The Good news is, we all survived....

August has been a rough month for the Morrison family. Our AC went out for 6.5 days and with 2 kids that was challenging to get through. Thank goodness for our family who helped us out to be the most comfortable possible in that situation. Our AC went out on a Wednesday...the motor had blown and had to be ordered since they didn't have any in stock. Which, strike number 1, who doesn't have a wide range of motors in stock in mid August?! Strike number 2 came when we were advised by the technician that came out on Wednesday that it would take 2-3 days. Ok not too bad, we could manage for 2-3 days since it happened on a weekend where Daniel was working so the kids would be out and about with the in laws. In reality it took 6 days. Strike number 3 occurred when I called on Friday to ask about the progress of the part and was told it would arrive on Monday. Is there I'm-going-to hurt-someone-unless-you-get-my-AC-working-ASAP strike number?! If there is, that would have occured on Monday when I called and the part still hadn't arrived. I'm pretty sure I was seeing red at this point. They had no sympathy for us when I was on the phone with the girl which made me even more upset. Tuesday our motor finally came in and the first technician arrived by 11am and got it installed. Not even 15 minutes after the 1st technician left, IT STOPPED WORKING! So we had to have a 2nd technician come out and put in another part and we finally got AC working the following Tuesday at 4:30pm. I felt like I had died and gone to heaven. I will never complain about being hot again because I had no idea before this experience. Good news though is that the adventure only upset me and Daniel. The kids were troopers from the beginning and they did great. Kids are so resilient.


Speaking of kids...I'm not going to lie. This month has been challenging. Hunter is starting to show signs of jealousy when I'm holding Lily and most of my nights alone with them consisted of sitting in the glider with Lily on my shoulder and Hunter on my lap, both crying off and on. Those are the nights where I think, mid kid meltdown, that if I had a camera in my house that no one would ever want to have kids. But by 8pm when both kids are on their way to la-la land I have all but forgotten the trying times of the day and start thinking about all the times Hunter made me laugh and all the gummy smiles I received from my favorite little girl. The good times outweigh the bad times by 10 fold (most days-thank God!) For example, all the effort that I have put forth to try and get Hunter to say Li-ly when talking about his baby sister, he points at her and goes "Waaaah, Waaaah" because apparently in his mind, she cries alot. haha! Whenever there is an issue with him, such as he drops something, or someone sneezes, or something is wrong in a book, he puts both hands on his cheeks and says in the cutest baby/big boy voice "Oh noooooooooo!" He's so adorable and is picking up on EVERYTHING. He pretty much tries to repeat everything we say, except for Lily...see above. :) In the past month he's become a snuggler x 391879487. I get hugs all day long even if they are because he's having a meltdown because I looked at him "wrong" or because I've told him "be gentle" after he has "patted" the dog just a little too hard. He is such a little character and although some days it seems like someone has stolen my sweet baby boy and turned him into spoiled little booger, he's mine and I'll always love him to the moon and back.

Now onto my sweet little diva. :) The older she gets the longer and longer her lashes grow just like Hunter's. I love their eyes. They are the most beautiful eyes I've ever looked at and they melt my heart with just a second's glance. Lily has turned into such a little piggie. She is drinking 3-7oz bottles and 1 8oz bottle right before bed. I don't think Hunter drank that much until he was 5-6 months old and she is not even 4 months yet. We didn't start cereal with Hunter until he was 5.5 months old, but with Lily I think we are going to start next month because she just eats SO much and sometimes acts like she is still hungry. She is such a happy little girl flashing me smiles, coos, and laughs allllllll day long, well that is until about 5:30/6pm. Then she can't decide whether to be sad, angry, or just plain pissed off about nothing. It breaks my heart because I do the checklist with her every night. She's fed, changed, no gas since she burps like an adult male, stimulated until she gets fussy, then I leave her alone until she calms down and every night without fail from 6pm-7:30pm she screams off and on. It's been especially stressful because Daniel is on night shift and most nights I'm alone to stick it out with her as she figures out the world. Daniel handles her crying much better then I do. Her cries give me anxiety from the very start. I don't care if she is just crying to cry, it bugs me because I'm her momma and I'm supposed to calm her fears and keep her happy. It's such a helpless feeling sometimes. We are very blessed that she is a very happy baby otherwise and I know at some point she will grow out of this and then I'm sure I'll think back and miss the days when she was this tiny. A big thing that happened this month with her though is that we got her ears pierced. I love them and think they look beautiful on her! We did have a little mishap with her left ear. The night after it was pierced the backing fell off while she was sleeping and by the time she woke up in the morning and I figured it out the hole in the back had already closed. =\ So we are going back tomorrow to get it re-pierced and if we have any more problems, then we will just wait until she is old enough to take care of them herself. Her right ear is healing perfectly and looks beautiful! She's gorgeous and I'm not just saying that because she is my daughter! ;) Love my 2 little ones so so so much and I never knew my heart could love so deeply.

Onto the fabulous news of August ending. Daniel is back on day shift....wooooot wooooot!!! I can not even express how excited I am to have my husband back home every night! I was getting so burnt out and it's so nice to have an extra set of hands helping out during the fussy evening period. Of course, I love having him home for myself too. :) I love our movie nights and sitting down to eat dinner together as a family. I've started my workout routine and for the first time since I got pregnant 2 years ago with Hunter, I ran 2 miles last Saturday and it felt wonderful! I love running and it's really an outlet of stress relief for me. Hopefully by the time our family pictures roll around in November I will be a little lighter and feeling more healthy. I have an ultimate goal to make by the time Lily turns 1, but I'm starting small and working my way up. Wish me luck because losing weight SUUUUUUCKS!!!

I have a great feeling that September is going to be a better month then August, but we survived and we are stronger for it!

Another month under our belt!

I needed a change so I revamped the blog a bit just to spice things up. Truth is my life is a load of chaotic fun that lasts all morning, noon, and night so I thought the title was fitting. :) I know, I know, Lily isn't in the cartoon above, but let's just say for arguments sake that she was home with Daddy while me and Hunter were out getting groceries haha!

