Here we go...again...

Hello, internet.

I've been away. Adjusting to life as a family of 4, and like other things (working out, cooking from scratch, reading) this blog has fallen to the back burner. It makes me sad. I enjoy writing about our life, even if it is mundane at times. So, after some thought I have decided to start writing again. It has always been a stress reliever for me, so I thought "Why not?"

So, here we go. Again.

A few things I'd like to keep doing from before are "Thankful Friday's." Because starting your weekend out being thankful is always good. And something new, I'd like to bake/cook (from scratch, of course) something new once or twice a month. We'll start slow, and then adjust as I see how it works into our schedule. 

I'm looking forward to using this outlet more to record our family story. To share, to learn, and to hopefully have some fun.

Please join me!

Kristen 

{Life at the moment}

It's 2:30 in the morning. I'm sitting in my dark bedroom, pumping, and snuggling a worn out, and very congested baby. Sometimes you just have to stop, and say a prayer of gratitude. Hopefully we can get some sleep. 

{Thankful Friday}

Today I'm thankful for....
- Husbands who feed me dinner, so I can pump and feed the babe.
- Heating pads that make a clogged duct feel better. (Sorry TMI)
- Fleece Halloween jammers that keep my little warm. (And look super cute)
- Plans for Porter cousins to meet this weekend at the Pumpkin Patch
- Celery with almond butter
- Sleeping in
- Taking a hot bath

- The smell of wet leaves

- Apples, apples, apples. 

- Scones made by my Mama. 

Sorry I'm late posting! Hope everyone has a great weekend!

{Daily mail - October 6, 2014}

Dear Hubster, You looked so hunky playing video games with my bro last night. I might have a crush on you. Come home from work so we can eat chili, and snuggle. Dear Nolie, You look super sweet in your Halloween jammers. I can't wait to see you in your costume. Dear Littlest Brother (but also the tallest), THANK YOU for visiting us. We love having you around. Please come back soon! Dear Patagonia, I took advantage of your 50% off sale. Ship my package ASAP!

It's a cold, rainy Monday. What's everyone making for dinner?  

{Fresh BiB!}

A week ago, one of my favorite blogs (@todaysletters) hosted a give away for an adorable bib. Naturally, I thought I would enter because what Mama doesn't  need a good bib? Bonus points cause it's cute. (Why is it so hard to find cute bibs for boys?) 

Anyway, with a stroke of luck, I actually won! 

I was definitely surprised, and really, really excited to have won Nolan one of these suckers. :) 

Here are a few pictures of the adorable package I received via "The Pony Express."

Who wouldn't be excited when the package looks like this? I can totally appreciate it when a company takes the time to make their packaging look stellar. 

 

And just when I couldn't get anymore excited to open that little box, I discovered this..........

Can I say, YES! It even has a party horn?! You know you're on to something grand when there's a party horn in the package! 

This was the bib we received. Part of the fun is being surprised by which bib is in your box. Elephants and geometric prints? Perfect for Nolan. 

And last but certainly not least, here's my little man rocking his....

We are so thrilled with our bib! It looks adorable on Nolan, and it's so functional. Bonus points for collecting tons of drool, etc saving me from having to change his outfit a zillion times a day! 

If you're expecting, or know somebody who is expecting, this would be an excellent shower gift. :) You can find them at freshbib.com. 

Happy Shopping!  

{Daily Letter - October 1, 2014}

Dear Mr Mosley, You have brought the 90's back with nightly episodes of Power Rangers. 3 points for reminding me of watching it with my brother as a kid. Dearest Nolan, You're growing so quickly. And I love watching you take in your new world. Ceiling fans really rock your socks off at the moment.  Dear October, I have been waiting all year for you! Welcome! Dear Freshly Mopped Floors, I adore the way you look and feel. Please stay clean. Dear Starbucks, Your oatmeal makes me happy, but your coffee is lackluster now that I'm grinding my own beans. Dear Kale Chips, I'm crushing you...you're a great afternoon snack. Thanks for being on sale at Kroger this week. 

Happy October! So excited for fall!

{The Honest Company Diaper Review}

While I was pregnant, I did a ton of research on diapers. And while I cloth diaper a lot, there are times when you just need a good disposable. So, while building my diaper stash I discovered The Honest Company. They manufacture a ton of products, and most are organic or have environmentally friendly ingredients. 

