Miss Charlotte Marie Jones has arrived!!

She's here!! She's finally here!! We are so excited and happy. I should have made a post sooner, but we have been SO busy with everything that has been going on. But, I am doing it now. August 14th, 2012, started out like most other days, but ended much differently, and not as we had planned, but it was very exciting. I had a doctor appointment that day, first thing in the morning. I expected it to be quick, painless and easy. I could not have been more wrong. My doctor asked how things were, and I told her that I had had some contractions very early that morning, and although painful, they were not consistent and went away and I was not too concerned. I was a little concerned that Charlotte seemed less active, but thought maybe it was because I had spent the evening before chasing Hudson all over at football practice for Austyn. The doctor said she wanted to do a non-stress test to check on the baby. So, I got all cozy in their recliner and hooked up to the monitors. She was moving, but not as much as she should have been, so, they gave me some juice to try to rouse her. It worked. But, I was also having contractions, 7 minutes apart, on the dot. And with each contraction Charlotte was not responding the way they thought she should be, so I was sent to the hospital for further evaluation.

At this point, I called Andrew to let him know, but also still did not feel like it was super serious (baby's movement and heart rate were both good, and there were no signs of labor, other than my contractions that I could barely feel). So I told him not to worry, I was sure I would be out of there in an hour or so and off to work, but I would keep him posted. Well, in the 30 minutes or so that it took me to get to the hospital and hooked up to all their gear, my contractions had gotten a little closer, about 5 minutes apart. So, I called Andrew again, and he came up there to see what was going on. The doctor came in to see me, and said that my contractions seemed to be real labor, because they were so regular, and getting closer. He wanted to monitor me for a bit, with fluids (in case I was dehydrated) and we would go from there. If they didn't stop, they would deliver her that day, since I was scheduled for a c-section anyway and was "full term" because I was 37.2 weeks along. Now I was a little nervous. I thought it was a bit too soon for her and didn't want any complications, plus, we just weren't prepared. I mean, we had everything we needed for her, and all set up, the carseat was in the car and my hospital bag was packed. But, I think mentally I was not ready, and I had loose ends to tie up at work and arrangements needed to be made for Hudson and Austyn and my house wasn't cleaned and the people who were planning on coming to help weren't gonna have enough notice and.... these are just a few of the million or so thoughts that went through my head when I heard the doctor say they might deliver the baby that day. And, deep down, I knew right then, that that was it, I was gonna have a baby that day.

 So, about an hour later, the doctor comes back in and sees that my contractions are now 4 minutes apart, the fluids did not help, and they were actually starting to hurt a little. So, he said there was no reason for me to continue laboring, in pain and risking a uterine rupture, when I was having a repeat c-section anyway, and was going to the operating room to get me in for my surgery. So, I called Andrew and told him we are having a baby today, and he said he could be back in about an hour. I thought that was plenty of time, there was no way they would have me in there in that short of a time period. Nothing ever happens that fast in the hospital if it's not an emergency. Well...I could not have been more wrong. The nurse came in and said she needed to start prepping me for surgery. I asked how long before I was going, and she said... about an hour. WAIT!!! WHAT?!?!?! Now I am panicking. So, I called Andrew, yet AGAIN, and told him he needed to make his hour the fastest hour ever. I didn't want him to not be there. I needed him. So, he promised to do his best. Well, then the nurse comes in and is getting me ready to go and says that they are on their way to get me!!! WHAT HAPPENED TO MY HOUR?!?!? I explained to them that my husband couldn't be there for about an hour, and they said they didn't know if that was soon enough and if they could wait. They called the doctor and he agreed to give me some medicine to try to stop the contractions for a while to buy some time for Andrew, and off to surgery I went. The meds didn't stop the contractions, only gave me the shakes REALLY bad. Not fun.

So, I met the anesthesiologist and went over all that fun stuff, signed a bunch of paperwork for the surgery and to have my tubes tied (that's right, no more kids for us) talked with the nurses and very patiently waited my turn. I was crying because I was scared and worried that Andrew wouldn't make it in time. One of the nurses was kind enough to call Andrew from the OR waiting area, and let him know where to go and told him to call as soon as he got there so she could run out to get him and bring him directly in. We waited and waited for him, but finally, my doctor put the brakes to the waiting and said we had to go in and get it started. My contractions were now 2 minutes apart and painful and it was time to get the show started. So into the operating room I went, without Andrew, scared to death. They gave me the spinal block and were getting started when Andrew FINALLY called and said he was there. So, they ran out to get him and get him in some scrubs and brought him in. Finally!! I felt SO, SO, SO much better with him in there. I stopped crying and felt like I could breath. Then, after what seemed like hours, but I'm sure it was only minutes, Charlotte was born. August 14th, 2012 at 2:26 pm. She was so tiny. They held her up so I could see her, then took her off to wash her up before giving her to Andrew for him to come sit by me and hold her so I could see her and kiss her. She was absolutely perfect, like all of my kids. Then, off they (Andrew and Charlotte) went, to the room, while they finished up the surgery on me. I felt like I was in the recovery room for eternity!! It was taking forever for the spinal to wear off. I just wanted to see and hold my baby!!!! I finally got to go up and see her. My dad and Connie were already there, waiting, but Andrew said no one could hold her until I did. So sweet. She was so precious, and tiny!! She was only 6 lbs 5 oz and 18 3/4" long. My smallest baby yet. So, here are some pictures of her first couple of days.

The first picture of momma and Charlotte. I just love her to pieces.

My pretty little girl.

4 of our 5 family members. Unfortunately, we weren't all together at the hospital, so there are is not a full family photo of that occassion.

Daddy and his little girl.

Hudson was pretty excited when we brought her home.

