The Nessler Family

Kate's first Dentist Appointment

2012-01-31T18:39:00.000-06:00

A couple weeks ago, Kate had her first trip to the dentist. I'd heard great things about the pediatric dentist office in Mankato so we gave it a go. Jay and I talked to Kate about the visit prior to going and I prayed to the dentist gods that she would not become terrified of the dentist or have a loathe of the dentist like I did growing up.

When we walked through the door for her appointment, all fears vanished when I laid eyes on the 2 story playhouse in the lobby. Sa-weet! I knew we were in business. Kate played while I filled out paperwork and was having a blast when they finally called us back. The hygienist was super friendly and explained everything she was doing in a kid-friendly way.

Kate sat great while the hygienist polished her teeth and flossed them. She kept saying how impressed she was with how well Kate sat and compared her to one of the 'bigger girls'. And she impressed me as well. Kate then got some stickers, played with the awesome flannel board they had INSIDE the exam room and waited for the dentist to come to the final check.

The dentist said Kate's teeth looked beautiful, performed a quick fluoride treatment and gave a cavity-free report. Side note...do any of you remember having to stick trays of fluoride in your mouth as a child?? (gag-o-rama!) Gone are those days....now they do a 2-second 'painting' of the fluoride and they're done! Gotta love medical advancements.

Such a peanut in the chair

This photo CRACKS me up
The cuteness...the double chin...
love her:)

Miles - 10 Months

2012-01-30T12:49:00.007-06:00

Mr. Miles is now 10 months old and oodles of fun. Here's what the little guy is up to these days:

-Stands by himself for short periods of time
-Walks along furniture
-Waves
-Gives kisses
-Gives high fives
-Says 'mama' and 'dada'. Not sure if he's really referencing us but we'd like to think so
-Sleeping from about 7:30 to 6 in the morning and gets up about once during the night (this is HUGE people)
-Has 4 teeth on the bottom and 4 coming thru on top
-Eating more table foods (without gagging and throwing up I might add)
-Loves to dance and like his sister digs Nicki Minaj 'Super Bass'. Twinkle Twinkle what?
-And his facial expressions are hilarious (both my children have dramatic facial expressions....makes me wonder if they get this from me??)
-Easy going and pretty much just goes with the flow

So much fun these days and hard to believe turning 1 is right around the corner! Of course I'm sad he's turning into a little man but at the same token, excited for the fun that lies ahead. And here is my cutie patootie:

Here he is....rocking the cuteness

and enjoys yoga to unwind from a stressful day at daycare

Props to my bff jill, Christy, for capturing such adorable photos
More to come on that in a future post

Seriously love his baby blues

Post bath and ready to snuggle

Perhaps his hair upset him

Class Pictures

2012-01-19T21:00:00.004-06:00

Its that time again...the good ol' class pictures. Full of adorable awkwardness:)

It was Miles' first go around with class photos
Top right folks

And Miss Kate, front and center (purple cardigan)

New Years Eve

2012-01-18T19:07:00.006-06:00

Alright...I'm a little behind. But thanks to a wonderful bout with the flu today, I'm trapped in bed and able to blog. Let's begin, shall we.

This year we celebrated the end of 2011 at Jay's brother's house. Being that I was very pregnant last year, I was ready to whoop it up this year. Here's some of the photos from the night...key word 'some'. Ha, aka I'm only posting the safe ones to ensure I'm invited back in the future;)

Meghan, Jamie and Mary

Chris Brown, excuse me, Kevin and I

Karaoke...moments before we discovered
my mic wasn't even plugged in
Believe me, that was a blessing for all

The hostess with the mostess
Jay's brother Andy and myself

Jay's brother, Scott and girlfriend, Katie

Ash and Greeno
Side note, Kate has a major crush on Greeno:)

Jay and I

Ashley and I took turns riding my nephew Max's bike
Mysteriously the picture of myself didn't turn out
Sorry Ash:)
But impressive you can ride that in heels!

Love these girls
Katie, Ash and myself

The kiddos spent the night at G&G Nessler's
and came to wish us a happy new year in the morning
Please note, Kate dressed herself

Fancy Feet

2012-01-05T21:35:00.004-06:00

Over the holidays, my mom took my sister, Kate and I to get pedicures. It was an awesome (and much needed) treat for my feet. Kate was thrilled from the moment she heard we were going and talked about it non-stop. You see, this wasn't her first rodeo with a pedicure (she got her first with Grandma Vicki this summer) and she knew what lie ahead. She knew exactly what color nail polish she wanted, hot pink, and requested a flower to accent her tiny toes.

It was so great to have some one-on-one time with my girl.
At times I thought to myself
'are you sure you're 3?? I feel like I'm talking to a 23 year old'

A tiny chair for a tiny gal
Highlight was watching her socialize with the gal doing her toes
So polite and social...
one of those moments where you think to yourself
'Hmm, i must be doing something right'

and finally, drying her freshly painted toes

I wish I would have captured a shot of all 4 ladies but my camera was dying and the opportunity was missed. I guess that only means one thing...we'll have to do it all over again! Thanks again mom!

Christmas 2011

2011-12-29T20:14:00.000-06:00

We've had 5 Christmas celebrations so far with 2 go....rather than go into detail about each of them, I'll leave you with a photo recap....

Miles enjoyed eating his presents more than opening them

Me and Kater Bug

Kate: the look of pure disappointment when you open a gift
thinking its for you and it turns out to be a sweater for your mom
Me: the look of a moron

Jay, his brothers and the Nessler cousins

Brotherly Love

He's all mine ladies.....

The JcPenneys catalog 'looking off into the distance' pose
And yes folks, it came with pockets

The Nessler Ladies

Christmas morning
A barbie car from santa 'just what I wanted!!!'

Kate thanking Miles for the leg warmers he gave her

Miles hugging Kate

thanking her for the football she gave him

Cousin Max and Miles in matching jammies

Miles loves to tackle cousin Liam

Santa stopped by
Miles didn't dig him....obviously

The one and only family photo from Christmas

Grandma and Grandpa Nessler and the grandkids

Tummy tattoos!

Matching jammies for all!

Miles - 9 Months

2011-12-28T10:12:00.009-06:00

9 Months....9 months?!?!.....feels like I was just writing his 8 month post. Oh yeah I was, due to being a delinquent blogger....whoops!

I took Miles in for his 9 month checkup and he's doing great except for the fact that we found out he had an ear infection (demerit for me for not noticing it beforehand). So we got him on some antibiotics and hopefully that will clear it right up. It also appears to be helping his sleeping habits (INSERT HEAVY KNOCK ON WOOD HERE). Since being on the antibiotics he has slept through the night and/or gotten up only once pretty much every night.

At his appointment, we also discussed his inability to eat any table foods. What I mean is, anytime I give him anything with texture (besides baby food), he starts to gag and throws up. Doctor feels he just may not be ready so we're slowly working on introducing new textures to bring him up to the next level:)

Anyhoo, I'll get to the stats:
Height: 28 inches (43rd percentile)
Weight: 19.9 lbs (25th percentile)
Head: 18 1/2 inches (91st percentile)

And a little recap to what the little man has been up to:
-Still crawling but at lightening speed
-Stands for periods of time by himself
-Likes to wrestle
-Has started to dance, which is uber fun to watch. Boy has some rhythm at 9 months! Even can find a beat with the organ music at church. Get down my little altar boy!
-His ability to play independently is increasing and his attention span is growing. This allows for mama to sneak away and get something accomplished.
-Has 2 teeth on the bottom, 1/2 a tooth on the top and 1 coming in on the bottom and 1 coming in on the top. His top teeth are going to look quite hilarious as he has 1 partial front tooth and the other tooth coming in is an eye tooth
-Within the last week has started sleeping from about 8:30 to 6:30
-Naps are getting better as well
-Gives hugs and kisses
-Dishes out high fives (ok only sometimes)
-Ponders what his first birthday theme should be (ok maybe his mom is but its right around the corner you know). Already been scouting out the first birthday invitations at Pear Tree;)

And now some snapshots of Mr. Miles these days:

He went in to get his first haircut.....
smiles at first

but the mood turned somber quickly

My handsome little boy post haircut
with his hairdresser Lexi

Standing! And full of smiles and laughter

And after pulling pictures for this post I realize I don't take nearly as many pictures of Miles....I'll add it to my list of New Year's resolutions for 2012....

My Little Fashionista

2011-12-21T16:45:00.002-06:00

If anyone is looking for a stylist, I've got one in the making. She is VERY opinionated when it comes to picking out clothes. She knows what she likes and once she has her mind made up....there is really no changing it.

When she's on....she's on....
(notice the scarf she picked out)

And when she's off...well.....
we still love her

Cancun Vacay

2011-12-20T21:01:00.005-06:00

Last week we were able to escape the Minnesota cold and escape to Cancun, Mexico thanks to the hubby who won the trip through work. It was a short little trip (Saturday - Tuesday) but was the perfect length for our first getaway since Miles was born.
The trip was sponsored by Miller Lite, the Vikings and Sun Country Airlines and was called 'Tailgate on the Beach/Touchdown in the Tropics'. Everyone who was on the trip either worked for Miller or a distributor, was affiliated with the Vikings or won the trip through various promotions.

