link up with Kelly's Korner http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/ for her show us your life: Military Families.
I, myself, am not married to a member of our armed forces, but I am a Gold Star sister. Anyone with any military background at all knows what this means.

My only brother, SSG Justin Michael 'Dutch' Estes, was Killed in Action on March 5, 2007 in Samarra, Iraq. He was 25 years old. He and I were very close, being only a year and 10 months (to the day) apart in age.

Justin was a soldier in every sense of the word; he loved his job and was really good at it. He was a natural leader, and at 6'5", he was easy to find. He was really quick-witted and ready with a smile for anyone. He is missed by anyone who had the great fortune of meeting him.

March 5, 2007 is a day I will never forget about for as long as I live. I was at work at the Cheesecake Factory when a call came through for me. It was my Mom, and she called to tell me that Justin was gone.

He had been in the third vehicle of a convoy that was patrolling the berm outside of Samarra. The first hum-vee ran over a pressure switch that detonated the buried IED. The vehicle was literally blown in half and 4 of the 5 occupants were killed instantly. One of the soldiers was still alive, but badly injured and on fire. Justin saw this, and left the safety of his vehicle with a fire blanket at the same time as the commander of the 2nd hum-vee brought forward a fire extinguisher. Together, they administered first-aid to their injured comrade and called forward the evacuation team. Just as the evac team got close, the Iraqi insurgents remotely detonated a secondary buried IED that Justin was standing directly over. He was killed instantly, as well as the commander of the second vehicle, and the soldier they were trying to save. The medic died later of his injuries, but he made it back to US soil. Justin was awarded the Silver Star for Gallantry in Action. It is the third highest Honor the ARMY gives out.

I wanted to link in today to talk not only about him, and how he died, but also about what the school in our very small town in Arkansas is doing. Oden High School is the school where both Justin & I graduated. It has a club called the Fellowship of Christian Students. They decided to have a fundraiser this year to raise money for a memorial for Justin. They are dedicating our school's flagpole to Justin's service and memory. They paid for a granite slab to be engraved with his credentials and service information, as well as lights for the flagpole so the flag can be flown around the clock. It's such a blessing to be from a small town where everyone remembers him, because all we have left of him are our memories. The presentation will be on Sunday, March 4, 2012. March 5th will mark 5 years since he was killed. There is never a day that goes by that I don't think about him. Just remember that Freedom most certainly is not free.

I attached a video that shares about these brave men who gave their lives so that we may continue to live free, please take the time to check it out.

http://vimeo.com/10412299

"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friend. " John 15:13

Rest in Peace to the Samarra 7: You will be forever in our hearts and minds.

SSG Justin Estes
SGT Andrew Perkins
SPC Justin Rollins
PFC Cory Kosters
SSG Robert Stanley
SPC Ryan Bell
SGT Josh Boyd

A fun game of "tag" and some catch up!

2012-01-07T12:24:00.000-05:00

So, I was tagged by one of my readers to do a fun little q & a game. Nathan at Life & Everything Else In Between found this game and I thought it would be fun to play along! Beware, 11 of you will be tagged in the comments on your own blog to take part also! It's a fun way to learn more about your friends. Your 11 questions will be at the bottom of this blog, so copy and paste them to your new post if you choose to participate. Just be sure to go to the comments section of the bloggers you tag to tell them they've been tagged for the question game, include a link to your blog so it's easier for them to find their questions! I hope you will!

The following are the questions that I answered. Yours will be different.

1. What was your favorite old Nickelodean tv show? Why?

I never really got into nickelodeon. When I was growing up, we didn't have cable out in the boonies where I lived, and honestly, I didn't miss it. I did wish we had MTV (back when they had music videos) or CMT.

2. What was your favorite part of the 90's?

Hmm...The 90's brought a lot of change to my life, but it was all good. I have to say sports in high school were the best part of the 90's for me. Playing basketball and softball with my friends are definitely my best memories of that particular decade.

3. Why did you start blogging?

I read several blogs and it's a fun way to sort of virtually scrapbook what's going on in our lives right now. It's a place to document travels and food and to keep up with family far away.

4. If you had your choice of any vacation destination at this very moment, where would it be?

If I could go anywhere right this moment, it would definitely be Europe. I've been to a few places there, and have loved every second of it..."There's such a lot of world to see..." (Moonriver, Henry Mancini) More specifically than just Europe though, I'd love to go to Prague, The Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, The UK, Egypt, Tahiti, Australia, Russia, Spain, The Islands in Greece...This list could go on for days, so I'll stop for now; I'm sure you get the picture...

5. Does anybody remember the Pizza Hut clock? You know, the one that would go really really fast that said, "it's always pizza time". 24 hours would go by in five minutes. If you could apply that clock to any part of your life, i.e. work, church, school, etc. what would you apply it to? Why?

I would definitely apply that clock to work. We spend so much time working that we forget to enjoy our lives outside of work. Life is way too short to worry about the almighty dollar, and who wouldn't love more time to just be with friends and family...I would, of course, like to be paid for the time like it was moving like a normal clock.....Just saying! HA!