The first time Hudson got to hold her. He loved it!! So, in closing.... we are adjusting pretty well. Our little family of 5 is complete. I love every aspect of it. Never a dull moment, that's for sure. Charlotte is a pretty good baby, although not *quite* as easy as the boys, but her "crabby" times aren't as bad as they could be, so no complaints. She's healthy and happy, and beautiful (of course) and that's what matter the most. I am still recovering from my surgery, this time is taking a while, mostly because I haven't really had a lot of time to rest since I am chasing Hudson most of the time that I am not taking care of Charlotte. We will get there eventually though. The boys adore their little sister. She is still sleeping most of the time, but I am sure once that "newborn sleepiness" wears off, things will get even more interesting around here. 2 kids under 2 years old is definitely a challenge, but we are all doing well, and have received help from family and friends that is GREATLY appreciated. Andrew and I are both exhausted, but it comes with the territory, and it's all worth it. And things will get easier the more we find our groove. But, in the end, no matter how hard it is, how tiring our frustrating, I have to say, we are the happiest we have ever been and both feel happy, satisfied, and completely in love with each other and our kids. Things are better than ever, and continue to get better every day. It's perfect. :)

Summer fun.

Whew! It's been a while since I have done a blog. Totally slacking on it. But, it's because we are busy. With life. Work, activities, family time, getting ready for baby... you know, all the good, important stuff. So, the blog got put on the back burner for a while. But, i guess, I should do an update, so I can record how awesome of a summer we are having. :)

Ahhh, the beach. Lake Superior. So beautiful and fun. The beach has been a favorite destination for us this summer. Huddy loves it. He loves the water, the waves, the sand, all of it. He chases birds, throws rocks and sand into the water for as long as you will let him, and will "swim" until his teeth are chattering and his skin is freezing to the touch. He is out little water baby for sure. I'm thinking swim lessons are in order soon. Can't live this close to the water and not take swim lessons. I feel so lucky to be this close to the lake. What a wonderful place to spend good, quality family time.


Brothers, having popsicles together. This picture is so awesome. I absolutely love it. Hud loves being with Austyn. And Austyn has been so helpful this summer with Hudson. With me being very pregnant, it's been hard to keep up with him, especially in the heat, and Austyn has done a really good job helping out, and this picture is a good example of that. There is such a big age gap with these 2 that I was very worried they wouldn't bond, but it doesn't appear that this will be a problem. I love my boys!!!

Ahhh, me and my big pregnant belly. This was for mine and Andrew's anniversary. We were going out for a little date night of dinner and whatever to celebrate. I was excited to have a date and so I dressed up and made myself all "pretty". It was also my first "belly picture" of this pregnancy. I guess it didn't turn out too bad. Andrew and I have been married for 3 years now, and going strong. We have our moments, like any couple, but nothing that can't be worked through. I love my husband, for so many reasons that I just don't have the time to list right now. I love our family. I love our life together for what it's been already and where it's going. I couldn't have asked for more in a husband, marriage or life. Things really are great. I'm not really the mushy type, and don't like to post all this rainbows and roses stuff, but I just felt I needed to get this out there, for whoever reads this, everyone or no one. Mostly for me, him, US, to look back on in years to come. So we can see where we were, how far we've come and remember all the good, bad and indifferent.

This picture of Hudson and Andrew is priceless to me. It's at Harlow park, across the street from our house. Another favorite summer destination for us this year. Hudson is totally obsessed with the slide. And fearless. Andrew is the one who has to take him down, repeatedly, since, well, I'm pretty big at this point. haha. This picture just captures how much fun they both have, and just the love of father for son and son for father. I absolutely adore this picture. Andrew has also been very helpful during my pregnancy (as he should be, hehe) with Hudson, Austyn and the housework. I had a rough pregnancy (as stated in a previous blog) and it required a lot more out of Andrew to keep this family and household going strong. Not to brag, or "toot my own horn" but I really do a lot around here to make our house a home and keep the household going (so does Andrew) so it was A LOT for him to have to take on, on top of his "duties", when I just couldn't keep up with my "duties"at times. I cannot be more grateful to him for all of his hard work and understanding. Again, he's an awesome husband. I'm gonna go with the best, even. Although, my opinion might be biased. ;)

My brother Chad, his wife Libby and my niece Caitlin came up to visit on their way from Louisiana to Alaska. It was nice to be able to visit with them, since we usually only see each other once or twice a year. Anyway, we tried to get some fun stuff in while they were here, and one of the "events" was a trip to the Children's Museum. This is Austyn "blowing his hair back" with some wind power. HAHA. This picture cracks me up. He will probably hate me for this in a few years, but that's ok. It's awesome.

And here is Austyn at the beach. He is really growing up fast, into quite the handsome young man. This was one of our first trips to the beach this summer, and it was a little cold for the water still. Austyn got ALMOST all A's on his report card again at the end of the school year. He got one little B and was NOT happy about it. A hard lesson in life I guess. Next year is a new year, a new start, and I guess he will have to hit the books a little harder this time. I told him, it's only gonna get harder to maintain all A's from here on out.  He signed up for football again this year. I'm excited for that to start. He has also been riding his bike 2 miles a day for a few weeks now in an effort to "get into shape" and prepare for football season. We are very proud of him for doing it and sticking to it. He even gets up and does it first thing in the morning, before it gets too hot to be able to do it.

Another favorite activity (mostly of Hudson I think) is sliding down his slide into his pool. We also have a sprinkler for him to run through that he loves. Thank goodness for our super awesome neighbor for letting us use her yard for our water activites in the summer, since we don't really have one. Austyn likes to go out and play (I think) with Hud in the baby pool. Again, they get along really well and I love to watch them "play" together. Austyn is just really, really good with him. Better than I could have expected or asked for. Although, he does have his moments when he likes to pick on Hud and make him scream. But, I guess that's to be expected, with any siblings from time to time, no matter how much of an age gap there is. Can't have it all I guess.  :) It's all in good fun, even if it's not fun at the time.

So, to wrap it up...... We have been having an awesome summer. Beach time, family time, great weather ( a little too hot for me at times, but it's better than snow I guess) fun activities and lots to look forward to. We have been busy working, playing and getting ready for this baby. I had a baby shower last week, that turned out really nice. Great company, food and gifts for the baby. We are so grateful for the wonderful family and friends we have. Everyone has been so helpful too.  Her bedroom is done, and everything is in place for her to be here, we are just waiting on her. :)  The c-section is scheduled for August 29, so a little over 5 weeks from now!! That's coming up fast, but I am ready and counting down the days!  I'm excited to meet her, and excited to be done. Things have gotten better towards the end of this pregnancy, and I am grateful for that, but I am ready to be done. For good. Then, our family will be complete. I am sure the next blog you get from me will be about a new addition to our family. I can't wait!!!!!