Hunter is now 18 (.5) months old and Lily just turned 2 months old. Who woulda thought I could survive having 2 kids 16 month apart? Well, I shouldn't get too ahead of myself because who am I kidding...I've only made it 2 months lol BUT I have SO much more confidence then I did on May 12th. haha!! After getting to know Lily for 2 months now she is a butterball of happiness. She smiles SO much compared to when Hunter was her age. Plus it would take 5 whole minutes of making coo coo crazy faces to even get a smirk out of Hunter...Lily on the other hand, has smiles 'o plenty and shares them with us everyday. She has some similarities with Hunter though, one thing is for sure my kids love to sleep. She sleeps a good portion of the day, but also at night now that we have a pretty solid routine down she has been sleeping longer and longer. Knock on wood that she has slept 9:30-6:30 two days in a row. *Runs to knock on a wooden surface* How did I get this lucky?! Someone please pinch me! They both have dark brown eyes like their daddy although I'm still kinda holding out hope that Lily's will change to hazel like mine...I won't hold my breath though and their eyelashes extend farther then mine will ever grow to. *SO JEALOUS!!* Those big puppy dog eyes are going to be the end of me I swear and I'm sure they will come in handy when they are trying to persuade mom to get what they want! At 18 months old, Hunter is like a little smartie sponge. He is talking so much and exploring every crack and crevice he can find. He remembers things better then me and is constantly keeping me on my toes. I love my kids with every fiber in my body...they rock my world!




Just another quick note...Lily celebrated her first big holiday. She was dressed to the nines in red, white, and blue for 4th of July. Love my pretty, pretty, princess!



So you may be wondering what in the world I'm doing up at 11pm when both kids have been in bed since 8 and 9:30pm. Well, unfortunately the cleaning fairy doesn't exist and the only time this momma has time to do anything besides pee (and I don't even get to do that alone!)during the course of the day is after both babies have been put to bed at night. Ya know the minute they go to bed though...all I wanna do is plop down on the couch and catch up on my DVR'd shows or Facebook. I'll have you know that *tonight* the toys are picked up and the bottle/sippy cups are washed and ready to go for tomorrow. I even cut up fresh strawberries and boiled some "vroom vroom" wagon wheel pasta for Hunter's meals/snacks tomorrow. "Vroom Vroom" is what Hunter calls them because they look like wheels to a car...love him!



See 2 kids isn't so bad...it's more fun then anything I've ever done before! One downside to having kids is that it messed with this one tiny organ called my gallbladder. FYI--gallbladders do NOT mess around! I woke up with some tremendous pain in my ribcage on June 23rd and holy guacamole I couldn't even form a sentence to tell Daniel I was in so much pain...awfulness! So to the ER I went and after having an ultrasound found out I had gallstones. I scheduled surgery for July 6th to have it removed and was put on a strict low fat diet. Now that I'm a week post surgery I'm feeling almost back to my normal self. Thank God that sucker is out. I had a wonderful surgeon who informed me that I had THOUSANDS of stones in my gallbladder...whoo weee. Good Riddance! Now I can just focus on being the best mommy I can be to my 2 beautiful babes and FINALLY getting back in shape. Wish me luck!

One last final note...don't pay mind to the lyrics in the last song on my playlist. I'm not packing and going anywhere or quitting....quite the opposite actually. Daniel is stuck with me and I'm more in love with him then I've ever been (and I'm not just saying that to be mushy gushy). I just loved the song...it brings the country out in me and makes me sing with a twang. One last final final note...promise. Look at my girls' lashes...how'd she get so lucky?!

Summertime!!!

It's the middle of June already (where did the time go?) and my baby girl just turned a month old. Oh, how the last month has changed our lives! She is such a blessing and gives us so much joy everyday. She is fairly laid back unless she is hungry, needs to be changed, or it's bathtime then she turns into a fiesty sassy girl! The hardest part about having 2 kids 16 months apart is the sleep deprivation. I never knew I could function on this little sleep day after day. Lily normally sleeps from 11-3 and 4-7 which would seem like pretty good stretches but she is currently in the bassinet right beside my side of the bed and is such a noisy sleeper. (Just like Hunter)As soon as I'm dozing off to la la land, she grunts, whines, or cries in her sleep and then I'm up checking on her to make sure everything is ok. We tried moving her to her crib, but I was in there every few minutes either putting her paci back in her mouth, shh shh shh'ing her to get her to go back to sleep, or putting my hand on her chest so she knew I was there. It was exhausting so we moved her back to our room for now...maybe we'll try again in a few weeks. Another difficult thing I have learned with 2 pretty close in age is that I can't get to both of their needs as quickly as I would like, especially if I'm in the middle of feeding Lily or if Hunter has a major poop blow out. I try to keep myself calm and tell myself they won't remember that I wasn't right there when they needed something and as long as I get to them as soon as I can then I'm doing a good job. Easier said then done when both of them are screaming at me. I know this will get easier as she gets older, but right now it gets very hairy sometimes! Last night after Daniel got home from work, I just hugged him and told him how happy I was that I got my tubes tied because 2 kids was PLENTY for me! :)

Next week I go back to work and I've got some love/hate towards it. On the one hand, I will miss my babies SO much I can already feel it, but out of the past 5 weeks I've gone on several 4-5 day stretches where I don't even make it out of the house to breathe fresh air. How sad is that?! I feel frumpy almost everyday because my hair is in a pony tail and I have my glasses on with pjs...ick. I'm used to straightening my hair, putting on makeup, and putting on some sort of clothes that don't have elastic on them so I'm kind of looking forward to that next week when I go back to work. I've also started working out and will start tanning pretty soon for a wedding in early August so I'm hoping to start feeling more like myself. The most exciting thing about next week though is that my baby boy will be turning 18 months old...1.5 years old...WOW!!!! I feel like I just gave birth to him! Which just confirms even more to me that I need to enjoy every second with my kids because time FLIES so fast! It's pretty sad and I wish I could just pause time.

