MmMm Fall!

I can't believe it's already the middle of November! We finally got the internet at our house, so I'll be able to keep up a little better on the blogging :)  I was going to try and back track and update on what's been going on since June, but that just seems way too time consuming, and I don't think I would ever catch up. So we're just going to start fresh! Can't wait for Thanksgiving next week, and of course Black Friday shopping!!! Iowa here we come!

Circus

This year the circus was in town over Mother's day weekend so we decided to take Gracen. She definitely enjoyed the lights and the music! I'm not sure she quite understood the rest, so we'll just have to take her back next year!




The tigers, they were pretty cool, but we were a little dissapointed there was no jumping through firey hoops.


Just enjoyin the circus with Daddy

My favorite part was the elephants!

The Princess visits the Crown!

Memorial day weekend Ms. Gracen and I headed down to KC to go play with Aunt Nanie while Daddy worked and finished (almost) the fence in our backyard. We had tons of fun. Gracen did not so much like Baxter (the dog), but did love going down to Crown Center. They had a family festival going on with live music, face painting, bouncy houses, train rides and much more. Gracen loved the dancing and music, but will probably enjoy the other festivities more next year. Most of the other kids were in their swimsuits running through the fountains, but I don't think Gracen is quite that bold yet. After an hour or so in the sweltering heat, we headed inside for some shopping. We took Gracen to the toy store where she proceeded to taste everything. We also stopped at the Crayola Cafe, for drinks that came in souvenir crayon cups. We used to have cups almost like that when were little, so of course we had to get her (and ourselves) one. She made it to the lego display, where everything was made entirely out of those teeny little legos. It was actually prettyu neat. Aunt Nanie liked the monopoly game the best. By the end of the day she was definitely done.

Sunday we went to Nebraska Furniture Mart (where it was a zoo) and out to eat at Famous Daves. Nothing too exciting. Sunday night and Monday were spent playing outside with Daddy and watching him work on our fence and grill yummy foods!

More photos of course!

Birthday photos

Happy 1st Birthday Gracen!!!

What a FaBuLoUs (and exhausting) weekend! We celebrated Gracen's first birthday (albeit a couple weeks late but better late then never!) and were extremely lucky that the weather decided to cooperate. We were very dissapointed by the Easter rain the weekend before.

Friday night Gracen and I headed to KC to get ready for the big event. We ordered her very special birthday cake from Dairy Queen (a long standing family tradition) and it turned out better then I could even imagine. Then it was off to the party store to get her decorations etc. She did a very good job of helping me and Aunt Jaime pick everything out. It was hard to get her out of the store! We then headed to Zio's for a delicious dinner, where Gracen gobbled up the bread (it is the best part of going there after all) and had a fun time with her Aunt's and Uncle (and Betty.).

Saturday morning brought rain much to my dismay. We spent the morning wearing Gracen out so she would take a good nap before all the festivities began. Woke up around lunch time, and of course we had to squeeze Fazoli's in this weekend. And Gracen loooves pizza. Luckily for her she's still trying to gain weight, so pizza is always an option.

Saturday afternoon Gracen went to get her one year pictures taken, and they turned out better then I could ever imgaine! (I am a creative genious after all). I brought in some balloons and a present for her to play with in the pictures, and my perfect little princess even wore her party hat without trying to take it off. We had a minor melt down in the middle, but the girl just wanted to take 5 and get some milk! Posing for pictures is hard work after all. After an exhausting photo shoot it was nap time again, after all a princess needs her beauty sleep before her party!

Her party started around 4:30, and we could not have picked a better day or time! By the time everyone started to arrive, the weather was ideal. Sun was shining but it wasn't hot! We had a wonderful turn out and are very lucky to have gotten to celebrate her big day with such wonderful family and friends. We opened her presents (she had a hard time deciding what to play with!), grilled out, and gobbled up some of the delicious ice cream cake, which of course Gracen loved (it was ice cream, and she is a Skultety after all!). I was a little weary of how she would react to all the people (most she had never met before and some she hadn't seen in quite some time). I worried for nothin! If this didn't prove she is the spitting image of her Mama then I don't know what will. She was just eating up all the attention, walking around the party in her tutu with that little grin that says "I know you're lookin at me! I know I'm cute!" It was so funny, and everyone just loved her tutu. No idea how to top her party next year! (Good thing I've got a year to plan!)

It was such a wonderful weekend, sad it's over already!

Here comes Peter Cottontail...

Hard to believe Easter has come and gone already! We headed back to Gabe's parents farm for the weekend and Gracen just loves being the center of attention. Gabe and I both took off work at noon and the 3 1/2 hour drive wouldn't have been so bad if it wasn't for the last hour. We took a short break so Gracen could get out of the car and run around. Didn't do much that night, just hung out and Gracen played with her cousins. Saturday was the big luncheon, and unfortunately Gracen was so excited to play with her cousins all morning she didn't take a nap. So as soon as it was time to go to the luncheon she was zonked out. We only got to stay for about an hour. Headed home for a good afternoon nap and played the rest of the evening. It was too bad it was so windy and cold out on Saturday, we had such beautiful weather on Friday!