IT'S A ...........

GIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WE ARE HAVING A GIRL!!! WE ARE SO, SO EXCITED!!!

We had our ultrasound a couple of weeks ago, and found out, without a doubt, that our final family member is going to be a little Miss. :) I am the most excited momma out there I think. Obviously, I would have been happy and excited with either, just a healthy little baby, but I am so glad to have the opportunity to be the momma of a daughter, as well as my sons. She will be a blessing to our family, and we just can't wait to meet her.

So, here is a picture of our little lady. She is waving to us. So awesome. Measuring right on target, unlike my boys, who were always a minimum of a week ahead of schedule. We haven't officially decided on a name, but have a few favorites we are tossing around. One in particular seems to be sticking out, and that will probably be her name, although, we probably aren't going to reveal it until she is here. So, stay tuned in late August to find out what the beauty's name will be. :)

Here is a cute picture of my handsome boys on Easter morning. It's getting harder to get Hudson to stay still AND smiling for a good picture these days. He's just "too busy" for that stuff. But, they both looked so nice and handsome dressed in their Sunday best. haha. I love my boys, they are so awesome. Austyn is already such an awesome big brother to Hudson, I am sure he will be great with the newest sibling as well. He is excited to have a sister on the way too. Hudson is still too young to really get what's going on yet. Although, I have noticed he has become a little bit more clingy with me, whiny at times and jealous of other people touching or "loving" on me. Could just be a phase or his age, or maybe he senses something, I'm not sure.

And this is just a random picture of Hudson in the tub. It was just sooooo cute I had to put it on here. He seems to have a love/hate relationship with bath time. It's quite odd. He is excited to take a bath usually, but won't go in the bathroom if the water is running by himself (which is a characteristic I love), but once he's in, he loves it. (and to clarify, I DO NOT leave him in there alone, after reading this over, it kind of sounded like that) He likes bubbles and a cup to play with, and LOVES to splash around. He does not, however, like his toys in the tub. I have bought him several different bath toys, but he does not like them in there, or the washcloth. If I put them in there with him, he goes into almost a panic to get them out and on the edge of the tub. Weird, but comical to watch. He doesn't mind water being dumped over his head, which is another trait I love. Definitely makes washing him much easier. And he is not afraid of the drain, which is NOT a quality I love, because I can't use it as a way to get him out of the tub, since he never wants to get out! And yes, I'm that mom who uses "fear" to get her kids to do what she wants at times, within reason. :)

So, that's the scoop for now. Nothing else really going on. I have been feeling MUCH better these days, so that makes me (and I'm sure everyone else dealing with me) very happy. We have been doing some spring cleaning, since the weather is finally warming up, and of course, garage saling. I love a good deal at a garage sale. My sister is moving out in a couple of weeks, so we will be doing some rearranging and painting and decorating for our new room, Hud's new room and, of course, the baby's room. Our anniversary is coming up this month and Austyn will be 12 this month as well. Busy, busy month for us. Good things happening. Bring on the summer!! YAY!

Exciting News....

So, I haven't made a new entry in a while. Partly because I have been pretty busy and partly because I just haven't felt up to it. Now, our computer is broken, so I can't upload pictures, but I figured it was time for an update, since some exciting things have been going on for us. So, no pictures, but good news. Deal with it. ;)

Well, most of you (whoever you is, whoever reads these blogs I post.) already know, Andrew and I are expecting a baby this summer. We are so excited about this and cannot wait to welcome our newest addition to the family. Our "official" due date is September 2, but, I will be having another c-section, and ending my baby making career at the same time. hehe. So, we know we will be welcoming the baby sometime at the end of August. I think we would anyway, even if I wasn't having a scheduled c-section, since my kids tend to come a few weeks early. In any case, we don't have an exact date set yet, but will within the next month or 2 I assume. We are having our "big" ultrasound on Monday, April 16, and hoping the baby is cooperative so that we can get a peek at the goods to know if we will be sporting pink or blue this time around. Obviously, we are hoping for a girl, since we have 2 boys and this is our last, but, also obviously, healthy is what matters, and we will love a baby boy just as much as we would a girl. We are just so full of joy about this baby, that I just don't have the words to describe it.
Now, my pregnancies with Austyn and Hudson were pretty uneventful and "typical" I guess you could say. Austyn was a breeze. No complications, no problems, 100% natural delivery, on time (almost 2 weeks early but still full term), of a healthy and happy baby boy. Hudson, pretty much the same, a little harder on my older body, but nothing terrible to note. Delivery was not as easy and ended in a c-section, because I was just not progressing at all, after a day and a half of labor. But, he was still healthy and happy and I recovered fine, it just took a little longer. This pregnancy has been completely opposite. Morning sickness (which I didn't have with my boys) kicked in promptly at 7 weeks. Zofran (anti-nausea medicine) became necessary to be able to function daily at my job and at home with 2 other kids to take care of. Zofran is not easy on the, uh, digestive system. So, that led to a whole new world of discomfort and more medicine. Then, a bout with the flu, then a nasty cold, then the flu again, which that time landed me in the ER to get fluids and more anti-nausea meds since I had reached the point of vomiting blood, gross. During all of this, I was given multiple ultrasounds to check on the baby. During one of these scans, they found a subchorionic hematoma, which is a bleed between the placenta and uterus. There was also a small tear in the placenta. So, that was VERY scary. the doctor said to take it easy and drink LOTS of water, even more than the recommended amount for pregnant women (which wasn't easy since water even made me sick). She said it most likely would resolve on it's own, and not to worry too much about it, since there was nothing they could do for it, and as long as I wasn't bleeding, everything should be fine. So, that was very scary and stressful, but seems to be fine now. Then at around 12 weeks, and this was my favorite (insert eye roll here) the kidney stone. What fun that was! I was in the hospital 2 times for it, on pain meds and it took 3 weeks to pass!!! It was HUGE. It measure 1/4" around at it's largest point. Most of the time, stones that size are surgically removed. But, I passed it on my own, after much suffering, and am glad that is over with. SO, my first trimester SUCKED!! But, we all survived and are moving right along and doing well. For the most part. Sleeping is uncomfortable already, and heartburn seems to have taken the spot of the nausea, but it's all worth it in the end. I am smaller this pregnancy than I have been in my other 2, and haven't gained hardly anything. I blame the morning sickness. But, I'm ok with that, as long as baby is healthy. :)