6. If you could change a few things about yourself what would they be?

Definitely my weight, which I have been working on since November. I am going to the gym three times a week and working out with a trainer. I just got sick of feeling blah all the time. The image I saw in the mirror just wasn't the way I saw myself in my head...It's a process, but I'll get there.

7. I love life, life is good is not just a trademark for me, it's a fact. What are you most thankful for in your life?

Family and friends, foremost. Then my health and puppy. Everything else is just stuff, life is way too short to sweat the small stuff. I'm not a worrier by nature. I like nice things just as much as the next person, don't get me wrong, but at the end of the day, they're just not that important.

8. What does the car you drive say about you? Does it say anything at all, or is it just a car?

It says that it's big enough for my very tall husband to fit into without hitting his head on the roof.

9. What annoys you the most?

Rude people. There is NEVER an excuse to be rude to people, and the world would be a lot better place if people would just take a moment and think about how what they say affects the people around them. You can get your point across and still be polite.
That, and I'm a grammar & spelling Nazi. I can't help it; it comes completely natural to me. I can spot errors a mile away. The biggest offenders are people who don't know the difference between "YOUR" and "YOU'RE". (Your is possessive, you're means YOU ARE). Also, "THERE" (a place) "THEIR" (belongs to someone) "and "THEY'RE" (THEY ARE) and "TO" (a place) vs "TOO" (ALSO)...Sorry if it appears that I am yelling, these make my skin crawl when used incorrectly!

10. Do you have any pets? If so, what do you have and why?

We have a Bullmastiff named Maximus. He's 4 months old and we just adore him. We wanted a puppy for a while and were finally able to get one. He's spoiled but so, so sweet! We love big dogs and as a bullmastiff, he's going to grow to be about 150 pounds.

11. As we begin another year, do you have anything special you're looking forward to?

Getting back into shape, a few trips here and there throughout the year, cooking and enjoying this life. You only get one ride on this roller-coaster, you might as well enjoy it to the best of your ability!

Whew! That was harder than I thought! Here are the 11 questions for you!

1.) What was your greatest accomplishment of the past year?

2.) Do you have a bucket list? What is on it?

3.) What is your favorite holiday or time of year?

4.) Where have your travels taken you?

5.) Do you like to cook? Why or why not?

6.) Do you prefer professional or college sports, or do you not follow any?

7.) Do you love your job? So few people do what they love, do you?

8.) What is your favorite food?

9.) Do you like wine? Which do you prefer?

10.) If you had to eat only one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?

11.) Do you like to fly or are you afraid of it?

If you participate, copy and paste the above questions to your blog!

Now, some catch up!
Christmas and the New Year have come and gone. We both worked New Year's Eve. It was a great shift for me, and Marc got some Overtime, so that's always a plus! We got the house put back together and all of the decorations put away last Sunday. Max got his Rabies shot (finally) so he can now play with other dogs!
I took him to the dog park on Wednesday. It was empty because it was freaking freezing! He played for a while by himself, then another man and his dog came for a while and they played together. Max is so social, he loves people and seems to play well with other dogs too, so that's good for us.

We had some friends over to watch the Cotton Bowl last night, as my Arkansas Razorbacks took on the Kansas State Wildcats. We won the game 29-16. It was fun to watch, I only wish I could have been at the game! I went to 2 Cotton Bowls while I was in college and always had SO much fun!! I am so proud of my hogs for an 11-2 season. The only teams we lost to all year are #1 LSU (who I can't stand) and #2 Alabama. They will play this coming Monday and I will be SCREAMING ROLL TIDE all night long!

I hope to get back to blogging regularly. We have a fun little tradition coming up soon called wild game weekend, which I can't wait for. Good times with good friends.

Here are a couple of pics of Max, just for good measure. Hope y'all have a great weekend and stay warm!

He was crawling onto Marc's shoulder

That's Max drinking his coffee. He LOVES it and won't leave Marc alone until he shares. We checked with the Vet to make sure it won't hurt him.

Yummy, coffee. Strange puppy!

Cheers,
Kelli

Gearing up for Christmas!

2011-12-23T18:53:00.000-05:00

We've been getting everything ready to celebrate Christmas this Sunday. We finished our shopping last week Monday, so there was no last-minute scrambling for gifts. I wrapped all of the presents and had so much glitter all over the floor and table, I could have "dressed" two strippers for a night of dancing! Wow, it totally looked like a glitter bomb exploded in the house!

I didn't have to work at either job today, so I was able to do ~~a little~~ some desperately needed cleaning. I put Max in his crate so I could vacuum the house. He doesn't freak out about the vacuum, but he doesn't particularly like it either, so it's just easier to make sure he's in one place and I don't have to worry about scaring him.

Yesterday, instead of going to Thursdays at the Cake, I went into Manhattan to see my friend Brittney. She was in town for the night with her sister, Samantha and close friend Tami. It was the first time I'd seen Britt since 2007. We keep up on Facebook, but it's nice to get to see friends in person. We had so much fun, a few cocktails, and got to see a few very cool things... While I was waiting for Britt & co. to let me know where they were, I sat outside of Macy's in Herald Square to watch people for a little bit. There was a guy dressed in full Edward Scissorhands Regalia.

