Living Life Prewitt Style

Morning at Moanalua Gardens

2012-01-09T15:33:00.000-10:00

Yesterday, I took the girls over to Moanalua Gardens to feed the Koi and just enjoy the beautiful afternoon. We had to cut our trip short because Hadley was in desperate need for a nap. This morning I decided to take the girls back because they were asking to feed the fish again, plus Clayton(Trey's brother) had never been and I figured he'd enjoy the scenery. It was a beautiful morning, perfect to spend some time outdoors with the family!

Riley & Hadley get a kick out of feeding the Koi fish. I seriously think they'd stay for the entire day and watch the fish and ducks. Of course Hadley kept watching the Koi eat the fish food and she got nervous when the big ones would open their mouths. She kept saying, "bite me." It was pretty amusing!

After feeding the fish we got smoothies and then walked through the park. It was a perfect day for a nice stroll through the gardens. Emrey passed out in her stroller...must have been all the fresh air!

We spent a good two hours at Moanalua Gardens today. It was a great time and we all enjoyed ourselves. I think next time we'll take a picnic lunch so the girls can stay and enjoy the beauty even longer!

New Years Eve

2012-01-01T14:01:00.002-10:00

It's amazing that New Year's is already here! I swear, the years go by faster and faster the older I get. I feel like I just had Emrey and yet she'll be 1 in five months. We hung out for most of the day and prepped for our New Years Eve cookout that we were having in the evening with some friends. The girls were busy getting to know Trey's brother, Uncle Clayton, who arrived Friday evening. Riley is always quick to warm up to new people because she loves to receive attention! Hadley on the other hand is a little firecracker and it takes time for her to warm up to new faces. Emrey, she's just a smiley little thing and is usually happy, unless she notices that I've left the room!

Friday night, when we were outside with the kids, our neighbor knocked Hadley over and she fell flat on her face. She busted her lip open pretty good. Her mouth was filled with blood, I thought it was going to result in a hospital trip. Luckily it wasn't too bad, but her lip was messed up. It's a good thing I wasn't planning on a new year family photo.

Our cookout was a fun time. We planned an ornament exchange for the kids. Each of them picked a name out of a hat and exchanged ornaments. Riley was lucky, because she got a princess ornament plus a princess Belle doll. Her gift giver broke the ornament only rule! Hadley received a Buzz Lightyear ornament. My friend Sara is so crafty and hand painted Hadley's ornament which made it extra special!

We had all kinds of food to eat and everyone was pigging out! The kids all played until normal bedtime. I took them inside, bathed them, tucked them in, and then went back outside to continue celebrating the New Year. I was impressed with myself because for the first time in 4 years I stayed up until midnight. We had a great time ringing in the new year with our friends.

Three Sweet Girls

2011-12-30T14:41:00.001-10:00

Here are some shots of the girls just messing around. Emrey is a point now where she likes to stand up and hold onto whatever is around her. I came into the room from doing laundry and found Riley dancing around with Emrey. Emrey was giggling up a storm and I immediately ran for my camera to snap some pictures.

A completely happy little girl! She melts my heart!

Riley melts my heart too with her sweetness! She's a great big sister!

And my little firecracker make my heart melt too!

Merry Christmas 2011

2011-12-25T22:07:00.002-10:00

This year was a very Merry Christmas. Trey and I woke up before any of the girls did. So we came downstairs and had a cup of coffee and anxiously awaited for the girls to wake up. It was about 7:30 and they were still sleeping and Trey couldn't wait any longer. I was thinking what a wonderful gift it was that they were still asleep! I walked upstairs to wake them since their daddy couldn't wait any longer, and Riley was just waking herself up and then I heard Hadley. I walked into Emrey's room and she was passed out. I didn't have the heart to wake her. So, Riley, Hadley, and I walked downstairs and they were beyond excited when they saw all of the presents under the tree.

Riley saw her bike and immediately hopped on! She was so thrilled to have a bigger bike. I was thinking it might be a tad too big for her, but she cruises on the 16". Hadley was overwhelmed by all the choices of gifts to open. And everything she opened she wanted out of the box right away before she'd move on to unwrapping the next gift. It was so much fun to watch Riley & Hadley open their gifts and see the excitement on their face after each and every gift they opened.

Emrey woke up around 8 o'clock. So then Hadley & Riley both wanted to help Emrey open all of her gifts. Emrey was more entertained by all the wrapping paper. She tried to eat every piece that she tore off. It was a blast to watch her experience her first Christmas!

After all the excitement of opening gifts, we had breakfast and then I began cooking our Christmas meal. I made turkey, green bean casserole, homemade mac & cheese, potatoes, and stuffing. It was a feast in our house and smelling oh so yummy! We had a fabulous Christmas here in Hawaii!! Riley is already talking about next years Christmas! Thank you to everyone who sent gifts. We are all very appreciative of you thinking of our family. Merry Christmas!!

Photo Shoot

2011-12-06T15:00:00.000-10:00

Every year after Thanksgiving I attempt to get pictures of the girls so that I can put together Christmas gifts for the grandparents. I remember how I thought it was tough with two kids last year. This year proved to be very difficult with three kids! I worked up quite a sweat trying to capture the girls smiles. It is no easy feat to get the three of them to look at the camera and smile at the same time!! I ended up with some good shots though! I was tickled pink with the results!

Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T21:28:00.000-10:00

So, not only did Trey miss Hadley's birthday, but he's also missing Thanksgiving with us this year. This is another bummer, especially because Thanksgiving is one of Trey's favorite holidays! The good news is that he's not alone, he spent his holiday with a friend and his family this year. The girls and I also got to spend Thanksgiving with friends. It was nice not to have to celebrate the holiday alone. We went over to our neighbors house and enjoyed a yummy turkey dinner with a house full of friends. Everybody brought food to eat so there was plenty to go around. We all ate until we couldn't eat anymore. I even attempted to drink a glass of wine with my dinner. After two sips I was feeling all hot and sweaty, I couldn't drink anymore. Apparently, my alcohol free body I've had for the last 4 years couldn't handle the wine! The kids had fun spending the afternoon with their friends. I asked Riley what she was most thankful for and she responded with "my mommy and daddy." Ahhh, I love her!! She made me tear up a bit with that response.

I am thankful for my husband, three daughters, our home, our health, and all of my family and friends. I am a lucky lady and have so much to be grateful for!

Happy 2nd Birthday Hadley!!!

2011-11-21T23:29:00.000-10:00

My second little girl turned 2 today. My oh my, how time does fly! Hadley has definitely been a firecracker since she was born. Very much a mama's girl too. She's a loud little girl who isn't afraid to be heard. I love everything about her, even her unwelcomed sauciness at times. Hadley is quick to put a smile on my face, even if I'm trying to discipline her. She's just got a way from turning rotten to innocent & sweet very quickly. Hadley is one feisty little nugget and I love her so.

I had a little birthday party for her with her little friends. It was a Toy Story theme because Hadley is a Buzz Lightyear fanatic! We all enjoyed some pizza, the kids played games, jumped on the sofa, ate some cake, and opened presents. It was a fun evening filled with friends, laughter and love. Hadley had a blast. My favorite part was watching her reaction when she unwrapped her presents. She replied, "AWESOME!!" after she opened every gift! It was too funny. A big thank you to everyone who sent gifts and helped celebrate Hadley turning 2!!

There was one important person missing today though, Hadley's daddy! Trey has been in San Diego for about two months now. We did talk to him today and he got to watch Hadley open her gift from us. It was a bummer that he wasn't able to be here, but it's all apart of the life we live. I'm just happy that he got to see her through the phone. You have to love technology!!

More Halloween Photos

2011-10-31T21:56:00.000-10:00

I wasn't able to load all of the pictures into the last post, so here are some more Halloween pictures for you to enjoy!!

Halloween 2011

2011-10-31T21:14:00.000-10:00

The girls were super excited for Halloween this year, especially Riley. Originally Riley wanted to be Dora and then changed her mind and wanted to be Belle. She is totally into the Disney princesses these days! Hadley was a Rose Fairy, which was Riley's costume from two years ago. Yay for recycled costumes! And last, but not least, Emrey was a duck! All three of the girls looked absolutely adorable. Each one of them melted my heart!

We went trick or treating with our friends this year. Unfortunately Trey is in California this year and wasn't able to be here. Fortunately, I had the help of many friends to take all three girls around. Hadley freaked out at every person in a mask and every dog we walked past. Therefore I had to carry Hadley the entire time. My friends husband pushed Emrey in the stroller and Riley marched along, leading the way! After an hour of trick or treating we came home and passed out candy for about a half hour, then it was time for baths. Riley insisted on passing out the candy and didn't want me to help, except when a masked figure approached, then I was allowed to pass out candy! It was a really fun time and I look forward to next year when Emrey can understand the holiday!

Last Night in MD

2011-10-16T14:10:00.000-10:00

Our last day in MD was pretty hectic for me. I was doing laundry, gathering all of the girls toys, packing our bags and trying to see as many people as possible to say goodbye. We got some yummy Chipotle as my last meal in MD. Aunt Terry, Chelsea, and Mimi(Mr. Kevin's mom) came over to join us. It was a nice evening, full of laughs. Riley and Hadley were, as usual, pure entertainment! They definitely miss everyone!!

Clark's Elioak Farm

2011-10-14T15:01:00.000-10:00

The girls and I went with some of my friends to Clark's Elioak Farm in Ellicott City. Riley had a blast feeding the goats. Hadley on the other was totally freaked out by all the animals, especially when they "talked." We enjoyed a fun hayride through the farm and enchanted forest. The girls enjoyed their first hayride. After all the rainy days we experienced while in MD, this day was absolutely beautiful and perfect! I'm glad we got to spend time at the farm with some good friends!

Above is Toni and Hadley.

Below is Toni and her little boy, Harry.

My friend Dave, his wife, Lisa, their little girl, Lil and new baby boy, David is in the carrier.

Puzzles

2011-10-14T13:48:00.000-10:00

One of the new things the girls fell in love with was putting together puzzles. My mom had a ballerina puzzle and an undersea puzzle that Riley and Hadley had a blast putting together with her. I was really impressed at how well Hadley did putting together the puzzles. Riley was awesome at it too, but that was no surprise to me! Riley enjoyed the ballerina puzzle and Hadley liked the undersea puzzle because of all the fishy! My mom, full of patience, did both puzzles at the same time with the girls.

Can you tell that Riley didn't want to look at me and smile?!?

Poppy & Grandma Kathy's Get Together

2011-10-14T11:13:00.001-10:00

My dad and Miss Kathy had a family get together while we were visiting. We got to hang out with some of my cousins, their kids, aunts and uncles. It was good to see everyone and nice of them to come over to see us. Dad and Miss Kathy had ribs and wings from Outback, along with hot dogs and burgers. It was fun to see all the kids playing together. It still boggles my mind that now at family functions all of the cousins, who use to be little, now all have kids of their own. My, how the times change!

My dad wanted a picture with all of his granddaughters. Unfortunately we waited until the party was almost over, so the results were not so hot! Hadley wanted nothing at all to do with pictures and the rest of the girls didn't really care to smile either! Here's what I got!

Riley, Hadley, & Po

2011-10-14T10:53:00.000-10:00

Time at Kiki & Po's

2011-10-13T22:13:00.001-10:00

As I mentioned before, my Aunt Kathy came into town to visit while we were in MD. It's always good to see her! The girls loved her, especially at bath time. Aunt Kathy would make bubble from a bar of soap and the bath water with her hands. Riley & Hadley didn't want to get out of the tub, they just wanted more bubbles.

One of the evenings that Aunt Kathy came over for dinner, Trey & I went out to dinner, just the two of us! That is an event that doesn't get to happen often enough for us! We grabbed an early dinner that way I could be home in enough time to feed Emrey. It was quite enjoyable to spend some one on one time with Trey!

Meeting With Lots of Family

2011-10-13T13:59:00.002-10:00

There was, of course, a trip to Aunt Leslie's house. Kiki & Po got some steamed crabs per my request for us to chow down on. Not to mention we also had corn on the cob, which put me in absolute heaven!! We all spent the afternoon surrounded by family. It was so great to see everyone again and have them meet our two latest editions, Hadley & Emrey. My Aunt Kathy drove from Kentucky to visit with us too, so that was an extra special treat to have her there! The girls got to hang out with Kiki, Po, Aunt Leslie, Chelsea and her fiance, Austin, Trevor, Aunt Kathy, Aunt Terry, Uncle Justin, Aunt Sara, Addie & Bella. It was quite a party!! I thoroughly enjoyed myself and was so happy to be able to spend time with so many members of my family!

Here are a load of photos to remember the day:

Visiting Justin & Sara's House

2011-10-13T13:31:00.002-10:00

Trey and I took the girls one Saturday(or Sunday) to play at Uncle Justin and Aunt Sara's house. The girls couldn't get enough cousin time in, especially Riley and Addie. It was a nice afternoon without any hustle and bustle of an agenda. The adults got some Mexican take out for lunch and Sara made the girls lunch at home. The girls played together nicely and Uncle Justin even took Addie & Riley to the playground for a bit while Bella & Hadley took a nap. Well, Hadley didn't actually take a nap, but Bella did!! Hadley was having too much fun playing with Lucy I think. She was absolutely petrified of little Lucy at first. After a little while she warmed up to Lucy and started throwing her the ball. It was rather amusing to watch! I think everyone enjoy themselves. It was so great to spend time with my family!

American Girl

2011-10-12T13:15:00.002-10:00

My mom, the girls & I drove to Tysons Corner and met up with Sara, Addie and Bella at the American Girl Store. The girls are still a little young for the American Girl, but they also have Bitty Babies for the younger crowd. All of the girls loved shopping around the Bitty Baby area. I'm pretty sure they all wanted one of everything! We all had lunch at the bistro that was in the store. It's a cute little place where the girls were able to have their baby dolls sit next to them in a highchair. The babies even got little tea cups so that the girls could feed their baby. It was really cute, but definitely overpriced. Not to mention it felt like Antarctica in the Bistro. Hadley's lips were definitely purple! Of course that didn't stop any of the girls from eating their ice cream for dessert! It was a really fun time and exciting that the cousins got to experience it together!

Definitely trying for a Kiki and granddaughters shot!

Best of friends!

Enjoying lunch!

I've never seen a child eat ice cream like Bella! She could definitely win an ice cream eating contest!!

Typical Hadley cheese face!!

Helping Hands

2011-10-11T21:33:00.002-10:00

We stayed with my mom & Mr. Kevin(aka Kiki and Po) while we were visiting. It was so nice to have two extra people helping out with our three girls. I guess I never realized how much work goes into taking care of three little ones. Especially when you aren't in your own home, you really have to be on your toes making sure that the kiddos aren't getting into things they shouldn't be! I have to give it up to my mom though. After being at work all day she would come home and play with the girls as if she had all the energy in the world. I wish I could be more like that. I'm exhausted by dinner time most days. I don't know how she was playing so much with the girls, but they were definitely loving every minute. And I must say that I was loving every minute too because I was just sitting back and relaxing, watching everyone have fun!