And now, onto exciting news update #2... We got a new car. Not NEW new, but new to us. I am soooo excited about this. We sold the Saturn Vue. It was a good car, but time to let it go. I have had it for 5 years and it treated me well, but we needed to upgrade. Our family is getting bigger, and there was room, but not comfortable room, especially when you factor in the fact that there will be 2 carseats in the back, those things take up a lot of space. We decided to go with an SUV with 3rd row seating. After some searching, we finally found something we thought suited us well. We went with a 2007 Ford Explorer XLT. It's gray, leather interior, one owner car, new tires, very well taken care of inside and out, comparable on gas to other SUVs and nice and spacious and comfy like we were hoping for. We just love it. I am excited to have a new car. The other "upsides" to this purchase are the facts that we got a car 5 years newer than the other with less miles on it AND lowered our car payment! LOVE IT! When I get the computer back, I will try to remember to post a picture. I am really happy with our choice and hope it turns out to be a great car for our family, I am pretty confident it will.
So, that is the latest from the Jones family. We had a very enjoyable Easter weekend. Hudson got into the Easter egg hunt, briefly, but he did find some. He was just excited to be running around outside with a bunch of kids. Both of the boys looked so handsome dressed in their Easter attire for church, I will have to remember to post a picture of that too. I made dinner at our house and had my dad over. Low key and relaxing (somewhat, since cooking a ham dinner isn't really "relaxing"). But, it was still good. Love having family time. Oh, another notable event - Austyn got all A's, again, on his report card. So proud of him, as usual. He is just so smart. Lets see if the streak continues through high school! ;) I hope so!! But, anyway, this turned out a little longer than I had planned. Hope I didn't bore anyone to death. Thanks for stopping by! :)

New Year Cheer

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone!! It's been a while since I updated, but, like last time I think, not much really going on. But, I wanted to get up a few holiday pics for, well, whoever reads this. :)

For Christmas, we didn't do much. No traveling for us this year. 2 years in a row now. It was kind of nice that way. Next year is definitely our turn to make some road trips. It was kind of sad though, since I didn't get to see my mom.:( I have a feeling we will be making a trip down there soon. Speaking of my mom.... the picture below is of the boys in their Christmas robes from Grandma Amy Hoxie. My mom is so crafty, I love it. And they loved their robes. So cute. Thanks Grandma Amy!! And Hud's is big enough that it should fit him for a while. Nice work!



Now, it's not to say that we didn't have a BUSY holiday season, it just didn't involve significant road time. Which, again, I like. Traveling is bad enough (to me) add winter weather and a toddler, NO.FUN! In any case, we had a busy couple of weeks, but fun, and family, friends and food filled. All of my favorites.




This is our Christmas tree, courtesy of Grandma Susan. I was not going to put one up this year, for obvious reasons. I thought it would be IMPOSSIBLE to keep Hudson AND the cat out of the tree and presents. So, I just said, no tree, and no presents(well, no presents sitting OUT). I didn't think I would mind, but it ended up being kind of sad, and not really feeling like Christmas. I don't think the lack of snow outside was helping!! In any case, imagine my surprise, and joy, when I came home from work one day and Susan had brought the little guy pictured above and had it set up all nice and pretty and festive on top of the piano. It was perfection. I loved it.




My boys, Christmas morning. They were both looking at the camera and smiling when I started to snap this picture. How fast they move!! haha. Still cute. Love them both, SO MUCH!!



This picture above is Austyn and Hud starting the gift opening festivities at my dad's house. That was our first stop of the holiday celebrations this year, on December 18th. Since my dad works odd (and LOTS) hours at the mine, we had to take advantage of his time off to celebrate. It was a nice time, great dinner and great gifts. Hud got a little excited and stir crazy towards the end, so we had to cut the night shorter than anticipated, but, that's ok. We still had fun.

The next stop was Dewey and Susan's on the 23rd of December for what is becoming our traditional Christmas Eve Eve family get together. A delicious dinner, and great company again. I was so excited to give out my homemade gifts this year. I hope they all liked them. :)

After that was Christmas at our house. We were lucky to have SOME of my family here for that. Nick and Chicory were able to come up to celebrate with us, and my sister Richelle lives with us too. She had to work on Christmas, but she was able to be here for the early morning festivities. We decided we were all turkey and ham-ed out, so we went with a steak dinner with baked potatoes for Christmas dinner. Best.Idea.Ever! It was delicious!! Other than that, we just opened MORE great presents and enjoyed our time together, relaxing. It was a great Christmas season, the only way it could have been better is if I got to spend it with my mom, too.



And, for New Year's Eve.... we didn't do much at all, and it was nice. Austyn was at his dad's, so it was kind of a bummer that he wasn't around to celebrate with us, but he was happy to see his dad. We went to Dewey and Susan's for a bountiful snack buffet, and some games. Above, Hudson was "celebrating" his own way, dancing on the table. I think that's his favorite thing to do at their house. We went home about 8, and just watched t.v., until the ball drop. I was shocked I made it to midnight, because I did not think I was going to. :) Must be getting old.
2011 was a great year for our little family. It went by fast, maybe too fast. We had some definite tough times, but I'm positive that they made us stronger. I feel that our marriage is at it's best right now, and only getting better. Our kids are healthy and happy and a point of happiness and reason for a smile on my face everyday. I love them so much. I love Andrew so much. We have so much to be grateful for, and so many things to look forward to. I know that we will become stronger and closer in 2012, and I really look forward to all the new and wonderful things this new year will bring. :) Happy New Year everyone!!!

Just a quick note about the Jones...

I figured I haven't given an update in a while (since Hud's birthday!!)so, it's time. We have been busy, but nothing major to really speak of, so I just kind of let our blog fall to the wayside. But, winter is just about here, it's snowed a few times already, and I am sure we will have some "fun in the snow" blogs soon. Especially since it's Hudson's first winter. (Well, that he will notice the snow anyway.) Should be fun. So anyway, until then I added just a few little pics that are recent, and that I love. :)


My boys, before church and the primary program. They are so handsome when they are all spiffed up. I love Hudson's little outfit. So.Cute. Austyn wants one too, so we are on the lookout for a bigger version for him. He likes to dress up like that, and I love it. Such handsome little men. I wish we would have gotten a family picture that day. Maybe next time.



