bowling fun for ALMOST everyone!

Each month one member of my family plans a meal for us to share. During our Christmas gathering we all draw a month out of a hat (or whatever else is around.) Then we are sent monthly emails telling us when and where to meet. Our unsaid motto is: if you can make it-- great and if you can't--hopefully we'll see ya at the next month's gathering. Most of the time we meet at a restaurant, but occasionally we meet at someone's home to share a meal they prepare. We are all busy in our daily lives, however, by doing these "Moveable Feasts", as my mother calls them, we are able to stay connected throughout the year.

I chose to go bowling for my month of June. Most of us ordered food and ate while we bowled. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves--except for Reese that is! She has been spooked lately by loud noises, so needless to say bowling wouldn't have been HER top choice. It's official, I won't be receiving a "Mother of the Year" Award for choosing this activity and dragging her along, but I saw this coming anyway.

Once Reese got acclimated to her surroundings, she did do better, but all in all she looked forward to getting the heck out of there. Here are some pictures I took of Reese with the MANY people who showed her love and tried to provide her comfort during her..."time of need."

Uncle Glen and Aunt Kate

Cousin Tayler

Cousin Karson 

Kasron asked Kate if she was going to "be a good mommy someday." Although she didn't ask me my answer to her would have been "Yes, I think you'll make a GREAT mommy Karson." 

SIDE NOTE: Reese is totally not hungry in this picture. She had to comfort eat while we bowled to make it through the 2 hours there. Hey I understand--I've done it, too!

Cousin Ryan

Papa Don

Reese really enjoyed the texture of his shirt!

Nana Janell singing to Reese

Daddy

Here are some other photos. These don't include Reese, however, I thought they were cute enough to make the blog cut.

My brother Kyle

My future sister-in-law, Amy, holding Karson

My nephew, Jackson, and brother Bryan were there as well. I thought I had gotten a picture of Jackson, but I guess I was mistaken. I attempted to get several pictures of my brother, Bryan, but he was being camera shy.

I think it will be a few years before we attempt bowling again with Reese. Maybe one day she won't mind the noise and become a good bowler. She will need to get pointers on how to do that from her daddy, though, because I discovered bowling is just not my game.

Rubber Ducky

It was Joe's idea to put a rubber duck in Reese's bath the other night.

These are her first reactions to it...

Joe and I both agreed, if Reese was able to speak to us she would have said...

What the DUCK is THAT?

Then, I showed her it was one of the many toys that was OK for her to chew on.

So, she decided...

DUCK it, it can stay!

I heart SUNDAYS

Sundays are my favorite days! Why?

I GET TO SLEEP IN!

Joe gets to sleep in on Saturdays and I get to sleep in on Sundays. And well...Monday through Friday NOBODY sleeps in around here.

Most mornings start at 6:30 a.m. for Reese and I. I guess I shouldn't complain since she goes to bed at 7:00 p.m. MOST mornings I can't wait to see her smiling face. I say MOST mornings because sometimes I wish I could see her smiling face around 8:00 a.m. instead.

I do SO look forward to having that extra hour and a half of sleep each Sunday. Honestly, sometimes I can't get back to sleep after Reese wakes us up on the monitor, however, just knowing I can roll around in bed and daydream is TOTALLY AWESOME!

Almost as soon as I come downstairs Joe lies down on the couch and says "I am in need of a nap!" Then a few moments later he looks like this...

I am thankful for this man. He loves Reese and I so much and the feeling is mutual!

I HEART SUNDAYS!

Nature Walks

Recently, it has been TOO HOT to go on our usual afternoon walks around the neighborhood. I think it's important to get Reese outside each day though--even if it's just for a few minutes. The change in scenery does us both good.

Reese has been interested in all the new sights and opportunities to touch new things on our "nature walks."

She LOVES touching leaves and pulling them off trees.

She likes looking at and touching the flowers, too.

She isn't quite sure if she likes the feeling of bark yet.

However, she does seem to like the feeling of grass on her feet. 

For now anyway. 

The thing she seems to like best of all during our time outside together is watching her canine brother and sister, Tucker and Bella, roll around in the yard and play fight each other. Her siblings HATE to be photographed, so unfortunately I don't have a photo to share of this. 

I think this summer is going to be a HOT one. My prediction is Reese and I will be going on quite a few of these Nature Walks!