Daniel goes back on night shift July 2nd and I'm already a little worried. I feel like I hardly see him anyways on that shift and with 2 kids to keep me busy I'm sure our opposite schedules will be a difficult adjustment. What doesn't kill me will only make me stronger, right?! Please say a prayer for me lol!

Here are some pictures of my 2 favorite little people!! <3>

Lily Mackenzie is here!!!!

My daughter has finally arrived and she is even more beautiful then I could have ever imagined! Her birth went much easier then I had anticipated and I have been recovering much faster this time around. She was born at 12:53pm on May 12th, 2010 weighing 8 pounds 7 oz and 21 inches long. She came out looking very similar to what Hunter looked like when he was 1st born so that was like deja vu and made me feel so happy. As soon as she was born, she screamed and screamed and screamed! Everybody commented on how strong her lungs were lol. She continued crying into the nursery, but as soon as she came back to my recovery room, she quieted right down and has been a pretty quiet baby ever since. *knock on wood. The only time she cries right now is if she is hungry, wet, or is getting her diaper changed. She still has her days/nights mixed up but every night she seems to sleep in longer stretches so I'm hoping in the next few weeks she'll get things straight. Hunter is adapting wonderfully to being a big brother! He gives Lily kisses everyday and takes her diapers to the trashcan, brings her a bottle, and gives her a paci. Mommy's Little Helper! :) Their cries don't bother one another which was one of my biggest anxieties and all in all the transistion has been great for our family. I know that our family is 100% complete and I'm enjoying EVERY second of being a mom to 2 kids. It's amazing the amount of love I instantly had for Lily and I could just tell she was perfect for our family...it's an indescribable feeling.

Lily had her first photoshoot yesterday and it turned out wonderful! I love her and all her girliness. :) I can't wait to watch her and her brother grow up together and see what kind of bond they have. I'M SO IN LOVE!! I swear I tell Daniel 2 things everyday...#1)I feel like I'm high on mommy love and #2) how happy I am that I'm not pregnant anymore lol. I would be pregnant over and over to be able to have my 2 kids because they are worth every ache and pain, but I'm not one of those glowing, happy pregnant women so I think I cried on delivery day just because I was so happy I wouldn't have to be pregnant EVER again. Woot woot!!

Well, that's all I've got time to write for now, but I'm going to try to keep up posting atleast once a month! Hopefully the end of Spring/start of Summer is going wonderful for you and your family! <3

May is finally here!!

I can not believe the month of May is finally here!!! Looking back, these past 9 months (almost 10) have really flown by. Hunter was 7 months old when I got pregnant and now he'll be 17 months old this month! Where has the time gone? I'm sure once Lily arrives, the time will start going even faster. Atleast once a day, I try to imagine what Ms. Lily will look like and how her personality is going to develop. Since Hunter is so much like Daniel, I'm kinda hoping for a little mini me. I'm so excited to meet this little fiesty one that's been in my tummy and be a complete family.

Now, that I have a little over 3 days until D-day, I've been pretty emotional about giving Hunter a sibling. On one hand, I loved having a sibling growing up and I'm sure he will too, but I'm scared that Lily will ruin his happy little life where he gets all of our attention. I'm a crazy hormonal chick, can ya tell? I'm sure when I write my next blog, I'll be overjoyed with love and know that everything will work out, but anticipation of her arrival is wrecking my brain!

I've got lots of stuff going on this last week as a family of 3. Daniel works tomorrow until 6pm and then he's off with us until May 31st!! Woot woot!! On Monday, I'm going to get a pedicure to clean up these swollen softball sized feet as part of my Mother's Day gift from Daniel and Hunter. Then on Tuesday, I've got to go to the hospital to do all my bloodwork (fun! fun!) and sign all my consent papers and then we are dropping off Hunter at Grandma and Grandpa's. I've never left Hunter for 2 nights before so I hope I don't miss him too much. After we drop off Hunter, then Daniel and I are going to go out to dinner and then see Iron Man 2 as our last official date night before we are parents to 2 kids! Wednesday, we have to check in at the hospital at 10:30am and as long as I don't get bumped for an emergency, my c-section is scheduled for 12:30pm! As long as Lily and I are doing well, my doctor said we would be released 1st thing Friday morning...I can't wait to be home with both of my kiddos.

So wish me luck and send a prayer or 2 that everyone comes out of this safe, healthy, and happy! Plenty of pictures soon to come!

April Showers bring May Lily's!

This past month has been busy busy for the Morrisons. We have been preparing for Lily's arrival while spending each and every moment available with Hunter. He has been my little sidekick for almost 16 months and it makes me teary eyed to think about sharing my attention between him and his sister, but I'm so much looking forward to the bond that they will share for a lifetime and to watch them grow up together.

I have been doing Lily's laundry for almost a week now. She had 5 (FIVE!!!) loads just for 0-6 months and that wasn't including her dresses for that size. I doubt she will wear the same outfit twice. lol Daniel just rolls his eyes and looks at me lovingly as I systematically fold her clothes and put them in her dresser. She also has a drawer that is dedicated to her accessories including socks (with frilly lace on the tops!), headbands, bows, pink blankets, and bibs. I'm still in awe sometimes that I'm having a daughter. I've had 3 months for it to sink in now, but I still can't believe it some days...I count my blessings every.single.day. I won't lie though, I'm almost to the point where I'm miserable and I'm sure not the most fun person to be around. Between peeing every 20 minutes and tossing and turning at night because my hips feel like they are about to break, I just feel done and the only thing I want is to be holding my baby girl. It's hard to stay positive some days especially because Daniel is on night shift, but I have my end date in sight and I 100% know without a doubt that Lily will be worth all this so that keeps my hopes up. I can't wait to count her toes and fingers, to see if she has hair or not, to see if she looks like me or her daddy, and to see her personality develop as she grows. 35 days max to go....