Here was our itinerary in a nutshell:
Saturday 7 am: Left Minneapolis...beers were a flowing and the bathroom line was loooong
12 pm or so - Arrival in Mexico....bus and more beers await us
12:30 - Arrive at the Omni.....more beers/drinks await us while we check in, along with free chair massages while we wait
1:00 - Hit the Beach
Evening - Welcome party featuring more drinks, food and mariachi band

Sunday
8:30 - Breakfast and beach
10:30 - Tailgate on the beach party begins, more drinks, food, vikings cheerleaders, games and watching the Vikes
6:00 - Dinner than out for the evening

Monday
8:30 - 4:00 - Beach.All.Day.Long
Evening - Farewell concert on the beach by Rocketclub

Tuesday - Depart Cancun

It was a fabulous time, we met some awesome people and really enjoyed some kids free time (although I did miss them terribly). Only downfall of the trip was I had to pump and dump....I don't want to even think about the amount of milk I dumped down the drain there....oh well, more reason to just keep drinking right?!?!

And here are some photos from our adventure.....

The view from our balcony

I enjoy long walks on the beach....

Tent for the tailgate party

I feel like I should have a cheesy poem (perhaps haiku)
to go with this picture....but I don't.

Ann Carroll from Vikings Weekly and Vikings super fans

Balcony view at night

My view from the beach

Our room

Balcony shot of us

The view of our hotel, The Omni

Jay's work crew

Final night, concert on the beach

Leg Warmers

2011-12-14T20:33:00.004-06:00

Last week we had an impromptu playdate with some friends in New Prague. A huge thank you to Amy and family for taking us in last minute, filling our bellies with yummy food and allowing the kids to have a great playdate. Not only did we have a great time but Kate also got some ADORABLE leg warmers and hair clips that Amy made and Kate is obsessed with them. Thanks again Amy! Here are some pictures of Kate and her new favorite fashion accessory (and it turned into quite the photo shoot):

It started off as a normal photo shoot...

But then turned silly quickly
'Kate strike a pose'

'Turn a little more....not that way silly'

'Ole!'

The serious teapot

Miles - 8 Months

2011-12-05T05:48:00.003-06:00

Miles is now 8 months (well 8 1/2 technically) but who's counting? Me...the time is going way too fast. I know it's cliche, I know every mom says it, but its true. To think he'll be a year in just a few months is crazy.

Not a whole lot has changed since his 7 month update but for a mom that thinks her little boy is growing too fast, that's ok:)
-Still crawling but only WAY faster
-Loves paper...flapping it in the air, ripping it, scrunching it and eating it
-His love for his mama is reaching new heights. Sure he adores his dad and sister as well, but now cries whenever his mom leaves his sight. I mean, not surprising he can't get enough of me, but makes it difficult for this mama to get anything done (many of you may think its the pilates classes i've been doing...no, its just lugging a 20 lb child on my hip for 5+ hours a day)
-Still only 2 teeth but I feel he's working on more.
-Moving to the infant II room a week from today. Its about time and his friends in Infant I will welcome it I'm sure. You see, he is one of the only mobile ones so the others become his playground.

Still cute as ever and still makes this mama proud:)
....and would make his mama prouder if he chose to sleep thru the night;)

And here he is:

Kate's Sixth Sense

2011-11-22T17:28:00.000-06:00

So I’ve always heard about children’s imaginations and how they can run wild, but didn’t realize how wild it could run at the tender age of 3.

Now most of the time, when Kate slips into her world of imagination its mostly about what her stuffed animals and babies are up to. And I’ll also note that its quite impressive how consistent her stories stay (ie, you ask her about what happened with her pig two days later and she’ll tell you the same story). Sometimes she’ll also reference when I was a baby and she was a grown up and its almost as if she was my mother in another life (and would explain why I feel like she tries to act like my mother now at times)

But lately, her stories have gotten to the point where they darn right freak me out.

Case in point #1. We’re standing in my bedroom with the shades closed and Kate freezes, face gets serious and her eyes dart towards the window and goes ‘Mom, there is a guy outside the window’. My heart immediately skips a beat, I look to the window and see nothing but the shadow of a tree. I try to explain to her that it’s a tree but she persists and I eventually scoot her out of the room because she’s freaking me out with her facial expressions.

Now to case in point #2. We’re driving to daycare last week and Kate is in the back seat. She again, gets this serious voice and look on her face and goes ‘Mom, there is a mean guy.’ To which I reply ‘where?’. To which she replies ‘Running next to the car outside of my window’. Again, face frozen, voice serious (and might I add she’s whispering this which adds to the creepy factor) and I am thinking to myself ‘omg, my child sees dead people’.

I then tell her we’ll drive really fast to get away from him and luckily that seemed to do the trick and we appear to have lost ‘him’.

She hardly watches any tv and isn't really into anything with 'mean guys' so not really sure what the obsession with ‘mean guys’ is right now but really hoping it passes soon as its freaking me the hell out!

On that note, have a happy thanksgiving! :)

Funny Friday

2011-11-11T05:00:00.002-06:00

On this fabulous Friday I thought I'd provide you with some random funnies I found on my camera...

Kate wearing Miles' vest
Surprisingly, she can fit into many of his clothes

Don't worry, Miles got to return the favor
Poor kid....wearing Kate's leotard

And finally....Just a little video of Miles crawling and Kate singing one of her favorite songs...Party Rock. Click here to view it.

I need an updated video of Miles crawling. He is way faster now and pulling himself up on things...even walking somewhat around things....sigh....growing too fast.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Halloween 2011

2011-11-09T16:42:00.000-06:00

I'd like to say that I have some adorable pictures of the kiddos from Halloween this year but its really quite a blur. I'll share what I have and try to give a quick recap of events.
We started off by attending the annual Golden Heart Daycare Halloween Party. Kate had fun but Miles could have cared less. Then on Halloween night we took the kids around to various family members and friends' houses and also took Kate out to actually go trick or treating. This was her first time going and I wasn't sure how she'd do but she loved it. We decided to go trick or treating in our old neighborhood as the house are quite spaced out where we live now and were sure to tire Kate's little legs out quickly.

Once we got going she got the hang of looking for houses with lights on, saying the magic words 'trick or treat' (or 'trick or treating' in her case) and was polite and said thank you to everyone. She made a haul and really could care less about the candy....just the thrill of the hunt:)

My little bumble bee

Kate and friend Gwyneth at the daycare party

Sad this is one of the only pictures
i have of my very tired little basketball player

Fellow bee and friend Elizabeth

Face painting fun

The final product

Carving pumpkins with cousins Max and Liam
Somehow these kids always end up naked

Scooping out the guts

Mankato Marathon

2011-11-08T15:34:00.006-06:00

I'm starting to fall behind in my blogs so here's my attempt to catch up...bare with me.
In late October the 2nd annual Mankato Marathon took place. We watched last year and had so much fun watching it that we decided to do it again. We knew many people running the various races and it was fun to see so many faces we knew throughout the day.

In addition to watching the 10k, half marathon and full marathon, Kate also participated in the
Kids K (about a 1/2 mile). They had lots of fun activities before the race started, including face painting and hair spray painting. Despite one tumble during the race, Kate finished strong and even got a pretty sweet medal (if i do say so myself) to mark such a great feat. Super proud of my little runner....I don't even know if i could run a 1/2 mile these days without dying:)

Miles and Auntie Em ready to cheer Kate on

Kate's signs....
her first words after seeing the one on the left....
'I don't like orange'
Really?

Kate and I pre-race

Kate and Cousin Max

Max, Miles and Kate

The kiddos and their painted hair

Two 'flumbs' up!
As kate would say

Kate on the final stretch

Finished!!

So Proud
Morning of the marathon...bright and early

Such a cool sight...
thousands of runners all headed our way

7 Months

2011-10-28T22:51:00.001-05:00

My little man turned 7 months old last week. He's doing so many fun things these days and his personality is really starting to show. Here's what the little bugger is up to:
-Crawling, crawling, crawling! He started crawling about 3-4 weeks ago. I happened to be home with him when he was sick one day and caught his first little scoots:) He has now progressed from scooting to full out crawling and is a man on the move!
-Pulls himself up on whatever he can
-Has 2 teeth
-Says 'Da Da'
-Blows bubbles non stop
-Starting to recognize people and gets super excited when he sees someone who knows (which i love!)
-Slowly introducing solids but mainly a milk man
-Still getting up on average 2 times a night
-thinks its hilarious when his sister sings/shouts 'Miles Jay of the milky way....hey hey hey hey!'
-Pretty sure he's waving...or maybe just opening and shutting his hands but i'm going to say he's advanced and waving:)

Can't get enough of him....

Using dad as a jungle gym

How I found him in his crib one night
when he was supposed to be sleeping

Time to get fancy

2011-10-18T21:05:00.006-05:00

This past week Jay and I had a couple events where we got to enjoy a kids free night out, get dressed in our Sunday best and let loose.

The first was the March of Dimes Chef's Auction. Tons of amazing food, fun people watching and a live and silent auction. This year, along with 2 other couples, we bought a trip to Big Sky, Montana! I'm super excited as I've never been there. Now we just need to decide when to go....winter or summer. Here are a couple of photos from the evening.