While Kiki entertained Riley & Hadley, I was trying to capture some moments with my camera. Then Trey wanted to play with the camera and take a billion pictures of us. So here are a couple of shots I figured that I'd include since I rarely make an appearance on the blog!!

I LOVE this shot of Emrey and Po!! Emrey is such a sweet and happy baby. It was so funny because Po would always comment how you almost forget that Emrey is in the room because she's always so quiet! She's such a little angel! Look at her smile!

Poppy & Grandma Kathy

2011-10-11T21:10:00.002-10:00

Next stop on our trip to MD was to visit with Poppy & Grandma Kathy. They hadn't met Hadley or Emrey in person yet, only through skype. I knew Riley wouldn't be shy because she recognizes most everyone from talking to them on skype. And I figured Hadley would quickly warm up, especially because they have dogs! Riley was totally outgoing and not a bit shy. Hadley was extremely shy and totally freaked out by the dogs which really surprised me. It was funny to see Hadley freak out over the dogs. So Riley stayed downstairs with Poppy and the dogs, while Hadley stayed upstairs with me, Emrey & Grandma Kathy. It was nice to have the girls spend time with their grandparents. Of course, they tend to get a little too spoiled!

A Long Time Coming

2011-10-10T14:14:00.001-10:00

Trey, the girls, and I made a trip to Maryland last month. The main reason for our visit there was to see my brother, Justin, sister-in-law, Sara, and our nieces, Addie and Bella. They have been living in the Philippines for the last three years and are moving to Ethiopia soon for the next two years. This was our chance to have our nieces meet our daughters! It didn't take long for Riley and Addie to start playing together. They had to feel each other out, but became friendly rather quickly. Bella and Hadley were both all over the place! That's what you get with two year olds! Both Addie and Bella were amused with Emrey. It was so nice to see how loving they were with her, especially since they have a new sister on the way!

I was super excited to introduce Emrey to her Uncle Justin and Aunt Sara. Emrey was all smiles with both of them! It made me so happy to see her in both of their arms. It's hard sometimes being so far away from your family when you have babies. You just want them to know all of their family. Thank goodness for skype!

I had a great day getting to know Addie and Bella! They are the best nieces an aunt could ask for! It really was priceless to see all of the girls together. Finally, the cousins get to play together!!!

Birthday Getaway

2011-09-09T09:34:00.000-10:00

I celebrated the big 3---0 on August 28th. I can seriously not believe that my twenties are now behind me. I'm not depressed about entering my thirties at all. I'm excited for my thirties because I don't plan on being pregnant and/or breastfeeding like I was for the last half of my twenties!! It's funny, I said I wanted to have all my kids by the time I was 30 and poof, I've got three beautiful and healthy girls. I guess my wish was granted!

On my birthday we went out to lunch and enjoyed a delicious meal at Gordon Biersch. All of the girls were in a good mood so it was a successful outing with all five of us! Later that afternoon we went to a bbq at our neighbors house. So it was a pretty perfect birthday because I didn't have to cook at all! Score!

This past weekend we traveled up to the North Shore to spend a couple of nights at Turtle Bay. This was my big birthday present from Trey and the girls. I was thinking how spectacular it would be to escape away from everyday life and just enjoy a couple of days relaxing on the beach. I've always heard such nice things about Turtle Bay and was really looking forward to our little mini getaway! We left right after Riley's gymnastics class. We thought we'd get there early, chill out on the beach for a bit, and then check into our room. Forgetting that it was Labor Day we didn't account for the massive amount of traffic we got stuck in on the way there. Needless to say by the time we got to Turtle Bay it was too late to hit up the beach because it was practically dinner time. And anyone with little kids knows you can't feed them late unless you want to experience major meltdowns. We checked in and then walked around to check out the area. We ate dinner at an Italian Restaurant and enjoyed every bite! We made it back to our room to witness a gorgeous sunset. I wouldn't mind a view like that everyday.

The next morning we got up and grabbed some breakfast, then off to the beach we went. I was expecting much more when we got to the beach. First of all, we couldn't even get beach chairs because they weren't open yet. I was annoyed. Second, there were sand fleas all over the place. It was driving me bonkers. I kept swatting them off of me, Emrey, and Hadley. Thirdly, it wasn't even a private beach. The beach was open to the public which I thought was awful. We paid a pretty penny to stay at this resort and anyone is welcome to use the beach. Ridiculous! I thought it would be so great to not have to pack up the car and drive to the beach, and we could spend the entire day on the beach. It definitely didn't work that way. After an hour, Hadley was ready for a nap. Trey took her up to the room and I stayed at the beach with Emrey and Riley. About twenty minutes later Riley was ready to go back to the room. She didn't want to be at the beach anymore. I thought I was in a nightmare. This was not how I was anticipating our little getaway.

Once Hadley woke up from her nap we headed to the pool. Trey bought the girls some floats and they were in heaven. Trey was teaching Riley how to swim and our little fish wasn't getting out of the water for anything. We were all relaxed and enjoying ourselves. We ordered food while we were there because the girls didn't want to leave. I was amazed that Riley & Hadley were having more fun at the pool than the beach. But then again, there weren't any sand fleas at the pool!

Turtle Bay definitely wasn't what I had anticipated it to be. Trying to get away with three kids all ages three and under wasn't the best idea. Jamming all of us into one hotel room wasn't the best idea I've ever had! However, once everyone started having fun at the pool I was able to start enjoying myself. Turtle Bay was a disappointment though. I think next time we'll go to the new Disney resort at Ko'Olina or just rent a cabin at the Bellows. Those are our favorite spots on the island anyway. Here's to my next thirty years!!

First Day of Pre-School

2011-08-02T10:07:00.002-10:00

Today was a very big day in the Prewitt house. It was Riley's first day of pre-school. We put Riley on the waiting list last year at Tiny Tots Christian Pre-School and I received a phone call back in early May saying that there was a spot open for Riley! Yay, I was so excited! Riley has been anticipating this day since I told her that there was a spot open for her and she'd be going to school this year. We went back to school shopping this weekend and got Riley all the supplies from her list. She picked out her backpack and was thrilled with her choice, none other than Dora the Explorer!!

When Riley woke up this morning she came walking down the stairs with a huge smile on her face and said, "It's my school day!!!!" I almost shed a tear looking at the excitement on her face and hearing the excitement in her voice. But I kept it together! She ate a bowl of cereal and talked about going to school the entire time. I, of course, broke out the camera to start capturing pictures of this big day.

Here is Hadley, excited that mommy let her eat teddy grahams for breakfast because she refused to eat anything else. I wasn't in a fighting mood this morning.

Emrey's just taking in all the excitement in her bouncy seat. She was being so good while I was getting Riley & Hadley ready I couldn't resist taking her picture!

Riley picked out her outfit, along with which barrettes she was going to wear. I had no say in the matter! She did a good job though. Pink was her color for today! A big thanks to Kiki & Po who sent Riley her hot new kicks for school. Riley only wears crocs, sandals, or flip flops, so it was a big deal to see her in some sneakers! Riley was super excited about her school shoes though because they match the shoes that Dora is wearing on her comforter in her bedroom.

I think I started annoying Riley with how many pictures I kept taking. But my baby girl was heading off to her first day of school and I couldn't help myself. She was a good sport about it though!

I signed Riley into her class and we hung her backpack on her assigned hook and she ran to grab a seat. She didn't care that I was leaving. I had to ask for a hug and a kiss. I told her to have a good day and then had to scoop Hadley up who also found herself a seat in the classroom. Hadley wasn't happy that she had to leave with me. I'm so excited for Riley to get familiar with a classroom setting and have some fun experiences with her class.

Backyard Fun

2011-07-24T13:50:00.006-10:00

Most of our weekends are spent outside. There is no better way to be outside than in your bathing suit! At least for the girls there is no better way, I prefer to keep my post three children body covered up for the time being! Riley and Hadley wanted to play in the sprinkler so we hooked it up for them. They spent hours on end playing with the sprinkler water, kicking their balls around, and Hadley's favorite thing, digging in the dirt/mud/rocks. While Riley normally prefers to stay on the cleaner side, Hadley likes to get as filthy as possible. I'm not exaggerating when I say that every time I bring Hadley inside after being outside playing, I have to stick her in the tub to clean her off. Trey has nicknamed her "pig- pen," referring to character from Charlie Brown. It suits her very well!

Our weekends seem to fly by way too quickly, so we try to get the most out of them. I like the days when we spend most of them outside because the girls normally sleep in a little longer. I do mean a little. Instead of 7, they'll sleep until 7:30. But any little extra time I get is fabulous to me!

Emrey's 8 Week Check-Up

2011-07-22T16:00:00.001-10:00

I can hardly believe that eight weeks have passed already. Emrey is already 2 months old. Phew, time seems to be going by so much faster the third time around. Everything went really well with Emrey's check-up. She is now 22in long and weighs 11lbs 5oz. She is 3 pounds heavier and 3 inches longer than when she left the hospital. It's always good to hear that your baby is growing well, especially when you're breastfeeding. It reassures me that she's getting enough to eat! The doctor was surprised when I told her that Emrey has already rolled over from her stomach to her back. I was amazed myself when it happened. I'm thinking that Emrey knows she's got two big sisters to keep up with, so she's getting strong quickly! The worst part about this doctor visit was the fact that Emrey had to get three vaccinations. Of course at this age they normally stop crying pretty quickly, and Emrey did settle down rather fast. But my sweet, protective Riley teared up as she watched Emrey get her shots. Riley calmed down once we got her a sticker! I was super proud of Riley & Hadley who were both angels during this trip to the doctor. Yay for another successful trip to the doctor! I can't wait to see how much Emrey grows in the next two months.

Spur of the Moment

2011-07-15T15:44:00.002-10:00

On Monday, Trey found out early in the morning that he'd be leaving that evening for a trip to Singapore. He was the lucky man that was chosen to hand deliver a few pieces of equipment needed for one of the dets from his command. I was wondering how I was going to do with our three little angels, all by myself for three days. I'm so use to having Trey here in the evening to help and occupy the girls while I clean up dinner and what not. Here we go, a sneak peak to what my life will be like when he's gone for six months at a time!

I felt bad for Trey though because he was leaving here on Monday evening and getting back on Thursday, but would actually only be in Singapore for less than 24 hours. It was 17 hours of flying there and then another 17 hours flying back home to Hawaii. No thank you! Trey HATES to fly, so I knew he wasn't going to be the happiest camper when he got home. The girls and I skyped with Trey while he was gone. And thankfully everything went really well at home. The girls were exceptionally well behaved for me. Trey brought Riley & Hadley home a treat from Singapore, a big Dora doll. He was smart and got them both the same gift because they always want what the other one has. So since he brought them the same thing they couldn't fight over their presents! What a smart daddy!! The girls were stoked to see Trey and they both loved their Dora doll! Welcome home daddy and I'm glad it was only a three day trip!

Fourth of July

2011-07-05T15:30:00.001-10:00

One of Trey's favorite holidays is the fourth of July. So it's a must for everyone to be in red, white, and blue! I usually go out and get something cute for the girls to wear, but Madeleine sent the girls some outfits this year. I am grateful for that because I haven't been getting out to do shopping as much with three kids who are 3 and under. Everyone got dressed in our patriot colors and we headed over to Pearl Harbor to let Riley & Hadley enjoy some of the festivities going on. They both played a few games, rode on the little carousel, and Riley went into a bounce house. After about an hour we were all sweating like crazy and decided that we should make our way home and fill the pool up for the girls.

We stayed in our backyard for the rest of the afternoon into the evening. The girls played in the pool and ran around in the backyard enjoying the day. Trey & I sat on the back porch just watching Riley & Hadley have a good time. After our long day outside we got the girls bathed and I put Hadley & Emrey to bed. Riley got to stay up for the fireworks show.

We are able to watch the fireworks from our backyard. Riley was so very excited to see them, especially the ones that looked like smiley faces! After we saw the fireworks that came from Waikiki, Trey took Riley over to Ford Island so they could watch the show going on at Pearl Harbor. Riley was extra excited that she was getting to go see another firework show. When they got home Riley was exhausted. It was a fun-filled day and I'm excited for next year when, hopefully, Hadley will be able to stay awake to see the fireworks with us!

Sweet Emrey Belle

2011-06-30T14:00:00.000-10:00

Trey and I have once again been blessed with a sweet baby girl. Emrey is totally adorable and loves to be snuggled. She isn't bothered by the noise that her big sisters make and loves all the attention coming from Riley & Hadley. I am excited that Emrey will take a binky. She's not a big crier, but if she does get fussy her binky does the job! We haven't determined yet who she looks like. There are times that she looks like Riley(Trey's clone) and other times she looks like Hadley(my clone). I think it's too early to tell. Trey & I call Emrey our little mutt puppy because it's looking like she's just a total mixture. I do, however, think she's going to have blue eyes. They are still dark, but they appear to be lightning up to a lovely shade of blue. It doesn't matter who she resembles more, she's absolutely breathtaking to me!

Since Emrey was born she has been a wonderful sleeper. The first couple of weeks she would sleep from around 9'ish until 4 or 4:30am, eat, get a fresh diaper, and then sleep until about 8am. I couldn't ask for more. Once she hit one month we moved her into her crib. It was a little hard for me to do only because she's my last little baby! But, she has been sleeping until 6 or 6:30am, so there really wasn't a need to keep her next to me. It's not like I was getting up every 2 hours. We really couldn't have asked for anything better. We are very happy to have Emrey as a new addition to our family. She fits right in!!

Another Five Years

2011-06-11T14:48:00.002-10:00

Yesterday was a very important day for our family. It was Trey's reenlistment ceremony. He chose to reenlist on the USS Missouri. I was very excited for the ceremony except for the fact that it was scheduled for 7am. It was the only time available to have the ceremony and Trey really wanted to reenlist on the Missouri, so 7am it was! All I kept thinking was how am I going to get myself and three kids ready to go and be out the door by 6:30am. I don't know how, but I got us all ready with about 5 minutes to spare. The girls were all in good moods, which surprised me since I had to wake Riley & Hadley up early.

Before Trey reenlisted he was discharged from the Navy first. He gave a short but sweet speech after being discharged. He thanked me and the girls for being so supportive and loving him through everything. I definitely teared up, but kept myself together.

After being discharged came reenlistment time. No turning back now! Trey reenlisted for five more years. Hopefully it won't be a long five years because Trey is back on sea duty. I'd like for these years to go by fast! We will be in Hawai'i for another three years and then the future is unknown! I'm so proud of Trey for reenlisting and providing a great life for us!

We tried for some family shots, but as you probably know it's a challenge! We couldn't get Riley & Hadley to look at the camera. Riley was being terribly shy. I think there were about 10 pictures of us taken. Here are a couple for you to enjoy!