Now onto my favorite little man. Not only does he look just like Daniel, although on rare occasions when he smiles he'll look like my side of the family, but he sometimes ACTS just like Daniel and it's SO funny! When Hunter does something that he knows he's not supposed to be doing such as climbing up on the fireplace, he will look right at me and give me this coy little smirk and then continue on to do whatever he wasn't supposed to be doing. Daniel gives me the same smirk and of course who can be mad at such handsome men and their smirks?! Another thing that they do similiarly is right before Daniel falls asleep his feet fiddle at the end of the bed against his blanket. I guess it's either a security thing or a routine he has just gotten used to but I tease him because while I'm trying to fall asleep I can hear his feet at the bottom of the bed and Hunter does the EXACT same thing while we read books in bed before we put him in his crib. He also does it when we lay him down for the night. They are so funny! Who knew these quirks were genetic?! :) He is growing up so fast, it's unreal to look back at all his newborn pics and think back to that time when he was that tiny. Craziness! He can now point to where his head, hair, eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and belly button are. He gives THE best hugs and kisses and gives me so many cuddles throughout the day! His vocabulary has expanded in the past month too. He now says puppy, hat, na na (night night), and cup. I love watching his little brain in action!

Daniel has less then a month to go until he is back on day shift and I can't wait. I miss him at night and then miss him during the day because he's catching up on his sleep. Good news though is that once Lily is here, he will be off for 3 weeks for us to all bond together. I'm sooo much looking forward to this time. With Hunter, it was an amazing 3 weeks and I felt so much closer as a family. Having him home also helped me to recover fairly fast so I hope the same is true this time too.

I'm so in love with my family and can't believe in 35 days or less we will be a family of 4!!

March Madness

Today is March 1st and I can't believe in a little over 2 months we will be a family of 4. Madness! :) I can tell that the extra room in my belly is dwindling every day because Lily's limbs are starting to become more noticeable on the outside of my belly. She is such a fun nutball already, I can only imagine what she has in store for us after she is born. Daniel and I have been hard at work getting her nursery painted, decorated, and ready for her arrival. I think it turned out beautiful and I'm so glad it's done! I walk in there atleast once a day and can't turn off my smile because it makes me so happy.

Hunter has his 15 month check up this month and I'm so excited to see how much he has grown. I feel like he's gotta be atleast 25-26 pounds. He's such a solid little boy. :) About 2 weeks ago I remember calling my mom to tell her that I didn't think Hunter was "talking" enough compared to other babies his age. He would babble all sorts of vowel and consonant sounds and he would understand what Daniel and I were saying to him like "It's time to change your diaper" then he would run over to the changing table or if we said it's Milk Time, he runs over to his sippy cup, etc. Well, wouldn't you know the day after I talked to my mom, he has non stopped chatted our ears off. LOL! Isn't that how it works?! He's never really said mama and now he says it off and on all day long and knows exactly who he is talking about. :) He points to a shoe and says shu and when he is finished with a meal or his milk he throws his hands up and says All Duh which means All Done. He now says Moo when he sees a cow in a book and shakes his head back and forth while doing his version of neighing when he sees a horse. It's so much fun to watch his brain work and see it process new information. Oh I almost forgot...the cutest thing will be when I say where's baby and he will look or point to my stomach. Ahhh he melts my heart every.single.day.

The bad news about March arriving is that my other half who helps me out tremendously especially while pregnant will be going on night shift. :( I'm so happy that I have Hunter to keep me company and occupied while Daniel is gone and the best part about night shift is that shortly after it ends in 2 months Lily Mack will be here so it gives me motivation to get through night shift. I can do this, I can do this, I can do this!

70 days or less until Lily is here!! :)

We are so ready for Spring!

The Morrison family is ready for Spring. I'm ready to feel the warm breeze and be able to take Hunter for walks around our neighborhood without our noses and cheeks getting red and chapped. 35 days til Spring! Woo hoo!

As the 3rd trimester fast approaches, I'm getting so excited to meet my baby girl. We are buying the paint for her room on Tuesday before my OB appointment so I'm excited to start painting and decorating. I found a website that has all the crocheted headbands and beanies that I was looking for to make Lily's accessories and I can't wait until they arrive in the mail. I also found a tutu for $4 so I couldn't pass that up. I'm thinking she will wear it during her 6 month portraits with a pretty flower headband.


My "baby" boy will be 14 months old in a little over a week and I'm loving this stage the most so far. Even though he is testing his boundaries and learning the rules of the road, he is such a fun little man. He is obsessed with shoes at the moment. He loves wearing them on his feet or carrying them around with his hands inside. Or he will even bring them to you so you can put them on. He's very helpful! He has also become best buds with Toby. Although Toby would rather be left alone on the couch, Hunter gives him hugs and likes to pat him on his back. We are currently working on teaching Hunter how to be gentle and that's when he started to give Toby hugs. :) When it's time to go bed after drinking his milk and reading a few books, we give him kisses and as I hold him on our walk to his bedroom, he pats me on my back while he lays his head on my shoulder. I feel at this moment every night that I did a good job that day and I'm rewarded by pats on the back from my little man. I just can't get enough most days. I used to not be a morning person, but he makes it worth it to get up in the morning. Although, I think he is taking after me because for several months now, I don't hear a peep out of him until 8:30. :) I can only imagine the different dynamic that adding another baby to the mix will bring, but I'm so much looking forward to 2x the kisses, hugs, and love.

I should find out on Tuesday when my scheduled c-section date will be so soon I will have an end date in sight and then the countdown will be on! :D

Loving my life from here to Timbuktu!

I have been thinking recently how my toddler will react to being a big brother and sharing the spotlight. I hope he loves his little sister and will protect her as they grow up. I'm sure every mom goes through these feelings as she's preparing to have her 2nd child, but I hope I will be able to give them the same amount of love and attention that they deserve. It's hard to imagine loving another child as much as I love and adore Hunter, but I know it's possible.

February 10th will be 3 months exactly from my projected c-section date...wait wha?! Seriously?! I can't wait to see my daughter's face for the 1st time and to hear her cry. I can't wait to count her fingers and toes and to smell her new baby smell. I can't wait to snuggle her body against mine. I can't wait to be a family of 4 and be complete. I can't wait to watch her and Hunter grow as siblings and as individuals. I'm so in love with my baby girl, it's unreal to have such a strong connection with a human being I have never met.