The second event was our friends' wedding in the cities. It was our first time away from both the kids overnight. The wedding was filled with love, the couple was gorgeous, the decorations and food were amazing and we had an absolute blast. My body ached for the next three days from dancing so much. A great time was had by all:)

Jay and Ben

The best man, Jay's brother, Andy
Probably coming to summons me
and my incredible moves to the dance floor

Me and the sister-in-law Chris

End of Summer Randoms

2011-10-10T18:29:00.000-05:00

Looking through my camera today, I realized there were quite a few pictures I failed to blog. So, here I go with a random post which will contain a mash-up of the last few weeks of summer.
In no particular order....

Kate and her birthday crown

He stands....and wears Kate's bows

We went to the Mall of America for Kate's birthday
She insisted on wearing this hat that goes with her new coat

Chef boyardee??

We attended many of Jay's baseball games

Cousin Max, Miles and Kate enjoying some snacks

Kate and her friend Avery taking in the game

Girl talk with Mary

I got my craft on...
Some friends of mine and I made some uber adorable onesies
at one of our monthly girl's nights

And a couple of the finish products
A tie onesie for Mr. Miles

And a Green Bay Packers, excuse me, 'G' for Mr. Grayson:)

But most of our days were spent playing, snuggling, and shirtless
(kate, not me)

And band aids were our favorite fashion accessories

I could eat him up with a spoon:)

Fall Fun

2011-10-09T20:09:00.004-05:00

Last weekend the kids and I headed to my dad and his wife, Anita's house in Nicollet. They live right outside of town and have pumpkins and a little decorated area so we decided to take a couple photos. Very impromptu so excuse the blinding sun...but cute none the less.

The angle of the shot makes Kate
look like she has monsterous feet:)

My cousin Erin met us their with her twins Mason and Cleo.
This was the best attempt I could get at a shot of the 4 of them.

Jay's 30th Birthday

2011-10-04T21:19:00.008-05:00

Jay turned the big 3-0 on September 15th. We celebrated at Blue Bricks, one of our favorite bars throughout the years and were surrounded by great friends. I had a blast and I'm pretty sure Jay would say the same:) But here are some photos give you a visual of the fun that was had....

Jay through the years....

Another shot of the pictures/decorations
It was crazy how much Miles looks like Jay as a baby

Kate and Ashley
(the kiddos were at the party a mere 20 minutes:)

I believe they were arm wrestling to see
who got to sleep in our guest bed

And the world's largest game of left, right, center begins

Waiting for the final roll

Winner, winner, chicken dinner

Ash and I

The ladies of the night

My little sister Em
And momma to be:)

The birthday boy

The parents to be

Some of the old college crew

Ryan sending out the vibe

Amanda, me and momma to be Jen

Now you may be wondering why I included this picture...
See, Jay got a new outfit for his party (see above)
When he tried it on at home, Kate goes:
"You look different"
She then proceeds to go on playing
A few minutes later she emerges wearing this and says:
"Now I look different like you Dad"

And lastly....
You know you've had a good night
when this is the final captured image of the evening...

6 Months/3 years

2011-09-27T12:44:00.008-05:00

Miles turned 6 months on the 22nd of September.
In the last couple months he's grown and learned so much....i find myself loving him more and more everyday:)
Here's what the big man is up to:
-Eats like a horse....5 ounces every 2-3 hours
-Eating rice cereal and veggies and seems to be tolerating, however has yet to curb his thirst for milk
-Gets up 2 times a night on average....occasionally blessed with a 1 timer but more frequently cursed with getting up 3+ times. However he eats and goes right back to sleep.
-Been sitting with no help for a couple weeks now
-Rolling still
-Soooo close to crawling. He's been up on his knees for a couple weeks now and can kind of scoot/dive to where he needs to get.
-Loves to spit and blow bubbles
-Happy, smiley and loves to play games

And here are his 6 month stats:
Height: 26 inches (42nd percentile)
Weight: 18.2 lbs (63rd percentile)
Head: 17 3/4 inches (85th percentile)

Miss Kate turned 3 on the 3rd of September. I cannot believe how much she's grown over the last year and has gone from a toddler to a young girl. Here is what she is up to:
-Loves riding her bike
-Sings NON STOP
-Into watching movies
-Plays barbies/house
-Very much a mother hen
-Loves playing with her brother aka 'buddy'
-Likes to 'nuggle' with Mom (which i love!)
-Kills us with her facial expressions/hand gestures
-Adjusting well to preschool
-While at the doctor told them that she doesn't brush her teeth and that I sleep on the couch (both not true)

And here are her 3 year stats:
Height: 38.22 inches (71st percentile)
Weight: 30.9 lbs (45th percentile)

Classroom Cuties

2011-09-16T17:20:00.000-05:00

Jay's mom, Vicki, works for the school district so every year we get the kiddos 'official' school picture taken. Being that its pretty much a one take sort of thing, its always fun to see how they turn out. I have to say I'm impressed with what we got!

Miss Kate - 3 years

Mr. Miles - 5 1/2 Months

We're not really sure how Miles ended up on a blue background but it brings out his pretty baby blues:)

Preschool

2011-09-14T11:52:00.000-05:00

Fall is in the air and with it brings many changes in the Nessler household.
One of those being Miss Kate is now in preschool!
She started last Monday (September 6th) and has been adjusting pretty well.
Leading up to the big day she would excitedly talk about becoming a preschooler and all the fun things she was going to get to do. When the big day actually arrived however, she became a rollercoaster of emotions. It went something like this:
-Woke up excited to get dress for preschool
-Then cried on the way to school that she didn't want to go to preschool
-Happily dropped her brother off in his room and led us to her new cubby and room
-Became sad and intimidated by the new room
-Got really excited when she saw they had soap dispensers like Target!
-Became sad again when it was time for mom and dad to leave

She spent some time snuggling with one of her new teachers (which is the same teacher i had for preschool at golden heart, fun fact for ya) and adjusted shortly after they said. Not only was it her first day of preschool but it was also her birthday celebration at daycare. I joined Kate and her friends for lunch to help celebrate. Kate is quite the eater at daycare....'more, more, more' was all i heard. (takes after her mother)

All in all she is doing great. Had to work with her the first week about playing with friends instead of the teachers but if that's all I have to worry about, I'm ok:)

And here she is on her first day (ignore my sloppy sign....we're lucky we even had time to take this, ha)

Love the excitement in her eyes

So proud

Baseball Baseball Baseball

2011-08-14T21:30:00.005-05:00

I've been a poor blogger lately and I'm going to blame it on baseball. Jay's team made it to the state tournament so our weekends have been busy with ball. The team took 3rd place and I think we're all a little sad to see it end....but its absence will provide much more time at home and maybe I can complete a few projects for once. So in honor of the sport that has kept me from blogging enjoy this little clip of Kate singing the National Anthem:)

And my two cuties geared up to cheer on dad!

Miles 4 Months

2011-08-04T21:36:00.003-05:00

My little boy is 4 months already! The time is just flying by and he's turning into such a fun, loving little boy. Here's what Miles is up to:
-Rolling, rolling, rolling
-Chewing on his hands constantly but recently discovered his feet, which I'm sure is a nice break for his hands
-Eating like a horse. 4 oz every two hours
-Recently started eating rice cereal. Doesn't hate it but doesn't love it either.
-Loves to smile and giggles non stop
-Ticklish EVERYWHERE
-Up 2-4 times a night....still....Eats quick and goes back to sleep. Hoping this passes....soon.
-Besides the getting up at night, loving all the fun new things he's doing and just love him to pieces

Here are his 4 month stats:
Height: 63 cm (48th percentile) PS - who measures in centimeters these days?? Ok maybe the whole world but 24.8" is what it equates to
Weight: 15.5 lbs (59th percentile)
Head: 43.5 cm (82nd percentile) again...really? 17 inches

And here's my cutie patootie at 4 months:

My little scholar

Fresh out of the bath
He rocks a 'tidal wave' mohawk

Chilling in Kate's pink chair

His whole face smiles

Ahh kids...

2011-07-18T21:57:00.002-05:00

This morning at daycare, Kate and I were dropping Miles off at his room. I thought I could smell something so I quickly checked Miles before handing him over to the teacher. I said 'must have just been a toot' to which Kate quickly replies 'Mom, you toot a lot!' I stood there stunned, silent, with no words really. As if once wasn't enough she continues to repeat this. Meanwhile I'm thinking to myself 'abort! abort! - must get out of this awkward moment'.
Miles' teacher just laughed and made some comment about 'kids say the darndest things'....
meanwhile I shooed Kate along to her room before she could make anymore comments about me.
Ahh kids. Gotta love em.
Happy Monday!

A night at the Twins game...sort of

2011-07-13T16:20:00.000-05:00

The Friday of 4th of July weekend we headed to watch a Minnesota Twins game with a couple friends and Kate. The whole day was sunny and not a cloud in the sky. As we made our way to the Twin Cities we could see the clouds start to roll. When we got to the stadium we saw that the field was still tarped....not a good sign. Nobody warming up, again, not a good sign. So we decided to take in some of the sites of the stadium and start eating oodles of treats. I believe we were there about an hour or so when the skies opened up and started to terrential downpour. And I mean downpour. It was raining so hard that you couldn't see across the field. We all huddled on the concourse killing time....but luckily we had Miss Kate to entertain us.

Giving us her best 'growl'

Looks mighty weak here

In the midst of telling us a story....

her facial expressions/hand gestures crack me up

It.Was.Soggy. Damp. Muggy.

