Riley is such a big girl already..........

So my baby girl had her 6 month check up today and we all know what that means- immunizations. Two sticks to the thighs that make her cry to the point she holds her breath. But like the title says- she's a big girl and she immediately stopped when I picked her up and acted like nothing happened! She did have some acetaminophen before the shots just to keep the pain down, but I doubt Tylenol is suddenly a super drug that takes effect in 2 minutes. I can't help but brag about her accomplishments!

As for the rest of the appointment, she is awesome and doing great. Her weight is up to 17lbs 13.4oz and she is 26.5 inches long! She grew 1.5 inches in only 2 months! I wish I could do that! As a comparison, Dylan was 19lbs 5.4oz and 27.25 inches long at his 6 mos appointment. They both ride the 75th percentile strong! But alas, Dylan just got over a sinus infection, so it's Riley's turn to get sick- double ear infection. But she's a trooper because she didn't get a fever or extra fussy or anything... just a runny nose and I thought that was allergies (turns out allergies don't appear until around 2 years old!). So she is going back on amoxicillin.

Right now Riley sits up all by herself as well! She is a pro at it and hates to lay down unless she is sleepy. She will lean over too to look around you or something to see something else! How cute is that?! She loves to chew on things now too- paper! board books! her bib!  her spoon! Anything besides a teether really. I am uber excited though that she never got into a pacifier (same as Dylan) that way I don't have to break her of that habit.

On another note, Mikel started back on 1st shift yesterday. It was so awesome to have him back at night to help get kids ready for bed and eat dinner with us and everything. Hopefully I will now become more of a morning person too.............It's amazing how having your husband work 2nd shift can change your routine around... definitely not for the better! I am up at 5:20am to take on Olivia (little girl I babysit) and then I check my email and Facebook and Reddit and then, THEN I start BREAKFAST! Yesterday was oatmeal and not he instant crap and today we had omelets! Yes! Ham and cheese omelets with toasty toast! Mikel, Blaze, and I all ate together! Dylan and Riley and Olivia were still asleep and that's probably for the best! My only wish was that I was a coffee drinking fool. I despise coffee and need some sort of caffeine to jump start me in the morning.... and it's probably not good to be drinking Dr Pepper with my ham and cheese omelet.............yeah. Right now would also make an awesome nap time.... as I am losing my umph... but my 2nd wind comes when Mikel gets home. :-)

Oh, and my cute little momma's boy, Dylan, went to sleep in his bed last night. He is the product of co-sleeping and I am too soft to break him of it... but now that everyone is changing routines, so must he! I got his Spongebob bedding all cleaned and made and nice and he only cried for like a minute... granted he woke up at like 4:30am and climbed into our bed. Baby steps. Baby steps.

Going on noon now.... time to make lunch and lay the kids down for a nap... Keeping Olivia today until 4p....so she will have a nap. She is quite the handful...and I hope she doesn't rub off on Dylan.

The Beginning....

What an accomplishment- I have picked up pieces of time alone though out the day to get this blog rolling! Ideally, I hope that it will give me an outlet to discuss and keep track of my babies as they all grow up. Facebook didn't really seem like the best place to discuss poopy diapers and ear infections and field trips and school grades. I've been following a blog on here that a friend pointed out to some of us and I always look forward to checking up on it to see what is new. It is also a mommy blog and makes me feel better about the little things I get excited about over the kids.

So to begin- a little about myself:

I am 25 years old and married to a wonderful man, father, and husband- Mikel. He is also the most fertile man I know... leading to the point where I tell you I have 4 children total. They are all his, but technically only 2 are mine. Blaze was his first- he is nine years old. We have custody of him and he is in the 3rd grade. Then along came Mya... she was unknown to us until her first birthday. She is the result of one night of indiscretion and will be a great example of what can happen when we have "the talk" with Blaze. She lives in Missouri with her mom and we have visitation. Together we have Dylan. He was quite a surprise as well. He is going to be 3 yrs old this August. He is the cutest thing I've ever seen and turned my life into something quite different than I ever expected it to be. Riley Ann arrived this past October- another surprise. She is my baby girl and our last child. I feel like if I had the financial means to I would have more children, but let's face it- four is enough!

I recently finished my AAS in Medical Assisting, but am staying home this year to enjoy Riley. I know I want to go back to work soon, but I can't complain about staying home with Riley during this stage in her life.

We live in a great town, in a wonderful little neighborhood. Picture perfect with a fenced in yard and playground and dogs to run around with, neighbors who all know each other and get together for cook outs and bonfires, and a mail lady we know by name and knows my kids and dogs.

As great as it all sounds, I am missing something. I have come to realize I need something for me. I am obsessed with taking care of the kids and making sure they have want they want and need, to the point where I go without. I need time alone. I need friends. I need new bras. I need a babysitter willing to take on 3 kids for cheap. I need adult conversations with adults. I need to learn to take what's offered, when it's offered and when to say no. I need to learn that it's okay to not want to be with my kids every minute of everyday. I need my own life too.

And so here I am... with a blog. Hopefully to meet some friends and mom's that have common wants and needs and lives. To share my life and my children with others. To write about everything that happens as it happens (because sometimes I forget the camera).