Another Farewell

2011-06-07T20:35:00.000-10:00

Despite having to say goodbye to Kiki a couple of days ago, the girls still had Nanny here to play with for the last 2 days. It was nice having their Nanny visit because they hadn't seen her since Hadley was born. Riley remembered Nanny, but Hadley didn't considering she was a newborn when they first met. It didn't take long for Hadley to warm up though. The girls enjoyed being spoiled by two grandma's at one time. I'm so glad that the girls got to spend a couple of weeks with their Nanny in town. Trey was happy to have his mom in town too. Trey likes attention just as much as his daughters do! Trey had his mom out in the garage watching him work on his Jeep and helping him work on his Jeep. In fact, poor Madeleine ruined a pair of pants helping Trey out in the garage. Oh, the sacrifices we make as mothers! I know Trey enjoyed being spoiled by his mom while she was here. It's always nice to have family visit, especially to see them interact with Riley, Hadley and now Emrey. Thank you so much for traveling to Hawaii and visiting with us. It was fun watching the girls play with you. Hopefully it won't be too long before the next visit!

Sleeping Beauties

2011-06-06T15:16:00.001-10:00

I absolutely love pictures of my children sleeping. I don't think there is a time when my babies look more angelic, or any child for that matter. When I see them sleeping they just look so peaceful and sweet, it melts my heart. Here are a couple of pictures of Emrey and Hadley passed out. I wish I could include one of Riley, but she rarely naps these days!

Farewell to Kiki

2011-06-05T16:09:00.001-10:00

I can hardly believe how fast the past two weeks have gone. It's already time for my mom to go home. Even though I'm sure she's ready to get back to Mr. Kevin, I don't know how ready I was for her to leave. Plus, she was leaving us only to arrive home to greet Justin, Sara and her other two granddaughters, Addie & Bella. Mom, I don't know if you're exactly aware of how much we all loved having you here. I enjoyed every moment that I got to spend with you and I know that the girls did too! Thank you for everything, from the bottom of my heart. And even though you weren't at the hospital for Emrey's delivery, you still had a critical job, taking care of my other two sweet angels. I just want you to know how much I love you and how much I loved seeing the girls play with their Kiki!! We can't wait to see you again!

After I dropped my mom off at the airport my heart ached a little bit. It didn't help that Riley told me to turn around to pick Kiki back up! We definitely had fun with Kiki and look forward to our next visit with her!

Supper Time

2011-06-04T22:54:00.002-10:00

For my moms last night here she took us out to dinner. Normally we go to Kona Brewing Co., but we went to Gordon Biersch's this time. The atmosphere is pretty similar and they are both on the water. We wanted to take our moms somewhere new! Madeleine and Trey had ordered an appetizer that was accompanied with chopsticks. Riley was thrilled to pick up the chopsticks and start playing with them. Then when her dinner was brought out she decided that she was going to eat her french fries with chopsticks. Amazingly enough, she could use them! She was so proud of herself and thought she was hot stuff because she mastered the use of chopsticks so easily.

I was happy that I got to enjoy my delicious steak and stuffed shrimp without interruption. Sweet Emrey slept through the entire dinner! Can't really ask for more than that!!

Here are some more shots of Riley and her chopsticks. She wouldn't put them down! We were all amazed.

Trey and Hadley were having some fun too. I'm not sure what they were doing here. I think Trey was trying to eat one of her fries!

It was a nice evening out and I'm happy to report that all 3 of the girls were well behaved. The worst part of the night was knowing it was my last dinner with my mom for awhile.

My 3 Daughters

2011-06-04T15:26:00.000-10:00

There have been many requests for a picture of me and my girls together. Well, this is as good as it gets! Hopefully in the years to come we will all be looking in one direction and smiling at the same time! I am one lucky mommy!

One Good Shot, Please!

2011-06-02T22:22:00.001-10:00

After our fun in Waikiki, I decided to try for some good sister shots at home. Anyone with three kids(or more) knows this isn't an easy task. It actually wasn't the easiest with two kids, but add another to the mix and it's a whole new adventure. I tried! Here are some of the results:

(I know this first one isn't of all three, but my mom took this picture and it was cute with both Riley and Emrey flashing a smile!)

A solo shot of Emrey!

This one is my fave(I think)!

Lunch in Waikiki

2011-06-02T22:04:00.000-10:00

Today we spent our afternoon out and about in Waikiki. We don't frequent Waikiki because it's always so busy and touristy. But when family and friends visit it's definitely a good place to take them. We walked down to Duke's to enjoy a nice ocean view lunch. Go figure, we're eating again! By the time we got to Duke's, Hadley was passed out in the stroller. Emrey was sleeping too which meant I could actually eat a meal in peace! Yay for me! After lunch we walked across the street to the International Marketplace. It's always fun to walk through there and look around all the shops and carts and get bothered by all the sales people that think you're a tourist!

Next, we took the girls over to the Hawaiian Hilton Village so they could see some fish. Riley had wanted to go to the zoo, so I figured we'd please her by taking her to see the enormous ponds the hotel has to offer. She was pleased! We didn't stay there long though because Hadley looked like she was ready to jump in and swim with the fish! It was time to head home.

Special Treats

2011-06-01T22:55:00.000-10:00

Before we headed home from the North Shore we stopped at Ted's Bakery for some extra special treats. If you are looking to ruin your diet, this is the place to go! We picked up brownies, cream puffs, cheesecake, and more. When we got home we all dug into some devilish treats. Riley was enjoying her chocolate pudding and was sweet enough to share with Hadley. Riley even fed Hadley. It was the sweetest thing!

Everyone was worn out after our afternoon of stuffing our faces and enjoying nature! Especially the girls that got carried for most of our hike through Waimea Valley!

Life doesn't get much better than this!

Afternoon at the North Shore

2011-06-01T22:44:00.002-10:00

Today we spent the gorgeous afternoon at the North Shore. We started out with lunch at Cholo's, our favorite Mexican spot. Everyone filled their bellies with some deliciousness before we ventured to Waimea Valley. I love Waimea Valley. The walk through the valley to the waterfall is just beautiful. I seriously can't get enough of the beauty that is there. Every time I walk through Waimea Valley, I realize how lucky we are to live in such a beautiful place. I fall in love with nature every time we visit this place. Taking in the beauty and spending time with family made for a great afternoon!

Our first family shot! Emrey is in the baby bjorn under the cover. It was way too sunny for a newborn to be exposed!

See, I told you Emrey was under the cover! Excuse the cleavage shot!

Riley & Hadley enjoyed seeing the peacock and her babies. I, however, get a little freaked out with the peacocks. I just picture them pecking at me and it gives me chills. They are pretty to look at though, from a distance of course!

The Princess Has Arrived

2011-05-31T13:03:00.000-10:00

Last Christmas Riley received a beautiful princess dress from Aunt Sara, Uncle Justin, Addie & Bella. It's the dress that Belle wore in Beauty and the Beast. Riley didn't want to wear her gown when she first got it. She wasn't really the "princess" type. Riley wouldn't wear dresses of any sort actually. However, a few months ago Riley saw a dress in her closet and asked to wear it. I said sure. Riley loved wearing the dress. We had reached a new stage with Riley! Next, she really loved wearing her tutu(also given to her by Justin & Sara). She would even wear the tutu out to the store because she didn't want to take it off. Well today while she was watching Beauty & the Beast with me and Kiki, she asked to wear her fancy dress. I ran up to her room and grabbed it out of the closet. Riley put on her gown and was just as giddy as could be! She was running and twirling all around! Riley even put on a pair of her cha cha's to top off the princess attire! The princess is emerging in my Riley girl! Of course I love her in her shorts and t-shirts too! It was fun to watch her twirl around in her gown though!

Memorial Day

2011-05-30T22:50:00.000-10:00

Most people head to the beach for Memorial Day, but we just wanted to hang out at the house and cook out all day. I, personally, didn't want to fight the crowds at the beach, especially with three kids. Trey filled the pool up for the girls and fired up the grill.

Before Hadley even got in the pool she passed out in the playroom. When Hadley is tired she will fall asleep anywhere in any position.

While the girls splashed around in the pool, Trey grilled up some burgers and hot dogs for all of us to enjoy. We all sat outside and enjoyed the gorgeous day we were given. It was a nice, relaxing holiday spent just the way I wanted!

Here is a shot of Riley holding Emrey. Riley is big on requesting to hold her new sister and asking for her picture to be taken!

Jam Packed Day

2011-05-28T22:04:00.001-10:00

We started our day off with a trip to Waikele Outlets. I love going here because I can always find awesome deals at my favorite stores for the girls. Everyone loaded up in the Tahoe and off we went. I found some inexpensive shorts and tees in The Children's Place. Our next stop was the Crocs store. Riley needed new shoes and loves to wear crocs. She walked out of the store wearing one of her new pairs. Then we headed to my all time favorite store, Carter's. I could literally buy everything in this store, but I hold myself back! I found a ton of great sales in here and stocked up on some things for Riley, Hadley & Emrey. After Carter's I had to stop and feed Emrey because it was lunchtime for her. I stepped into Motherhood Maternity and used one of their fitting rooms to feed while Kiki & Nanny watched the older girls and let them have a ride on Dino! When I was done feeding Emrey everyone else was ready for lunch. There were meltdowns going on all around me. Easy decision, we crossed the street and had lunch at Chili's. Trey & my mom enjoyed some margaritas with lunch, and when I say some I think I mean four each! No worries, I drove home! The meltdowns vanished once we got food in every ones bellies. .

After relaxing for a bit at home we loaded up and headed to the 50th State Fair. Trey wanted to go play games as soon as we got there. So the rest of us watched him and Riley try to win some goodies. I think Trey was having a little too much fun at the games. Let's just say we paid way too much money for about four crappy toys. It's all good though, he and Riley were both having a blast!

Emrey slept the entire time!

After the games it was time to hit up some rides. Trey wanted to take Riley on this roller coaster. She wasn't tall enough and I didn't think she'd be allowed on. Trey wanted to try anyway. Low and behold the guy working the ride let him take Riley on. Riley was so excited. I tried to snap a shot but you can barely see her next to Trey. Riley was smiling her first couple times around and then she looked a little nervous for the rest of the ride. When she got off the roller coaster she said it was fun, but it was a little scary.

Next, Trey took Riley on the giant slide. They both sat in the potato sack and flew down the slide. Riley had so much fun on the slide she wanted to go again. I got to take her for the second ride down the slide. It was a fun time and reminded me of when I was a kid. We took a break and grabbed a slice of pizza to eat. Then Trey went and played another game with Riley. Then my mom & I took Riley and Hadley for a ride on the carousel. Hadley was unsure about it at first, but quickly began to enjoy herself. When the carousel ended neither of the girls wanted to get off. But, it was time to head home. I really enjoyed myself at the fair and I know that Trey & the girls did too.

Feeding the Koi

2011-05-26T15:46:00.002-10:00

Today we decided to head over to Moanalua Gardens and let the girls run around the fields and feed the Koi. I enjoy bringing the girls here because it's close by, free to get in, and they always enjoy themselves. Trey had never been before and seemed to enjoy himself. While Riley went and fed the fish with Kiki, Nanny & Daddy, I sat under some palm trees with Emrey and Hadley who were both sleeping. After the first container of fish food was gone Kiki went and got Riley some more and we also got some yummy smoothies to enjoy. Hadley and I shared a pina colada smoothie. It definitely hit the spot for both of us! Riley stayed by the pond and fed the Koi about 3 or 4 containers full of fish food. After that Kiki chased Riley around until they were both worn out. It was a nice afternoon spent out in the fresh air. Good times had by all!

Bringing Emrey Home

2011-05-25T10:40:00.001-10:00

Lucky for me, I only had to stay in the hospital for one day. Emrey was born at 8:48am on May 22nd and we were discharged on May 23rd in the morning. I was told they were making an exception for me because normally they keep you 48 hours. They referred to me as an expert since it was my third child and everything seemed to be going well with both Emrey and myself. I couldn't wait to get home. The hospital food was disgusting and I didn't even get to pick my meal. Lucky for me my loving husband brought me food to eat during my short stay. Trey, Madeleine, and Riley came to pick me and Emrey up from the hospital. Riley was so excited to be bringing her new sister home. I was excited to be getting home and being able to relax without being woken up to have vitals taken.

When we arrived home Hadley greeted me with a huge hug. She made my heart melt, especially since she wasn't wanting anything to do with me when she came to the hospital to see me. It was good to know that I was still loved! Now my little Hadley has to get use to not being the baby of the house anymore. We'll see how that goes! We just hung around the house for the day. I was exhausted and just wanted to kick back and relax. It was good to have two grandmas here to keep Riley and Hadley entertained so that I could relax.

Our first night at home went as well as can be expected. Emrey went to bed at about 9 o'clock and woke up for a diaper change and a feeding at 3am and then woke up at 7am. I couldn't have asked for a better first night at home. I have been blessed, once again, with a sleeping baby(knock on wood)!! The next morning Riley couldn't wait to hold her new sister. She was jumping up and down with excitement. Hadley warmed up to Emrey held her too! Of course when Hadley was done holding Emrey she just shoved her away. It was pretty funny. She let us know she was finished! Things seem to be going well with all three girls. I just need to work on Hadley and her need to be loud. Once the volume control gets under control things should be perfect!

My Baby Story

2011-05-24T12:10:00.000-10:00

Saturday I started having some contractions. They started out to be rather sporadic and then I started noticing a pattern. Trey and I went grocery shopping to make sure we were stocked up on food because we knew it was probably our last chance to go before our new little girl arrived. Kiki stayed at home with the girls while we went shopping. During our grocery shopping excursion my contractions were growing stronger, but still far apart. Trey grilled up some yummy chicken for dinner. I refused to eat pizza for dinner because that's what I ate as my last meal before I went into labor with Riley & Hadley. I was hoping that by not eating pizza I wouldn't go into labor because Trey's mom, Madeleine, didn't get in until Sunday night and if I went into labor before she came that meant that my mom wouldn't be able to be at the hospital for the birth. In case you didn't know, my mom was in the delivery room for both Riley & Hadley's birth. She is awesome at keeping me calm and relaxed, and keeping Trey calm! Trey isn't a fan of the hospital and doesn't really know how to deal with me being in pain. Anyway, I thought by not eating pizza that my contractions would remain far apart and I wouldn't go into labor.

After the girls went to bed, Trey, my mom & I sat downstairs and watched some tv together. We went to bed around 10pm and at that point my contractions were about 30 minutes apart. I knew that it wasn't going to be much longer before it was time to go to the hospital. I didn't sleep much because my contractions kept getting stronger and closer together. I got my iphone out and started using my handy contraction counter application. It timed my contractions for me and also let me know how far apart they were. At 2am I woke Trey up and told him that my contractions were 3.5 minutes apart. He jumped out of bed and said "we got to go to the hospital." At that moment I realized I didn't have my bag packed. I had everything laid out, but not in my bag. I threw everything in real quick, brushed my teeth and my hair and then went downstairs to tell my mom I was in labor. I think we were all a bit nervous that she wasn't able to go to the hospital with us. Trey assured her that he'd be able to take care of me. My mom had an important job though, taking care of my two baby girls!

