Well, shit.

  Didn't have the greatest night's sleep last night. Andrew got more bad news yesterday, something I did not foresee coming at all, and it kept me up the majority of the night.  My emotions have been going through fits of rage, disbelief, and sorrow, splattered with a lot of not so nice words.
  I gave up with sleep at 6 and decided to distract my thoughts with mindless searching of the interweb. Mostly looking at places to move to. Far away from here. 
  I heard Kate making noises in her room at 7:45 but wanted her to play for a little bit before getting her up for the day. I decided at 8:15 that I was in need of one of her make-everything-better-hugs and opened her door.
  I was not expecting what happened next. A massive wave of the nastiest smell hit me square in the face. It smelled like Duke had exploded everywhere.  Everywhere! I looked around Kate's room and could not see a trace of poop anywhere.
  Then I looked down at Kate. She was oozing from her diaper. There was poop on her pants, her shirt, her blankets and her pillow. Oh.my.gosh. Worst blowout ever.
  I have now gotten her cleaned off and cleaned up, scrubbed her clothes, started a load of laundry and cleaned the bathroom.
  Even though it was quite the mess to clean up, it was exactly what I needed to start my day!  I had been dealing with an over flowing amount of shit, pun intended, in my mind all night and morning. I couldn't wrap my head around it all, still can't, and I couldn't get my mind off of any of it. Go figure I'd have to deal with actual shit.  Just what I needed to get my mind off of mine and Andrew's troubles for a few moments while I cleaned up my sweet baby girl! 
  I've always known that life is unpredictable. Heaven knows I could have never foreseen this coming. This mountain we are climbing in our lives right now seems pretty massive at the present time. I hope and pray that it will look just like a grain of sand in the very near future.
  For now, I will keep having faith in the Lord, that He is watching over us and that this will all work out eventually. 
   For right now, at least, I will be happy with sweet hugs and cuddles from my clean baby Kate!

Another boat day

  Went out on the lake again this weekend. Had a great time with the Strongs. It was perfect timing too. We got out around 2:30 and were home by 7. Not too long but still long enough to have a fun time.
  The Strong kids wanted to ride on our boat back to the dock so I hopped up front with them while Andrew drove us back.  It was rather nerve wrecking for me because I had 4 kids to be in charge of not falling off the boat instead of one.  My heart jump started a few times but the kids had a blast!
  

Birthday weekend

  We had a fun weekend with the Strongs celebrating the twins' third birthday. The weather was finally cool which I loved but it was accompanied with lots and lots of rain. I don't mind the rain but it did hold the kiddos back from playing outside as much as they wanted. Whenever the rain let up the kids would run outside to jump on the bouncy castle and have as much fun as they could before the rain would start up again.
  Opening presents was fun! I loved watching all the kids watch the birthday boys open their gifts, especially Kate!  She was very exited about everything they were getting and wanted to help open presents as well.

  At one point during the evening Kate allowed Brandon to hold her in his lap which is a huge step forward for Kate.  Usually she stays as far away as possible from Brandon, making it a game to run away from him and hide from him, peaking around the corner and then running away giggling.

  Cake and ice cream was delicious.  Kate enjoyed the "pink" ice cream and the frosting on her piece of cake.

  Kate played herself exhausted and passed out on the way home. I was able to change her diapers and put her pjs on without her waking up. Sunday morning we left early for church to stop by the Moseley's to meet their new baby boy, Campbell. Oh my heavens, he is so precious!! I totally could have held him all day. So glad he is doing well and that we were able to meet him!

Labor day weekend

  Had a wonderful 3 day weekend. We started off with a trip out to the lake on Saturday. We had a great time, as usual, but getting out to our little cove took longer than usual. We were waiting for some of Andrew's work buddies to show them the way. They told us they were only a little bit behind us on time so we figured we'd wait. Well, it was a good hour from the time we were in the water till we got to our cove. I was a bit annoyed and Kate being so ready to be in the water didn't help things. Poor thing was crazy hot with her life jacket on and all, ...I was not happy.
  Once we got the boat anchored and started playing in the water, however, things got so much better. Kate was having a great time, we were all cooled off, and, surprise to me, all of Andrew's buddies got into a big water fight with the older kids which was a blast for everyone involved and everyone watching.
  And Abby got in the water for the first time! It was a bit of a shock to her at first but after a couple of minutes she started to enjoy the water.

Right before heading out to the lake.  Abby was all ready to go, Kate...getting there.

Boating back to the dock with the Strongs

Beautiful sunset.  Not sure what Kate is doing, though.

  Sunday was good. Kate happily stayed in nursery which is always a good thing.
  Today we went and did some shoe shopping. Both Andrew and I were in need of new running shoes and Andrew also needed some flip flops. Mission accomplished.
 We had Burger King for lunch which we all enjoyed, including Kate. She is talking so much more now and the whole time we were shopping she kept saying, "ice cream, please." How could we say no to that? So off to BK for a yummy oreo shake.
  Once we got home all the girls, that includes me, took a nap, while Andrew worked outside on the Durango hooking up the wires that connect to our trailer. It took him a ton of work but saved us a good $500. :) He had to take off the back bumper, install the wires, line the wires along the under side of the Durango and hook them up to the engine. Love my hard working man.
  And to finish off our weekend, I went on a quick 2 mile run which starts off my training for a half marathon I will be running at the end of December! I've got quite the way to go but I'm determined to do it!

  Oh, and Abby just keeps getting better and better at eating solid foods.  She's starting to like both fruits and veggies!  Yay!!  Here she is enjoying some green beans.  Yum!

Ray of sunshine on a cloudy day

  Our girls are so sweet. We love their smiles, their laughter, Kate's sweet gibberish which is slowly turning to understandable English, the way they play with each other.  ...  They are the best!
  This past week has been a tough one but they have really been the sunshine shining through the yucky, cloudy days we've been having.
  Wednesday had a nice highlight. Abby started laughing! She was laying down in her crib and Kate came in and started jumping with her. I picked Abby up so she wouldn't get stepped on and so she could watch Kate.  Almost instantly Abby started laughing! It was the sweetest thing and made mine and Andrew's day so much better.

Easy peasy

For the past 4-6 weeks, I lost track of when I started, I have been sharing my bi-weekly (ish) fudgecicle with miss Abby. And she has loved each and every one. At first, eating very little of one was difficult for her. She would have, maybe, half a teaspoon.
  Well, because she has gotten plenty of practice, eating is no biggie to her anymore. She is a pro.
  Because getting Abby something real to eat, and meant for babies, takes more time, I've put it off till today. I can tell she is no longer happy with just milk for a meal so today I whipped out some yummy (and healthy) pears and black cherries.  She gobbled them up like a pro! Easy peasy!

Waiting

  Kate, Abby and I are waiting for Andrew to finish up his weekly meeting with the missionaries and being out here with Kate and nothing else to do has, again, made me realize how grown up my little girl is. Kate is walking on the "balance beams" with her hands on her sides and having a wonderful time just being outside and being with me.
  She has come running at me a few times now, her arms out stretched. I will then grab her arms and swing her around in the air, to which she squeals with delight! Her eyes get all big with excitement and she has the biggest, sweetest smile on her face!
  Gosh, how I adore my Baby Kate.