Missed my Gabby!

Gabby stayed the night with my sister Shelly last night. I'm always so nervous when she stays away from me and I could not sleep at all last night. I trust my sister with her more then anyone. I think it is just some sort of anxiety that I cannot see her or know what she is doing. Gabby loves staying there though and playing with her cousins. Kevin, Avalynn and I did a little shopping today. Then we went and picked Gabby up. Tonight was more packing for our move. We rented a moving truck. Tomorrow we will pack it up and then Friday we will unpack at the apartment. Can't wait!

We are Moving on Friday!

Been doing lots of Packing! Our apartment is almost done. We have rented a truck for Friday! Shelly is going to watch the girls for us while Kevin and I load/unload everything. I'm so excited! It will be wonderful to have a place of our own again. We have been sharing a room with our girls since before Avalynn was even born! It will be nice to have space for them to put their toys. The apartment is not too big but it will still be more room then we have now.

We bought a new couch and sofa set that has been in storage for a few months now. We have never even used it. We are also buying a new washer and dryer when we get moved in.

I think when we move we will put Avalynn into a toddler bed. She does not stay in her crib all night anyway. Gabby has been sleeping in a toddler bed since Avalynn moved from the co-sleeper to the crib. We have 3 toddler beds including the crib turning into one.

We probably will not have internet or TV for a while once we move into the apartment. We have to wait and see how much extra money we have. I hope our cell phones work there because otherwise we will not have a phone either.

Please vote for my girls

Gap Casting Call

Tanglewood Nature Center

Today we decided to take the girls to the Tanglewood Nature Center in Big Flats, NY. They are run totally on donations. We had a lot of fun looking at the small museum. They also have 9 miles of walking trails but it was so cold out that we did not hike. Here are some pictures from today.

Gabby petting an African Tortoise.

Avalynn petting a Bobcat (Stuffed of course)

Gabby and a beaver

Avalynn and Daddy

I made Pumpkin Bread today!

Here is the recipe I used for the bread CLICK HERE I did not use Walnuts though because we did not have any and I don't like nuts in bread. It turned out so good! I also made two different kinds of cookies and I cannot believe how much pumpkin I have left! I may make more cookies tomorrow!

Here are a few pics!

The Pumpkin



I used an ice cream scoop to clean the pumpkin out.



My helper ate a few of the seeds raw.



The pumpkin all peeled and ready to grate.



The yummy bread!

Found a puppy

Last Sunday Kevin was driving to work and as he got near the end of our road he saw a small puppy running along the road. He pulled over and the puppy ran right up to him. Just then a car came driving up the road and they also pulled over. Kevin explained to them that he did not have time to take the puppy back to our house because he was going to be late for work. He told them where we live and They said they would take the puppy and drive up and down the road looking for the owners and then take her back to their house.

The next day they called and they were considering keeping the puppy because they had a college age daughter who was falling in Love with her. They said they had called the shelters and had driven up and down the road looking for the owner with no luck.

A couple days later they called and asked Kevin to come get the puppy because they did were not able to keep her after all. So he went and got her. The first night she was so afraid and she was growling at the girls and even tried to bite them any time they came near her. We had to put her in a kennel until Avalynn went to sleep. Then we got her back out and she was a little better with just Gabby.

On Friday I took her to a local vet just to have them scan her and see if she had a micro chip. She did not so that did not help us.

We were thinking about keeping her but we really do not have the money to get her to the vet for shots and to get her spayed. She also seemed a little wary with young kids. Then my mom was thinking about keeping her but she works full time and really didn't want to have to keep the puppy kenneled up all day long. We called a Mini Pin Rescue and they were based in NYC. They told us it would be a few days until they could get someone to get her.

We all started to fall in Love with her in the mean time. She was so cute and playful. She loves to chase toys and chew on EVERYTHING! She also learned how to climb up the back of the couch and right on top of the Kitchen Counter! She was not house trained and that was not fun! She is very lovable though!

We ended up finding a home for her (And a back up home if that one does not work out!). My mom had a friend who knew someone who wanted a mini pin puppy. We will also be able to see her again in the future, so that is wonderful!