Easter Sunday brought rain (boo), so Gracen did not participate in the Easter egg hunt, it was in the grass and there were not going to be any grass stains on her gorgeous dress! Plus she didn't really get what was goin on, so she didn't really miss out this year anyways. She was a little cautious of her Easter basket, but overall loved the goodies the Easter bunny brought her. Especially the solid chocolate bunny!

It's creepin up upon us!

I can't believe in 6 days my baby will be one!!!! I am sooo excited for her birthday party it's not even funny. I'm more excited for her birthday then my own. (And trust me, I LOVE LOVE LOVE my birthday)

Had a very busy weekend last weekend, and luckily had gorgeous weather for it! Saturday we went on an all day shopping excursion. Aunt Nanie and Uncle Adam came to T-town to meet us for lunch @ Red Robin (delicious as always) where Gracen chowed down on her corn dog. Right after looking at the kids menu and Adam pointing out all the obese children. We have the opposite problem, trying to get Gracen to gain weight!

After lunch we headed to Target to spend Gracen's St. Patty's day gift (which we loved, and no worries it was all spent on her). She got a new Easter dress and sandals, and some goodies for her Easter basket. Can't wait for her first Easter!!

Next we were headed to Toys R Us to pick out some bday presents for G, but shhh those are all surprises! Uncle Adam was dunzo after this stop (he made it a whole hour and half shopping!) and one of his friends came and picked him up.

Our last (and longest) stop was the mall. But here we mostly shopped for Aunt Nanie and browsed. Got a couple of goodies for Gracen becuase really who can resist cute baby clothes? Certainly not me (duh).

We've got a couple of exciting weekends coming up and we can hardly wait!!! Will post some pics next time!

AH!

I hate the word ornery. So anyone who uses that to describe anyone I know especially Gracen, beware! Do you even know what it means?

or⋅ner⋅y  [awr-nuh-ree] –adjective, -ner⋅i⋅er, -ner⋅i⋅est.
1. ugly and unpleasant in disposition or temper
2. low or vile.
3. inferior or common; ordinary.


Would you want to be described as any of those? Didn't think so!

Sick of the sickies

Another week has come and gone, but the flu has remained. Thank goodness it is Friday! Last weekend we went to KC, got to see where Aunt Nanie works and bring her some yummy lunch from Fazolis. After hangin out for awhile we went to Grandpa's house where we watched some basketball and played with Uncle Adam. It was such beautiful weather outside (70!) but it was way too windy to play outside. We then went to cheesecake factory for dinner and it was delicious. And then Saturday night came, and so did the sickies. One of the two of us have been sick for what seems like the past 3 months. We are not winter people. We are Christmas people, but not winter.

Took Gracen to the doctor again this week for a weigh in, she's 29 inches long and she's up to 16.1 lbs! (She's only gained 5 oz. in the last month). We're not too worried yet becuase in the midst of a cold and teething I'm surprised the girl has gained any weight at all. She continues to eat more and more table food, and loves scrambled eggs, french toast, mac & cheese, pigs in a blanket and esp. grilled cheese. What can I say? We are related. Haha.

Here's a couple of pics from this past weekend at G'pa S's.

What a weekend!

Can't believe it's Monday again ALREADY! The weekends seem to be going faster and faster.

Saturday night Ms. Gracen got to go to her first K-State basketball game! And man was it a good time. And of course we won :) We got to sit in the 2nd row, awesome. She really loved the crowd and the music and cheering everyone was doing. She danced and clapped and yelled with everyone. We thought it was going to be a fight, since the game didn't start till 7 and she usually goes to bed around 7:30 or 8, but she was a trooper and we stayed the whole game! (Unfortunately Mom and Dad forgot the camera so we have no pictures to document this momentous occasion.)

Good news, we've now got 2 teeth!

Today Gracen started her new daycare, and you wouldn't even know it. She just hopped right down and was ready to play with the other kids and of course all the toys. We'll see what happens on day 2....

Teething=Trauma

Well I thought we were headed down the right track after G finally getting her first tooth on Sunday! I was wrong. Oh so wrong. The poor girl is in so much pain she just wails all the time. Talk about a good method of birth control. I cannot believe we have a whole mouthful still to go. No wonder no one remembers anything before the age of like 3 becuase most of it is spent in pain! We had a very rough night last night, no sleep for all 3 of us. The weekend cannot come soon enough. This morning Gabe had to leave early for work, leaving me and Gracen to fend for ourselves. She did not stop crying for over an hour straight. Poor little lady. It is very difficult to get ready for work when you're exhausted and trying to console a teething baby! Lord help us get through the rest of em!

SMIIIIILE!

Wahoo! Gracen got her first tooth yesterday!!!!!!!!! What a great Valentine's gift :)

Such a tough lil turkey!

