T-Ball!

Jackson started t-ball a couple weeks ago and he is loving it! The first practice was...interesting! Watching a bunch of 3 and 4 year olds trying to listen to the coach and take direction is as my friend said 'Trying to herd cats'. But we're 3 practices in and it's getting better! Jackson improves his hitting, catching, and throwing at every practice. I can't wait for his first game!

THIS is what I was so looking forward to as a parent. Seeing the kids have fun with activities,and doing them as a family. The practices are at 6 so Billy has been able to come to all of them so far, and he loves being able to help coach. I love it when Jackson looks back at me excitedly when he does a good job!

'Mommy, look!' with a big grin on his cute little face. I'm hoping to get Amelia into a dance/gymnastics class here soon. I'm sure she'd love it!

Here are some pictures of Jackson at practice!

Mr. Wes

Some new pictures of this cutie! I can't believe he is already 4 months old! As I have said before, he is such a HAPPY little guy. Loves to smile, giggle, and gnaw on stuff. I'm pretty sure he's going to be getting teeth soon.

New goals

So before my babies, I had a pretty nice body. I played sports in HS, and while I wouldn't say that I was always in the best shape ( I have terrible endurance), I always had a nice figure. For the most part, my body went back to how it was after Jackson. Buuut not so much after Amelia. I guess I always just had the excuse in my head that there might be one more baby after her, so that was my excuse to not work harder at shedding the baby weight. But here I am, 26 and at my heaviest. 150 pounds. To be honest, I really don't care what my weight is, but I really would like to get rid of this 'mama gut'. I'd like to tone up all over, and just be proud of my body again. I'd also actually like to get into shape. I HATE running. As I said before, my endurance has never been amazing, so i'd like to improve that.

We have a park right by our house that has a 2.2 mile walking path around a lake. I've been walking that once a week with my friend Tara, and it's always a nice workout! There are hills and I push about 40lbs worth of kids in my double stroller, which is heavy itself. But more than half of it is shaded by big trees so it's enjoyable. And it's nice to have someone to do it with.

I also got myself a membership at Gold's Gym. My friend Tara goes there and she does classes almost every morning. $39/month includes childcare for all 3 kiddos, so it's definitely worth it. We usually go while Jackson is at school, and it gives Amelia a chance for interaction with other kids as well. Today I did a weight lifting class and I definitely felt the burn! It was a nice feeling...kind of. Haha

My goal is to try and go at least 4-5 days a week. I know that eventually i'll probably have to change my eating habits to really lose the weight, but this is a good start. I'm still breastfeeding so i'm not going to get crazy yet. I am going to cut back on my Starbucks Iced Vanilla Macchiattos and try and make my own version at home. One that will have alot less sugar and calories i'm sure.

I'm excited that I actually took the steps to start getting in shape! I can hate the way I look, but if I am just sitting around on my bootie and not doing anything about it, who am I to complain. So here I go!

Jackson started Pre-K!

Well, the title says it all. My 4 1/2 year old is in full time school! Ahhh! When we first moved to GA, a couple people had told me that GA had state-funded pre-k, but  often it fills up fast and you have to get on a waiting list. I was okay with just doing regular preschool, I just wanted to get Jackson back into something because he loved his first year. I started looking around our area and found a place right by our house. I went in for a tour and loved it. When I had called the lady had told me that their public Pre-K was full but that we could get on the waiting list and sign up for their private Pre-K. So when I was there touring the facility, I was surprised to hear that they actually had a couple spots open for the Georgia Pre-K! It was their other location that was full. So I signed Jackson up that day!

It was a big difference from what he was in last year. Last year he went two days a week, for 2 1/2 hours. This program was 5 days a week, for 6 1/2 hours!! Crazy! But we only pay $100/month towards food. I just could not pass that up. I was worried that it might be too much for Jackson, but they break up the day pretty well. The kids have an hour of outside play, a 45 min lunch, and an hour of 'rest' time. In addition to their learning and activities of course!

So far Jackson seems to love it! He wakes up in the morning asking if it's time for school yet, and goes to bed at night talking about going the next day. Here are some pictures from his first day!

My sweet boy

THIS boy is just the sweetest. He is always so happy, smiley, lovey. He's just perfect. Everyone always asks me if he ever cries. He does, but rarely. Usually when he just wants to be held, or if he's hungry. He's so laid back and I just love him to death.

We are working on some picture projects. I got him this outfit in a size 12 month, and I plan on photographing him in it at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months to see how he grows into/out of it. I would have done it every month, but just got the idea from a friend now. So it'll have to just start at 3 months lol

I might have to redo the 3 month ones because my lighting was off, but I still love these ones :)

School!

Last night Billy and I went to an open house for Jackson's pre-school. He is enrolled in the Georgia Pre-K program and starting Tuesday, he will be going Monday-Friday froom 8:15-2:45! Such a long day! Last year he only went 2 days a week, for 2 1/2 hours. I really hope he loves it. He's been talking about going nonstop since I signed him up last month.

Looking at the agenda, it seems like the day is structured pretty well. In addition to learning, he will have an hour of outdoor play, an hour lunch, and they get a quiet/rest time as well. This afternoon I will take him to meet his teacher!

I think it'll be an adjustment for all of us. For myself and Amelia, because we are so used to having him around all the time. They play so well together and keep eachother entertained. And Billy is bummed that he won't have Jackson home on his Thursdays that he has off. I have been pinteresting it up trying to find fun activities and crafts to do with Amelia. So if anybody has anything that they have tried and loved, I would love to hear about them!

A little bit of 2014

So far 2014 has been quite the year. Billy had been talking about the possibility of moving to Georgia for work for about a year, but I was never interested in entertaining the idea because the thought of leaving our friends and family was not something I was interested in.

However, in November, my parents moved to California for work. That was hard because I saw my parents every weekend. Being so close to them was great for all of us. Knowing that my IL's would soon be traveling quite a bit once my FIL retired, my 'being close to family' idea was pretty much not an excuse anymore.

The reason that Billy wanted to move was for the possibility of a promotion sooner in a new region. It was just a better opportunity for him to grow in his career. While I still hated the idea of leaving our friends, I knew that now was the time to move, before the kids get too big and start school. So I told Billy that he could go ahead and send in a transfer request. I was very pregnant with Weston, stressing about when we would hear if Billy got the transfer or not. Finally we heard that they did indeed accept his transfer request, and they wanted us in Georgia as soon as possible. We listed our house in Arizona and sold it in the first week, and Billy found our house for us here in Georgia.

Weston was born on April 21st, 2014 after a VERY short labor. Like 90 min from start to finish. It was crazy. He was 7 pound, 12 ounces and 20 inches long. Just like his brother.

We left Arizona on May 18th and got to Georgia on May 22nd, after staying with Billy's family in MO for a couple days in between. We stayed in a hotel for 2 weeks (it was miserable) before our house was ready on June 5th.

So yea, crazy year so far!