Halloween, obviously. hehe. One of my favorites. It's so fun. Especially when your kids are still young enough that you get to pick their costume out. ;) Austyn is at the age where he likes to me "scary" things, so he was "jigsaw" from the Saw movies. Yuck. The mask did not scare Hudson a bit, I was actually a little surprised. I have a feeling next Halloween will be a different story. Hudson was a giraffe. I was originally going to have him be either a monkey (to go along with my whole monkey theme I have for him, because I love monkeys :)) or a skunk, because, well, it would have been ADORABLE! But, I found that giraffe costume at a garage sale this summer for $1, so a giraffe it was! I love a good deal, and really?? ONE DOLLAR for a Halloween costume?!?! Can't beat it, I had to buy it. The skunk may happen next year. After I saw all the monkeys this year, I have kind of given up on that idea. Unless I find a monkey costume at a garage sale next summer. haha


And lastly, Austyn's football season ended about a month ago. I think their record was 2-6. :( BUT, that's ok, they had fun, and that's what matters. He loved playing, loved his teammates and loved his coach. I think Austyn's was the only coach out of all the teams that you couldn't hear screaming. haha. He had one mishap during the season, that resulted in a trip to the E.R. in an ambulance. It was probably the scariest moment I have had as a parent thus far, and hopefully forever. It was terrible. He tackled someone, and hit them wrong or something, and hurt his neck. They made sure he could move his fingers and toes, and were pretty certain that his neck wasn't broken, but they wanted to take every precaution (better to be safe than sorry)so they called an ambulance, strapped him to a backboard and took him in for a c.t. scan. All was ok, he had a sprained neck, fixed with some ibuprofen and a neck brace. That happened in the second to last game of the season, and luckily, he was still able to play in the last game, in the dome. He had to wear a different jersey for the last game, since his was cut off in the E.R. He kept it for a souvenir. :) And, it didn't scare him out of playing football. So, I was sad to see the football season end (I love watching my kids play sports!!!) but have something to look forward to next year.
So, there is my quick little update. Sorry, no super exciting news this time, but, it's better than bad news. All is going great with our family, better than ever probably, and just keeps getting better. :) We are looking forward to the holidays, and will be posting updates as they come. Thanks for stopping by. :)

HUDSON IS ONE YEAR OLD!!!

1 year ago, on October 1, 2010 at 7:58 a.m., Hudson Tyler Jones made his appearance into our lives, and changed them forever. :) He wasn't due until the 9th, but decided he was ready to be seen beginning on September 30th. I think he might have then changed his mind because he just would.not.come.out!!! So, after many LONG and PAINFUL hours of labor, an emergency c-section was required to get his stubborn behind to finally join us. He was worth every single miserable second of labor. So, here are a few pictures of his birthday party, and I will give little tid bits of info on him along the way. I hope you enjoy...


When he was born, he was 7 lbs 2 oz and 19 3/4" tall (haha, that's not really "tall" but you get it). That was the 25/50th percentile for both height and weight. I year later, he weighed in at 23 lbs 3 oz and 31" tall, which is the 50-75th percentile for weight and 75-90th for height. So, it appears, so far, we are going to have a tall and slender boy on our hands. We will see. He was bald when he was born, and for the most part, still is. :) He has a few little curls in the back, that are absolutely adorable, but that's about it. He is still the cutest baby ever, hair or not. Although, my opinion is probably considered biased. hehe. But seriously, he is a CUTIE!!


Hudson is, and always has been, a very happy and healthy baby. He has a very calm demeanor, RARELY crying or "mad". He usually has some sort of thoughtful or concerned look on his face, which I think means he is a thinker. He is very attentive of what is going on around him, and loves new things, places and people. I swear he is in a good mood, smiling and laughing about 80% of the time. He is, and always has been, a good eater, good sleeper and well behaved little guy. He just has an awesome disposition. We are truly blessed to have such a wonderful baby. This first year could definitely been harder, but we have been lucky. I can't explain how excited we were to find out we were finally gonna have a baby, then to finally meet him after a long 9 months, then, the icing on the cake, he is practically perfect! :)


Hudson rolled over for the first time at 1 month old, no joke. I think it was a fluke, because he didn't do it again until he was 6 weeks old, and even then it was still sporatic. He was laughing at just under 4 months old, and I still love that sound! He crawled by 6 months and was walking by 10 months old and was waving bye bye at around 8 months old. Now he has discovered that he can climb onto things, and he loves it. He is out little monkey boy. He loves to be outdoors, at the park or on walks or even just playing in the sidewalk in the front of our house. He is a very curious little man. Always learning, quicker than we can keep up.


For his first birthday, we had some family and friends over for a little party. My stepmom made 2 birthday cakes, both pictured in this post, that were awesome!! One was for all of the guests, and one was all for Hudson. We just put it in front of him and let him go at it. He has a good time, as you can see from the pictures. The party was perfect, good food, good people, good times. We are grateful for everyone that came to share the special day with us, for all the help from everyone and for all the great gifts. Hudson had no interest in the gifts during the party, so we opened them later (Austyn helped with that). Everyone gave wonderful gifts that will be put to good use. :) THANKS AGAIN EVERYONE!!!


So, this first year has been fun. As I said, it could have been harder, and we are so grateful to have such a healthy and happy baby. He keeps us on our toes, that's for sure, but it's all fun and exciting. He has hit some pretty huge milestones already, and has so much more, we are just enjoying all the new things everyday. Still waiting on some hair, and a few more teeth, but we're getting there. haha. :) We love, love, LOVE this little man. Both of our boys are amazing, in their own little ways. I am one lucky momma!! Looking forward to many more special years with my kiddos. :)

Football Season Is Here!