See, late '80's movie Icon...Johnny Depp did it better!

For Real. He was one of those people who dress up and then you pay them to take a picture with them. His costume was great, but he was walking around pretending to cut the shrubberies and people's hair. He scared the hell out of a couple of kids, which was funny/sad...Ahh, Christmas in New York!
We met in Washington Square Park, which happens to be my favorite park in Manhattan. We went to a pub to get a couple of cocktails and catch up. Brittney and I only know each other because my brother, Justin, and her boyfriend, also named Justin, were in the same platoon in Iraq, and were both Killed in Action on March 5, 2007. She is a lot of fun, and I am glad to know her, I just wish we had met under happier circumstances. I loved meeting and becoming friends with Sam and Tami, too. We had a blast!

The Empire State Building from my seat in Herald Square

The Arch in Washington Square Park

Tami, Brittney, & Samantha, (the Blond-tourage) in front of the Flat Iron Building

Once we finished our cocktails, we walked back to the girls' hotel so they could get ready. Britt knows a producer at ABC's world headquarters on the upper west side of Manhattan and had arranged to see the studio, and I got to tag along. It was really cool, and we saw George Stephanopolous anchoring the ABC nightly news. Very neat to get a private tour from an insider!

Yep; That's George Stephanopolous...Anchoring the ABC News

Sam & Tami with George in the background

I missed the pic when he waved up at us!

Once we finished at ABC studios, we went for appetizers and another round of cocktails at Atlantic Grill with Kim, the producer from ABC. We sat around visiting and had a great time. Marc picked me up shortly thereafter and we went back home to this little guy! He's getting big, and is getting better and better with housebreaking. Hopefully I didn't just jinx myself by saying that!

Just because Max is so darn cute!

Tonight for dinner, I made Nasi Goreng. It's the Indonesian Rice dish that I have posted about before. So delicious, and great as left-overs. I always make a huge batch when I cook it so we can eat it for a few days. Earlier this week, I was being experimental in the kitchen (gasp? me???) and came up with a recipe we will definitely be repeating. I made cajun grilled center cut pork chops stuffed with whole wheat bread crumbs, sauteed shallots & garlic, bacon & butterkase cheese.

SO GOOD!!! Make them!

I just cut a slit in each chop and stuffed them with the crumb mixture, used a toothpick to hold each chop closed then grilled them in my cast-iron grill pan. They were FABULOUS! I served them with steamed fresh asparagus and green beans. Yum!

I hope everyone has a safe and Very Merry Christmas, and that you get to spend it with the ones you love!

Cheers,
Kelli

Whirlwind...

2011-12-11T22:32:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it's already been a few weeks since I last blogged. We've been adapting to our new schedule...The one where Maximus wakes us up around 7:30 am to go out to take care of business. I haven't been up at 7:30 am on a consistent basis since high school or college; I'm sure of it!
Max is doing well. He had a vet appointment today, and he now weighs 34.5 pounds. When we got him 4 weeks ago, he weighed 25.8 pounds. He's a tank!! He's starting to learn his name and getting better about housebreaking. We can't wait until he loses his little ~~razor sharp~~ baby teeth. He likes to chew on us, and those little teeth hurt! He chews on rawhides a lot, and doesn't try to eat the furniture anymore, so that's a step in the right direction!

Marc gave me my Christmas present early this year. I asked for a gym membership with personal trainer. I am just sick of being out of shape and am ready to do something about it. I want the trainer because it will keep me accountable. I never miss appointments, so having the time set up in advance for me to go to the gym makes me keep going. I've been going for 2 full weeks now, and it feels really good to use my muscles again. It's been about 12 years since I was in decent shape, and I know it's going to be a long road, but at least I'm trying. You may notice a change in our menus, as I will try to make our favorite dishes a little more healthy. I've been making a lot of salads with baby spinach, pickled beets & a little bit of goat cheese with balsamic vinaigrette. So delicious and healthy!

We finally had time today to get our Christmas decorations out of the attic. We haven't even begun our shopping yet, but Marc will start it tomorrow. I have an appointment at the gym, then have to work at the office in the afternoon. I decorated the tree tonight and still have to get all the rest of the decorations up, but I did get a few pictures of the tree to put on here. We're trying to configure the furniture so that Max can't get back to the tree to eat the ornaments. He didn't seem too interested in it while I was decorating, so we're hoping that's a good sign...Lots of the ornaments are glass and I really don't want him to get back there.

Oh, Christmas Tree...

The tree in the window

The "headdress" as my mom calls it!

Just need the nut crackers and Max's stocking

Watching football with Marc

Now we've got to get Max a Christmas stocking and get the living room cleaned up and all of the boxes that house the decorations back up in the attic. Sometimes I wish it were ok to leave the Christmas decorations up until Easter....I love when the house is all festive!

Hope y'all are have a great week.
Cheers,
Kelli