I'm so thankful for Daniel. He takes care of me when I'm a hormonal mess. :D He's the best father I could have ever asked for my kids. I'm thankful for Hunter. He has taught me so many life lessons and continues to do so every single day. I'm thankful for my family and friends. I know that they would be there for me in a second and would do anything to help me out when I'm in need. I'm thankful for Toby. He cuddles with me at the end of the day and lets me know that he'll always be my best furry friend. I'm thankful for our beautiful home and our jobs. In this economy, we are so very blessed to own our home and have stable jobs that are able to provide above and beyond all our necessities. I'll stop now, don't want to bore people, but some days I just need to relax, take a deep breath and realize all the things that bless my life. <3

5 days til our overnight bed and breakfast date! Can't wait!!

January Jazz

I'm so proud to say that Hunter is 100% bottle free! YAY!! Our pediatrician wanted us to have the bottle gone by 15 months, but since we have a little lady coming when Hunter is 16 months old, I wanted to get rid of the bottle so he didn't get jealous with Lily's bottles when she arrived. It went SO much better then I expected. We took out the morning and afternoon bottle first and he did awesome so Daniel and I picked a night where we would both be home with no plans so it would be a relaxing experience. I gave him the sippy cup of milk around 7:15 while we continued to play and then at 7:30 Daddy took him up to brush his teeth and take a bath. He got his pjs on and then we gave him back his sippy cup while the 3 of us read books in bed. He drank up the milk while we snuggled and then off he went to his crib by about 8:15pm. He is such a wonderful kiddo. He rarely gives us any trouble and is so laid back just like Daniel! I hope Ms. Lily will take some cues from her older brother and be just as sweet to her momma and daddy! :D

Speaking of Lily, she is going to be styling in all her clothes she got from Caitlyn and cousin Cameron. I recently got 4-5 bag fulls of clothes sizes newborn-18 months and every single outfit is cute and girly and just what I was looking for. I'm so lucky that they both have good taste in clothes! :D I am definitely a girly girl that loves bows, lace, polka dots, dresses and everything in between and I hope Lily likes all of the same things. I am currently reading up on how to make my own bows and headbands so I can make some to match all her outfits she is going to be wearing. I'm not a creative person at all so it should be an interesting experience! I'm so very excited to be having a daughter and to be able to experience all the amazing mother-daughter moments. I can't wait to see how Hunter reacts to being a big brother and to see Daniel help raise a girl now that he is used to our rough and tumble little man.

Here is a picture of the hat I hope to be able to make Lily Mack.


This Saturday, I will be 23 weeks pregnant and I'm really enjoying every minute of it as much as I can. Since this is my last pregnancy and it has been going by SO fast, I want to take in every single second of baby girl growing inside my tummy. Lily Mack loves moving around much more then Hunter and her kicks are rougher/stronger then her brother's. It's amazing to me how different these pregnancies are and it's very neat to experience. After 2 pregnancies in less then 2 years, I'm looking forward to getting back on the treadmill and losing some weight and toning up. Daniel is so good about making me feel like a pretty preggo, but it's hard to look in the mirror at my growing body and feel attractive so hopefully after Lily arrives, I will find time to get back into my workout routine!

In less then 3 weeks, Daniel and I will be visiting a bed and breakfast for an overnight date. I'm so looking forward to as it will most likely be the last time we get out before Lily is born since Daniel goes on night shift in March and April. I'm looking forward to going out to dinner, spending some quiet, alone time with Daniel, and sleeping in!

I hope the start of 2010 is as happy for you as it is for us!

It's a....!!

The night before my appointment, I couldn't fall asleep for hours it felt like. I was so excited, anxious, nervous. I finally fell asleep after midnight and then woke up at 4:45 to go to the bathroom and couldn't fall back asleep. Lucky for me I was wide awake and ready for the day! :) Hunter had his 12 month check up at 9am on the 23rd so I got him fed, dressed, and ready to go and off we went! He weighs 23 pounds 12 oz and was 31 inches long! He took his 3 shots and finger prick like a champ and then he was done thank goodness! We got home and then I anxiously waited until it was time to leave for my appointment at 1:30. On the way to the doctor's office, my stomach was in knots and I was starting to get nauseous from all my emotions. I was just ready to know! So we got there and got checked in and luckily didn't have to wait very long. I could feel my hands shaking because I was so nervous. lol! With Hunter's big ultrasound I don't remember being so nervous, but because this is our last baby I just wanted everything to be ok and healthy. The ultrasound technician asked us if we wanted to know the sex and we both said YES! at the same time so she put the wand on my belly and started taking some measurements. I could feel the excitement building as I tried to scan the screen to see what I could see. She scrolled down to try and find the sex and the umbilical cord was down there so she couldn't tell, but said she would be back at the end. I started to panic a little bit thinking that maybe we wouldn't be able to find out. I had thought I had caught a glimpse, but didn't see anything down there...I was trying not to get my hopes up though. So she got through the whole ultrasound, all the measurements and we saw the baby yawn and stretch..so cute, and then she said let's take a look again to see if we can find out the sex. She scrolled the wand down there again and viola...IT IS A GIRL!!! I immediately started crying...I couldn't believe I was having a daughter! I've always wanted a boy and a girl (in that order)since I was little and it was so amazing to me that I would be blessed enough to have 1 of each! The rest of my doctor's appointment went great. I gained 2 pounds (woot woot), my blood pressure was great, and the baby's measurements were about a week ahead and she looked perfectly healthy! What an amazing Christmas present!


So off we went to Babies R Us to buy Lily Mackenzie her first outfit! I'm glad I had a boy first and then a girl because I didn't realize how CUTE and GIRLY and LACY and POLKA DOTTY all the girl clothes are until now. (I tried to ignore the hundreds of girl racks because I was so jealous of all the variety) We already know the nursery we want. A picture of it is below. We are going to paint 3 walls solid colors and then the 4th wall we are going to paint polka dots that match the other 3 walls. I'm so excited!! When I say "we" are painting, it actually means Daniel...haha he is the best painter! :)



I love my family!! We are blessed beyond belief! <3

Hunter's Birthday Bash!