It's finally here, FOOTBALL SEASON!! I am always sad to see summer go, but I love, love, LOVE football! It's sort of a comfort for the inevitable end of summer. Fall is my second favorite time of the year. I love the smell of fall, the colors, school starting again (haha), Halloween, pumpkins, spice scented everything, homecoming parades and football! Just to name a few. ;)


So, with all that said, I am super excited that this year Austyn started playing football too!! One more reason to be stoked for the football season. I have always loved watching football, but I think watching your own child play makes it so much better. It's so exciting and gives me such a proud and overwhelming feeling watching him play.


It's crazy how times flies, and I remember thinking, "I can't wait till Austyn is out there on a football field."


He's is doing good, too. He plays on the offensive and defensive line, as well as kick off's and kick off returns. He knows football is about hitting, and he's a hard hittin' kid. I think he is going to do really well with this sport, and I love to watch him play. I was kind of shocked to find myself yelling on the sidelines at his last game. I was really getting into it! haha. I didn't think I was one of "those moms", but I guess I am. Nothing crazy, of course, but I was a little worked up.


This is Austyn, on the ground, after knocking down a kick off ball, and laying on it, to give his team really good field position. So far, they have played 2 of their 6 games, and are 1-1. The last game was a little rough for them. But, hey, you win some, you lose some. It happens. They are all having fun and learning how the game is played, so that's what matters.


And this was him in uniform before his first game. I think he was a little nervous, but he did so good!! His team had the first game of the season, and Austyn got the first tackle of the season. It was so cool hearing them say his name over the speaker. It's things like that, first days of school, games days, dances, hearing your kids name announced during a sporting event or spelling bee or whatever it is that they do and love, that make you feel so overwhelmed with love, happiness and pride. I couldn't be more proud of Austyn, and it makes me feel so good seeing him out on the football field, playing a sport that I love, but more importantly, that HE loves. :) That's my boy!!

Busy little summer...

It's been quite a busy summer for us this year, which is probably why I haven't blogged in a while. We have been trying to make the most of the summer... nice weather, fresh air and sunshine. I love it. So many things have been going on, I don't know where to start. I am sure I will leave stuff out, of course, but just a little update to touch on a few things going on. Oh, and I got the camera working, so there are pictures in this one. :)



Andrew and I had the opportunity to go to Mackinac Island last weekend. Very exciting! :) Kind of last minute, but I was stoked. I had only been there once, when I was in 9th grade, so I was really excited to go again. It was just one night, but it was fun. We are already thinking of making it a family trip for next summer, for at least a long weekend. It rained while we were there, so it kind of put a damper on things, we cut our trip short and it was hard to get good pictures, but we still had a wonderful time. So, the top picture is the lighthouse, obviously. Very cool. And the bottom one is Andrew on the boat on the way over. I am not a fan of large boats or being on one in a huge body of water, so I stayed put in my seat. He was lucky to even get me to sit on the top section!



We were also able to take a trip to my mom's house for a long weekend. That was nice too. We hadn't been down in a while and I was missing everyone, A LOT! The weather couldn't have been more perfect the entire time. My mom has a garden, and it.is.huge!! She has everything imaginable in it, just tons of deliciousness and beautiful flowers. Hudson was a fan of the garden. She also made some awesome jam while we were there to take home. LOVE IT! Thanks mom. Hudson also enjoyed a little sunbathing on my mom's deck, drinking from the hose, as you can see below. I was pretty surprised at how quick he learned to drink from the hose, as in, almost immediately! Such a smart little guy. ;)




Ahhh, the piano. Andrew has been wanting a piano for quite some time now. I found one on craigslist for $50, but it was in Calumet. Well, we didn't think we would find a better deal than that, so we made arrangements to borrow a truck and have a few helpers to go get it. The day we were supposed to go get it, we were informed that a family from the church had one that they were giving away!!! And they lived in the same town as us! SO, a FREE piano AND we didn't have to drive 2 hours to get it!! Can't beat that. :) So, this is the latest addition to our home, Andrew has been playing away already and really enjoying it. It's nice. Thank you very much to the Shearer family for the piano and to all who helped move it. We couldn't appreciate it more.



I planted a "garden" of my own this summer. Just a little test one to see how well I would do. So, I planted 2 rows of sunflowers (my favorite), a tomato plant, a pumpkin plant and a few creeping phlox. So far, so good. The tomato plant has tomatoes on it, the pumpkin plant is alive and flowering although actual pumpkins are questionable at this point, the flowers did pretty well, and my sunflowers are blooming!! The picture below is the first one to bloom. I was soooo excited. It's so pretty. Love it!

Lets see, what else... OH YEAH! Hudson is walking!! He has been scooting around the furniture or making his way around via overturned laundry basket for a few months, but over the past 2 weeks, he has managed to go from that and the occassional few steps from mom to dad to full blown walking. He can make it from the living room all the way into the kitchen. He is still a little tipsy and crashes quite a bit, but he's pretty much got it down. Our little guy is getting so big! So exciting, yet so sad at the same time. Austyn started tackle football this week. Crazy! He is doing really good though, and I plan to get some pictures and do a seperate blog on that soon. So watch for it. ;)
So, that was my "quick" little update. Hope everyone is enjoying their summer. We sure are. Au revoir.

July Fourth Festivities

We had a wonderful weekend. It was busy, but it was a fun busy. Unfortunately, we had a camera that wasn't working, and Austyn took a trip downstate, so we didn't have him with us until the fireworks on Monday night. But, he had fun down there, visiting with family, so it wasn't all that bad of a thing for him to go. The camera not working was a real downer, especially with it being Hudson's first 4th of July experience and he also had his first camping experience. But we made the best of it, and will always have the "mental" pictures for our own memories. haha.
We went camping at Van Riper State Park on Saturday with my Dad and Connie. It.was.packed!! There wasn't a single open campsite, so I'm glad I thought ahead and reserved a site. It's a really nice campground, with a TON of camping spots, but I don't think we will go again on a holiday weekend. I like my camping to be a little more low key than that. They have a really nice beach there, with a park, so we took Hudson down to the lake to check it out. We have a short video of it on here (if it works), and as you will see, he wasn't a fan of the water. Yet. We are working on it though, and I'm sure he will be a little fish by the end of summer. :) He likes his baths, but I think the fact of it being the biggest bathtub ever, along with waves, was a little overwhelming. He did thoroughly enjoy the sand though, and was quite intrigued when I buried his legs. He's so cute. He also did very well sleeping on an air mattress in a tent for the first time. I wasn't sure how he would handle it, but he slept better than I did. He is just such a good and easy going baby. Perfection.