Reflection

I have been putting Reese in front of the big mirror in our entry way the last few days. She doesn't want to seem vain or anything, but...

She

is

LOOKING 

and She's

LIKING!

Like Mother, Like Daugther

We all have our favorite sleeping positions. Before I got pregnant I used to sleep on my back with my hands on my stomach. Boring I know, but hey I was comfortable. Occasionally when I woke up I would be flipped over on my stomach, but all in all I was a back sleeper. After I got into my second trimester of pregnancy I was forced to change from my favorite sleeping position. All the books I was reading and my doctor recommended that I sleep on my side to allow proper blood flow to the baby. It was difficult to adjust at first, but eventually I got used to it and actually grew to like it. Towards the "bitter end" of my pregnancy, as I like to call it, I had a bazillion pillows all around me to help me sleep. Joe would always make fun of the fact that he couldn't even kiss me goodnight because of the pillows that barricaded him.

From the beginning Reese has had some strange sleeping habits. For one, she makes the strangest noises while she sleeps. Noises that are so loud I think she must be awake when in fact she is asleep. Also, babies are meant to be swaddled after being born, however, Reese wasn't having ANY of that. She absolutely hated to have her arms restricted and still does. This is a picture of Reese swaddled from the arms down--just like she liked it!

Reese wasn't the best sleeper in the beginning. Actually, she hated to sleep! I often thought there must have been a mixed up at the hospital, because any child of mine should be a sleeper. I used to consider myself a professional sleeper. When she did sleep, though, her favorite sleeping position was in my arms laying chest to chest. My mom had to purchase a "Nap Nanny" when we got really desperate, so I could have a break from holding her. The "Nap Nanny" advertised to make even the most difficult napper, nap. Here are some pictures of her in the "Nap Nanny." Sometimes it made a napper out of her--sometimes not.

This is my favorite "Nap Nanny" shot.

 I did not put her in like this. 

She hiked her leg up on her own.

Since she has started sleeping in her crib Joe and I set up a monitor so we can see and hear her at night. Our room is upstairs and Reese's room is on the main level, so we invested in a monitor with a far range. Here are some monitor shots of Reese sleeping. Sometimes Joe and I laugh at her unusual sleeping positions. It doesn't look like she could possible be comfortable in some of these, however, she must be. 

 Reese facing the back railing of the crib. OUCH!

Her head facing the railing in the other direction. OUCH again!

Her favorite sleeping position.

Most of the time her body forms a X.

I never understood how Reese could find sleeping with her arms beside her head comfortable. That was until Joe took this picture one morning of the two of us sleeping together. I guess that saying "Like Mother, Like Daughter" holds true--with the way Reese and I sleep anyway.

Sometimes, I miss sleeping with her next to me or on my chest. I will never forget those precious sleeping times we shared together. I loved knowing she was safe. I loved hearing her breathe. I loved having her close to me. 

Need a laugh?

We took Reese to get a Passport back in March. She needs one for our upcoming trip to Niagara Falls.

I had this task all planned out. First, I took her to our local pharmacy store to get her Passport photo made. I strategically planned this outing right after Reese woke up from a nap. I had her in a cute outfit, her hair was nicely combed, and she was in a chipper mood. The photo she took  wasn't great by any means, however, it wasn't awful either. "Acceptable" was the term I would use to describe it. I thought "Hey, she could live with this photo for the next 5 years", so I paid my 10 dollars and was on my way.

The following day Joe took off work and him and I made the trip to the Post Office to complete the Passport process. We had already filled out all the necessary paperwork, had Reese's photos, had our check payment ready, and we were both present.
Side note: Both parents must be present in order to obtain a Passport for a child.

BOTTOM LINE: We were PREPARED! Or so we thought we were.

The lady helping us took one look at the photo the pharmacy had taken and said, "Well, we have a problem here." My eyes widened, "What's the problem?" Apparently, the photo was WAY too big. She told us we had two choices. One would be to return to the pharmacy and retake the photo and then return to the post office to see if the photo met the Passport requirements OR she could take an acceptable photo right then and later we could return to the pharmacy and ask for a refund. Joe and I looked at each other...what to do? what to do? decisions! decisions! We opted for choice B. This required us to wake Reese up (she was sleeping in her car seat at the time)...HUGE mistake. She had spit up all over her outfit, her hair was NOT photo ready, and she was pissed that her nap was interrupted.