But she was all smiles

No words

Here is the downpour

So then, we decided to hit up the gift shop where Kate found a few friends....and so begin her requested photo shoot.....

They're so cute together that we should have bought him right?

Think again....he was a WHOPPING $478

Her 'over the shoulder' shot didn't turn out so well

And one with the 'big' stuffed TC

After it rained and rained, we decided to head home. We stopped at one of our favorite bars on the way home and right as we talked in the first inning was starting. Oh well. It was an expensive excuse to go and eat a bucket of mini donuts, cotton candy, a hot dog, a brat with saurkraut, plenty of beers and pop.

Ordering up a 'cold one' with dad....cold lemonade that is

He rolls!

2011-07-09T22:20:00.000-05:00

Miles has been rolling for over a month now and by now is quite the pro at it. You put him on his back and he's over in the blink of an eye. He's not as fond of rolling from stomach to back but has done it a couple times. He's also scooting on his stomach. He's a guy on the go.

Here is the little bugger. He rolls so quickly that I had a hard time capturing it.

4th of July Parade and weekend

2011-07-06T22:05:00.007-05:00

Each year Golden Heart holds a 4th of July parade. All the kiddos dress in red, white and blue and they usually have fun hats or some sort of fun accessory. They make their way around a couple of the Taylor Corp buildings (my work), with patriotic music blaring and looking oh-so-adorable. This was Kate's 3rd parade and was to be Miles' first but due to the extreme heat the infants weren't able to participate. All was well though as Kate held it down for the Nessler kids.....

Before daycare
Our little firecracker Miles
Our little sparkler Kate

Kate spotting us for the first time

Kate's 'float'
She had the princess wave rocking the whole time

High-fives for the crowd

And an uber excited wave once she spotted cousins Max and Liam

The rest of the weekend was spent swimming in various pools, fishing, going to a Twins game (more on that later), eating, fireworks, spending time with friends and family and attending a parade. It was a busy, exciting, exhausting weekend:) And here are the very few pictures I took over the weekend.

Miles took his first swim in our neighbor's pool
He loved it and the water was super warm

Meanwhile, big sister Kate was jumping off the diving board
and having loads of fun

Getting ready for the parade to start
It was a hot one!

Luckily a friendly person sitting nearby
offered Kate their umbrella to provide some shade

And, it just happened to be a Strawberry Shortcake umbrella
Kate's fav!

And Kate got oodles of candy, fun beach balls and tons of freezies.
Candy throwers couldn't resist her:)

For my birthday?

2011-06-28T11:12:00.003-05:00

Kate is obsessed with birthdays...whose birthday is next, when her birthday is, etc.
She knows her birthday is September 3rd and knows its coming up soon.

While in Target on Saturday she found a lawn chair that she insisted she needed. I told her not today and she kept pressing so I said 'maybe for your birthday' which seemed to suppress her need for it and she simply replied 'ok' and we moved on. So then we're walking in the mall and she sees a pillow pet (which she already has one of) and goes 'can i get this mom?' To which i reply 'no not today hun' and she goes 'ok, maybe for my birthday'. So this goes on for a couple more items.

Then we proceed to go into Victoria's Secret. We're looking at lotions and such and she picks up a lip gloss and again, in a very serious voice goes 'mom, i NEED some of this' to which I again reply 'not today hun' to which she then again replies 'ok maybe for my birthday mom?'. Sure why not.

By this time, I'm getting exhausted from all the questions so we decide to just leave. As i'm walking out I notice Kate isn't by me. I stop and turn to look back into the store where I see my little girl holding a little...pink...thong.

Before I could say anything she shouts very loudly 'Mom, can I get this?' I nervously shout back across the store 'honey those are for big girls, please put it back'. Meanwhile in my mind I'm thinking 'dear lord that thing is tiny enough to probably fit you and lets just get out of here before you start talking about the type of undergarments I wear, etc). Kate then matter of factly shouts back 'I'm a big girl. How about you get it for my birthday, otay mom?' (all okays are pronounced 'otay' in her world) She then nodded her head yes and smiled (as if thinking to herself 'that's a fabulous idea kate'), tossed the barely there string back onto the table and made her way happily to me as everyone around basked in the hilariousness of what just happened.

If this is her birthday wishlist at the age of 2 going on 3... I'm scared to see what she's asking for her birthday when she's 15....yikes!

Nessler Nutshell

2011-06-22T16:32:00.002-05:00

Because our lives are now a whirlwind with two crazy kiddos and I don't have as much time for blogging these days, I figured I'd dedicate a quick post to what we've each been up to.

Miles
-Smiles and Giggles McGee.
-Been rolling (yes rolling) for 2 weeks. I felt like a crazy mom checking the 'yes box' on the daycare questionaiire of 'can your child roll' but luckily they've witnessed it now too and know I'm not a looney.
-Like I said before, getting up 1-4 times a night. He's cute and cuddly so he gets away with it for now
-Has discovered his hands, tongue and kicks like a mad man

Kate
-Everytime Miles smiles at her she says 'He's smiling at me! What a sweetheart!'
-Rolls with a posse these days. She sleeps with 14 dolls and animals which she arranges nightly before bed. Some of which are hard plastic toys. Ouch.
-Declared that she is no longer going to wear diapers to bed. Been a week so far with no accidents (knock on wood)
-Nuk has been dead for almost a month now. All it took was a Barbie although the first few days were like dealing with a drug addict
-A diehard baseball fan
-Fascinated with my 'pumping'. Today she goes, 'Mom are you pumping??' and then goes 'You pump like this' while giving an impression of how I pump....lets just say it looked like someone milking a cow. No, more like a small goat.

Angie
-Her hair decided to have a identity crisis yet again. While pregnant it went super curly and now will neither curl nor straighten resulting in a low ponytail everyday. Luckily its easy and is semi-cute
-Lack of sleep results in her being in a constant fog all day
-Between pumping, feeding, washing pumping parts, repeating and rearing children finds little time to blog or do anything for herself for that matter (there will be a day, i hope)
-Finished my first book in a long time (The Help). Great read and probably one of the first books I've read since reading like Hatchet in middle school. Ok probably have read since then but can't remember

Jay
-Managing and playing for the Mankato Twins
-Sleeping like a baby (do you sense my jealousy)
-Playing softball and golf in his free time
-Rearing children
-'Working to make money' as Kate says (Kate recently asked him to make quarters for us so that she could buy me a treat)

The house
-A small deck repair has turned into a brand new deck. Currently the deck has been ripped off and we're waiting for the new one to be started
-New roof yesterday. When we got home we were greeted by 8 shirtless men working away. Kate goes 'mom, there are guys on the roof with no shirts!' No need to tell mommy that honey.
-Painting the house is next on the list
-Along with a new patio
-Lastly, going to attempt to paint our wood stove in our living room to jazz it up. We don't use it, have no idea how to remove it, so would at least like it to look better
Pictures to come!

And now I leave you with some random photos of the kiddos....they need no words:)

Back to reality

2011-06-21T21:09:00.003-05:00

Well I've officially been back to work for one week now. Surprisingly, it hasn't been too bad. I spent the first week going through literally close to 2000 emails....no joke. Now, I'm back in the swing of things and feel pretty caught up.

Miles' first days have been going well too. On his first day he fell asleep on the way to daycare so I woke him up when we arrived as I didn't want him waking up in a strange place wondering where the heck he was. I quickly left before there were any tears and held it together the rest of the day. Having gone through this once with Kate, I knew what to expect, which made it easier but still tough leaving him

Luckily, our daycare is located right across the street from my work so I'm able to pop over at lunch for some midday snuggles, which I am very thankful for.

Other than that, all is going smoothly but man am I tired! I'm getting up at least once a night, most nights more between Miles and Kate. I tried to hold off on drinking pop at work but I collapsed on day 2 (darn the free fountain pop in the breakroom) and today was up to drinking 7 cups of Dr. Pepper. Yikes!

But its good to be back to reality, back to adult interaction and back to making a full paycheck:)

And here is the big boy on his first day of daycare.....

Summertime has arrived!

2011-06-02T12:39:00.004-05:00

I probably just jinxed myself by stating that summer has arrived but I'm going to roll with it and say it has. We're enjoying the nice weather (finally!) and are excited to start baseball on Saturday, trips to the pool, walks/bike rides, grilling, campfires and just enjoying the ability to hang outside.

Kate has gotten pretty good on her new bike and we're now able to go on walks with her scooting right alongside us....here she be.

Oh how I love when she dresses herself
See-thru skirt....check
Rain boots....check check
Adorable....check

In addition to enjoying the lovely weather, Kate and Miles have really started to enjoy each others company. Kate loves making Miles smile and loves to hold him and occasionally burp him.

Cuties

Smiles all around

Then Kate requested a solo shot....

And we couldn't leave out Miles' headshot

And if that wasn't enough for your viewing pleasure....here she is folks. Kate Emma Nessler singing 'You are so beautiful', followed by 'Oh my darling' and finishing with Taio Cruz' 'Dynamite'. Enjoy:)

Mother's Day 2011

2011-05-25T16:32:00.000-05:00

Just a little recap of my mother's day 2011.
The day started off by Jay letting me sleep in. I was then awaken by a lovely rendition of 'Happy Mudders day to you' (sung to the tune of Happy Birthday) by Kate.
Next I was given a hand crafted card designed by Kate and Jay that revealed my gift....flowers for the yard/house and a trip to the zoo. Just what I wanted:)

We then attended church, went to brunch to celebrate with my mom and then capped off the day by having Jay's family over to our house for supper. It was a great day.