We celebrated Hunter's 1st Birthday on Saturday, December 12th and everything turned out fabulous! He played with his friends and then we opened presents and ate some delicious cake! He tried cake for the first time and it took him a while to dig in but once he did, he stuffed fistfuls of cake into his mouth. It was so much fun to watch him discover something new! We also took Hunter to get his 1 year pictures take and they turned out great too.



Hunter's schedule at 12 months goes something like this:

8:30am wake up and drink 7oz of WHOLE milk (woot woot!)
9-10:15 PLAYTIME
10:15-10:30 eat fruit and cheerios
10:30-1 NAP
1:15-1:30 eat vegetable and applesauce
1:30-3:45 PLAYTIME
3:45-4:15 drink 7oz of formula (going to be switching to whole milk on Sunday)
4:15-5:30/6 NAP
6:15-6:30 eat vegetable/fruit and cheerios
6:30-7:30 PLAYTIME
7:30-8 Read a book, Bath, Lotion, Pjs, 7oz bottle of formula (going to be switching to whole milk in early January)
8:15 BEDTIME!

What a day! Whew! We are slowly introducing whole milk and so far no allergic reactions and he LOVES it! By the beginning of January the plan is to get him on 100% whole milk (YAY for no more formula!! atleast for 5 months LOL!) and then once he is on 100% cow's milk make the switch from the bottle to the sippy cup. He currently drinks water out of his sippy cup, but he is still struggling a little bit to grasp holding it while sucking the water out of it. Hopefully he'll drink cow's milk out of it since he loves it so much. I can't believe my little baby that I brought home just a short year ago is about to turn into a toddler! W.O.W.! Everyday his fun personality shines through and let me tell you...we laugh so much here at the Morrison household because he constantly keeps us on our toes and does the most goofy things! Atleast once a day he will climb up in my lap and sit with me for a few minutes so I can get my cuddles in. I can't believe how lucky I am to be his mom!

I will be 19 weeks pregnant on Saturday and when I say this pregnancy is flying by that is an understatement! I can not believe I'm almost 1/2 way done with this pregnancy. Hunter is keeping me super busy so I barely have enough time to sit down and relax much less think about being pregnant. With Hunter's pregnancy I knew what was going on each week. I would read in the baby book about him growing taste buds or when he was able to move his fingers or what size comparable fruit he was that week. This pregnancy, I just don't have time to do any of that stuff. I did start to feel baby kicks this week and it is one of the most amazing things that go on while pregnant. For me, once I feel kicks it really brings on a strong mother-baby bond that will never go away. I will be one lucky lady if the 2nd half of this pregnancy goes as smooth as the 1st half.

Next week is going to be a HUGE week for us. Actually Wednesday to be exact. :) Hunter turns 1 on Wednesday and he has his well baby check up at 9am that day. I can't wait to see how much he has grown in 3 months, but I'm not looking forward to him getting shots. I HATE watching him get shots even though most of the time he has been a tough trooper. It just hurts my heart that he gets stuck with a needle or two. Poor guy, atleast I know the shots help him stay healthy! Then at 2pm, is the BIG ultrasound to find out whether a baby boy or girl will complete our family! I have been feeling like it's a girl from the beginning, but Daniel thinks it's another boy. The more I think about it, having a little brother for Hunter sounds like so much more fun. They can be rough and tumble together and share all the same toys and clothes and hopefully be close as they grew up. Now, I think MOMMA would LOVE buying all the pink, purple, polka dots, hairbows, and barrettes for a little girl, but I'm trying to not let my heart get stuck on having a girl, it's hard though. Soon enough we will know for sure and then I can start making plans for the nursery! I'm so excited! I keep repeating to myself that God will give me what I need not necessarily what I want so if I get another boy then I was meant to be a momma to boys and what could be better?! I'm hoping and praying for another healthy, happy baby because that is truly all that matters. Keep your fingers crossed that this last week doesn't drag by for me!!

Oh one last comment...I have never been the type of person to get Christmas done early and even last year when I was 9+ months pregnant in December I procrastinated SO bad....well this year I got ALL the Christmas shopping done and presents wrapped for family and friends before December 6th! So now, our tree is up, decorated, and with presents sitting underneath waiting for Christmas Day to arrive. I feel so proud! :)Now, next year with a 7 month old and 2 year old I probably will get nothing done so I'm just making up for it this year!

December 23rd is going to be a big day!!

Two wonderful things are going to happen on December 23rd...the first being that my little baby boy is going to be a 1 year old! Ahh can you believe it?! The next thing is Daniel, Hunter, and I will be finding out if we will be completing our family with a baby boy or girl! I'm so happy to finally know a date to look forward to seeing my baby bean!

My appointment went great today. I've lost another 3 pounds, but I swear I'm eating enough and taking my vitamins so I think I'm going to follow the same pattern with Hunter's pregnancy and just not gain the bulk of the weight until the end. My belly is getting bigger every day it seems like so I'm not sure where I'm losing this weight from...maybe my hips and thighs! :) Also, I talked to my OB about tying my tubes during my c-section since Daniel and I both agree that we do not want anymore kids after baby #2. She agreed to do it thank goodness! I was kind of worried that she would say no since I'm 23, but she said if that's what I wanted, I would have to sign a waiver and everything would be good to go! Although I love Hunter and future baby bean to the moon and back, 2 kids is plenty for us!

Hunter is growing like a weed! He eats everything we give to him...well everything except peas. He is eating more and more people food and enjoys every minute of it! He has been on the same nap routine for about 5 months now and recently it seems like he is trying to eliminate one of the naps. I'm not sure if it's his teeth bothering him or if he really is ready to just go down to 1 nap a day. :( I miss my little baby that would lay in my arms and fall asleep for a good portion of the day. I guess it's a good thing another little one will be coming home in just a few short months. I won't know what to do with myself once baby #2 is Hunter's age! What an exciting and fun time that will be. I can't wait to see how Hunter reacts to being a big brother!