We got to the hospital and I definitely arrived in my pajamas! Trey dropped me off at the door and then went and parked the car. When he got to the hospital door I told him I need to pee and he told me to hold it because there was another couple right behind him and we needed to beat them up to labor & delivery so that I could get a room first! So I waddled myself as fast as possible through the huge hospital up to labor and delivery. We got checked in and then I got to use the potty! I changed into a lovely hospital gown and waited to be seen by a doctor. I was keeping my fingers crossed that they wouldn't send me home like they did when I showed up in labor with Hadley. The doctor checked me and informed me that I was 6cm dilated and I was being admitted. Wahoo! It's time to have our third baby girl! Once I got my room I had to wait about two hours before I could get my epidural. The anesthesiologist was held up in the operating room.

Even though I wanted my mom there with me, it was nice to experience labor with just my husband. Trey did such an awesome job supporting me through my contractions before I got my epidural. He held my hand and told me how good I was doing. Trey also said some sweet words to me when we first got into my room. He told me how much I meant to him and how much he loved me and how his life wouldn't be the same without me. It made me cry then, just as it is making me tear up right now. I knew in that moment he'd be able to support me and help me through this delivery. When it was time to get my epidural I told Trey I needed him to hold my hand because I knew how much it was going to hurt. Trey grabbed my hand and was a super trooper while I got that big ol' needle in my back. I was proud of him! I was definitely in a happy place once the epidural kicked in!

After about 6 hours of labor I was finally dilated to 9cm. The doctor broke my water and within minutes it was time to push. Of course Trey had to run and use the restroom as soon as we found out it was time! While he used the restroom the doctor had me give one little push, just to see how good of a pusher I was. I gave a little push and she said "Ok, don't push again until your husband comes back out." I guess that meant I was a good pusher! Trey came back out and got the pleasure of holding one of my legs for me. I was so completely numb from the epidural I didn't even know my legs were being touched. Three pushes later, our beautiful third baby girl was born. It's just as exciting the third time as it was the first two times. However, the cord was wrapped around her a little bit so she was slightly on the blue side which made me nervous. They put her on my chest and I said hello to my new daughter. And for the first time, Trey cut the umbilical cord!!! I was super proud of him! Trey and I have been blessed with another healthy baby girl.

Introducing Emrey Belle Prewitt: 8lbs 11.8oz, 19.5 in.

Trey went home and picked up the girls and my mom and brought them to the hospital to meet Emrey. Riley was thrilled to see her new sister. Hadley was definitely nervous when she saw me. She didn't want anything to do with me, which broke my heart. I think she was overwhelmed with the hospital and I was completely numb so I couldn't move around. She warmed up to me at the end of her visit, but I could tell she wasn't really too sure what was going on. I was glad that both of the girls got to meet their new sister.

Kiki's Here!!!

2011-05-20T13:17:00.001-10:00

Praise the Lord! My mom has arrived!! I don't know who is more excited: me, my mom, Riley or Hadley. After about 12 hours of traveling my exhausted mother got right to play time with the girls. I'm not exactly sure where her energy came from but she didn't let the jet lag affect her. I just got to kick back and relax and watch Kiki play with Riley and Hadley. They got piggy back rides, books read to them and Kiki even threw the girls up on her shoulders and ran around the house with them. Again, I don't know how she did it, but she did! I'm so happy to have her here!!

Mother's Day Weekend

2011-05-11T11:35:00.000-10:00

I must say that I had a nice Mother's Day weekend. Saturday I got to spend a couple of hours to myself and get my haircut. I didn't want to wait until my mom got here because who knows how long I have before the new baby arrives. So I figured what better weekend to get my haircut than this one! A little well deserved pampering for myself! Trey stayed home with the girls and got to have some daddy/daughter time. A win-win situation all around! When I got home from my haircut, Hadley was napping and Trey took Riley out for some Mother's day shopping. Oh boy, more time to myself! Trey, of course, gave me my gift a day early, but I can't say that I minded too much! I knew it was a picture, but I wasn't sure of what. I unwrapped the picture to find one of my favorite photos that I've seen since we've lived in Hawai'i. I always see this picture in stores and I always compliment it. It's nice to know Trey pays attention to me once in awhile! The picture I took of it doesn't do it justice. But it's beautiful and I'm excited to have it hanging in my dining room.

All I asked for on Mother's Day was to not have to cook at all! I don't think that's asking too much. Not to mention our fridge was empty so it wasn't hard to accomplish either! Trey provided Starbucks for breakfast, Subway for lunch and we all went out to Chili's for dinner. Trey also put together the crib for our new little bundle. I've been asking him to do that for a month, so that was a huge gift he gave me, especially since he hates putting together furniture. I am very grateful! Before we took the girls upstairs for bath time I asked Trey to take a picture of me and the girls. Hadley just wanted to pinch her cheeks and Riley didn't want to look at the camera.

After a few attempts we managed to get one with all of us looking at the camera.

Thank you Trey, Riley and Hadley for making me feel special on Mother's Day! I love you all!! I am truly blessed to be a mother to my two beautiful daughters. I am looking forward to my journey of being a mother to three daughters. I can't imagine it's going to be easy, but I'm excited to experience all of the moments with them.

Perfect Smile

2011-05-03T11:39:00.001-10:00

It's been close to about two and a half years that Trey has been wearing braces. He's been longing for straight teeth since he was younger and finally had the chance to do it since he's been on shore duty. I'd have to say that the worse part of him having braces was when he had to have his jaw broken. What a horrid time for both of us. He was in such pain and I was having emotional breakdowns almost everyday trying to take care of him and new little Hadley. We all made it through alive and I'm pretty sure he's thrilled with the results. Hooray for no more braces and a nice new smile!!!

3 Year Doctor Visit

2011-04-28T15:32:00.000-10:00

I took Riley in yesterday for her 3 year check up. I wasn't really too worried about anything, especially because I knew she wouldn't have to get any vaccinations for this visit. Riley's name gets called and we walk to the back to have her weighed and measured. I asked her to take off her shoes and step on the scale and she burst into tears. I tried to calm her down and told her it was just like our scale at home and we just needed to see how much she weighed. She loves stepping on the scale at home, it's like a game to her. Riley was having no part of stepping on the scale. Therefore I had to pick her up and put her on the baby scale. So we finally manage to get her weight and now it was time for her to just stand up against the wall to see how tall she is. Well that wasn't happening either. Riley kept falling down to the ground and was screaming bloody murder. You seriously would have thought the girl was being tortured. I was so embarrassed. So I had to get down on my knees(which isn't easy for me to do) and pin her against the wall. It was terrible. And to make matters worse, Hadley was crying every time Riley started screaming because that's just what Hadley does. Anytime Hadley hears anybody cry she'll start to cry too. Once the nurse gets Riley's height measured she walks us back to our room so we can wait to see the doctor. A couple of seconds later the nurse comes back in because she forgot to take Riley's temperature. We decided to take Hadley's temperature first so Riley could see that it was easy. Riley allowed her temperature to be taken without a fight, praise the Lord! Apparently at age 3 they start taking blood pressure, but that didn't happen this time. The nurse didn't even attempt to with the way that Riley had been acting. When the doctor came in Riley didn't become any more cooperative than she had already been. Lovely. Thank goodness Riley is an overall healthy kid, because taking her to the doctors isn't fun at all. I was seriously ready for a caramel apple martini after that visit. I settled for a decaf caramel frapp from Starbucks! The good news is that Riley is growing and is healthy! She weighs 32.5 lbs and is 39 in tall. She is in the 50% for weight and 75-90% for height. I'm just hoping I don't have to take her back to the doctor until she's 4!!

Caught You!

2011-04-28T15:16:00.000-10:00

Little Hadley is always getting herself into something. If I hear silence I normally know that she's doing something that she isn't suppose to be doing. I was cleaning up in the kitchen and noticed that I didn't hear Hadley making any noise. I asked Riley where Hadley was and she told me that Hadley was in the bathroom. I walked in and found my innocent little angel with her baby on the potty. I ran and grabbed the camera because she looked so sweet trying to potty train her baby. Then I realized that Hadley had also unrolled the entire roll of toilet paper into the toilet. Doesn't she look proud?

Riley's Big Girl Bike

2011-04-26T15:21:00.001-10:00

A big thank you to Poppy, Grandma Kathy and Uncle Tyler for this awesome bike! Riley received this cool birthday present in the mail yesterday and her awesome daddy put it together for her today despite the fact that he's still battling the stomach bug. Riley was thrilled to pieces with her new bike. She especially likes that it has a bell! That's my favorite part too! I've been trying to teach Riley how to ride the bike but it's a much harder process than I expected. Not to mention that it's difficult for me to bend over for too long. Riley tends to get frustrated easily, so I'm sure over time she'll get the whole "how to" pedal a bike. Even though she can't make the bike go, she loves to sit on her bike. Riley's an expert on how to brake. Now we just need to teach her to pedal! Thanks again for the awesome gift!

Stomach Bug Strikes Again

2011-04-25T20:45:00.002-10:00

Just yesterday Trey made a comment to me about how he managed not to catch the stomach bug unlike the rest of us in the house. Well he spoke to soon! Trey came home from work early because the stomach bug had reached his body. He felt miserable and I could totally relate because I just started feeling normal(minus the cold and sinus issues I am now dealing with). He pretty much slept for most of the day up in our bedroom so that he wouldn't spread his germs back to us girls. It was late afternoon and Trey made an appearance downstairs. Riley was exhausted and decided to lay next to her daddy and take a nap with him. I couldn't pass up this photo opportunity. My poor sick husband passed out with his little princess. I hope that Trey feels better quickly because I know how miserable he is feeling!

Hoppy Easter

2011-04-24T20:17:00.002-10:00

Thank goodness for grandparents is all I can say! As you know, the stomach bug had hit my house and not only did I have a couple of days of sicks kids, I was sick myself. Luckily, Kiki & Nana both sent the girls some Easter packages. I am so grateful for this because I was out of commission and couldn't go get the girls little treats. Unfortunately we didn't even get to dye eggs because I was sick. The girls didn't know the difference though because this was going to be the first year I tried it out with them. Better luck next year! The girls each got a cute bathing suit, barrettes and a couple of books from Kiki. Nana sent them bunny ear headbands(which I couldn't get them to wear for a picture), little purse with a $1 bill, little bubble buckets and some cookies. Their Easter basket was nice and filled up for them.

Trey attempted to buy some of the plastic eggs so we could let the girls do an egg hunt, but everywhere had been sold out for a week. Oops!! So the Easter bunny brought the girls a swimming pool for the backyard. Riley jumped right in and loved every second. Hadley wasn't too sure at first, but then joined in on the fun. Trey got in the pool with the girls and splashed around. I sat on the porch and watched all the fun because I was still feeling a little under the weather. It was a really low key day for us, and that was fine by me!! Thanks to Kiki, Po, & Nana for the Easter treats!!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Riley!!!

2011-04-22T21:42:00.000-10:00

Today my first born turned 3. I can't even believe how fast the three years have gone. It's as if I blink my eyes and another year passes that quickly. Unfortunately the stomach bug has hit our home. Yesterday, Riley was sick. She was running a fever and throwing up. She slept for most of the day and I was hoping the bug would be gone for her birthday. I didn't want my poor baby girl to be sick on her special day! I woke up in the early morning hours sick as a dog. I was on the toilet with my head in a trashcan. Not a fun start to the day. Every time I'd get sick I would drink some water afterwards to prevent dehydration, but it just came right back out. Trey insisted that I go to the hospital so they could give me some IV fluid. At 4:30am I was headed to the hospital. I was given two bags of IV fluid and some medicine to help with my nausea and vomiting. I felt like death.

I got home around 8:30am and wished Riley a Happy Birthday. Luckily, Riley was feeling completely normal and was over her stomach bug. She told me that it wasn't her birthday until she had cake. The last thing I felt like doing was baking a cake. I felt so guilty that it was Riley's birthday and all I wanted to do was sleep. Trey took Riley out and got her some balloons which made her super duper happy. Then Trey gathered up Riley's birthday presents and we had her open her gifts to get her in the birthday spirit. She had a blast opening up her gifts. She was excited about everything. I must say that I won with one of the favorite gifts, a flashlight! Riley has been obsessed with flashlights for some reason or another and I picked her out a really cute flower flashlight made by Melissa & Doug, which she loved! One of the other gifts she got was the movie Tangled(thanks Kiki & Po). So I put in the movie and we sat down together to watch. We never saw the movie but Riley saw commercials and always said she wanted to see it. It was a really cute movie and we both enjoyed it. Kiki & Po also got Riley something she'd been asking for, Harry Potter. So we watched that next. Well, Riley watched and I took a nap!

After our little movie marathon Riley politely asked if we could make her cake. Despite the fact that I barely had enough energy to stand, I got up and let her help me make her birthday cake. I mean, how could I not bake her a cake on her birthday. My mom had sent a butterfly pan because that is the type of cake Riley requested. I was planning on decorating the cake very nicely. I was going to put different candy on each wing and just be creative. However, today just wasn't a day where I could be creative. Riley was lucky that I colored the icing pink so she could have a pretty pink butterfly cake! I'm pretty sure it's the worst job I've ever done icing a cake, but it was the best I could do. The poor butterfly was pretty pitiful looking, but Riley still liked it and that's all that matters!

We sang Happy Birthday and my shy girl hid her face from us. It was only Trey, Hadley and myself so I'm not sure why she was hiding. Riley is definitely getting more and more shy these days. Riley blew out her candle and was ready for her cake and ice cream. Despite the poor look of the cake, it tasted good. Riley and Hadley were both in heaven eating their cake and ice cream.

Happy 3rd Birthday Sweet Riley!!!!!

I asked Hadley to give me a smile and this is what I got!

Teething Nugget

2011-04-20T10:46:00.001-10:00

Yesterday morning when Hadley woke up I was greeted with the smell of poop as I opened her bedroom door. I could tell by the smell what I was about to experience wasn't going to be delightful. I looked in her crib to see that she had an explosive diaper which was all over her sheet and up her back. As I picked Hadley up I noticed she felt really warm. I got her all cleaned up and then took care of her crib. Then I took her temperature to find that she had 100.5 fever. She didn't want to eat anything for breakfast but drank her milk which made me happy, at least she was going to stay hydrated. She's having a little crush on Buzz Lightyear these days so I turned on Toy Story for her and let her watch a movie. She snuggled up on the couch for a bit and didn't make a peep. Then she started her whining and rubbing her eyes so I gave her some Tylenol and put her down for a nap. I knew she was feeling cruddy because she had only been awake for a hour and a half and she was already ready for a nap. She slept for a good two and a half hours. I was hoping she'd wake up with a decrease in her temperature but it was still over 100. I tried to feed her lunch but she only ate about 5 goldfish crackers. She snuggled on me for a bit and then requested Buzz again.

Only this time as she was watching her movie she curled up on the floor and decided to go back to sleep. I was shocked that she passed out on the floor. My poor little nugget was definitely not feeling herself. She is cutting new teeth and I'm pretty sure it's her molars. She won't let me look in her mouth but she has been jamming her fingers all the way in the back of her mouth, so I'm assuming that is where the teeth are cutting through. She ate some applesauce for dinner and by the time I put her to bed her fever was down to 99.5. I was praying she'd wake up today feeling better, or at least not running a fever and having diarrhea.