After several minutes of trying to position fussy Reese and take a photo that the lady helping us deemed acceptable....THIS is the photo that we ended up with.

My stress level must have been pretty high, because I actually AGREED that this photo was acceptable, too. It wasn't until the official Passport showed up several weeks later that I realized HOLY CRAP I can't believe Reese is going to have to live with this Passport for the next 5 years of her life. What the heck was I thinking? Then I died laughing and peed my pants a bit from all the laughing I was doing.

I hope this photo brightens your day and makes you laugh so hard you pee your pants a bit, too!

Dads

Reese's "Papa Bear" LOVES babies and is so good with them! He sings songs, rocks, cuddles, makes silly faces, changes diapers...there is nothing her Papa Bear won't do for her!

Here he is in action...

Papa Bear with Reese--2 days old

 Papa Bear with Reese--4 days old

Papa Bear with Reese--Easter 2011

Papa Bear with Reese--5 months old

Reese might call him "Papa Bear" but I call him Dad. I love my Dad. He's the coolest guy I know! Here we are dancing to the song "My Girl" on my wedding day.

This was one of the songs he sang to me growing up.

Dad--I hope you have an AWESOME FATHER'S DAY! Thanks for taking me to White Water and Frontier City growing up, singing songs to me, and for being "My Secret Admirer" every Valentine's Day.

Reese is happy to have received your good Kloiber genes and to have turned out as good lookin' as you! 

 If this isn't good lookin'--I don't know what is!

Happy Father's Day to the other Dad in my life. The step-dad I've known for over 25 years. Growing up we rode our bikes to go get candy on Fridays, he made me go to bed at 7:00 p.m. (which I now understand why), and he helped walk me down the aisle on my wedding day. He's the most accepting guy I know! I love you Don! Here we are dancing at my wedding to our father daughter song.

I must say he's a pretty good dancer!

Here are some pictures of me with my dads. It was great to have them both walk me down the aisle. The two most important men by my side on one of the most important days in my life.

And...I CAN'T forget the bonus dad I received that night I married Joe. Mark, or "Paw" as I call him, is a great biscuit and hot dog toast maker, super funny, and gives great hugs. HAPPY FATHER'S DAY Mark! 

Last, but CERTAINLY not least, I would like to wish the main man in Reese's life a HAPPY FATHER'S DAY! I love the way you love us girls and we know how lucky we are to have you!

And where were all my dads when Reese was born? Yup! They were all at the hospital waiting and ready to greet her. Man! Reese is one lucky girl to have all these men in her life that love her! 

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY to all the great men I know and love!

Branson Bound

On Wednesday morning we left for a family trip to Branson, Missouri. I really enjoy going to Branson. I like the change in scenery, Silver Dollar City, the outlet mall, and Table Rock Lake. It is really beautiful there and I was looking forward to GETTING OUT OF TOWN if you know what I mean!

This was Reese's first BIG trip! We stayed three nights and four days. She did really well considering her sleeping schedule was off. For the most part she went with the flow of things and we all had FUN! She even did well on the 5 hour drive there and back.

We packed most of the things we "needed" in our SUV. Do you think we had enough to occupy Reese while we were away?

It's funny how babies used to play with just a toy or two and now there's all these things that vibrate, light up, and play music to entertain them. Oh well, I see most of these baby items as NECESSITIES, however, Joe has already given me strict orders NOT to pack this much when we go to Niagara Falls next month. I agree. I did go a bit overboard.

When we arrived on Wednesday afternoon we headed to Silver Dollar City. Grandma Sanders and Aunt Tiffany watched Reese while Joe and I rode rides. It had been awhile since I had ridden a roller coaster. It was so much fun! Thank God for family members willing to watch babies!

When I wasn't riding rides, Reese and I hung out in the shade and played!

I think we look a bit alike here. What do you think?

On Thursday, we spent a full day at Silver Dollar City. We couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day. We made sure to get a family picture.

Reese was a trooper, but by the end of the day she was a tired little girl.

The last day in Branson we rented a boat and a jet ski on Table Rock Lake. Reese DID NOT care for her life jacket, however, once the boat got going she fell asleep. Her cousin, Jaydyn, decided to join in on the napping...I guess a boat has this effect on babies. Note to self : Buy a boat.

Reese in blue. Jaydyn in pink.

A close up of the sleeping beauty. Oh how I love her!

All and all we had a blast in Branson. I look forward to the day when we are BRANSON BOUND again!