Their diapers are my favorite out of all the diapers we've tried. They are super absorbent and durable. Nolan has only "blown out" of 1 of their diapers, and trust me he's great at testing them. We started out in their newborn diapers, and have since progressed to Size 1's. Both sizes have fit him so well, and his little bum looks adorable in them. One of the fun things about Honest diapers, is all the patterns them come in! Holy cuteness overload, batman! So far, we've had giraffes, plaid, camo, and jungle animal diapers. It's true that nobody really sees his diapers, so a pattern isn't really "necessary," but I'm always looking for a way to add a little pizazz to my everyday life. What could be better?!

Recently, we decided to try their bundle package. For a monthly fee they send you a month's worth of diapers and wipes. You can log in, and choose which patterns and sizes you want, and then they ship it all to you easy peasy. Yes, they are a tad more expensive than normal diapers, but for me the comfort of knowing Nolan isn't sitting in a diaper with tons of chemicals makes me feel better about him wearing a disposable. 

So if you are looking for a quality, plant based, toxin free diaper, I can't recommend Honest diapers enough. Here in Kentucky, you can find them at Buy Buy Baby, or Target. Or you can order them online at https://www.honest.com. 

Oh, and this post wasn't sponsored. It's just my thoughts and opinions I thought some of you might find helpful. :) 

Nolan says, "Two thumbs up!" 

Happy changing! 

{Thankful Friday}

I've been a bad blogger this week. What can I say, the parenthood roller coaster  still exhausts me. Some days it takes all my effort to survive, and possibly make it an hour without getting baby spit up, or baby crap on me, plus trying to avoid  being sprayed with urine. (Nothing makes me jump higher than the surprise of warm baby pee on my leg.) But without further ado.....

Today I'm thankful for.....

- Red leaves littering my yard and driveway from our sugar maples.

- My hydroflask, and cold h2o.

- Matilda (or Tillie for short) - AKA my Medela pump

- Surprise letters from a friend via snail mail. (Getting mail is seriously a thrill!)

- New glasses! 

- Sweet baby feet

- FaceTime, so my son and nephew can finally meet, and I can chat with my brother. 

- The crisp fall air. Mornings are simply delish! 

- Apples and peanut butter

Happy Friday, loved ones! What are you thankful for today?

{Thankful Friday}

Today I'm thankful for...

- Temps in the 70's, and lots of sunshine

- My Boba Wrap, and snuggling my little.

- Excitement about seeing friends this weekend. 

- Campfires!

- My new Chacos waiting to be picked up.

- A box full of cute diapers on my porch. (Review coming soon).

- Inside jokes with Mr. Mosley 

- My rocking chair

- And a cup of warm tea, with a smidgen of local honey. 

Happy Friday, sweet friends! What are you thankful for? 

Daily Letter - September 16, 2014

Dear Jake, Looking forward to introducing our son to the wonderful world of reenacting this weekend with you. Pictures will be taken. Prepare yourself. Dear Pumpkin, I love kissing your cheeks. And hearing your velociraptor noises when I have you on my shoulder when your hungry. Dear Endless Dishes, Someday I will look back on the above picture and laugh. (Or at least I hope so.) This is my everyday life for as long as I breastfeed. Totally worth it. Dear Fall Like Weather, I love you. I've waited all summer for your cooler temps, and the way you make everything feel more cozy. 

Happy Tuesday, peeps. 

Thankful Friday

I'm thankful for...

-  The rain

-  Fall like weather 

-  Creative ideas floating around in my noggin'

-  My favorite coffee/tea cup (Lapis Fiestaware)

-  Cozy sweaters

-  Pumpkins

-  Freshly made homemade grape jelly

-  Sweet baby snuggles

-  Candles

-  Holding hands with Mr. Mosley

I would like to start a new tradition called "Thankful Friday." I always find myself being thankful for so many things, and I think this would be a fun way to remember them. :) Please leave things you're thankful for in the comments! I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts! #thankfulfriday

Baby growth spurts are no joke!

To sum up the last 24 hours, it's 1:00 pm and I was just standing in front of the refrigerator door, still in my jammers, drinking apple juice from the container. Yes. I'm certain you can picture it in your mind.