Hadley got up this morning without a fever and ate some pancakes for breakfast. She seems to be in much better spirits today. Thank goodness! It breaks my heart when my babies don't feel well, which isn't often(knock on wood)!

Score!

2011-04-18T10:06:00.002-10:00

Trey and I have been on the hunt for new baby furniture for our newest bundle. Both Riley and Hadley have cribs which convert all the way to full size beds. So our plan was to do the same for baby #3. A couple of months ago we got Riley a full size mattress and box spring because she had outgrown her toddler size bed. I have been trying to order the pieces to convert Riley's crib into the full size bed but it hasn't been available to order. Babies "R" Us keeps telling me they are having issues with the manufacturer. So here we are about a month away from having baby girl #3 and Riley still doesn't have her bed frame and we still haven't gotten new furniture for the new baby. Trey jumped on craigslist to see if there might be something good available on there to buy. He came across an nice full size bed and armoire for sale. It looked like it was in good shape and I loved the fact it was a sleigh bed. New furniture here in Hawaii is ridiculously expensive and isn't all that attractive. Most of the furniture has that island/vacation feel to it, if you know what I mean. That's not the look I'm going for! Trey called on the furniture he found in hopes that it was still for sale. Luckily nobody had swooped in on the bedroom set and we were able to look at it and decided it would definitely work for Riley. It's made by Ethan Allen and I know they make nice furniture. And we couldn't beat the price. Plus, now we are giving Riley's baby furniture to our newest baby girl. We killed two birds with one stone! Of course I'm still trying to order the pieces I need to convert the crib into a full size bed so we will be prepared when the time comes! I'm totally satisfied with our decision to buy Riley used furniture. It's in pretty good condition and she loves her new bed! It was funny because the guy we bought the furniture from just moved to the island, he's military. After talking to him for a bit we found out he's in the Navy and transferring to Trey's command. What a small world! So we know where to hunt him down if something goes terribly wrong with the furniture!!

Morning at the Zoo

2011-04-15T16:21:00.000-10:00

This morning I took the girls to the zoo to meet up with some friends. I'm pretty sure we picked the warmest and muggiest day to spend at the zoo. My sunglasses kept fogging up on me I was so hot! I didn't let that stop me from enjoying a nice morning out with the girls. Of course being that hot at 9:30 in the morning was a sign to me that we'd probably only last a couple of hours, which is plenty of time for us at the zoo! Riley was excited as soon as she saw the first animal, the pink flamingos! Then we headed over to see the elephants. Riley and Hadley were both amused with the elephants, especially since they got to watch one get a bath.

After the elephants we headed over to see the monkeys. Now this was some entertainment for all the kids. The monkeys were swinging all over the place and talking like crazy. Riley kept mimicking the monkeys and telling me that they were talking to us. Hadley kept laughing every time she heard the monkeys talking. We stopped at a park bench for a quick snack for the kids. Then it was off to see the reptiles for a few of us, while Norma and Kim went over to the park so they could feed their babies(both of them have 6 month olds).

Below is a shot of Riley trying to get as close as possible to see a frog in the water. I'm pretty sure she would have jumped through the glass case if she could have!

Once we had enough of the lizards, snakes, turtles, and frogs we headed towards the park so the kids could play for a bit. On our way there, Sivylay(one of my friends) got a call from Norma. It turns out that her son Jonathan(Riley's age) was missing. He was playing at the park and then she saw him walk over towards the tigers and she went to get him and he was gone. It was a frightening thought that one of the kids had wandered off. Kim and I stayed at the park area with the other six kids while Norma, Sivylay and the zoo staff searched for Jonathan. After about thirty minutes he was found, thank God! I felt so bad for Norma, but it's not the first time that he's wandered off. I'm glad that Riley acknowledged the fact that what he did wasn't good and she knows better! Needless to say, Jonathan was strapped in his stroller for the rest of the time at the zoo! Since we were all able to relax now that all the children were accounted for we went over to the Keiki Zoo area which is so much fun for kids. Riley had a blast checking out the fish and climbing through the tunnel and watching the fish swim around her.

Of course Riley had to enter the petting zoo area. I let her go in with Sivylay and Keerin because I stayed outside with Hadley. Hadley has a tendency to pull and yank on dogs so I didn't think she was ready to pet the goats! Hadley still tried to follow Riley in though!

Despite the missing child incident it was a fun filled morning at the zoo. Both of the girls enjoyed themselves and didn't really want to leave. After almost three hours this pregnant lady was ready to get into the air conditioning and relax a bit. I'm glad we got to have some fun with our friends for a little while. The next time I go to the zoo I'll be bringing my own zoo with me, three little girls!

Backyardigans

2011-04-13T14:42:00.000-10:00

One of the great things about our new house is the fact that the backyard is flat and has grass. At our old house the backyard was all red clay and on a slant, so we weren't able to play out there. I love being able to just go out back with the girls and throw/kick a ball around or let them play in the sprinkler. It's been rather warm lately, so I decided to put them in their swimsuits and let the play with the sprinkler. They both love to play in the water but hate when the water hits their faces. It's really funny to watch them touch the water but not run through the sprinkler. I guess as they get older they will understand that they are suppose to run through the water! As long as they are having fun I'm a happy camper. When there is water for them to play with they will last for hours outside. I like those kind of days because I can just sit back and relax for the most part! Hooray for our new backyard!

On Her Own

2011-04-13T13:26:00.001-10:00

For the past few weeks Hadley has been insisting on using the potty. At first I totally ignored her requests because she's only 16 months old and I really didn't think she knew what she was asking. Now, she's not saying "I need to pee," but she is pulling at her diaper and putting the potty seat on the toilet. When I ask her if she needs to pee pee she either says yes or shakes her head up and down. So I figured I'd be a bad mom if I kept ignoring her requests. And why not let her sit on the potty when she asks to? For the past three nights before her bath she has actually been peeing on the potty. I'm totally amazed and in awe that my 16 month old is potty training herself. I'm sure it has a lot to do with watching Riley use the potty all the time. I'm excited and relieved that it's probably going to be easier the second time around with potty training. I just wish Hadley was talking more so that she could communicate her need to use the potty better, but I'm impressed with how she lets me know now. Who knows, maybe she'll be fully potty trained before she's two! That would be totally awesome in my book! Then I'd only have to deal with one child in diapers!

Hadley won't let me feed her anymore. She has to do it all on her own. Sometimes it drives me crazy because of the mess she makes. Then I remember how I have both of my hands free to myself so that I can eat and the mess becomes less of an annoyance to me. Hadley has always been a messy eater anyway. I think it's just the fact that I'm 8 months pregnant and almost everything annoys me these days. I'm trying to keep my patience at the highest level possible and not let little things bother me. It's much harder to do this time around for me. Cheers to my messy eater and little potty trainer!

Sweet Girl

2011-04-01T12:56:00.000-10:00

The other day Riley and I were sitting on the couch together watching a movie while Hadley was napping. Riley looked over at me, rubbed my cheek and said, "Mom, you're my best friend." She made my heart melt! Let's hope she still feels that way when she's 16!

Kite Flying

2011-03-26T12:02:00.001-10:00

To complete our move, Trey took about two weeks off of work. So once we were almost settled in the house Trey still had some time off of work to spend with his girls. We were trying to figure out something fun to do that didn't involve a load of money. Trey came up with the idea of flying a kite. Riley went with her daddy to the store and they came back with three different kites. We all went down to the field behind our house to fly the kites. However, Trey and I both had different ideas on the best way to fly a kite. I don't know what he was thinking, it made no sense to me. And I was told by Trey that I had no knowledge on how to fly a kite. Oh boy, what a fun time we were having! I later explained to my mom and Mr. Kevin how Trey was trying to fly the kite and they both agreed with me on the proper technique to fly a kite. It's funny how differently we were taught as children to fly a kite.

It was really hot outside and there wasn't enough wind blowing for us to keep the kite flying in the air. Trey thought it would be fun to take the girls over to the pool for a quick dip. We weren't in our bathing suits and Trey didn't want to waste the time to get everyone changed. He took his shirt off and Riley's shirt off and he jumped in. The water was freezing cold. Riley was dipping her feet in and then wanted to get in with daddy. Trey puts Riley in the pool with him and she immediately starts crying and wants to get out. It was way too cold for her liking. I guess even though the summer heat has arrived, the pool water hasn't heated up yet! We didn't stay long and I was thankful that we didn't waste time walking back up to the house to get everyone changed.

After dinner we took the girls over to a nearby park to attempt kite flying again. The wind had definitely picked up which made for some better kite flying. Trey was smart and brought two kites, just in case something were to happen to one of them. The first kite he and Riley were flying got to far up in the air and the wind tore it off the string and it flew away. Riley was devastated. She didn't want anything to do with the other kite. Riley finally calmed down and started to have fun flying the kite until the rain started to drizzle on us. Then she was cold and just wanted to go home. So it was a slightly successful kite flying time in the fact that we got the kites in the air. But Riley was very upset about losing a kite and was mad at daddy! Here is to many more fun kite flying family moments!!

Measuring Large

2011-03-24T11:44:00.000-10:00

After our fun filled four day moving event I had a doctors appointment on Monday to get my test results from my three hour glucose screening. As of Monday I was 30 weeks and 2 days pregnant. We are getting closer to meeting our new little girl! My glucose screening came back normal, thank God! I didn't want to have to do that test again, nor did I want to go on a diabetes diet. So I was completely relieved to hear that good news. Then the doctor measured my belly, as she does every time to make sure the baby is growing on track. Except this time she measured me three times and then told me that I was measuring at 33 weeks, not 30 weeks. That's never happened during my previous pregnancies so I really didn't know what to expect. I had to go get a growth scan(which is basically an ultrasound) done to make sure my fluid levels were on track and that everything was good with our baby girl. I was excited to see our new bundle again! It turns out that everything was perfect with my fluid levels and everything was perfect with our baby girl. She is weighing about 4 pounds right now and I was told that's the 60th percentile for weight. I could possibly be measuring larger than 30 weeks because my stomach muscles aren't as strong as they once were. That's no surprise to me, I am having all three kids only 18 months apart from each other! Of course now I'm wondering how early I'm going to be, because I know this little munchkin isn't going to last 40 weeks in my belly!!

Four Doors Down

2011-03-24T11:08:00.000-10:00

Here is a shot of our new home for the next three years! This is our third house here in Hawaii. Every year we've been here so far we've had to upgrade homes due to the increase in our family size. The good new is that we won't be moving again because three children is enough for us!

We moved into our new home on March 17th. We only had to relocate four houses down from where we were living. Trey kept telling me that it would be easy and we'd just walk everything down one room at a time. I thought he was out of his mind. Just because we are moving so close doesn't make getting all of our belongings there easy. From the second I heard we had a house and a date to move I asked Trey to get me boxes so that I could start packing. Trey assured me that I didn't need to pack because we were only moving "four houses down!" I just rolled my eyes and let him go with his plan. Then as our move was only two days away and Trey was on leave I asked if we could get boxes so that I could start packing the kitchen items and bedroom closets. I was told once again that we didn't need boxes! Needless to say the day of the move we were at the U-Haul store buying boxes, tape, and renting a trailer. After a few trips back and forth between the houses, Trey realized that we were going to need to box up our belongings. I was slightly annoyed because I would've had everything packed and ready to go. So once I had my boxes I started in the kids playroom. We figured we'd get all their toys over to the new house and keep them occupied while we tried to get the old house packed up. I got the kitchen and pantry all packed up and was then completely exhausted. We took a lunch break, put Hadley down for a nap, and then I started unpacking the boxes I had packed into our new house. Day 1 of moving was exhausting. Trey managed to move the majority of his garage, the kitchen table. all of the tv's, and all of our beds to the new house. We were both beat by dinner time and called it a day.

Then Friday rolled around and the moving process started all over. I had to pack more boxes. Trey had his friend Mike come and help move the couches and dressers and any other super heavy items. They didn't really get started until after lunchtime. I had to stop my packing process because I needed to keep the girls out of the way with all the heavy furniture moving. Originally we planned on being done our move by the end of Friday so that we would have Saturday and Sunday to clean the old place so that we would pass our inspection for Monday morning. With being so unprepared for this move we were behind track. I don't think Trey or I realized how much stuff we had in that house. I mean it was just never ending. Thank the Lord that Madeleine(Trey's mom) offered to help us pay to have our old house cleaned. The check list to clean the house was terribly long and if we missed one measly thing we would be charged $285. So instead of us trying to get it done, Madeleine offered to help pay for the cleaning that way we didn't have to worry about it. All Trey had to do was steam clean the carpets. We didn't get everything out of the house and finish the carpets until Sunday afternoon. It took us four days to move four doors down. We are so grateful to Madeleine for helping us out with the cleaning! There is no way I would have been able to clean like we were expected to. I mean I was 30 weeks pregnant and lifting and carrying much more than I should have.

We are now pretty much settled into our new home and liking it a lot. It's definitely bigger than our old house. I'm going to have to get a new monitor for the new baby because the hallway upstairs is so long I can't hear Hadley wake up in the morning like I use to be able to do. So she has to have a monitor in her room or else Riley will keep coming in my room to tell me that Hadley is awake! I'm getting use to less kitchen cabinet and counter space, but the new carpets throughout the house make up for that! I'm just grateful this move is over and the next one we have will be taken care of by the Navy!

Time for a Beach Break

2011-03-14T14:03:00.000-10:00

We've had a lot going on these past few weeks. Trey & I have been trying to get organized for our move this Thursday. We've been going through the closets and garage throwing out all of the unnecessary things that we seem to hold onto but don't ever use or need. We got rid of a lot of stuff last weekend, just in time for our bulk pick-up day. Then, as most of you know, we were under a tsunami warning Thursday night into Friday morning. Hearing the sirens go off is never a pleasant experience. As we watched the news of the devastation in Japan my stomach sank and my heart started racing. I was rather nervous and felt very uneasy. The worst part was that the expected time for the tsunami to hit was 3:07am, so there was no sleeping for me or Trey. Trey went out as soon as we heard the first warning siren and filled my tahoe up with gas and I filled our bathtub full of water. We both thought this time something was going to happen. Luckily only a small wave hit in Haliewa and didn't do any catastrophic damage.

With all that craziness we decided to take Sunday off from trying to pack or prepare for our move and just go chill at the beach. We headed to our favorite spot, The Bellows! It was a beautiful day and absolutely perfect for some fun time at the beach. Riley was out of her mind excited to go. It's been quite awhile since we've been. This winter has been chilly and rainy, not really "go to the beach" weather. When we got all set up I fed the girls a little lunch before they got all sandy. Then Riley grabbed her toys and headed straight for the ocean. Riley was running around, splashing in the water and giggling away! Hadley was content just playing in the dry sand by our chairs. It was nice to sit and watch both of the girls play and not complain about a thing! Trey and I joked about how we are finally at a good point with the girls ages that they are happy and the beach and it's all about to change in a couple of months with a newborn! I'm sure she'll love the beach just like her big sisters!

