LOOOOONG time...no post

Wow, it's been a long time. 

I blame our iPhones.  I can take a picture...and then instantly....message, text, email, tweet, print and post on facebook.

Therein lies my problem.  I will kick myself in a few months when I'm trying to do our scrapbook for the kids.  The pics on the iPhone are sometimes fuzzy, so I know I will be kicking myself.

So what's up?

Oh, we are having a third kid. Most of you probably know this. Cause, you know, 3 under 4 years can only mean loads of fun, and no stress...at all. :-)


We are trying something new with the third one. Since we have one of each, we are not finding out if it is a boy or girl. We had our 20 week ultrasound this week and baby looks healthy and BIG. (Thanks Daddy)

Here's some pics over the last few months...


 

Christmas with the kiddos!

Tearing open presents on Christmas Day.  They wouldn't look at the camera, but their matching pajamas were super cute!

Florida in February!  We visited our cousins Tracey, Gary, and little Gabe.  Caden and Gabe had a blast hanging out together!

 We also visited the Aunt Pat and the Bolams!  Maggie and Rachel were so sweet playing with Caden and it was great to catch up with Richie, Melody and Pat!

Caden AND Maddie took a swim class.  Matt was the best daddy ever and stayed in the water for both classes so I didn't have to get in a suit.  :-)



Ok, I promise I'll be better going forward...I think there is a blogger app on my iPhone that will let me post as easily as I do on facebook.


Until the next time...check out facebook.  :-)

Santa House 2012

Only in Midland, MI does Santa have a home away from home!!  We visit Santa's house every year, and this year was especially exciting for Caden.  He made sure to ask Santa that he got his letter - because it is gone from the Santa Mailbox in our house.  ;-)  Santa assured him that he studied it closely.

Yearly family picture!  

Mommy-Daughter Picture  :-)

Flying Maddie!!

Jackson and Caden had a blast exploring the Santa house while we were waiting in line!

Sid WHO?

That's right - Caden is ready for the Ice!  Sid's out?  Then He is IN! 

He got his new helmet and gloves tonight - we like to spread out the presents.  :-)  He had such a fun time playing "hockey game" with Daddy.  Video is below!

Who needs Pantene Pro-V??

Just wanted to share some pictures of Maddie...specifically, her hair...here is her 9 month Pooh picture.

Since she just started standing in her crib, Caden wanted in on the fun.

Protective big brother...  :-)

When Maddie is in the bath, her wet hair goes halfway down her back!  I'll try to snap a picture next time...

Watch out world - here I come!

Guess who is standing!  That's right, Miss Maddie pulled herself up today for the first time.  We came into her room after  her morning nap and she was standing in the crib.  Time to lower that mattress to the next setting! 

Not only is she standing, but she has a few other tricks up her sleeve!  Here's some videos of our little princess in action:

She is still army crawling, but getting a lot faster - even going down our kitchen step!  We think she might skip actual crawling on her knees, and go right to walking.

She just learned to wave "Hi!"....and she loves mirrors...the two in combination can provide at least 10 minutes of entertainment...

She also said her first word...Mama....and meant it.  She caught a glimpse of me  trying to sneak downstairs to do laundry...and started yelling "Mama!  Mama!" 

It's only fair - since Caden said Dada first...  :-)

It's Beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

We are getting ready for Christmas at the Callender House.  We put up the tree after Thanksgiving, and Caden has been obsessed with moving the ornaments around since.  All the breakable ornaments are 4 ft and higher...every other ornament on the lower half of the tree has been moved about 14 times each.  My perfect symmetry and balance has been Caden-ized. 

He also calls the Nittany Lion Ornament the "BEAR - GO PENN STATE". At least he recognized the lion head.

Grandma Callender came to visit for Thankgiving, and we got some photos the day before she left.  Please take note of the matching "Santa, I believe" PJ's that the kids are wearing.  Score one for Mommy for waiting in a half hour line to snag those at 3am on Black Friday.  :-)

Thanksgiving in Erie - Roadtrippin' with Mama

Robert and Becca had Thanksgiving at their new house this year!  Daddy was gone hunting for the weekend, so Mommy and the kids made the trip to Erie.  I think my words to Matt were..."It's only 6 hours - how bad could it be?"

Well, 6 hours turned into 8, but we made it there on Saturday evening in one piece.  Caden and Maddie saw Grandma and Grandpa Frank, Aunt Jen and Uncle DJ, and Uncle Robert and Aunt Becca.  They had a great time, and handled the 8 hour road trips on Saturday and Sunday well.  We made it home by late Sunday night and we were all very happy to see Daddy.  How did he get out of this adventure?  :-)

On Sunday morning, Robert (our professional photographer uncle) took Caden and Maddie to Presque Isle in Erie to get some great shots.  Here are a few that I took (not quite as professional as Robert's)

At Thanksgiving Dinner on Sunday, Maddie tried mashed potatoes for the first time.  Not a fan.

Maddie and Uncle Robert!

Maddie and Aunt Jen!

Grandpa and Grandma Frank with Maddie. 

Why wasn't Caden in any of the above pictures with the fam?

He was busy being a monster....

Thank you Robert and Becca for a wonderful Thanksgiving with the family!  We had a great time!!

Halloween Pictures

Caden was Buzz Lightyear (after much coaxing and bribing with candy)....and Maddie was a ladybug - she didn't put up much of a protest.  

 .

 Pumpkin carving was a hit...

Caden and Jackson showing off the pumpkins they carved for Halloween

 

After Pumpkin carving, we made rice crispy treats...with frosting...

 

Caden-isms

I have to write this stuff down before I forget and he doesn't say it anymore!!

"Hi Mommy!  I'm Awake!"  - What he says when he wakes up in the morning and comes into our room, or when he comes back downstairs after he goes to bed, or when he wakes up from nap.

"WAIT! WAIT! (With his arms spread wide)  LISTEN TO ME" - He says this at the dinner table when Matt and I aren't paying enough attention to him.

"Mommy!  I want JUUUUUICE!  Please!"

"Run, Java, Run!!" - He yells this as he is chasing poor Java around our house with his bike.

"Noooo - I want to sleep in Mommy-Daddy Bed" - This is what he proclaims at 5am some mornings when I tell him it is too early to get up.

Mom:  I love you Caden!
Caden: No, you not!
Mom: Yes, I do!
Caden: No, You love Daddy, I love Di Di (his blanket)
Mom: Who does Maddie love?
Caden: Maddie is sleeping!

"Mommy!  Maddie CRYIN!" - When Maddie is crying...usually I'm holding her, so I call him Captain Obvious.

Maddie's U of M Trip

Maddie took her second trip to U of M yesterday for her 6 month checkup.  She'll go every six months for the next ~5 years or so until we know her VUR is fixed.  Dr. Ivancic had an Ultrasound done on Maddie, and it looks like the VUR might be getting slightly better.  It will be a long process though, but we are hopeful she will grow out of it in 5-7 years. When we go back in 6 months, we'll have more extensive testing done to see how far she has come in a year.  For now, she is doing great, and we'll just keep an eye on it!

After every trip, Mom and Dad get a treat and go to Chipotle for lunch and then to Bigby Coffee for the trip home.  The first time we went down we took a picture of Maddie and I at Bigby, so we repeated that this time.  It's amazing to see how much she has changed in 6 months!

Here's Maddie and I when she was 2 months old....

 

 

and our picture now that she is almost 8 months old....