Nicki And Adam's Family Blog

.....office supplies. I heard him say to another kid on a play date "hey wanna play office?" Seriously dude, not the way to make friends!!

My kids enjoyed our vacation up north. Nothing like spending all day outdoors and having a ball!! The kids enjoyed every moment. I am so happy I have kids addicted to DOING life not screens. Amen.

In the basement!! He loves it and is super excited every night! 

If I can pick one word to describe Colin: physical!!  He is strong and loves to be on the move, climbing and crawling and being active. He is already pulling up on furniture. My other two kids are not like this. Beyond that he is a decent sleeper (minus a few illness blips) and wakes up to eat once in about 11-12 hours of sleep at night.  He loves feeding himself finger foods. His favorites are avocado and bananas right now. He eats most of what we eat from the table with a few purées as well. Colin's personality has its on days and off days. He does like to yell at me if he gets bored or needs a change of scenery. He is a momma's boy through and through.  Charlie is in love with Colin and plays with him regularly. Carrie likes to dote on him but also gets pissed off when he gets in the way. Sounds about right. Being parents of 3 has worn us down, we feel like we are always just an inch in front of the kids. I am greatly looking forward to the end of morning naps so that ...

I read something in a magazine awhile back that while we are the most interconnected generation, we are also the loneliest generation. How true. While I think about that, I walk around the neighborhood and I think of society and how we have changed. Even during the summer months, we struggle to find even one other family at the park with kids, however, the dog park is always packed (side note). I observe kids in various capacities having melt downs about not getting to play the iPad or tablet or melting down when it is taken away. And, granted, tantrums are not new, in 1981 when my mom raised me she didn't have to deal with tantrums about electronics. I also read comments made that my kids view "going outside to play" as a punishment. We walk into swim lessons and every person is on their phone or tablets....even the kids. How will my son learn to interact with other kids when they are on a device? Where has communication face to face gone?  I am not saying I am not guilt...

...drawing roads and maps. I promise this is not really what Adam does all day. 

Colin is a cutey. I just adore his little face and snuggling with him. The cutest thing he does is constantly rub his nose and face into my chest. I love it! At the 5 month mark he is unofficially about 15lbs. I have started to give him a little tiny bit of pears and oatmeal every now and again, but not too often. He absolutely still loves nursing and I love nursing him. Lately his sleeping has been getting better (knock on wood) and only wakes 1-2 times during a 12 hour period to eat. Mommy is feeling a bit more rested. Colin takes 2-3 naps a day depending on the length of them (3 if shorter, 2 if longer). He has a good demeanor if left without a nap and it is still kind of cute watching him pass out after being awake for 3 hours. Colin loves kids and being entertained by them (especially Charlie). On the other hand, he hates adults and has a real "stranger danger" issue going on right now. I looked back and read Carrie's post at this age-ish and the one thing ...

Charlie has officially started Kindergarten. His teachers' name is Mrs.McMannes. He is having an amazing time thus far and constantly comes home wanting to play "school." Some funny quotes out of his mouth lately has been: "Mommy, my teacher says I have a lot of questions in my mouth!" "Kindergarten is a long day!" "My music teacher is CRAZY" Funny story about the cafeteria: One day Charlie mentioned that he was the last one in the cafeteria eating and everyone else was outside and the "people" were cleaning up the lunchroom, but he was still eating. I asked him why he was still eating and he had no clue other than to be pretty oblivious to the whole situation. I asked him if I should pack him a smaller lunch and he say YES! I think, knowing Charlie, that if there was a dessert in his lunch bag, he knew the "rules" to be that he had to eat EVERYTHING else first before he would get the dessert. Even if that meant s...

I can't believe I have a beautiful 5 year old boy. He is one of the sweetest kids I have ever met. His soul is kind, he is sensitive, he works hard....he is a catch LADIES or GENTLEMEN! Here are a few pics from the first day of school and him walking (like a big mature boy) from school.

Took my mom out for a paint nite. Fun fun!!'

Here is my cute man at 3 months. He is a smiley, happy boy. He is looking all around like crazy and has found a way to get the hand in the mouth! He is even giggling. My head is starting to get out of the clouds...3 months post partum. Boy, was this a hard recovery! I was back in the ER 2 times for complications, one for excessive bleeding which was caused by some retained placental parts in which I had a D and C procedure done and the second for endometritis which is an infection of the uterus. Once that cleared up, I have felt better except for this lower abdominal pain on the right side that is never ending (not severe just obnoxious). The only thing I could figure out was that gluten and wheat is the only thing that I added back in after pregnancy. So, I took it out again and it resolved. Odd. I am not celiac, but must have a sensitivity to gluten of some kind. A doc suggested an antispomasdic drug, but there are lots of side effects and if I can control via diet, that is my choice...

Alas, at 2 years and 7 months old...princess is potty trained. Poops and pees. I am sure we will have a moment or two of regression but overall she is doing a fabulous job. So proud of you (and one month sooner than older brother). Here she is...disheveled hair and all.

Weight: 10lbs 4 oz Height:? He is a cutie, loves being held, hates being left in the middle of the floor. Sleeping 3-4 hours in a shot once a night and up more frequently after that.  Has started some medications for acid reflux. Was shouting at me during nursing all the time. Seems to be much better now. We are so blessed by this cutie!!

My brother Bob and his partner Gene have been together for 11 years. On December 19, 2014 they decided to tie the knot and get married. They had a Wisconsin reception here on May 29th. We had a ball and are so thrilled to share in their love, their life, and their future together. Many blessings Bob and Gene!!

....Charlie cries more than his newborn brother Colin. .....2.5 year old Carrie can make Charlie cry quicker than anyone! .....Carrie has found a way to aggravate Charlie in every way possible.  Oh Lord, help me!!

On April 18th, I began feeling contractions that were a bit stronger than previous. Not really strong enough to go in for, however. After eating dinner and putting the kids to bed, I laid down on the couch to relax. At 9pm my water broke after feeling a slight "pop" in my belly. I wasn't 100 percent certain that this was my water, but I was positive for GBS so I knew I needed to get it checked out. I drove myself to Meriter (yes, this is me...) as I wasn't really having strong contractions yet. In fact, I counted just 3 light ones on the drive down. They checked me in triage and of course my water had broken and they hooked me up for the IV antibiotic that I needed. Adam arrived at about midnight or so, Barb and Cliff generously came in to sleep at our house so they could take the kids to West Bend the following day. By the time Adam arrived, I was having contractions every 2-3 minutes and they were strong and getting stronger. I labored in the tub, tried walking a bi...