Both of the girls got wiped out in the water. Riley was more concerned that she let go of her toy than they fact she was under water. Hadley on the other hand wasn't too happy about being rolled around by the little wave. Don't worry, she wasn't under water for more than a second, but her reaction was priceless!

After a few hours we said goodbye to the beach. It was hard because of how much fun we were having, but we were all tired and knew we needed to get home to get a few things accomplished. After we got home and I got the girls bathed I sent them downstairs with daddy so that I could get my shower. Daddy turned a movie on for the girls and got them all snuggled up on the couch. We had a great day and hopefully after our move we'll be able to have some more fun days at the beach!

Doughnut Faces

2011-03-14T13:10:00.000-10:00

Yesterday morning Trey ran out to the store and picked us up some doughnuts for breakfast. It's always a nice treat to not have to cook a meal on the weekend. Of course doughnuts here don't taste like the scrumptious Dunkin' Donuts. But I'll take what I can get! The girls always enjoy a special treat too! Except with doughnuts they tend to only eat the part that has frosting on it. So instead of taking a normal bite they take bites from the top of the doughnut. Then when they are done they both ask for more. I'm not nice enough to give them another one. I think one doughnut is plenty, especially when all they are eating is the frosting! I do love these faces!!

28 Weeks- Baby Girl #3

2011-03-09T15:02:00.000-10:00

I haven't done a very good job with blogging about my third(and final) pregnancy. I went on Monday for my 28 week check-up. I have gained 21 pounds which only leaves me 4 more pounds to gain in the next 12 weeks. Honestly, I'm not worried about going over the 4 pounds because I gained 40lbs with Riley and 50lbs with Hadley. Now, I'm not trying to gain that much, but I don't see putting a restriction on my weight gain when my two previous pregnancies resulted in two healthy baby girls. The nurse practitioner that I've been seeing was out sick so I saw a different doctor. He was really nice and new to the hospital. Baby girl #3 had a strong heartbeat at 150bpm. Then I was informed that I failed the glucose screening I had taken the week before. This test is done during every pregnancy to test for gestational diabetes. I have never failed the test before and I'm not too worried about it. I blame myself for failing because I drank a carnation instant breakfast drink right before my test. That probably wasn't the smartest decision I've ever made. Now I have to go next week for a second glucose screening which is a three hour test. They are going to draw my blood, then I have to drink the nasty glucose drink, then I will have my blood drawn once an hour for the next three hours. I know you are jealous of me right now! The worst part is that I have to fast for 8 hours prior to the test and can't eat or drink anything during the three hours of testing. I mean, come on, I'm pregnant and thirsty all of the time. I'm not concerned about the results of the test, but I am concerned about my poor veins. Hopefully I won't leave the test feeling like a pin cushion. This pregnancy I haven't been asked if I'm having twins, which I experienced all of the time with Riley and Hadley. However, complete strangers ask me if I'm getting my boy and when I tell them no they reply "oh you must be disappointed" or "you can always try again." I'm not disappointed at all and I'm not trying again. I'm completely thankful for another healthy baby girl.

Trey and I have chosen a name. It took us awhile to decide and I'm choosing not to announce the name. The name will be announced once our little girl arrives. I will say that just like her two big sisters, she will have a middle name that comes from one of our families. Here are a couple of belly shots so you can see what I'm carrying around with me these days!!

Tunnel of Fun

2011-03-08T14:11:00.001-10:00

It's always a bummer when it's raining outside because the girls can't get the fresh air that they crave on a daily basis. We are still in our rainy season and it's rained everyday for the past four days. Today we whipped out Riley's tunnel because they hadn't played with it in awhile which means it would be exciting and somewhat new for them! Both of the girls were giggling like crazy climbing through the tunnel and climbing over each other. Riley even played a game with Hadley and pulled her all over the house while Hadley was in the tunnel. Hadley was screaming at first, but then decided she was enjoying the tunnel ride. They played with the tunnel for an hour straight. I love uninterrupted play time!!

Barrettes!!!

2011-03-05T13:55:00.000-10:00

I have been trying to have Riley let me put barrettes in her hair for over a year now. I am thrilled to announce that Riley has requested to wear barrettes!!! She has some uncontrollable hair and I guess it's starting to drive her a little crazy. Riley informed me the other day that she needed barrettes to hold her hair back. Yay!! So I took her to Target yesterday and let her pick out a bunch of different barrettes. She chose some with flowers and others were hear shaped. It's not the best picture below, but you can see she's wearing purple barrettes on the right side of the photo. She is in love with her barrettes and I'm excited for her! I think she looks adorable!

I picked up some smaller barrettes for Hadley while we were shopping too. Her hair is growing so fast and I desperately needed to get her some so that her bangs aren't in her face all day long. I think she looks pretty cute in her barrettes too.

15 Months

2011-02-22T21:12:00.000-10:00

I had to take Hadley in today for her 15 month well baby check-up. She is now 30in long and weighs 21lbs 4oz. She is in the 50th percentile for her height and weight. She's my little nugget! However, her doctor was concerned about her weight because she lost about a pound since her 12 month check-up. I'm not concerned about her weight at all because she has become so active in the past few months whereas before she was constantly attached to my hip at all times! But I got grilled by the doctor as to how much milk Hadley drinks, how much she eats, how many snacks I feed her. I mean honestly, my children don't go hungry and Hadley eats like there is no tomorrow. I was shocked that she had lost weight and even more shocked that the doctor was so concerned about the tiny weight loss. I was instructed to give her Pediasure, but I don't feel like she needs it. The doctor said she'll be curious to see what Hadley's weight is at her 18 month check-up. If she loses more weight then perhaps I'll start giving her Pediasure. Now that I was feeling like a bad mother because my child lost weight, I was happy to see how impressed the doctor was with Hadley's vocabulary level. Some of Hadley's words are: mama, dada, gentle, bubble, baby, dog, bye bye, night night(which sounds like ni ni), belly, ball, block. The list continues but I've drawn a blank! Hadley can identify several body parts as well. She impresses me everyday with how quickly she picks up on things. After our visit with the doctor I had to take Hadley to get her immunizations, which she had to get three of. I'm a little anxious at how she will react to the chicken pox vaccine since she didn't do so well with the MMR shot. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that her little body won't have a bad reaction.

After our fun time at the doctors we came home, had some lunch and then played outside. The girls love to play outside. Riley is always riding her scooter around and going "super fast" as she likes to say. Hadley tries to get on Riley's scooter but Riley isn't fond of sharing her favorite toy. Not to mention Hadley is too little to ride the scooter anyway! So while Riley is riding her scooter Hadley is creating some fabulous artwork with sidewalk chalk. The one issue with the chalk is that she likes to draw all over herself and me. The chalk washes out of clothes easily, but there are times that I'd prefer not to have my clothes colored on. Just one of the joys of children!

I know Hadley's hair looks crazy!!

Here is an action shot of Riley on her scooter going "super fast!!"

No More Waiting

2011-02-21T12:04:00.000-10:00

When we found out that we would be staying in Hawaii for another three years I immediately made an appointment with the housing office so that we could get on the waiting list for a four bedroom home. I guess we could stay in our three bedroom home, but why not get a bigger place? When I went to my appointment a few weeks ago I was told that it would be at least a six month wait. I was expecting that because that's what I was told the last time we moved. When we moved into the house we are currently living in we only had to wait for two weeks before we got our phone call that there was a house available. So of course this time I was keeping my fingers crossed that we wouldn't have to wait too long. I really wanted to be into our new house before our new bundle arrives. All I kept thinking was that we were going to be offered a house and it would be right when I was getting ready to have the baby. Much to my surprise we got a phone call last week informing us that they had a house available for us. And it turns out that it's four doors down from where we live right now. It's nice because we won't have to rent a U-Haul and our new address will only change by one number. We will be moving March 17th, which is a Thursday, and have to be completely out of our current house by that Monday. That means lots of cleaning will be taking place that weekend which I'm not really looking forward to. We were thinking about just paying the fee to have someone come in after we move to clean the house, but why spend $275 when we can clean it ourselves. If it was only $100 I'd probably pay it, but considering we have to have the carpets professionally steam cleaned I don't want to spend any unnecessary money. If anyone would like to come and visit us and join in on our fun moving weekend, please feel free!! I'm already looking forward to being done with the move, having everything cleaned and put away. However, I've got a lot of packing to do before I can even start thinking about being settled in our new house. I definitely feel blessed that the move will be done before baby girl #3 enters our lives!

My Big Girl

2011-02-18T17:10:00.000-10:00

I can hardly believe that in two months my first born will be 3! Where has the time gone. I swear she wakes up taller everyday. She is growing like a weed these days and her appetite definitely goes along with that story. We just upgraded her out of her toddler bed into a full size bed. She was more than thrilled with the change. Riley even picked out her bedding set which was none other than Dora the Explorer. I didn't want a themed bedroom for her, but she desperately wanted a Dora bedding set and who was I to refuse her request? Plus Trey reminded me that when Riley outgrows her Dora phase that she will have two younger sisters who will probably still be loving Dora. I need to take Riley shopping for some new clothes because she's getting so tall that her shirts and shorts and getting too short! Here are a couple of shots that I took of Riley this week. Where has my little baby gone? She looks so big to me!

February Hotness

2011-02-18T16:56:00.000-10:00

Ok, don't be too jealous! There have been quite a few days this week where it's been hot enough outside that I put the girls in their bathing suits and turned the sprinkler on for them. Oh yes, a major perk of living in Hawaii is being able to play outside year round. The winter months are definitely colder than the summer months, but the sun has been getting more intense the past week or so and we can definitely feel the difference. Riley even makes comments that it's too hot out and she's ready to go inside. I try to have them play when there is a nice cloud cover or where there is shade. But now that it's warming up, we just play with water. Hadley thought the sprinkler was super funny and played in it quite a bit and then decided to go back to playing with the sidewalk chalk.

Be Mine

2011-02-15T16:18:00.000-10:00

The girls are still a bit young to understand the meaning of Valentines Day. But I still wanted them to know that they are loved! They each got matching outfits with an adorable top that said "lil' love bug" because they are my love bugs! I wanted them to have a cute valentine shirt, but I wanted them to be able to wear it again too. I thought this shirt was perfect! We went to Riley's gymnastics class in the morning and exchanged little Valentines with her class and coach. Riley was super excited to receive little Valentines, but wasn't too keen on saying Happy Valentines Day and passing hers out. The girls received hand made Valentines cards from Kiki. I, however, wasn't privileged enough to receive one! They also got a gift box from their Nana filled with all kinds of goodies: cups, bubble necklaces, little stuffed puppies, and their favorite treat was a light up wand.

When Trey got home from work I surprised him and got us dinner. I didn't feel like cooking, so the next best thing is carryout, right? We both enjoyed the delicious Cajun chicken pasta from Chili's. Trey surprised me with a dozen red roses, which were totally unnecessary, but much appreciated! After dinner Riley rode her scooter and I pulled Hadley around in the wagon to try and work off my full belly! I think Valentine's Day is over-rated, but it is always nice to take the day to remind the people you love just how much you really love them!

Same Zip Code

2011-02-07T13:51:00.000-10:00

Most of you know that after much deliberation Trey is staying in the Navy. We thought for awhile that we would be leaving the military life because Trey's PTS was denied, but it wound up getting approved and I thought it was a sign from God that he was suppose to stay in. So after finding out that Trey was staying in the Navy it was time for Trey to pick orders for his sea duty. There were a ton of orders to Japan which we were seriously contemplating on putting in for. Then I started thinking as much as I like adventure, I don't know how much I'd like an adventure in a foreign country with three children and my husband on deployment for 6 to 8 months at a time. I started feeling very uneasy about moving to Japan. Trey was in agreement with me and we decided that Japan wasn't the right move for us. We both agreed that trying to get back to VA would be ideal because my family is only a 3.5 hour drive away. And with Trey being gone on deployments it would be so nice to have family and friends near by. But the Navy wasn't going to send a family of five in Hawaii all the way to VA when there are a bunch of open positions on the west coast. So Trey selected orders for San Diego, Lemoore, and Washington state. I was keeping my fingers crossed for the opening in Washington because the ship he would have been on was going to be relocating to VA in 2012. I was excited thinking about moving closer to family and friends again. Then I get a phone call from Trey last week telling me that he knows where we are going. Of course my fingers are crossed for Washington. Then Trey proceeds to tell me that we are staying in Hawaii. I thought he was kidding me, but he wasn't! I wasn't too excited when I first heard the news. But then once I let it sink in I realized that I really couldn't be too upset about spending another three years in Hawaii. We've got perfect weather year round, the girls get to experience the most beautiful beaches, and Trey makes enough money that I don't have to go back to work right now. Plus since we are adding a new addition to our family we get to move into a four bedroom home. Trey will be leaving for deployment in September and I'm already thinking how crappy it's going to be. He's going to miss Hadley's second birthday, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years. But that's all apart of being in the military! So if you feel like celebrating the holidays in Hawaii please feel free to join me and the girls! I've gotten pretty good a cooking a holiday meal and you'll have a free place to stay! I'm excited to be staying here longer. We now have more time to visit Maui and the Big Island which we haven't gotten to do because I kept getting pregnant! But now we have three more years to discover the other islands! And now, for all of you that haven't gotten your butts out here to visit us(and you know who you are), now is your chance!

Burst of Energy

2011-01-27T14:09:00.002-10:00

On a normal evening you can always tell when it's bath time/bed time. The girls both start getting fussy and rubbing their eyes. However, last night the girls were in rare mode. I was cleaning up the kitchen and heard Hadley cracking up laughing. I looked over into the living room to find Riley dragging Hadley around the floor by her arms. I had to grab the camera because it was the first time I've seen this game being played! I couldn't believe that Hadley was enjoying being pulled around by her arms, but her laughter was cracking me up!

Then Daddy turned on some music so the girls were dancing together, as usual. Hadley looks like she's been hitting the bottle in this shot!

After the dancing, out of nowhere, Riley starts running back and forth from the entry to the living room. I don't know where she got all of this energy from but I'm glad she was getting it out of her system before bed time. Hadley was cracking up watching her big sister run through the house like a wild woman. It's the little things that entertain these girls!

Battling a Cold

2011-01-25T14:38:00.000-10:00

It's been about a week that Hadley has been battling an awful cold. Her nose is constantly running and she's got a horrid cough to accompany that runny nose. Riley had a runny nose for a day or two and then was back on the healthy wagon. I had the privilege of getting sick along with Hadley, but luckily for me it only lasted for 3 days. Thanks to Sudafed for getting me through the rough days! I feel so awful doing it, but I have to suction out Hadley's nose about 4 times a day. She HATES having it done and fights me tooth and nail every time I attempt to suction. I literally have to put her legs under mine and hold her head down on the ground so that she doesn't move while I try to clean out her nose. It gets done much quicker this way! I'm seriously hoping that the cold passes soon because I'm tired of suctioning (what seems like) a gallon of snot everyday! Aside from the fact that Hadley has a cold she's been in pretty good spirits. The cold has affected her napping, but she's been sleeping through the night with no problem. Thank God! The picture below is a shot of Hadley concentrating on building her Lego tower. She gets frustrated pretty easily these days when she can't do something. She wasn't happy with me for interrupting her concentration to take a picture, as you can see!