Me and the kiddos
Love them to pieces

Miles chillin on mother's day in the stroller

Jay, his mom and brothers

Grandma Vicki and her boys and grandkids

Derby Party

2011-05-24T13:22:00.004-05:00

A few weeks ago during the Kentucky Derby we attended a party to celebrate the occasion. There were tons of fun outfits and fabulous hats. It was one of my first times out post Miles and I have to say that I felt like a champ the next day (which was great since it was Mother's Day!). The only downfall of the party was having to go to the car to pump every so often. Oh the joys:)
To top the night off, our horse, Animal Kingdom, won! Woot woot! And here are some pictures from the event

Jay and I

Jay and Ben

Some of us ladies
Note, I am wearing like 4 inch heels
and still am incredibly short

Katie, Lora and I

All of the ladies

Miles 6 to 8 Weeks

2011-05-18T14:32:00.006-05:00

Its been so long since I've posted about my little guy. He turned 8 weeks yesterday and his personality is developing each day. Here's what Miles has been up to:
-Giving lots of smiles and even a couple giggles
-Still only sleeping 2-3 hours at a time at night. Spoiled me one night with 7 hours but that was short-lived
-Starting to sleep better during the day. Before would only sleep during the day when held and now will sleep for about an hour or two on his own but HAS to be on his belly
-Still loves to snuggle and take naps with me
-Acid reflux seems to be doing ok but will check again at his 2 month checkup next week
-Still a gassy little man with painful poos:(
-Is not a fan of the harmonic which his sister recently has taken up playing (thanks for the gift Magers, ha). I'm not sure if I'm a fan either although she is decent....just plays it a bit too much and a bit too close to Miles' face
-Overall, he's an easy-going little guy who is growing like a weed. Can't believe I go back to work in 4 weeks. *Sigh* But at least the weather is finally starting to get nice and we've enjoyed some lovely time outside.

And now, some pictures of the little bugger:

Still a ton of crazy hair
but starting to turn blonde

Snuggle bug

This picture makes me laugh
The look on his face....
he often sits with this face for minutes
without blinking

Again, chilling in the car seat

Happy little camper

Modeling next to the new blanket auntie Em
made him for Baptism
Not feeling the camera quite yet

Starting to crack

There we go
We love our new customized blankie!

And funny story about the blanket. So Emily was at the fabric store looking for the perfect fabric for the blanket. An older lady was helping her and was trying to steer her towards winnie the pooh and noah's ark fabric....now not that anything is wrong with those selections but they are just not my style which emily proceeded to tell her. The woman then goes 'that poor child!' and then proceeded to basically tell Emily what a deprived child Miles was going to be because I was neglecting him of pooh and noah's ark. Ha. Emily, you made the right choice and I am IN LOVE with the blanket.

Easter 2011

2011-05-13T21:18:00.008-05:00

Since Easter was forever ago and I can hardly recall much from it (other than it was lovely) I will just do a picture recap of the day:) Brace yourself, there are a lot....in no particular order

Easter at my parent's house
Kate and Miles and the infamous 'bunnies'

Grandma Sue, Kate, Cousin Blake, Miles, Papa Bruce and Cousin Brennan

Cousins with Auntie Em

Let the coloring of Easter eggs begin!

Sister Sister

Papa Bruce and Miles

Dye on the hands that would not come off

Probably the most intense easter egg dyer

Now on to Nessler Easter
Chrissy, Me, Andy, Liam, Miles, Grandma Vicki, Kate, Max
Jay, Grandpa Jeff, Scott

The 'children' of these two
Bunny and Monkey

Thumbsucker

Preparing for the hunt
Liam, Kate, and Max

Our House Easter
Let the hunt begin for baskets
And why wouldn't you wear a backpack containing your sleeping bag
while hunting for easter eggs???
Kate found a little sumthin, sumthin that Grandma Sue left for her
Cash money yo

Found the baskets in the tub!!

The loot

Easter Morning - Dressed in our Sunday Best

Both the kiddos

As close as we got to a family picture
Sorry Jay, maybe next year

And now on to Easter at my dad and Anita's
Bahaha...hopscotch
Look close at that swagger

See what I mean??

So sweet

And the grand finale....drum roll please....
My own 'Air Jordan'
Playing b-ball at his parents with a
fantabulous outfit he pulled together from his parent's basement -
So glad you never let your mom throw away ANYTHING
so you were able to pull out this sweet outfit to wear

Burp Cloth Winner

2011-05-09T20:26:00.003-05:00

And the winner of the 3 burp cloths is...
Leah Garry!
Congratulations!

Leah, you have 24 hours to email me at alnessler@gmail.com
to redeem your prize. Leah can pick her 3 favorite designs!

If you're interested in ordering some burp cloths for yourself contact Emily Lowry at eflowry@gmail.com or feel free to contact me for more details. Each cloth is $4.

Thank you to all who entered and keep checking back for more giveaways!
Angie

*winner was selected at random using www.random.org

Playdate

2011-05-04T21:43:00.000-05:00

We recently had a playdate with my friend Katie and her daughter Audrey. The girls had a great time playing together and Miles, well he just was along for the ride. A couple cute pictures from the day.

Yawn....what's a boy to do

Kate (2 1/2), Audrey (1 1/2) and Miles (4 1/2 wks)

Mother's Day Giveaway

2011-05-03T13:13:00.002-05:00

In honor of Mother's Day this coming Sunday I thought this would be the perfect time to do a giveaway. The winner of this giveaway will win 3 burp cloths of their choice! Great for any mom with babies or moms to be!

I personally own 5 of these adorable designs and love them. Here's why they are so great:
-Adorable designs available for girls, boys or gender neutral
-Handmade
-Super absorbent
-Features a larger size so that your clothing stays mess free
-Machine Washable
-The perfect gift for any new mom or mom to be!

Giveaway Details:
1 Reader will win 3 burp cloths of their choice
Giveaway ends Sunday, May 8th at 11:59 p.m. (cst)
Winner will be selected Monday, May 9th and will be selected by using random.org

Here's how to enter:
1) Leave a comment on this blog post saying why you love your mom/love being a mom (1 entry)
2) Leave a comment on this blog telling me which burp rag design is your favorite (1 entry)
3) Post about this contest on your facebook. Here's an example of what to put: I just entered myself to win some adorable burp rags! Click here to enter yourself! (and then post a link to this blog post (1 entry)

Good luck!

Interested in ordering these uber cute burp cloths? Email Emily at eflowry@gmail.com. $4 per burp cloth.

If You're Happy and You Know it....

2011-05-02T21:32:00.002-05:00

While celebrating Easter at my parents, Kate entertained us with a lovely rendition of 'If you're happy and you know it' - the quickie version. So many things are entertaining about this video:
1) Kate's choice of outfit. Obviously into picking out her own clothing these days.
2) The fact that she's wearing a tank top and the weather is 30-40 degrees
3) Giant scary bunnies in the background
4) Kate's enthusiasm/facial expressions

Enjoy:) PS - a look ahead to blogs to come this week: Easter and a giveaway which probably will be announced tomorrow...get excited!

The 'Dougie' - Nessler Style

2011-04-26T20:25:00.000-05:00

So if any of you know my husband Jay, you know he has pretty good rhythm for a white boy. He prides himself on learning new dances to bust out at random events like bocce ball parties, trips to small town bars, etc. He learns many of his moves via the internet. His latest is 'the dougie' which I'm sure many of you may be aware of. While teaching himself he decided to teach Kate. Kate has a much more scaled down version but is improving her technique and even is teaching her little brother!

So without further ado, here it is, 'The Dougie'.....
First for your reference, this is how the dance is supposed to go (performed by Chris Brown). Take special note of 'the strapping in' and 'wheelchair' at approx. 27 seconds.
Click Here

And now Kate's version. For your translation she's saying 'Its dougie, its fresh, strap it in and wheeeeelchair'

Lastly, Passing down her moves to baby Miles

What I've been up to

2011-04-25T19:44:00.005-05:00

I know many of you had been beginning to wonder if I fell off the face of the earth...close but not completely. I will blame my lack of blogging on one word - EXHAUSTION. You see, I have this little boy that refuses to sleep more than 2 hours at a time at night. So between feeding, burping, changing and soothing back to sleep, I probably have a good 1 - 1 1/2 stretch of sleep at a time. This means during the day I'm a complete and utter zombie and walk around in a fog most of the day:)

So what have I been up to you ask? Here is our life in a nutshell....
-5 weeks: That's how old Miles will be tomorrow! The weather has been cold and rainy/snowy so we've spent most of our days sleeping on the couch and snuggling.
-Couch Potato: I'm now addicted to at least 10 tv shows and my dvr is working overtime. My current addictions: the real housewives of orange county, Mob Wives, Khloe and Lamar, Dance Scene, Extreme Couponing, Dancing with the Stars, American Idol, Saddle Ranch, Real Housewives of New York and endless hours of the today show. Sad, I know. I'll cut back once the weather gets nice...if the weather ever gets nice i should say
-Milk Maid: After 3 visits to lactation I'm happy to report that I'm doing much better and there is no more bleeding (thank the lord)
-My new assistant: Kate is my right hand woman. She is such a great little helper and finds it fun to help me get things and help with Miles' needs. Anytime Miles cries I hear 'Its otay Miles....I'm right here' and she repeats it over and over:)
-Two Week Stats: A little overdue but here they are:
Height: 21 1/4 inches (93rd%)
Weight: 8 lbs. 1 oz. (59th%)
Head: 14 1/2 inches (71st%)
-Bloody poop: Our most recent issue is blood in Miles' poop. After a couple instances I called the doctor today and they had me bring him in. They believe its from a little cut/tear within but we'll keep an eye on it. Also, they think he's suffering from acid reflux so we have him on medicine to hopefully cure that. Also, he now weighs a whopping 10 lbs. 2. oz.
-In conclusion: loving my time off, loving my new little man and loving our new family of 4!