For the fourth, we headed down to the parade in the afternoon. The weather was beautiful. A little toasty to be sitting in the sun for a parade that lasted an hour and a half, but I'm not complaining. I am sooo glad summer in finally here. Hudson wasn't overly excited about the parade, just very interested. He was checking everything and everyone out very intently. We made it through most of the parade without any mishaps, until the end. The fire trucks came by, honking horns and blaring sirens, and that was it for him. His eyes got huge, his lip went out and then came the tears. I felt so bad for him. He wrapped his little arms around my necks and held on for dear life. Poor little guy. It was a little traumatic for him, but he made it through like a little champ. :) After that incident, we headed out to Beth and Stuart's for a family get together. It was good conversation and good food with great people. By the end of that, Hudson, and his sweaty little red cheeks, were whipped! He was asleep before we got home. And I think it's safe to say, he didn't attend the fireworks this year. I was impressed, however, that he didn't even wake up when all the fireworks were going off, considering we only live about 6 blocks from where they shoot them off. Good little sleeper!! Austyn, Andrew and I enjoyed them from the courthouse steps. They had some really cool ones, and an impressive "grand finale". Again, no camera, BOO, so no cool pics. Very disappointing for me. Guess it's time for a family gift to ourselves pretty soon. With kids (especially as cute as ours! hehe), sports, family functions and events, you really can't be without a camera these days. We will work on it.

Well, I hope the video works. And I hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday, and took a moment to reflect on why we celebrate the Fourth of July. Remember to thank our troops (past, present and future) who make our freedom possible. I am grateful everyday for the sacrafices they have made and continue to make for our country, and a proud sister of a soldier, hoping for a safe return home for my brother.

A little video....

Just trying out the posting video skills. A quick little clip of Hudson's first attempt to walk. Enjoy. :)

School is out!!

As of Friday, school is out for the year. Yay!! Austyn was happy to be done for the year. Also, this was his last year in elementary school. Next year, it's off to middle school already. That's crazy to me. I can't believe how old he is getting, or how old I am getting!! :) Either way, we are proud of him. He is growing into quite the young man,(even if it is too soon!). Once again, for the 2nd time this year, Austyn got all A's on his report card. So, for 2 of the 3 semesters, he got all A's, and the first semester he got the same except one little B. But that's ok, can't complain about that!.



On Wednesday, Austyn had his last cubscouts meeting. They got their Arrow of Light award. The highest award in cub scouting. Very cool! Another reason to be proud of him. I love this kid!! Next year it's on to boy scouts! YAY!! He really likes it, and looks forward to it every week. I really think it's a great program and really hope he sticks with it.


A picture of the "family" part of the group, sans Andrew.


And here is one with Andrew and Austyn.

We spent the weekend doing more stuff to the house. My sister and I tore off the wallpaper in the office area and painted it green. It used to be this really dark brown color with a wolf wallpaper along the top. Way too dark for that room, and not really my style. So, since she is moving in with us for a while and we needed to clean it out anyway, it was the perfect excuse to paint it while it was empty. It was a little more work than I expected for such a small room, but it turned out awesome and looks sooooo much better now. I am glad we did it. I think the next project will be to get rid of the wallpaper in the breakfast nook and paint that too. Maybe next weekend, or.... :)

And finally, the last bit of "news" for this weekend update... I got Andrew a flip for a Father's Day/birthday gift. We have been wanting a video camera for a while, so what better excuse than a gift, and killing 2 birds with one stone at that!! (Even though I hate it when people combine my birthday gifts with Christmas gifts. hehe) It's small, quick and convenient. We love it. I tried to upload a video, but it didn't work. There is one of Hudson on each of our facebook pages that you can see (if you're on our friends list). If not, keep checking back, I will keep trying to figure it all out. Until then, thanks for stopping by and have a great week.

Yard Beautification...

This weekend was BEAUTIFUL! So, we spent the weekend cleaning up the yard, again, and adding to it. I decided that I didn't like our lame excuse for a front yard, and, with the help of my sister, ripped out the "grass". That was A LOT of work. Then we put in bricks around the edge, stone pavers to walk on, some hostas and other pretty little flowers. And, to top it off, covered it all up with some red mulch. It looks amazing! Like I said, it was a lot of work, I have the bruises, sunburn and sore muscles to prove it, but it was worth it. I am really glad we did it, and glad my sister was here to help. :)



This is a picture of our hard work in the front of the house. The picture doesn't really do it justice, I couldn't get a good picture. So, if you want to see how awesome it really is, you are just gonna have to come see for yourself. :)


Huddy came out to "help" in the yard for a bit. He just loves to be outside, but he doesn't like his knees to touch the grass, as you can see by this picture. Before we did all the yard work, my sister and I took Hudson for a nice, long walk downtown. I like to go check out the little shops downtown, and he likes to just chill in his stroller, or sleep, which is what he did most of the time.


This picture really has nothing to do with the weekend, it wasn't even taken this weekend, but I love it! Hudson looks like he is jammin' out, it's hilarious!

So, anyway, that was our weekend. It was pretty perfect I must say. Could not have asked for better weather or better results from all of our hard work. I hope everyone else has as great of a weekend as our little family did. Till next time...

50 Random Facts About Me...

I rarely, if ever, do a blog about just me. I don't even know who reads this, or what they want to read about when they do, but I figured I would mix it up a bit from the normal "family life" blog. Don't get me wrong, I love my family more than anything, and like writing about us, but I thought something different would be a fun, nice change. So, I decided to post some random facts about me (as the title states) that whoever reads this may or may not have known. So, here they are....