About the Girls

2011-01-22T16:00:00.001-10:00

It's hard for me to believe that in three months my first born daughter will turn 3 years old! Her birthday is all she talks about lately. I've been informed that she wants a butterfly cake which she has picked out in a birthday cake book that I have. I'm seriously reminded on a daily basis that she has to have her butterfly cake. Perhaps I should practice so I don't screw it up! Riley is quite comical these days with the things she says. The other day she told me that her bed is too small and she needs a big bed like Mommy. Riley is still in her toddler bed, and Trey & I know she's outgrown it. However, we are waiting to find out where we are moving to next and how many bedrooms we will have. If we don't get a 4 bedroom house than Riley & Hadley will have to share a room. If that's the case then we are going to get bunk beds. Plus, we don't really want to buy a bed here in Hawaii because they are marked up so much.

It took Riley a few days to get comfortable with the idea of having a new sister on the way. When Trey & I told her she was getting another sister she replied, "no sister, I want a brother." I explained that unfortunately I couldn't give her a brother, but explained how much fun another sister would be. Once the idea settled with her she was excited. She tells me that she is going to help me change diapers(even poopy diapers) and help give her new sister a bath. Riley has been a huge help with Hadley, so I'm sure she's going to be just as wonderful when her new sister arrives.

Hadley is a handful and a half. She is the child that gets into everything. I try to keep the bathroom door closes because she's constantly playing in the toilet and throwing toys into the toilet. That would be the number 1 reason that I try to clean the toilet on a daily basis. She likes to touch everything that she shouldn't and completely ignores me when I tell her no. If she doesn't ignore me, she bursts into tears. She has a growing vocabulary. Her words include ball, dog, mama, dada, no, ni ni(night night) and some others that I can't think of at this moment. Hadley can make a few animal noises including a cat and pig. Riley taught Hadley the sign for more which she now uses whenever she hears the word or when she wants more to eat. She can now climb up on the couch on her own which excites her to pieces! Hadley also positions toys in front of the tv stand in the playroom and climbs up onto the tv stand. Not cool! I catch her all of the time and she screams when I pull her off. Luckily, no two children are the same so I'm hoping that number three won't be such a little stinker! I could use a little break!

Hadley's newest thing is to give kisses all of the time. I tried to catch one of her kisses but I missed it. As you can see, Riley is all puckered up waiting to get some love from Hadley. It's funny though because Hadley won't just give you one kiss, she has to kiss you at least five times! I love getting kisses from my girls!

Long Days

2011-01-21T14:39:00.000-10:00

Once again I've been asked why my blog hasn't been updated in over a week. I'm not sure what you think goes on in my house, but blogging doesn't get to happen everyday for me. I don't have the time with my two little munchkins needing constant attention. I can't blog when Hadley is awake because whenever I'm on the computer she insists on sitting on my lap. That results in only being able to skype. When Hadley is napping I'm folding laundry, dusting, vacuuming, cleaning windows, scrubbing toilets, and the list goes on. And yes, these chores are a daily occurrence in my house! Sometimes I even get to sneak a nap in myself. Not to mention I have a new guilty pleasure of playing Angry Birds on my Ipad which takes up a lot of my free time. If you know what I'm talking about then you understand my addiction and that I just can't put the game down!

For the past two weeks my days have been extra long because Trey has been working 13 hour days, seven days a week. Trey is normally not getting home until 7:30pm and that is about the time the girls are getting their bath and getting ready for bed. He's exhausted when he gets home and I can't blame him because I'm just as exhausted! The girls get to bed, I fix Trey some dinner and then it's bedtime. So please forgive my non-blogging self for not giving any updates. With Trey working so much, I've kind of gotten a sneak peak of what sea duty is going to bring our way. The lack of Daddy being at home has both of the girls asking for Daddy much more and showing Daddy lots of attention when they get to see him. I can't really imagine how it's going to be with three little ones by myself for at least six months at a time. I know I can do it, but there might be a few glasses of wine involved!

Riley has a new obsession with my Itouch. She's always asking me, "Mommy, where is your Itouch?" She has discovered all on her own how to get on You Tube and watch Mickey Mouse cartoons. I mean she's still 2 years old. She's going to be more computer savvy than I am! I don't mind her using it until she somehow changed all of my icons and moved them all around. I have no idea how to undo what she did, but she managed to fix it for me. Lord help me!

Hadley keeps entertained by all different things from tea parties to baby dolls to stacking blocks. She loves playing with the alphabet magnets, but I have to watch her like a hawk because the letters wind up in her mouth all of the time. She thinks it's funny to stuff a bunch in her mouth and then have me chase her. I'm never laughing in the matter because I'm scared to death she's going to choke on a letter. She's as rotten as they come, but I can't help but love her to death!

During Trey's escapade of working late and long hours he always begs me to keep the girls up so that he can see them for a little bit. So I do my best to keep them happy, playful, and awake until their Daddy arrives home. Some nights they have both been crying and screaming with me, but the second that Daddy walks through the door they are the happiest children on the planet. I guess after 13 hours with Mommy they've had enough! Luckily, Trey doesn't have to work the long hours and seven days a week anymore. I'm counting my blessings that those days are over, for now!

Baby #3

2011-01-10T13:34:00.000-10:00

Today was the day that we found out whether we are having a boy or girl. I have had a feeling all along that this baby was going to be a boy. Not because I wanted a boy, but because this pregnancy has been completely different than my first two pregnancies. The Chinese calendar also predicted I was going to have a boy. Well, I was wrong along with the Chinese calendar! We are having our third(and final) GIRL!! Oh yes, Trey is going to be surrounded by estrogen for the rest of his life! Or at least until one of them gets married, but we won't think that far ahead yet! I'm really excited with the news. I didn't care either way, boy or girl, I'm just thrilled we are expecting another healthy baby. That's what matters most to Trey and I both. Now I can start buying pink toys again. Trey wasn't allowing me to get the girly toy colors of Lego's and what not just in case we were having a boy! I'm definitely thinking we are going to have our hands full with three girls who are all 18 months apart! Watch out, the Prewitt girls are coming!!

My due date is May 28th. Riley was born on the 22nd and Hadley was born on the 21st, so I'm assuming baby girl #3 will be in the 20's as well. Perhaps the 23rd?!? Now it's on to the name game for us. We haven't spoken of any girl names for the past 20 weeks, so now it's time to start!

Cozy Cruising Part II

2011-01-07T11:16:00.000-10:00

I know in my previous blog I had mentioned that Hadley will push Riley around the house and I just wanted to show you how adorable it looks! Once Hadley is done pushing Riley around, Hadley is ready for her turn in the cozy coupe. So normally she just climbs right in on top of Riley. She's pretty much telling Riley "hey, you need to get out!" Riley likes to stay in the car and squeeze Hadley until Hadley starts screaming. Yes, Riley likes to antagonize her sister! She gets that from her father!

Hot & Sweaty

2011-01-05T10:36:00.001-10:00

I'm not quite sure what I was thinking, but I thought it would be a good idea to take the girls to the park after lunch. I packed them up in their new Radio Flyer wagon(courtesy of Nana for Christmas) and off we went. Both of the girls enjoyed their wagon ride to the park and were ready to play as soon as we got there.

It was about 12:30pm when we arrived and piping hot. I thought there was a nice breeze that would keep us cool, but it disappeared when we reached the park. Oh well, the girls didn't seem to mind at all. There was a 4 year old boy at the park with his mom who was pregnant. We both laughed at how we thought the fresh air would be nice but couldn't believe how hot it was. Riley ran around and played with her new friend while Hadley climbed the stairs and went down the slide all by herself! Yes, she thinks she's a big girl, meanwhile I'm trying to keep calm! After about 45 minutes of running around and playing Riley tells me she has to go potty. So I grabbed Hadley and then reached for Riley's hand to walk her over to the bathroom when she just starts peeing right on the ground. OOPS!! I couldn't believe my eyes. She's never had an accident in public and hasn't had an accident in months. I was so embarrassed, but hey, accidents happen. Riley was so preoccupied playing with her new buddy that she didn't realize she had to go to the bathroom until it was too late. On the one hand I was embarrassed, but on the other hand I was excited that we got to go home into the air conditioning! Isn't that awful? Both the girls were hot and sweaty and needed a break from the heat anyway. Riley was upset she wet her pants and was apologizing to me. I told her it was alright, those things happen sometimes. She said she wouldn't do it again. I love that girl! We got home and got Riley cleaned up and all enjoyed some ice cold water!

Cozy Cruising

2011-01-03T15:03:00.000-10:00

One of Hadley's gifts for Christmas was this Cozy Coupe car. I had always wanted one for Riley, but when we went to get her one the NEX was out and that's when Trey decided she needed the power wheel mustang! Anyway, the cozy coupe is a hit with both of the girls! Riley likes to think that all new toys are hers too. Hadley loves to climb in the car and play inside, but the second you try to push her around she freaks out. So for now she's just sitting cozy in her coupe! Hadley does share her car with Riley. Hadley will actually push Riley all around the house. It's adorable to watch. Thanks to Poppy and Grandma Kathy for the awesome gift!

Pure Talent

2011-01-02T14:53:00.000-10:00

I have to give a big shout out to my talented mother. She is always making Christmas stockings for new members of the family. I don't even think she's made herself one. But Trey was lucky enough to be the recipient of his handmade stocking this year for Christmas. I can't get over what a beautiful job my mom does making these stockings. I wish I had her talent and/or motivation to sit there and cross stitch. However, I don't have any desire to be so artistic. Maybe one day. Thank you, Mom, for making Trey such a beautiful stocking. He was truly amazed!

Christmas Photo Outtakes

2010-12-29T16:01:00.000-10:00

Every Christmas we send the grandparents a set of pictures of the girls. I'd like to get professional ones taken, but it's just way too pricey, especially when we are capable of doing it ourselves! It's definitely no easy task to capture a picture of both children. Trying to get them to both look at the camera and smile at the same time is almost impossible. It took three different attempts of taking the girls out to a nice spot to get their pictures taken. It was rough this year because the girls both got sick and then so did I. I did manage to get a few decent shots to choose from, but I thought I'd share some of the other shots I captured!

The picture below would have been great if Riley wasn't being so goofy!!

After I was done attempting to have the girls sit still for a picture I let them run around in the field. Riley's new favorite activity is to tackle Hadley. On this day Hadley didn't seem to mind!

Here are the final products that the grandparents received:

Christmas Day 2010

2010-12-25T21:29:00.002-10:00

Christmas morning started nice and early for us! Both of the girls were up at 6:30am, so Trey and I put on our Christmas morning happy faces! Trey went downstairs first so that he could get the video camera ready to record the girls reaction(the video will be loaded a little later). Once he was ready the girls and I headed down the stairs. They were both excited to see all of the presents under the Christmas tree. I was really excited to watch them both open their gifts. Hadley wasn't really sure what all of the fuss was about, but Riley knew exactly what the presents were for! As Riley started tearing into the gifts, Hadley watched and just started taking her presents from under the tree. It was cute!

Riley was excited for her TinkerBell paint set from Grandpa Prewitt!

Hadley started to open a gift and then decided it was more fun to watch Riley!

Yay, new Dora mega blocks!

Both of the girls enjoying their morning. I was excited for the Leap Frog tag Junior reader for Riley. I know she's going to love it!

Hadley was having more fun with the wrapping paper than opening the gifts!

Riley had no problem tearing into the presents!

Riley's top picks this year were her digital camera from Kiki & Po and her scooter from Poppy & Grandma Kathy. She was literally taking pictures for the rest of the day and riding her scooter around the house all day!

Nana got the girls the easel and Hadley loved to tear all of the letter magnets off the board and tried to eat them all!

The girls got loads of gifts and we are all very thankful for all of them. Thank you to everyone who helped make this Christmas special! I was a lucky girl and not only received an Ipad, but also a new Canon Eos Rebel T1i camera. It's awesome and I feel like a real photographer when I use it. I have to figure out how to load the pictures, but as soon as I do they will be added to the blog! Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve

2010-12-24T23:10:00.000-10:00

Today was a pretty busy day. We just found out a couple of days ago that what Riley really wanted for Christmas was Donald Duck. I don't know where this request came from, but how could we deny her a gift that she so desperately wants? There is only one Disney store here so we loaded up the girls and headed to Ala Moana Center. I walk into the Disney store only to find that they have every character except for Donald Duck. Go figure! So I find an associate and ask if they happen to have any Donald Duck's in the back room. The associate tells me they have been out of him for months, but she'd double check. They did have a big Donald Duck, but that wasn't what I was looking for. I wanted the small version, not some giant stuffed animal. The store associate came out of the back room with about 20 Donald Duck's in her arms. Hallelujah!! I picked up a Daisy Duck and Pluto while we were there too! I know we will have one happy little girl tomorrow morning. After the Disney store I hit up Godiva(which is the only Godiva on the island) to pick up the last 3 chocolate Santa's they had in stock. Phew! We headed home and made some lunch. I laid Hadley down for her nap and then ran out to pick up a couple of movies for Trey from the girls. One of his favorite Christmas movies is National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. Can you believe that I asked 3 people to point me in the direction of the movie and they had never heard of it. What? It's a classic! Oh well, onto the next store in search of the movie. Luckily, Target came to the rescue and had the movie along with Marley & Me. I was finally finished any and all gifts that I needed to get. I thought I was done weeks ago, but then I forgot about the little things! I was not having a good time running around today though. Not because it was too crowded or anything, but the fact it was 87 degrees and humid as crap, made it miserable to be running around. I was a hot, sweaty mess by the time I was finished.

Trey had to go in to work this evening but was home after a couple of hours. Riley was anticipating the arrival of Santa just a little too much. I didn't get her to bed until 10pm. And that was after I sat next to her bed and rubbed her head until she fell asleep. Trey and I were trying to get all the gifts out and she kept getting out of bed and creeping down the stairs. I was about to give her a shot of tequila! Just kidding, I would never. But I was exhausted and wanted to get to bed myself. Once she was asleep, I finished putting all of the gifts under the tree and Trey put together all of the big stuff. Here is a shot of what they girls will see in the morning. The picture is missing Hadley's cozy coupe car and their radio flyer wagon, but you get the point!

'Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse!