And now some pictures....some oldies I found from before we even left the hospital to recently.

Before leaving the hospital

Jay and the kiddos on one of our first nights home

Ha, Kate helping me with Miles' first bath....
He hated it

But a happy little boy once out and fresh and clean!

My cuties

Roughly 4 weeks old here

Kate on her new bike she got for Christmas

We have a thumbsucker....although I've been trying to steer him to a nuk
You can take away a nuk but you can't take away a finger

Our little Nancy Drew....solving mysteries with her magnifying glass...
and rain boots...on the wrong feet

Love them:)

And I promise to try to be a better blogger. Next on the blogging docket, the highly anticipated 'dougie' video and easter.

Miles - 1 week old

2011-03-30T12:50:00.004-05:00

Miles was 1 week yesterday. I have been loving my time home with him and haven't been up to much. We've been taking lots of naps together and just enjoying our time together.
He's been a great baby and really has only cried when hungry or being changed.
Speaking of feedings, we've struggled a little in that department. He's eating good but has a bad latch which makes it VERY painful for me. We've had a meeting with lactation and have another tomorrow. Lets just say the one time after a feeding he looked like he was mauled by a dog from all the blood from me.

Also, I'm adjusting to changing a boy. For the first few days he would constantly pee out his diaper and after realizing I needed to 'position' some things differently, the problem seemed to be solved:)

Kate is slowly adjusting to having a new brother. She loves him and is actually quite gentle. Her favorite thing to do is help change poopy diapers. She likes to hold him for about 2 seconds but then is on to other things:)

On Sunday our good friends Cullen and Jen and their daughter Avery came down to take pictures of Miles. Jen (the amazing photography behind Jennifer Bahn Photography) spent close to 4 hours photographing the little guy and we got some amazing shots. Considering Miles was naked for most of the shoot we were only pooped on a few times:) Here is a preview of a few of them. Just LOVE them. Thanks again Jen!

Introducing Miles Jay Nessler

2011-03-22T21:09:00.004-05:00

We are excited to announce the arrival of
Miles Jay Nessler
March 22, 2011 at 1:54 p.m.
7 pounds 14 ounces
21 inches

And for those of you interested in the birth story and pictures...keep reading:)

So as you'll recall from my last post I said that I was to have an appointment today and then they would make a decision on inducing. That was a slight fib as we found out during our Friday appointment that today would be the day. I didn't want to tell anyone though as it gave me anxiety knowing exactly when I'd be having a baby and having people talk to me about it would only cause more anxiety. So we just kept the secret to ourselves. Sorry to all those I may have lied to:)

So here is a timeline of our day...
4:30 - Woke up and prepared to leave for the hospital
5:30 - Arrived at hospital and admitted
6:00 - Started the IV of antibiotics for group b strep
6:37 - Finished the first round of antibiotics. Dilated to a 5 at this point and 80% effaced
8:25 - Dr. Taylor arrives and decides to break my water to see if contractions start on their own
9:43 - Dilated to 5-6 and 100% effaced. No pain at this point.
10:47 - Got an epidural. Still no pain at this point but wanted one in case things moved quickly.
11:25 - Pitocin is started as I hadn't progressed any further. Still no pain
1:30 - Nurses had been gone for quite a while and I couldn't tell how I was progressing but felt like something was going to fall out of me. I asked Jay to look and he couldn't see anything, ha.
1:41 - Nurses return and check me. I'm dilated to a 10 and ready to push...hence why i felt like something was falling out of me.
1:45 - Dr. Taylor arrives and I start pushing. No real pain here but a slight discomfort. Pushed 10 times maybe?
1:54 - Miles Jay (or MJ as we might call him for short) is born

What I'm about to say may sound strange but up until 1:45 it may have been the most boring labor ever. Ha. With no pain, it was really a matter of hanging around and waiting. Jay and I both napped here and there, watched tv and surfed the internet. And seriously, with no pain it was the oddest experience ever. I never felt pain from one contraction. Quite pleasant and enjoyable except for the waiting around:) Great nurses too which always helps!

We all are doing great, I feel great and Jay does too:) Kate met Miles for the first time this evening and at first didn't really know what to think of him. She kept saying 'put him back' referring to his little bassinet. Perhaps she was still disappointed that it was a boy and not a 'seester' like she requested. She eventually warmed up to him and was holding him, tickling his toes and giving him kisses.

We're thrilled about our new little family and are in love with Miles. Thanks to everyone for your congrats. We can't wait for you to meet him!

And now what you've been waiting for...the pictures. I realized I didn't get a picture of our whole family together nor any good close-ups of Miles so I'll work on that tomorrow. And now I'm off to bed to get some shut eye.

Me before we left for the hospital
39 weeks 4 days

This would be the 'bored stage'

Right after birth doing kangaroo care

Proud mom and dad after birth

Still shocked it was a boy
Thought for sure it would be another girl for some reason

Getting cleaned up

Miles looks a lot like Kate when she was born

Kate's first meeting of Miles
My kids - I have 'kids' now!
And kate, so photogenic

The sign one of my sister Emily's first grade students made me
So sweet

Me and my boy again
After some freshening up and out of the lovely gown

5 1/2 Days or Less.....

2011-03-20T15:14:00.002-05:00

I had my 39 week appointment on Friday. I am now dilated slightly more than a 4.
As I mentioned before, my doctor is leaving for 10 days come March 26th (Saturday). I asked him what was going to happen if I didn't go into labor on my own...do I get to pick a new doctor, etc.

He then informed me that due to the fact that I've progressed so far already that he would recommend inducing me this coming week if I haven't gone on my own. The combination of me having the group b strep/needing to get antibiotics and with how far I've progressed it would be in the best interest of the baby to induce.

So the plan is if I haven't gone on my own by Tuesday (my next appointment) they will schedule an induction for sometime later this coming week.

Scary and exciting all at the same....to know that by the end of the week, we'll have another baby.
So this weekend was spent at home relaxing and really doing nothing, it was fabulous!
On Saturday I got a pedicure with my mother in law. It was nice and relaxing and much needed. Plus my ankles and legs have been swelling lately so it felt great.

Rest of the weekend has been spent finishing projects, watching basketball and hanging out with Miss Kate.

I'll be sure to keep everyone posted:)

9 Days

2011-03-16T20:29:00.002-05:00

I know, I know….I’ve been lacking in the update department. Not a whole lot new to update. Had my appointment last Friday and am now dilated to a 3 or 4 and 70% effaced still.
Basically its just a matter of sitting around a waiting.

I can definitely tell the baby is lower. And actually over the last couple days I’ve felt pretty good which is a nice change!

If I still haven’t had the baby by Monday I think I’ll bring in a stability ball to work to sit on. Seems to work for everyone, including myself last time. I should say everyone, but my dear friend Christy:)

Speaking of which, Christy was induced on Monday night and had a healthy and LARGE baby boy yesterday. Grayson Timothy, weighing in at a whopping 9 lbs. 6 oz. and 22.5 inches.
Jay and I got to meet the big guy today and he is adorable and Christy looked fantastic! We’re so happy for them.

The visit today made me slightly nervous though as the smell of the hospital brought on an instant fear of needles and such. But with only 9 days til my due date there’s no going back now! Ha.

Next doctor's appointment is this Friday so we shall see what he says. I'll try to take a picture then too. The belly just continues to become more and more torpedo-like:)

37 Weeks

2011-03-05T18:56:00.004-06:00

I had my weekly appointment yesterday and here's where we're at:
-Now dilated to a 3
-Still 70% effaced
-Head has dropped significantly (which would explain my new waddle)
-Measuring somewhat small but he thinks that's due to the baby dropping
-Baby's weight is probably somewhere in the 5 1/2 - 6 pound range
-Tested positive for group b strep

So what does this all mean....well we're making progress. The whole group b strep thing is totally common, had it with kate but basically in a nut shell it means they want to give you antibiotics while in labor/before you deliver so that you don't pass it to the baby. If it were to be passed to the baby they could get sick. Chances of passing it and the baby getting sick are significantly less if you have a full term baby (which I have now). Regardless I need to get to the hospital right away so they can at least try to get me one dose of it prior to the baby being born (there are two doses).

We also talked about possibly inducing me if I haven't gone by 39 weeks. With the group b strep and how far/fast I've progressed so far they may do it to ensure I get at least one dose.