24 days until Hunter's safari themed 1st birthday party!

Night Shift with my lil Scarecrow!

I know I'm a little late with Halloween, but it's been so busy around here since Daniel switched to night shift. My favorite lil guy dressed up as a scarecrow for the big event and helped me pass out candy to our neighborhood trick or treater's. He had alot of fun even though he got scared by an Optimus Prime costume, but only because the boy was wearing a mask that disguised his voice to sound like a robot. He looked at the robot, looked at me, looked at the robot, then back at me with the saddest looking face I'd ever seen and then the tears came. He loved all the other neighborhood kids though. We will most likely take him out next year (with 2nd baby in tow!) but thought this year with him just mastering how to walk that it would wear mom and dad out. :)

We are down to 3 bottles a day with 3 meals/snacks and I'm so proud of my big boy. He did great with the transistion and I'm hoping within the next 2 weeks, we'll take out another bottle so he'll be down to 2 a day. I'm really hoping between 12-13 months that he will transistion from the bottle to the sippy cup and we'll also switch from formula to cow's milk.

In baby bean news, I'm feeling fantastic!! Whew, I didn't think I would ever make it out of the nausea-exhaustion phase. After 8 long weeks, I've gotten some of my energy back and my appetite is slowly returning! With Hunter, I craved SO many spicy chicken sandwiches (it was ridiculous, just ask Daniel lol) and with this baby all I want is sour Skittles or any fruity candy. I also crave ice cold water, but I craved that with Hunter too. It's neat to compare the 2 pregnancies and to be going through this again. We can now hear the baby's heartbeat almost every night on our home doppler and I feel kicks/movement atleast 3-4 times a week. We should be finding out the sex in 5-6 weeks! I can't believe I'm making a baby from scratch, it's such an amazing part of life!

We made it through the first long weekend on night shift and now we only have 3 more to go! Actually, Daniel has training to become a field training officer Nov 16th-20th so he will be working days that week and will have off that Fri and Sat night so we technically only have 2 more long weekends to go! Woot woot! Hopefully in January when he goes back on day shift, we will be able to getaway for a night and just relax. I'm so excited because he said he would take off a few weeks when baby #2 comes in May. He was able to take off 3 weeks when Hunter was born to help me after my c-section and he pretty much took care of Hunter while I recooperated. Every now and then, I have little panic attacks of how in the world am I going to take care of 2 under 2 after a c-section. He always calms my fears and reassures me. :) So it looks like if all goes as planned, he'll be here for a few weeks to help me out with Hunter and baby #2. I'm a lucky girl! I LOVED the 3 weeks we got to spend as a family right after Hunter was born, we all got to bond and not worry about anything else. Hopefully, the same will be true with baby #2!

32 days til Hunter's safari themed 1st birthday party!!

Double Digits Baby!!!

Hunter turned 10 months old yesterday and it's amazing to me how fast the time has flown. I know every parent probably says that, but man I felt like I just gave birth to him! Hunter took his first step at 9 months 1 week and just 3 short weeks later he is walking all over the house! He can pull himself up and off he goes! He now eats 3 meals a day along with puffs, cheerios, pea sized peaches, pears, and bread. Here is Hunter's schedule at 10 months old:

7:30-8 Hunter wakes up and drinks his first bottle

8:15-9:30 PLAYTIME!

9:30 Hunter eats 1st fruit, puffs and/or cheerios

10-12:30 Nap

12:30 Hunter drinks 2nd bottle

12:45-3 PLAYTIME!

3-3:30 1st veggie and peaches

4-4:15 Hunter drinks 3rd bottle

4:30-6 Nap

6:15-6:30 2nd veggie, peaches, and puffs and/or cheerios

6:30-7:45 PLAYTIME!

7:45-8 Hunter takes a bath

8-8:15 Hunter drinks 4th bottle

8:15 BEDTIME!!

Starting tomorrow, we are going to try and eliminate the 4pm bottle so he'll only be drinking 3 bottles instead of 4 in preperation of eventually eliminating the bottle at 12 months. I can't believe in less then 2 months I'm going to be a mom to a 1 year old!! We took Hunter to his first pumpkin patch on Wednesday and he had so much fun! He picked out his favorite pumpkin and we plan to carve it tomorrow night.

11 weeks down, 29 (or less) to go!!! The first trimester is almost over and I couldn't be more relieved! This pregnancy is going by so much faster then with Hunter. I guess because my mind is so preoccupied with running around after Hunter. The nausea comes in pretty intense waves, and the anti-nausea medication my doctor prescribed makes me sleepy so I have to be careful of when I take it. The nausea has made my appetite decrease alot so at my appointment on the 21st I had lost 2 pounds and my doctor wasn't too thrilled. I gained weight really slow with Hunter in the beginning, but between weeks 28-38 I gained about 15-18 pounds (the bulk of my pregnancy weight) so this pregnancy seems to be going on the same path. With Hunter, I felt the first flutter movements around 14 weeks and this time around with me knowing what to look for, I have already felt flutters low in my belly. It's such an amazing process to create a human being from scratch :)

Daniel switches back to night shift on November 2nd, (booo!!!) but once he goes back on day shift in January, I'm trying to plan an overnight getaway for the 2 of us to relax and enjoy our time together before baby #2 makes its' entrance into the world. I'm trying to enjoy every second of the next week and a half because I know when night shift rolls around we won't be seeing that much of each other.

53 days until Hunter's safari animal themed 1st birthday party!!

Sunny days in VA!