1. My birthdate is December 15, 1978.
2. I am the oldest of 5 children. I have 3 brothers and 1 sister.
3. I lived in the Grand Rapids area until the 8th grade, when we moved to Benzie County (near Traverse City).
4. I moved to Marqette in 2007.
5. My favorite color is green. Followed closely by pink and orange.
6. My favorite flowers are sunflowers and carnations. Daisies are a close second.
7. I have only been to 2 concerts in my life, both of them were Gary Allan concerts, and I would go again anytime. He is amazing!
8. I can't decide if I like summer or fall better. I love the heat in the summer, but fall is beautiful and I like the smell outside during the fall. :)
9. I make lists for almost everything I do. Which, some may say is more work than what the list is for, but I like to do it, and I actually need to do it.
10. Even with my lists, I forget stuff.
11. I was a cheerleader in high school for basketball and football for the entire 4 years. Captain most of the time.
11. I ran track in high school for one year and fastpitch softball for one year.
12. I only weighed 97 lbs. when I graduated high school!! Kinda weird!
13. I can't decide on just 1 favorite food, I like so many things.
14. I LOVE cheesecake. So much that when I was a little girl, I didn't have birthday cakes, but cheesecakes instead, courtesy of my awesome mother.
15. I am allergic to latex, demoral, walnuts and random fruits, like bananas, kiwis, papaya..
16. I can pop my hip in and out, it's pretty gross actually.
17. I have had 5 surgeries on my left knee.
18. I love to go fishing, out on the lake, rain or shine, warm or cold.
19. I can swim, and love to,but have a fear of jumping off of boats, docks or anything else floating in the water that I will have to swim back up to. I will only enter and exit the water on foot, from and to the shore. PERIOD!
20. I have never been to college, but wish I would have gone.
21. When I was a little girl, I wanted to go to school to be a vet. Of course.
22. If I could go to college now, I would probably choose forensic science. I would love to be a forensic scientist or crime scene investigator.
23. I love scary books and movies, but have found out the hard way it's dumb to watch them alone, day or night! haha
24. I had my first child at 21 years old, and waited 10 years to have another one!
25. My mom and my sister are my best friends.



26. My non-relative best friend lives in South Carolina. We have been best friends since high school, talk almost daily, and we are proof that distant doesn't matter for TRUE best friends.
27. I have never been any further west than Iowa. Lame, I know.
28. IF I EVER get to go on a real vacation, I want it to be Hawaii.
29. I hate to have my picture taken.
30. There are rarely any pictures of me without my tongue sticking out.
31. My best subject in school was English, although you probably couldn't tell from my writing skills now. :)
32. I HATE clutter.
33. I'm one of those people that usually tells it like it is. Some people love that about me, some hate it. I have learned over the years though, that there are ways to say what needs to be said without being hurtful, usually.
34. I bit my tongue off when I was a little girl, jumping from the couch to the coffee table. Gross!
35. I hate shopping, all kinds, unless its for my kids or my husband. I can always find a million ways to spend money on them, but never myself.
36. I have never wanted to be a stay at home mom, until recently. And even now, I just wish I could be home at least part time. Not sure I would want to be a full time stay at home mom.
37. I have recently discovered that it's harder than you think to come up with 50 random facts about yourself. hehe
38. My hair is naturally curly (more like wavy actually), I just straighten it every day, and I hate it!
39. I do not like politics AT ALL!
40. The only sport I really like to watch on T.V. is football, and I LOVE IT!
41. I have never been on an airplane.
42. I think a cruise would be cool but I am terrified of huge ships, I don't know why.
43. I am more afraid of june bugs than any other bug, except maybe spiders. It's close.
44. I have had 5 cars in my life. They were all either white or red. strange.
45. I have 3 tattoos.
46. I love the smell of gasoline. So weird.
47. I am still afraid of the dark, or maybe what's in it. Not sure, it's just creepy.
48. I love the 4 seasons, but not a huge fan of winter time. After the first snow, I'm over it!
49. I get excited over stupid things, talk too fast and laugh at inappropriate times, but that's what makes me ME!
50. I probably could have come up with more things about myself, maybe more interesting, maybe not, but I always have a million things running through my head at once, so this is what you get! HA

So, there's a little about me, hope you enjoyed it. Maybe I can get Andrew to do one next, although I doubt it. :) We'll see.

AUSTYN TURNS 11!

May 17,2000 at 6:30 a.m. I was admitted to the hospital and tried to prepare myself for the birth of my first baby. He wasn't supposed to be here until May 23rd, but I was excited to have him coming early, especially on the 17th, my lucky # and softball #. My labor wasn't really that long, or particularly hard (especially to what I would experience 10 years later! :) We didn't know if it was going to be a girl or boy, but I just had a feeling it would be a boy, and I was right! At 6:33 p.m. that night, Austyn Andrew Tabbert entered the world at 7 lbs, 4 oz and 19 1/4 inches long. He was so perfect. His head was filled with fuzzy black hair, and his 10 tiny toes and 10 tiny fingers were the smallest and cutest things I had ever seen.

From the time he was born, Austyn has always been an "easy" kid. He is fun loving, well mannered and polite, smart, thoughtful and kind and has a wonderful sense of humor and personality all around. He has given me challenges along the way, but what kid doesn't. But, I do have to say I am lucky and grateful to have had the honor to be the mother of such a wonderful kid. He is an all "A" student, has lots of friends, loves his family (especially his baby brother), very helpful, athletic (which I really love since I am too) and almost always makes a good impression upon meeting people. (he is an eleven year old boy after all, haha)

So, this year we didn't do a birthday party for him. I have given him a party EVERY year since his first one, and decided it was time to slow down on that. We told him last year that he could only have one every other year from now on. He was ok with that. I did make cupcakes for him to take to school on his birthday, and we also made a cake at home for him that night, in addition to his dinner of choice, spagetti. So, I still did my best to make it special, without going all out.

Here are some pictures of him opening his gifts in the morning. Of course, Hudson had to be a part of it too. Austyn didn't mind, and it was very cute. Enjoy. :)


A cool new shirt. Hudson is just noticing that something is going on over there.


Some more clothes...(I know, boring, mom!) I can't help it, his birthday is the perfect time to get him stocked up for summer clothes! Hudson also got more into it, and helped unwrap these last ones.


And, a video game. Finally! something cool. "Thanks mom"! haha. And then there's Hudson, confused that it was over so soon.
I love my boys, both of them. I can't believe it's been 11 years since I had my first "little" boy. They grow up SO fast. It's kind of sad. But it's been so fun watching him grow into a young man. And I am so proud of him, I couldn't have asked for better kids!