In other baby news, my bags are packed, baby's room is set up (pictures later) and I've got all the bottles/blankets and car seat ready to go.

And now some pictures at 37 weeks with Miss Kate.

And a random fun one of Kate in the tub

36 Weeks and we have progress

2011-02-26T14:22:00.003-06:00

Well yesterday I went to the doctor for my 36 week checkup.

Everything is looking good and I'm dilated to 2 and 60-70% effaced. Eek! Dr. Taylor was all 'try not to get too excited as you could sit like this for weeks'. I was like 'no, no, no, i'm not getting excited...this actually is freaking me out'. For many reasons:
1) It would be perfect if I sat like this for a few more weeks. I've got lots to do at home and at work.
2) He said that this was no indicator of going early, however did state that when I do go into labor it will go much faster. All I could think of was 'dear lord let there be time for drugs'. I had a lovely, drugged experience with Kate and would request a spinal tap the second I walk through the doors if possible. Great for those who want to do it without drugs but I welcome modern medicine with open arms.
3) If I go before my dear friend Christy, she may de-friend me:)

Dr. Taylor also informed me that he is going on vacation with his family on March 26th (a day after my due date) so I better not go late.

So here I sit, feeling like a ticking time bomb. I feel the need to be incredibly lazy and sit doing nothing as not to get anything going, ha. But if something doesn't happen by the week of the 21st then I'm on a mission to go into labor. As if control any of this right?!? I sat dilated at a 3 with Kate for weeks and then went on my due date so I realize its totally possible, i just feel so much less prepared this time around.

Jay and his dad are in the process of painting the baby room today so that will make me feel a little better once that is complete. If I can wrap a few things up at work that will make me feel a WHOLE lot better as that is my major stressor at the moment.

Hope you all have a great weekend!
Ang

35 Weeks

2011-02-22T19:25:00.003-06:00

Technically 35 weeks and 4 days today but who's counting:) Me, that's who. Not because I want this baby out but because I feel like I have so much to do and so little time. Don't get me wrong, I'm anxious to meet this new little guy/girl but I want to finish up a few things so that my mind isn't preoccupied while on maternity leave.

I'm growing increasingly uncomfortable especially when sitting for long periods of time. I just don't know how much more my body can grow. I feel like I'm at my peak for stretching. Which luckily has meant no weight gain over the last couple weeks. I think they say that you gain a pound a week from here on out so if 4 pounds is the worst that can happen, I'm ok with that.

The insomnia has set in. Between waking up to go to the bathroom I lie awake pondering nothingness in the wee hours of the night. Just preparing me for what's ahead I suppose.

We're making progress on the baby room front. I've got all the toys out, am trying to select a paint color and hope to have most of the room complete this weekend.

Next doctor's appointment is Friday and I start going weekly from here on out. Yay!

And just to forewarn you...I know I take many pictures in this outfit...and it may be the only outfit you see from here on out as its one of the only shirts that fits these days. With only 4 weeks left though...I refuse to buy anything new.

Miss Kate Update

2011-02-17T21:04:00.003-06:00

I realized its been awhile since I have an update on Miss Kate. Here's what's new in Kate's busy world.
-She loves telling stories...half the time you don't know what she's saying but they go on and on and on....with facial expressions to boot
-Also loves talking on the phone
-She is quite the helper at home. I swear there are chairs/stools positioned all over the house for her to have access to everything
-Obsessed with care bears. We probably watch this daily
-Gets very sad when mom can't carry her much. I think she's counting down the days until this baby is 'out of my tummy and mommy can carry her again'
-Also decided to stop calling me 'mommy' and now calls me 'mom'. Makes her sound so old:(
-Getting ready to transition to her 'big girl room'...transformation should hopefully be complete this weekend
-And on the potty front she's doing great (knock on wood). A few accidents here and there but for the most part despises diapers and wants them off the second she wakes up from a nap/bed.

And now, some pictures to document the life and times of Miss Kate

Excuse the quality of all these pictures....camera phone

We love going shopping and buying things in bulk
Toilet paper and cheesy popcorn for all!

Chillin in her car seat

Wearing her 'church' hat as she likes to call it
Hip hop churchwear, go figure

And loves wearing 'wobes' (robes)

34 Weeks and Girls Night

2011-02-13T19:37:00.006-06:00

This is going to be a combination post. Mainly about my monthly girls night but also will showcase some 34 week pictures in the process.

So once a month for the past 9 or so months, myself and 3 other gals have been getting together for a girls night. It is hosted every month at Aleta's house as she has an uber sweet theater room in her basement so why not have it there. We each take turns bringing the main dish and the others bring a side dish/dessert. We gossip/talk about pregnancy woes (since 3 of us are preggo) and just catch up on life. We finish the night off with a good movie. I will say, that in 9 months, I've fallen asleep through 8 of them. Not because they weren't good....because I just cannot stay up late for the life of me.

Anyhoo, its a great time and I really enjoy the company of these girls. Also, its pretty much a rule that you have to be wearing sweats or something close so its just a relaxing night with no need to impress. And now some pictures of us gals:)

Us girls waiting for the movie to begin
And that is not a beer in my cup holder...
although I cannot wait to enjoy an adult beverage after this baby comes

What I like to call 'the evolution of man' photo
What were you thinking Christy?? Haha makes for a good one though:)
Christy (36 1/2 weeks), me (34 weeks), Aleta (25 weeks) and Sarah (not pregnant)
Totally makes sense right?

Framer. Everything is so much better in black and white

And the three preggos

On the pregnancy front....I had my last doctor's appointment on Thursday. All is well. Heart rate is about 150. I go again in 2 weeks and then start going weekly after that. An overwhelming feeling of 'so much to do and so little time' is starting to overcome me. Especially at work. It'll all work out....hopefully:) Have a good week everyone!

Help us win a really cool giveaway!

2011-02-09T19:58:00.004-06:00

So our good friend Jen from Jennifer Bahn Photography is holding an awesome contest. The winner gets a gorgeous canvas print and Miss Kate is in the contest.

So here is how the contest works...its really easy:

First, click on this link and 'like' Jennifer Bahn Photography

Then click on this link and 'like' the picture of Miss Kate.

Make sure to click 'like' in both places so that your vote counts:)

Whoever has the most 'likes' when the contest ends on Sunday wins the free canvas print! We're super close to the lead so any help is much appreciated.

While you're on Jen's page check out her beautiful photography....she's a very talented gal:)

Thanks in advance for the help!

33 Weeks and then some

2011-02-08T16:46:00.003-06:00

Sorry for the lack of postings lately. I'm finding it difficult to muster up the energy to do anything these days.

I was officially 33 weeks last Friday. Not a whole lot new to report besides my substantial growth. I don't remember it being this painful with Kate...my short torso just isn't taking well to this baby. I feel like my ribs are splitting/break, my pelvis hurts and my back hurts. All normal woes of pregnancy so I'll get over it but its making it difficult to get comfortable at work or while sleeping. Some mornings I pretty much need Jay to launch me out of bed or there is no way I'm getting out.

According to babycenter.com the baby is approx. 4 pounds and 17 inches long. Babycenter also said I should still be feeling sexy these days. I beg to differ. Whoever wrote that must have been the same person who selected that stunning model below to pose in the belt. Speaking of which, I'm still wearing it for the most part. It helps to some degree but is so tight that it leaves welts if I wear it too long.

Next doctor's appointment on Thursday.

And now for the pictures.....and if you want to see some awesome maternity/pregnancy photos, click here. My coworker sent me this and some of them left me speechless. I was wheezing, crying and laughing all at the same time. The fact that these are real photos still amazes me. Enjoy!

First, Kate wanted one with her babies

I'm accepting gift cards for spray tans....
white is never slimming

And a final headshot of miss kate....
these nice poses are few and far between

And the winner is...

2011-02-01T19:15:00.002-06:00

And the winner of the 24 Kids Valentine's Day cards is...
Lindsey Marso!
Congratulations!

Lindsey, you have 24 hours to email me at alnessler@gmail.com
to redeem your prize.

Thank you to all who entered and keep checking back for more giveaways!
Angie

*winner was selected at random using www.random.org

January Giveaway

2011-01-27T21:12:00.003-06:00

Just a quick little giveaway for the last few days of January.

We all know how adore Pear Tree and they've done it again. They've created a collection of Kids Valentine's Day Cards that is just too cute!

And good for you...
1 lucky reader will win 24 Valentine's Day Cards of your choice!

Here's how to enter:
-Post a comment on this blog telling me which Valentine's Day card you like best. See the whole collection here. Feel free to post multiple times with different cards you like for extra entries
-Tell your friends about this contest on Facebook for an extra entry. Just be sure to leave another comment saying you did so.

That's it my friends. Contest ends Monday, January 31st at midnight. Good luck!

Winner will be chosen at random using random.org.

32 week check up

2011-01-25T19:52:00.003-06:00

Well I'm technically not 32 weeks til Friday but close enough. My doctor's appointment wasn't supposed to be til Thursday but they bumped me up because I was experiencing some pelvic/hip pain and also a pain in my leg. They were most concerned that the pain in my leg might be a clot, hence why they got me in earlier.