Santa Claus

2010-12-20T11:17:00.000-10:00

I've been wanting to take the girls to see Santa Claus for the past couple of weeks, but as you know they were under the weather and now I've been under the weather. Last night after dinner, Trey and I loaded the girls up in the car and took them to see Santa. Riley understands about Santa this year which has made talking about him fun. I love when Riley says "Ho, Ho, Ho!" Riley was excited to go see Santa this year and tell him she's been a good girl. We walk up to get in line and Riley sees Santa and jumps into Trey's arms. I guess talking about him was more exciting than seeing him in person. I sat Hadley on Santa's lap and told Trey to put Riley on his lap. Trey replied, "but she doesn't want to." To which I replied, "put her on his lap!" We couldn't get any smiles out of Riley, only a mean mug! It's better than last year with Riley screaming in the picture! I'm happy that she sat there until after her picture was taken. I don't think you can really expect much more out of a two and a half year old. I'd like to think the visit with Santa was successful!

Fighting the Sickness

2010-12-18T10:37:00.000-10:00

After almost three weeks of Riley being sick she is back to being a healthy little girl again, thank God! Once I was able to get her to start taking her antibiotic she seemed to feel better pretty quickly. Riley would only take her antibiotic if she gave it to herself though. So I'd fill up the syringe and she'd suck on it like a straw. She was so proud of herself every time too! As long as she was taking the medicine I didn't really care who was giving it to her. I just wanted Riley to be healthy again.

Hadley's reaction to her MMR shot went away after about a week. The diarrhea continued for about another week but finally subsided. This excited me because I couldn't take much more of the nasty diapers. I mean, they were enough to make me gag! Hadley's rash went away for about 3 days and then it seemed to appear again. I took a picture, but it doesn't do the rash justice. This time the rash only lasted 2 days and it's been gone since. I'm not a fan of my children having reactions to immunizations. It makes me not want to take them for any more, but I know it's better for them to receive them. Hadley has been back to her normal self for a little over a week now. Her and Riley are back to playing, laughing, and fighting together. You know, that typical sister love!

I have been absent from blogging because now that my girls are back to being healthy I've been sick. I caught Riley's nasty cough and I've had it for just over a week now. It sucks to be sick. It really sucks to be sick and pregnant. I am completely limited to what medication I can take. I've been taking Robitussin and using cough drops. Neither are really helping too much, but I'll take the little bit of help I'm getting from them. It's definitely not fun being sick around the holidays either. With the girls being sick and then me getting sick I was rushing around trying to get every one's packages together and shipped off on time so that they'd arrive by Christmas. This is the first time in 3 years that I've been really sick. Trey tells me that I sound like I've been smoking for 20 years. My cough is awful and flemmy(just in case you were wondering). I'm trying to rest as much as possible but we all know that's limited with having to keep up with Riley and Hadley. I'm hoping by Christmas I'm not coughing anymore. That's all I want for Christmas!!

I Can See the Light!

2010-12-06T13:13:00.000-10:00

My life has been rather hectic for the past week, so let me catch you up. I took Hadley in for her one year check-up on Nov. 22nd. The doctor said that she is developing normally and appeared to be doing great. Hadley is now weighing 21lbs 11.3oz and is 29 in. long. Hadley was a perfect angel, once again, during her appointment. She let the doctor do whatever she needed to do. No fussing or crying from this girl! It's always a relief for me when my child doesn't scream when the doctor tries to touch them!

After her appointment I had to take her over to get her immunizations. She had to get her MMR and Hep A vaccines. My poor pumpkin screamed on both shots, but I calmed her down pretty quickly.

Last Monday, we had to miss Riley's gymnastics class so that I could take her in to the doctors. She had been coughing for almost a week and it was getting worse. Riley wasn't able to sleep through the night and was sleeping in my bed! Riley is not an easy child to have at the doctors office and never has been. I had to sit her on my lap and beg her to open her mouth so the doctor could look into her throat. I'm pretty sure she only opened her mouth for a nanosecond. The doctor said her throat looked fine, but I seriously don't know how she saw anything. Riley had her ears and nose checked too, and everything looked fine. So basically I was told Riley was fine but was given some Robitussin for her to take a bedtime. Ok, but she's coughing all day long so I wasn't really sure how that was going to help. I gave Riley her cough medicine at night and after her first taste of it, I had to force her to take the rest. She told me it was yucky! After two nights of using the Robitussin, Riley was still waking up in the middle of the night with horrible coughing fits. Trey went out at 3am one night to get her something else. He picked up some Triaminic which is for children 6 and older so I was a little hesitant to give it to Riley. But the poor girl needed something. So I only gave her a few ml's and it seemed to do the trick and helped her sleep.

Last Tuesday, Hadley started to run a fever. I just assumed it was from teething. She was extra fussy and only wanting to be held by me. I mean I couldn't put her down for a moment without her screaming bloody murder. Her fever lasted all week. It never exceeded 100, so again, I seriously assumed it was her teething. I just kept giving her Tylenol in hopes that her teeth would cut through soon so that she would get back to normal self. The constant crying continued all week long.

Thursday Trey wound up having to go to the ER. He was having some major stomach issues and his doctor thought his symptoms might be appendicitis. So Trey went to the ER while I was at home caring for my two under the weather children. I was exhausted from my two sick babies and now worried sick that my husband was now going to have to have surgery. I mean when it rains it pours! After Trey had a CT scan it appeared that it wasn't appendicitis, but just a really bad stomach virus. I was relieved.

Saturday Riley was still coughing like a crazy woman. I mean it was an awful fluid filled cough. My heart broke every time I heard her cough. It appeared to have gotten worse and she had been coughing for almost two weeks at this point. Trey took her to the doctors and came home with some antibiotics for her. This is the very first time Riley has ever been on an antibiotic. While they were at the doctors I was at home with Hadley who was napping. When she woke up from her nap I got her dressed. I noticed an awful rash all over her chest. It was time for her to go to the doctor because something wasn't right. I took her to the doctor and found out that she was having a reaction to the MMR vaccine she received. Reactions can occur 5-12 days after the vaccine. So I was just instructed to keep giving her Tylenol for her fever and keep her hydrated. My poor Hadley had the rash all over her chest, stomach, back, and forehead at this point. I just wanted to cry. Why is she having a reaction? Reactions aren't common which totally concerns me for her next dose. I took a picture of my poor pumpkin after we got home from the doctors. She looks so miserable! I tried to take a picture of her rash, but my camera died. If her fever and rash aren't gone by Tuesday I was instructed to bring her in so they could run some tests. I don't know what tests, but I guess that's what I will do.

So here we are now on Monday. Hadley seems to be in a little bit of better spirits. Her fever has gone down to almost normal and her rash isn't as bad. Riley is still coughing but not as frequently. I finally feel like there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Of course now I feel like I have a cold coming on. Go figure. Perhaps I should have been wearing a mask for the past two weeks!

Black Friday

2010-11-26T15:58:00.003-10:00

Every black Friday Trey and I get enjoyment from going out to the stores into the madness to see what kind of sales are going on. Last year when we went out to shop for the girls on black Friday, everything I wanted to get was already gone. So we have already done our Christmas shopping this year because I didn't want to miss out on the items I wanted for the girls. So this year as we went out on black Friday it wasn't as much fun because we didn't buy anything. I did get to take a step back and see just how crazy shoppers can be on this busy day! I remember working retail during the holiday season. It was a ton of fun, but long hours and a lot of work. And customers never seemed to be too jolly!!

After hitting up the mall for a bit I thought we were going home. But Trey pulled into the Navy Exchange parking lot and from looking at the parking lot I was wondering why he would even want to walk into that place. He wound up pulling up to the Christmas tree tent. I got super excited!! For the past three years we've just had a tiny little tree that's already pre-lit. And when I say tiny, I mean we sit it on top of one of our coffee tables. I've been wanting to get a big tree for awhile, but Trey wanted to wait until we got back to the mainland, so I always refer to him as the Grinch! This year he realized that Riley understands what's going on and every time she'd see a tree in a store she'd get so excited. So Trey surprised us by getting a real Christmas tree this year. The smell of pine in the house is very refreshing! When we got home I turned on Christmas music and Riley and I decorated the tree while Hadley was napping. We were still decorating when Hadley woke up from her nap so then she joined in the fun. Hadley helped by taking all of the ornaments in her reach off of the tree. Wonderful! I decided it would be best and safest if we only kept ornaments on the top half of the tree so that Hadley can't reach them. We have shatter free ornaments, but Trey and I were concerned about her poking her eye out with the hooks. I mean Hadley was flinging the ornaments all around! Riley had a blast decorating the tree. After every ornament she put on she'd say "oh, that's pretty!" It was so much fun to decorate with her this year!

Oh, pardon the fact that we don't have a tree topper yet. I'm in the process of finding one that I actually like!

Happy Thanksgiving

2010-11-25T20:40:00.000-10:00

This Thanksgiving we didn't have any company like last year when both my mom and Trey's mom were here. It was nice last year to have the moms cooking while I relaxed and took care of Riley and my newborn, Hadley! I was excited to cook another Thanksgiving meal this year. We kept it simple and didn't invite anyone over to join us. It was just us and it was really nice. I started cooking around 8am and didn't really stop until it was time to eat. We were going to wait to eat until around 4pm but I decided it would be easier to eat earlier that way I didn't have to worry about making lunch for everyone on top of preparing our Thanksgiving meal. It worked out perfectly because we got to eat a late lunch and then have leftovers for dinner. Well I didn't have anything for dinner because I ate too much with my first helping. But Trey dug in for seconds, and thirds! The turkey I made this year was delicious. It was falling off the bone! I would post a picture but it's ugly because Trey started picking at the turkey before I could grab my camera! To go along with the turkey I made gravy, stuffing, homemade mac & cheese, mashed potatoes, rolls, pumpkin pie, and my moms yummy strawberry shortcake dessert! It was a wonderfully tasty meal!

I had dressed the girls both in skirts so that I could take a nice picture of the two of them on Thanksgiving. However, now that Riley wears underwear she doesn't like to keep her clothes on while in the house! So I have a shot of Hadley in her cute little Thanksgiving outfit. But Riley is in her panties playing with Hadley's birthday present, a cute tea set, that she received from Aunt Leslie & Uncle Tim. Thanks Aunt Leslie & Uncle Tim for thinking of Hadley! We greatly appreciate your kindness!

I am so thankful for my wonderful husband and beautiful children! They make my life complete! I am thankful for the healthy growing baby in my belly! I am thankful for all of my family that I can't celebrate with today. But please know that I'm thinking of all of you and love you all very much!

Happy Birthday Hadley!!!

2010-11-21T21:19:00.000-10:00

I can hardly believe that a year has passed since Hadley was born. I remember the day like it was yesterday! I have learned over and over again this past year that no two babies are the same. Hadley has been such a challenge. She is so particular in what she wants and how she wants it. Trust me, she lets you know when you're wrong and when you get it right! Hadley has taught me to have patience that I didn't know existed. She has such an infectious laugh. When she starts her giggling you can't help but laugh right with her. Hadley is a cuddly little bear that I could just squeeze and kiss all day. She also has a set of lungs on her that could seriously make you go deaf! With every different aspect of her, I love her more and more everyday and I am so glad she came into my life!

We didn't make Hadley, or should I say Riley, wait to open her birthday presents. We opened them right after we finished with breakfast. I think Hadley was a bit overwhelmed with all of the presents. She wasn't quite sure if she should play with a toy or open another present. Hadley didn't do much of the unwrapping, Riley took care of that for her! Then Hadley just became obsessed with the wrapping paper and didn't care too much what was underneath! She was completely spoiled by all of the family and friends who sent her birthday gifts. We appreciate every one's thoughtfulness!!

After dinner we sang Happy Birthday. Riley had been anxiously awaiting the birthday cake all day long! Riley actually helped me bake the cake for Hadley. The cake is suppose to be a flower. We all know I'm so not creative, so that's the best I could do! The flower petals were suppose to be yellow but I couldn't find the food coloring I needed, so I just put some sprinkles on top of the cupcakes. Hadley wasn't too thrilled with us singing to her, but she was excited to bite into some cake!

Can you tell that both of my girls enjoy a nice treat?

HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY HADLEY!!!

Prenatal Visit

2010-11-19T12:08:00.001-10:00

I had my second prenatal appointment this morning. I don't know if I mentioned this when I blogged about my first appointment, but I was told that I should only gain 15 pounds during this pregnancy. I still had about 15 pounds to lose from having Hadley so the doc informed me that a 15 pound weight gain would be healthy for this pregnancy. I chuckled a little because I gained 40 with Riley and 50 with Hadley. It's not like I ate everything in sight either, I don't know why I gained so much with the girls. So I've been very careful with what I'm eating and when I'm eating and just trying to not gain too much weight. The doctor came into my room and started questioning me about how I've been eating. She was concerned because I've lost 4 lbs. I laughed and told her that I'm only allowed to gain 15 so what's the problem?!? She explained that she wasn't trying to scare me into not eating and that I could gain up to 25 lbs. I assured her that I'm eating plenty. I have been pregnant twice before so I know that I need to feed my growing baby. Perhaps my weight loss is coming from chasing after my 2.5 yr old and my now walking 1 yr old. I explained how many times a day I eat and what I eat and that I really don't know how I'm losing weight. I go back in 3 weeks and she wants me to gain 4 lbs. Perhaps my Thanksgiving meal could help with that! I had the girls with me during this appointment so Riley got to hear the baby's heartbeat and was really excited. The baby still has a nice strong heartbeat which was at 160 bpm. I always love to hear the heartbeat.

Sonogram

2010-11-16T20:52:00.000-10:00

I had to go in today for a sonogram to find out just how far along I actually am in this pregnancy. I was pretty excited to get to see baby #3 and find out when we can expect him/her to grace us with his/her presence. Normally you only get one ultrasound at 20 weeks, but since we couldn't hear the baby's heartbeat at my last appointment I got to have an extra ultrasound to find out how big the baby is measuring. It was a relief to see the baby moving all around on the ultrasound screen. The baby had a strong heartbeat of 170 bpm. It was pretty high because the baby was really active. As of today I am measuring 12wks 3days which puts my new due date on May 28, 2011. So I am two weeks behind what we thought I was. I guess I found out I was pregnant super duper early! I am just happy that everything looks good with baby #3. Now I just have to wait until January to find out the sex! Any guesses?

The Time Has Come

2010-11-04T07:23:00.001-10:00

A couple of weeks ago Hadley started taking a couple of steps. She would take two steps and then lose her balance and fall on her bum. Then a few days later it turned into three steps. On the night of Halloween while I was getting the girls bath ready Hadley took seven steps. Of course those steps were interrupted when Riley threw a ball and hit Hadley in the head. Hadley lost her balance and went down. But I knew it probably wouldn't be too much longer before she started walking. Last night we were in the play room cleaning up before bath time. Hadley had picked up a ball and I asked her to bring it to me. She walked across the room without falling! It was about 15 or so steps. I yelled for Trey to come in and see. We kept having her walk back and forth between us. I forgot how exciting it is to witness this momentous occasion in your childs' life! Trey and I were both thrilled to watch Hadley walk back and forth. Hopefully she'll get the hang of the walking and be moving on her feet all of the time. Hadley was pretty excited with herself. Trey and I have both been waiting for this moment. Yay! I'm hoping that my life will get a little easier with her being able to move around with another option other than crawling. I know it will make playing outside much more fun! My little baby is growing up!