Our life is getting more and more fun each month. Hunter continues to amaze Daniel and I with everything he is accomplishing. He pulls himself up to a standing position and will stand all by himself for longer periods of time. I can see it in his face that he wants to walk so bad so we continue to walk everywhere with him (while he holds our fingers). I definitely think he'll be walking in the next few months! Hammy boy LOVES food...he will eat almost anything we give him. He loves drinking out of his sippy cup and hopefully the transistion to removing the bottle by 12 months old won't be too hard. His top 2 front teeth finally popped through this past week and they are growing in so fast! I can't wait until they show up in pictures when he smiles. I bet he will look so much older with his front teeth chompers in. I am slowly starting to plan his 1st birthday party. I'm still in denial that the celebration is in less then 3 months. I really can't believe it. Where did my little baby boy go? He's grown into a rough and tumble infant soon to be toddler. Each stage is more fun then the last I think and he is such a joy to our lives. I have no idea how I lived before he existed. I think because we got so lucky with Hunter and his incredible sleeping habits and amazing temperment, this 2nd baby is going to give us trouble lol. Like the song says, whatever happens, won't last for long so I'm going to try my hardest to enjoy every second since baby #2 is our last baby. Kinda makes me sad to type that out. :( Now that Hunter's 1st birthday is fast approaching, that means that the holidays are almost upon us. I have figured out that the holidays are SO much more fun now that we have a child. I can't wait to start family traditions with him and our next baby. Ahhh I can't believe I have my own little family, it's incredible! For Hunter's 1st Halloween, he is going to be a scarecrow and what a cute scarecrow he is! (Pics coming soon) I can't wait to go pick out his first pumpkin and watch as daddy carves a funny face into it. I can't wait for Thanksgiving and especially Christmas now that he'll be able to tell what's going on more this year. (Last year he was 2 days old lol) I would just like to pause time for a little while to enjoy all these little moments, pretty please?!?

My first prenatal appointment went great. It was nice to see my OB again and to start this journey again. We got to see baby bean and hear the glorious sound of his/her heartbeat, it was amazing!! It made everything feel that much more real! I asked for some anti-nausea medication because I have been sooo much more nauseous this time around and it's pretty difficult to chase after a 9 month old while feeling nauseous 24-7. The anti-nausea medication is AMAZING and I feel so much better. We have already picked out names and if we have a boy he will be named Colby Allen and if we have a girl she will be named Lily Mackenzie. We love the sound of both of those names and think they go great with Hunter. I hope I'm able to love both the kiddos the same and be able to spread the love evenly. I love Hunter SOOOOO much, it's hard to imagine loving another baby as much as I love him, but I'm sure everything will come just as natural like they did with Hunter.

My new work schedule has started so now I'm off Sunday-Wednesday and I absolutely LOVE it!! I love being home with my baby boy and to be able to cook dinner for Daniel so we can all sit down and eat together. I can't believe I'm this lucky!

We go to Hunter's 9 month appointment tomorrow, so I'll update his stats then! I can't wait to see how much he has grown!

2 under 2--We are sooo excited!!

We just found out that I'm pregnant and expecting in May 2010!!! Ahh, I can't believe that happened so fast! I thought it would take us a few months to get pregnant, but sure enough after taking 3 tests...all confirmed my suspicions!! I should be due around May 15th, 2010, but I plan on having a second c-section so my doctor will probably schedule it around May 8th. I have my first prenatal appointment with the same doctor that delivered Hunter on September 23rd. I can't wait to see her face when she walks into the room. At my last post natal visit with Hunter, she told me that she thought I would be back before Hunter turned a year old and sure enough she was right! :) If everything goes as planned, the kiddos will be a little over 16 months apart, Daniel and I are going to be busy busy for the next few years!! My biggest fear at the moment is making it through the first trimester and trying not to get too run down with a soon to be walking infant. I have already experienced some nausea and a headache that lasted for about 10 hours regardless of the Tylenol I took. Atleast with the nausea, I know my hormones are being kicked up into high gear in order to grow a healthy baby. Now that I have been through one pregnancy, I know all of these symptoms and patience waiting for the little one's arrival is 150% worth every minute. We should be able to find out the sex at the end of December and I'm crossing my fingers for a little girl, but we would absolutely love a little baby brother for Hunter. I can't wipe a smile off my face even if I tried!! This feels so surreal to be going through this miracle process again!!

Flashback Fridays

Hunter is a little over 8 months now and it is hard to believe he is the same baby we brought home a short while ago. We won't know his exact weight until his 9 month well baby check up on September 28th, but I would guess he would be about 23 pounds and 30-31 inches now. When I see him in his crib he looks so big and long unlike the first time we laid him down in there at 4 weeks old. He was so tiny compared to the crib and was firmly stationed in the middle of the crib within a positioner. Now he has free reign of the crib and moves all over at night. My favorite time of the day is first thing in the morning. I will hear him babble to himself or playing with his feet. He will normally stand up and start hollering mamama or dadadada when he is ready to be picked up. When I walk in there, he will immediately put on a big toothy smile and giggle. It's the best thing in the world to feel irreplaceable.

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Daniel switches to day shift on September 2nd and I CAN'T WAIT!!! I hate going to sleep alone and hearing every little noise in the house and wondering what if. This October, Daniel will have been in the sheriff's department for 2 years so if he wants he can now transfer to another department. He's also taking night classes through the sheriff's department to further his college degree.

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Quick tidbit about me...my new work schedule will be starting September 12th. I'm sooo excited!! I'll be working Thu/Fri 11-8pm and Sat 9-6 so I'll be off Sun-Wed to spend with my baby boy and to have more sit down meals with hubs.

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So what's new with Hunter you may be asking...he has tried all stage 1 and 2 foods except for the meat in a jar. Meat in a jar makes me gag so we are planning on waiting until his top teeth come in a little further and then we are going to have Hunter self-feed himself chopped up turkey, ham, and chicken. He is also feeding himself pea sized pears, apples, cantelope, and Gerber puffs. He crawls everywhere and continues to climb on anything and everything. He can stand by himself for a few seconds, but hasn't taken any steps yet. I can see it in his eyes sometimes that he wants to move, but doesn't know how to. Toby and Hunter have such a fun time together. Toby gives kisses and Hunter is trying to learn how to pet nice. :) I can't believe that in less then 4 months, we will be celebrating his first birthday. HOLY MOLY!!! We are already starting to plan, but I know it will be bittersweet when that day arrives. My baby boy is growing up!!