We are not sure how old she was but whoever owned her before did not have her tail or ears docked. She also still had her dew claws.

Here are a few pictures of her!

Watkin's Glen

We went to Watkin's Glen today. On the way up both girls fell asleep. We drove up to the race track and Kevin took a few pictures. Then we drove to the gorge. We walked around there and saw the falls. The girls really seemed to enjoy it. We let them play on the playground for a little while when we were done. Then we went to Wal-mart and had luch at the McDonalds inside. We shopped a little while and then went to Seneca lake. It is so pretty there! We stopped for Ice Cream on the way home! So yummy! ♥ It was a wonderful family day!




CLICK ON PICTURES TO SEE THE ENTIRE PICTURE

Kevin carrying Gabby in the back pack carrier.


My arms got tired!


When I got to tired Kevin carried both of them!!!!


Looks Like a Heart ♥


This playground was lots of fun!


Kevin and Avalynn in front of Seneca Lake.

Autumn Walk

Kevin and I took the girls for a walk today.What a beautiful day for a walk! The weather was perfect at around 75 degrees. Some of the leaves are changing and some had even fallen off already. Then when we got back we rode the ATV's up to the pond and I helped my mom mow up there while Kevin watched the girls. Here are a few pictures I took today.

A friends GIVEAWAY

One of my very good friends is doing a giveaway on her blog. Check it out! CLICK HERE

Memorial service/First babysitter

Today I went with my mom and Shelly to the Memorial service for my half sister Stacey's grandmother who passed away on 09/09/09. She was a very sweet lady. She was very caring and giving. My favorite memory of her was that she made the best pickles! When we would spend the night with our sister she would give each of us a jar of them and we would sit there and eat the whole jar! I took care of her a couple of days during the last weeks of her life. She was still very kind even though she was weak and very tired. She will be greatly missed by her family. My sister Stacey has lived with her a majority of her life and I know it has been really hard on her the past 4 months. She has been taking care of her grandmother and also dealing with a lot of other things.


Today was the first time I have ever left the girls with anyone besides Kevin, my mom or Shelly. They stayed with my cousin Bobbie Jo while we went to the service because Kevin had to work. I was nervous to leave them but I knew Bobbie would take good care of them. They never even knew I was gone! My niece and Nephew were also there plus Bobbie's 3 kids so they had lots of company! There were also 3 kittens to play with. (Poor kittens!!!) It was only for two hours anyway. Now that I see they can survive with someone else I may have to leave them again sometime, lol.

In Memory of Mekenna

I met this little girl's mom on myspace two years ago. Her little girl was shaken to death by a friend.

No baby has ever died from crying, but too many have died from being shaken.

09-11-01 WARNING SENSITIVE SUBJECT may be disturbing to some

Tomorrow is the 8th Anniversary of 9/11. Sometimes it seems so long ago and other days it seems just like yesterday. I still cry every time I think about it. All those people killed. Innocent people who one minute were living their every day life and the next they are gone.

The day it happened I was working at a daycare. One of the other employees got a phone call from her husband. He told her a plane had hit the first tower. When she told us I was not that concerned at first. I thought it was sad but just figured it was a plane that had crashed for some reason. Then a short while later her husband called back and said another plane had hit the towers. We were all talking about it when the owner of the daycare showed up and told us that she didn't want us to talk about it or even talk on the phone because she was afraid the kids would be afraid. I didn't get out of work until about 1:00 and on my way home I turned the radio on. I still didn't even know the towers had collapsed until they said it on the radio. I immediately called my sister Shelly. I asked her what the heck was going on. She told me about all 4 of the planes that crashed and how the world trade center buildings had fallen down. She said she had been watching it on TV and there were people jumping out of windows, ect. I just could not comprehend that. I thought how could they just fall down? Why would people jump out? It had not sunk in and I was not even realizing how many people had died and what a big deal this was. When I got home the TV was on and the first thing I saw was a replay of the first and then the second towers collapsing. I remember I started shaking and slowly sat down on the couch. Why would someone do that? Why would they kill so many people. I was so afraid. My sister had just had a son 7 days before that and I kept thinking what kind of life is this little baby going to have. The longer I watched the news the worse it got. I then realized people died in the pentagon and the other planes too.
I think I cried every night for at least a month for all those families. I couldn't help but sit and watch the news every night for months. They played it over and over and over. It was horrible but I just could not help to watch. I guess I thought maybe if I kept watching there would be some explanation as to why this happened.