Nolan is going through a growth spurt, which equates to my normally mind-tempered baby converting to the behavior of a ravenous shark in fish infested water. He wants to feast what seems like 7 billion times a day. Nothing keeps his bottomless pit of a stomach full. So far today he's eaten 30 ounces of breastmilk, a steak, baked potato with butter and sour cream, green beans, a piece of chocolate cake, a little more breastmilk to wash all that down, and a few Sour Patch Kids. Needless to say, my kitchen is trashed from all the cooking he's been doing.

Crap. Now he wants waffles.

Yesterday was my "official" due date. All afternoon I thought about the post I wanted to write about becoming a Mama early. Nolan and I went for a walk, hung  pictures in the living room, did laundry, and took an evening drive through the park. It was such a productive day, and I had actually showered and didn't have baby puke on my shirt. SUCCESS!

But then someone decided he was at an AYCE (All You Can Eat) buffet, and the chaos began. If he wasn't eating, he was filling a diaper, and if he wasn't doing that, he was whining to be held, or sleeping (For only an hour or so at a time). Then he would scream for food like I haven't fed him since his birth. As soon as he started eating, he would calm down to my "normal" baby, then go to sleep for an hour or so only for the process to begin again later.

Eat, sleep, eat, sleep, eat, sleep...You get the picture.

At 4 am, while I was pumping, and feeding him a bottle (more on that later), I came up with two universal truths about being a new parent....

1. At the newborn stage, that baby is your BOSS. He or she decides when you sleep, when you eat, and how many loads of laundry you do that day. It's not like you can reason with a 7 week old. We are on a very consistent schedule, but growth spurts = insanity.

2. Breastfeeding is HARD WORK. I really thought it would come naturally to me, but because Nolan got used to a bottle while in the NICU, he just doesn't nurse very well. So, I pump...and I pump...and I pump some more. I'm hoping as he get's older, he'll improve his nursing skills. But in the meantime, my Medella pump, and a sink full of unwashed pumping parts is my reality. I'm fully aware that the decision to breastfeed is mine, and mine alone. Jake would be totally supportive if I waved the white flag of surrender. But I'm not ready to give up. Even though it's a challenge, for me it's worth it. But I wanted to document how hard it is. Mama's who breastfeed for any length of time should be given an award. Preferably one covered in chocolate.

Being a Mama is such a fun adventure. Today is just one of those days! :D

My baby is currently asleep, so I'm going to go eat a spoonful of Nutella, and take a power nap!

Long overdue pregnancy update!

Yes, I've been dragging my feet about writing this post. I write in my journal almost daily, but keeping up with this blog is a different story. Blah. As of today I'm 26 weeks, and 3 days pregnant. And man alive, I can feel it! My belly is growing by the day, and my poor belly button looks so strange. (Although, it hasn't "popped" yet...thankfully!)

Let me start where I left off last time...I followed up with the hem/onc doctor at UK, and he was exceptional! We ended up getting stuck in traffic on I-75 for two hours, and the doctor still saw us without a problem. We were so thankful! It was 3 weeks in between the colposcopy, and the follow-up appointment. I spent most of my time at home taking it easy, and working on projects like knitting during those weeks. And when the hem/onc doctor did the exam, he was astonished to report that the vein appeared to be healing, and looked like a discolored area on my cervix! Talk about a answered prayer! I went from having a vein the size of a quarter, to healed cervix. Let me just pause to say that  

WE SERVE AN AWESOME GOD!

 

I went from having an unexplained medical abnormality that could possibly be cancer...to completely healed in 3 weeks!  The doc repeated the pap test, and all came back negative. No cancer, no pre-cancer...normal! NORMAL!

After we jumped that hurtle, we excitedly awaited our gender ultrasound. Jake went with me to the ultrasound, and I can't explain how incredibly cool it was to see this tiny baby moving around! We decided to not find out the gender until a few days later, so we had to close our eyes a few times, because we didn't want to ruin the surprise, but other than those few minutes Jake and I were both glued to the monitor! Everything with the baby looked perfect! We even got to see all 4 chambers of the heart in action! We were both so thankful that the baby was healthy, and that I wasn't bleeding anymore! 