It's been a couple weeks, and not a whole lot has happened! We are still (im)patiently waiting for Gracen's teeth to come in, poor girl. She is totally dunzo with the baby food, doesn't want to have anything to do with it, but she can't eat any real food until she gets some stinkin teeth! She practically drools over Gabe and I's food, and it really is sad not to give her any. So come on teeth, we are ready!

Went to the doctor again yesterday, got one more shot (boo). And she has only gained 5oz. (she's up to 15lbs 12 oz!) in the last month so they are still concerned with her weight. Sometime in the next month we are going to a pediatrician to get a second opinion, and go from there.

We're starting to look at new day care options, and I'm pretty sure it's going to be quite a transition for her. Totally different then anything she is used to! It'll be fun for her to meet other kids her age, and to meet some other Mommies too. Hopefully she'll like it!

We don't have anything too fancy planned for her first Valentine's Day, probably just out to dinner, but that's pretty exciting for us!

January Blues

Another January weekend has come and gone. And of course all last week we had beautiful almost 60 degree weather and then this weekend it was freezing! I am definitely getting spring fever.. cannot wait for the warmer weather!!

No exciting news for this week, FINALLY put together Gracen's room and it looks wonderful. Now only 6 more rooms to go before we move to the basement!! Will definitely have to put some pictures up.

Ms. Gracen is still teething so we're having some rough nights. Hopefully the lil teeth will come in soon.. only we still have a whole mouthful to go. Yikes.

Almost forgot, she has learned how to wave! Bye bye and hi are her new favs. And sometimes she even likes to wave to herself, silly girl. Don't know how to post videos on here or I would!

Good news!

Gracen's lab results came back clean as a whistle, and we are very thankful! She's very healthy and we're glad for that. It's been a very chilly week here, but glad that it's the weekend!! Nothing much exciting going on, just hopefully going to relax and watch Ms. G walk around!!

Keeping optomistic..

This weekend has been very hectic, with a lot of sleepless nights. Ms. G had her 9 month check up on Friday and it did not go as well as we had planned. She only gained 1 lb and 7 oz, weighing now a grand total of 15 lbs and 7 oz. Even though she looks and acts healthy to me, she's not quite gaining weight at the speed she should be. She's moving down the charts rapidly and is currently in the less then 3% category. She's grown an inch in the last 3 months, measuring 26 in. now! (In my eyes she's growing!) But she's only in the 25% for height. Since Gracen had a cold on Friday, they decided not to give her any shots, of course the day Mom doesn't go!

This morning I went to go get her blood drawn which was not a fun event. She was a brave little girl, far braver then I am. Poor girl had to watch the blood being drawn out of her arm in between glances at me. I could tell she was thinking "why are you letting them do this to me woman?!?" As soon as it was all over, she was a little shaken up, but a trooper like usual.

She's getting tested for a number of things, we'll know the results tomorrow for all but one, but we're optomistic, she is all over the place, walking-crawling-giggling, and most always happy! Will keep everyone posted though!

HaPpY NeW YeAr!!

Christmas has come and gone, all too quickly! With the flu going around, all the traveling, hardly seems like we got a break at all. But it truly was wonderful, and I can't wait for it to come around again next year!

The Sunday before Christmas we went to the Rockettes at the sprint center, and man was it cold! It was a wonderful show, and I think Gracen enjoyed it the most out of all of us! Aunt Jaime came back to T-town with us to babysit G, and Gabe ended up getting sick with the flu and staying home Monday, unfortunately I got it Monday night! So we sent Aunt Jaime and Aunt Stephanie home to KC so they didn't get the sickies. Not a very fun way to spend our anniversary :( But luckily it lasted less then 24 hours!

Christmas eve we drove to KC and it was very difficult to keep Ms. G away from the presents! Luckily we opened most of them before she went to bed, and boy was she excited. Not just for the presents, but the wrapping paper and bows mostly! She got too many new toys, a chair just for her (that she adores) her first baby doll, and many others. The rocking horse (worm) that we got her, she's a little weary about, not quite ready to rock on it, but definitely likes the music and colors that light up on it!

Christmas day we drove to Iowa, and luckily the weather was on our side becuase the roads weren't bad at all. And Gracen decided to give us a Christmas present and sleep the whole way there! Had a lovely time seeing all the fam, but it all went by too fast as usual. Friday morning it was back to KC. We bought Gracen her first big girl car seat, and FINALLY put it in the car this week! She loves it, looking around at everything from her new view. Although she still has to sit backwards, we can't wait to turn her around.

New Year's Eve this year was low key, went over to Gabe's sister's house, which G always adores becuase she loves playing with her cousins. Haven't done anything else too exciting, just trying to get around to putting the finishing touches on Gracen's nursery!

On to some very exciting news.... Gracen took her first step! She's very sturdy on her feet, and every once in a while she'll take one or two. It is so funny to see how excited she gets, truly amazing to watch. She'll be running before no time, watch out world!