I was watching a show the other day that was so sad. It was a Mother and Father telling the story of their son. They were watching the news after the first plane had hit. He called them that day from one of the planes. He had his wife and daughter on the plane with him. He was talking to his Dad and his dad said then son said "Oh No" very silently and that was the last he heard from him. They were still watching the TV and Saw their sons plane hit the second Tower. I'll never forget when that mom said "Every time I see that plane hit I am watching my son die"

These things and so much more I will never Forget.

Today...

Kevin was able to find glasses at sears. He also got the oil changed in the car today. We took a nice walk this evening. We need to start doing that a lot more often.

The nose piece on Kevin's glasses broke so we are going to Empire vision and Walmart to see if we can find him some new one's for a reasonable price . I'll probably go in the dollar store with the girls while Kevin is in Empire vision. The girls are both feeling a little bit better today.

Trip to the ER

We just got home from the ER with Avalynn. She was really having trouble breathing so we took her in. They gave her a breathing treatment (Pulmacort) and then used a cool mist humidifier for a while. After that they did a chest X-ray and the doctor came back in and said she sounded better and we could go home. He says she has croup and should be over it in 5-10 days. Today is the 5th day so hopefully she will be a lot better soon!

Here she is getting the cool mist at the hospital.

My babies are sick

Both of my girls are sick. They seem to have a cold and both have a croupy sounding cough too. Avalynn seems to be a little more sick than Gabby. She has been running a fever. Kevin and I are both sneezing a lot so I think we will have it next!

On a good note my mom and I went shopping today and she bought the girls some clothes for next summer at Old Navy. Then we went over to the Mall and at Gap she bought them each a Shirt and really nice warm zip up hoodies. They will be so nice for fall and winter! She also bought Avalynn a really cute bathing suit for next summer!

Swimming

Zackery and Natalee came over today while Shelly went to work. The kids played in the sandbox for a little while and then inside. When Kevin came home we all went up to the pond. Kevin got in with Zack and Natalee. I filled the kiddie pool for my girls to play in. The pond is pretty cold, The nights have been down in the 40's here. So sad to see Summer ending. This Video is from 09/04


Here are the girls playing with some of Daddy's Hats:

Shopping....

Shelly watched the girls for a couple of hours yesterday so Kevin and I could get out alone and do a little shopping. We went to Moe's Southwest Grille on Vestal Parkway. The food was pretty good. Then we went to the Oakdale Mall. I got the girls a few things from Gymboree and then we went to Wegmans and got a few things. After that we went back to Shelly's house and we ate dinner with her and the kids. Shelly made Pizza and we also made Salad to go with it. Natalee stayed the night with us and Shelly picked her up in the morning.

This morning while I was running a few Errands Kevin took the girls for a nice walk. They went up the road to see some horses. Gabby Loved that! Looks like the afternoon is going to be beautiful! When the girls wake up from nap I am going to take them outside to play.

15 Months Already!

Avalynn is 15 Months old today
She also had her 15 month well baby check up. She now weighs 21 pounds 13 ounces (36%) and is 31 1/2 inches (90%). The doctor was concerned that she is not getting enough calcium because she does not like to drink milk. The doctor said she should be drinking at least 32 ounces a day. I am lucky if I can get her to drink 8 ounces. I am still nursing her to go to sleep at night and the doctor suggested I try going back to nursing her some in the day time again to make sure she gets enough calcium. She only had to get 1 shot but it had 3 different things in it. Avalynn did not cry at all. She is really good about getting them. She is teething and has been a little cranky. Last night she woke up a lot. Here is a photo of her taken this morning.