It was right after the ultrasound that it really started to sink in that we were having a baby. Up until this point I had so many complications, that I think subconsciously I didn't want to get "too excited," in fear that something dreadful could happen. But, driving away from the office that day, I felt a huge weight lift, and a growing excitement take it's place!

A few days after the ultrasound, we had a gender reveal party with our families. It was a low key cookout, and we were thankful to be surrounded by so many people that love us! I even had some family travel all the way from Chester, WV for the big reveal. (Thanks again Uncle Mitch, and Aunt Amy!)

 

I have several more pictures also, but I need to get them from my Mom and Gram's camera. I ran around in an flurry of excitement, and didn't take any pictures! But, without further ado...here's the video of us cutting the cake to find out if the baby was a boy or girl!

  

I was so surprised! I thought for sure the baby was a girl, but God had another thing in mind. We had already decided on a boy's name, so we announced at the party that we would be naming him David Nolan Mosley. We will call him Nolan, but when it came to deciding a name, we came up with it just days after finding out we were pregnant!

Since the party, everything has been smooth sailing. I've had two routine checkups, and Nolan is measuring exactly where he should be. Yesterday, I had to take the dreaded glucose test. It wasn't as bad as I thought, the drink they give you tasted like flat orange soda. I was thankful that I passed, and didn't have to take the longer 3 hour test. The comical thing, is that after only a few sips, Nolan went crazy! He was flipping, and dancing all over the place. While we were listening to his heart beat with the doppler, he was kicking it with force! It definitely made me laugh. He's been so active lately, and I absolutely love it! It's such a neat feeling to feel him moving. At first it felt like butterflies, but now it's full on karate.

Despite not having any more problems with the vein, I'm still not allowed to go back to work. My doctor fears that putting the same pressure on the cervix that caused the initial bleeding, would make the bleeding start again, and could potentially send me into pre-term labor. Something we definitely don't want! But, the summer will pass by so quickly, and I'm thankful for the quiet time to prepare for one of the biggest life changes we'll face! Jake and I are so ready to snuggle him!

In the next few days, I'll post about our progress on the baby's room, and the fun preparations we've been making. I never thought I would get so excited about things like a stroller! haha.

Breaking the silence....

Hello all.

I decided that I wanted to dust some of the cobwebs off this blog, and start actually using it to document our lives. I fear that in the blink of an eye, years will flash before us, and I'll forget all the fun little details of our lives.

We are currently in the middle of one of the coldest, and snowiest winters I've experienced since I was a kid. The average temps have been in the teens (or lower some weeks), with wind chill making the temperature feel even more frigid. I've heard a lot of people complain about snow, and road conditions, but honestly I'm thankful for it. Winter is supposed to be cold, and snowy. We will have less pests in our garden, and hopefully less ticks to deal with this summer. (I swear, those things could survive an atomic bomb!) I'm enjoying the cold, and I know it will make me even more appreciative of the deliciously warm spring, and the beautiful awaking of nature. Today in Walmart, I got a little more excited than I should looking at all the seed starting stuff.

Well, I'm going to end this post with a little tidbit I found on pinterest that I thought was awesome. God really does hear our prayers...we just have to be patient! :D

Good night!
Kristen

A treasure hunt of a different sort...

This is Madison.

 

She's our very spoiled Maltese. Anyway, last night we had pizza for dinner. After watching 'The Colony' on Netflix, we absentmindedly forgot about the cheese stick box that was left on the living room floor, with umm...6 cheese sticks still inside.

Well, today we came home to find this...

Madison's bed with a cheese stick "buried" in it. We also found an empty cheese stick box.

Lovely. 

I'm wondering where the other 5 are. Crazy dog!

Hello again, internet.

We have been home from our honeymoon for about a month, and it was incredible. We saw so much history, and beautiful places. And we walked...A LOT. I'm finally living in London full time, and loving every minute of being here with my husband. I have been organizing and unpacking, or as Jake calls it "nesting" for the last month. Tomorrow I begin my new job at St. Joseph London, and I'm excited to get back into a rhythm of working before school starts back up in August. It will be amazing working day shift, instead of midnights.

So, in the next few days I'll begin the process of updating the blog on all the fun that's been happening. But first I need to upload all the pictures...always a fun process. But I haven't forgotten about our new blog, and will be posting regularly soon!

Love-
Kristen