They checked out my leg and are thinking the pain is being caused by a vein in my leg...so that is good. Because of my pelvic pain, they checked my cervix to make sure I wasn't dialating, which I wasn't so that was also good. They believe the culprit to be a ligament stretching along with the positioning of the baby. They did give me a sweet maternity belt to wear which I will admit, has helped with the pain. It is quite attractive...but at this point, I could care less what it looks like as long as it does the job. But for your reference, here is a picture of it...eat your heart out:

And if you were able to get past this stunning model's hair you'll notice the belt. And no, I don't wear it on the outside of my clothes....its underneath which surprisingly isn't too bulky looking.

Other than that, Doctor says I'm looking good. Up 16 pounds and measuring on track.
My back is still killing me when I sit so I actually have been standing at my computer for a portion of the day to help relieve the pain. I spend most nights laying on the couch or in bed. What a bore for Miss Kate but its the only time I don't feel like crying/vomiting from the pain in my back/ribs. And I realize things could be much worse so I'll get over it.

I start going to the doctor every two weeks now which makes it all the more real, eek. I hope to start transitioning Kate's room to her 'big girl' room and start to get things ready in the nursery. Can't wait for this little nugget to arrive!

I'll try to post a picture later this week. You'll notice that my belly pics seem to be missing some weeks....that's because the times I feel cute enough to take a picture are getting fewer and fewer.

Until we meet again...

My world of poo

2011-01-21T21:51:00.004-06:00

First off a disclaimer: if you are at all grossed out by bodily passings....this post is not for you. Stop reading now.

So its amazing how much your life is consumed by pottying and poo when you are potty training a 2 year old. We've been a rockstar at going #1 but have continued to struggle with #2, however we have made progress. Here are our poo stories of the week:

Story #1 - Pooing in the pit
So the other night at gymnastics we were finishing up our night as usual by playing in the foam pit. Kate jumped in a few times and then after one jump yells really loud 'I gotta go poop!' So I'm struggling to get her out of the pit fast enough because I've learned that its coming quickly and/or most likely already in progress. Before I continue the story, let me back track.
1) For those of you who don't know what a foam pit is, see the photo below. Its basically a swimming pool of foam. Going to the bathroom in the pit is the equivalent of going in a pool....its a definite no-no.
2) The foam pit is located at the very back of the gym and bathrooms are located at the front of the gym

So we'll continue....so after declaring her need to go and all the mom's looking at me like 'get her out of there quick!' I somehow manage to pull her out with my awkward belly and run in a dead sprint with her to the bathroom. I quickly tried to pull her leotard off without dislodging anything in progress. Let me say it was a difficult mission but ended with success. I swear I was sweating by the end of the ordeal and when we emerged the entire waiting room was looking at us.

Story #2 - Big day for Miss Kate
While at work today, I received a call from daycare at 8:15. I'm thinking to myself 'darn, she's sick and they're sending her home'....but no they said 'We have someone here who wants to tell you something' and then kate hopes on the phone in the most excited/proud voice and declares 'Hi mom! I pooped on the potty!!!' It was quite adorable and I was thankful that they called me to share in her excitement. She was still beaming this evening from the morning's events!

So there you have it.....my life consumed by poo.

29 and 30 Weeks

2011-01-16T20:29:00.004-06:00

I would first like to start this post with a disclaimer 'Objects in pictures are larger than they appear'. I don't feel the camera captures how much I've grown and definitely can't express how much I feel like I've grown.

I'm starting to have some real aches and pains these days. Mainly at the end of the night and mainly in my ribs and back. At 30 weeks, I feel about the size and discomfort level that I did when I was 40 weeks with Kate. I think the constant bending to pick up Kate and holding of her hasn't helped. We've had a lot of time alone together as Jay has been reffing 4 nights a week. I'm not complaining it just takes a toll on my body. And lately, I find this odd satisfaction when I feel exhausted. I don't feel like I've gotten a full days worth unless I get up at 4:35 to work out, then work all day and most days through lunch (i have this fear lately that i'm going to go early and want everything in place at work), then spending time with Kate after work, doing some chores, get Kate ready for bed and myself and repeat. Anyhoo, I feel like if I constantly go, go, go now, then I can rest towards the end. We'll call it early nesting.

As far as baby development goes, the baby 15.7 inches long now and weighs 3 pounds (about the size of a head of cabbage according to Babycenter.com). Lots of kicks, spins and movement in my belly which is lots of fun. Kate has no patience waiting for kicks and has yet to experience it.

That's about it. Hopefully my body gets through this growth period and allows me a few more comfortable weeks ahead....who am I kidding?!?

29 Weeks

Kate and I

30 Weeks

Special Delivery

2011-01-13T19:21:00.003-06:00

So I may have one of the sweetest grandma's ever. The other day we received a mystery package in the mail and in it was a new, handmade leotard for Kate. It was made by my grandma Cleo who is an excellent seamstress. There was a really cute letter that accompanied it as well but basically my grandma found some fabric and decided to make Kate a new leotard. Kate was super excited to get something in the mail and was even more thrilled to learn it was a new 'nastics shirt'.

Thanks again grandma cleo! We sported it at gymnastics this week and it was a hit.

Here is Kate in her new leotard with dora undies peaking out, ha.

Operation Undies Update

2011-01-11T22:36:00.003-06:00

Well, two days down of wearing undies to daycare and I'm pleased to report no accidents when it comes to #1. However she still hasn't mastered going #2 in the potty yet so we've had one accident each day, which I can handle.

Although accidents are not fun, it is fun to see what outfit Kate is sporting when I pick her up. Usually its the same shirt and shoes as when I brought her in but her pants are totally random. Here is what she was sporting today......if anyone can rock a leopard print top and multi-colored heart pants its Miss Kate!

Operation Undies

2011-01-09T21:05:00.003-06:00

We have officially started potty training folks. We've been unofficially training for a few months but decided we would take the plunge and go for it in hopes that we'd have this all wrapped up by baby #2.

So the official training started this Saturday (yesterday) and has been going quite well actually. Saturday morning we left her diaper on and just kept offering up the potty. Only 1 accident in the diaper and that was poop which I knew we weren't going to get her to do right away. In the afternoon we did undies and she had no accidents the rest of the day.

Day #2, today/Sunday, we did undies the entire day except for nap time. No accidents in the undies and conveniently pooped right after nap while wearing her diaper.

We've set a bowl of treats in the bathroom and she knows that if she goes poo on the toilet she gets one of the treats...no treats yet but boy does she try. Ha.

Tomorrow Kate is going to try it out at daycare and we'll see how it goes. They said the most bags of soiled clothes they've sent home is 10 so lets pray we don't break that record.

Have a good week everyone!

Kate's Class Picture

2011-01-07T06:16:00.001-06:00

Here is a picture of Kate's class - the Sunshine room. In case you need help finding her, bottom row, 2nd from the right. Have a good day!

28 Weeks

2011-01-04T21:17:00.003-06:00

Not a whole lot new to report. I had a doctor's appointment today and everything looks/sounds good. I'll go again in 3 weeks and then its every 2 weeks.

We've narrowed down girl names to 3 names and am still trying to decide on some boy names. Its so hard to think of good boy names. And no I'm not sharing:)

I'm starting to get a little uncomfortable, especially towards the end of the night. My short torso just doesn't have much room for the growing body inside and thus my ribs are killing me.

Other than that, just trying to stay healthy. Jay has strep and Kate has a nasty cold that she can't seem to kick.

That's about it folks....sorry for the uneventful post:)

Christmas 2010

2011-01-03T16:45:00.000-06:00

Well I know its already 2011 but figure I better get Christmas 2010 blogged.
It really was all a blur. So rather than try to recap every final detail I'll leave you with this general synopsis.....it was a great time with all our families, we were all spoiled and Kate was a nonstop ball of energy that finally crashed the day after we finished our last christmas celebration.
Here are some of the pictures from all the events.....in no particular order...

Kate and Great Grandma Colleen,
both modeling 'light bulb' necklaces Jay made as a child

Santa came to visit and Kate was much warmer to him this year
Although, when santa asked if she had been naught or nice her response was
'I'm a naughty girl'
She got a sleeping bag from Santa!

And Jay got a kitchen aid mixer from Santa:)

Having oodles of fun on the trampoline gma and gpa Nessler got her!

Christmas eve morning, opening presents from Santa
Look at that volume!

Excited about her new backpack filled with nailpolish she got!

Christmas at gma and gpa Waletich's (my parents)
Closing eyes waiting for her gifts to be brought out

A new buggy!

And a new bike!

And a new helmet with flashing lights to complete the look

Christmas Eve night in St. James with the Jay's mom's side
The fam

Kate and cousin Max chilling at the hotel prior to church

Aunt Chrissy, me, miss kate, Ann (jay's cousin) and Max
Silly face picture

One of the only pictures I could get of her outfit
Whatever, i'll take it

Ready to go swimming at the hotel
One must wear their hood to stay warm

The excitement this girl has for swimming is like non other
Pure bliss

My little fish

Death of a Treadmill

2010-12-30T17:05:00.001-06:00

So my morning workouts have been going good. Up until a week ago I had been getting up and walking on my treadmill in the basement. That is, until I became to heavy for it. Let me backtrack a bit...

So the treadmill was given to us from my mom and it is old, really old. Like maybe 15 plus years old?!? Its extremely narrow and has a turn dial to increase the speed. Over the last few weeks i started to feel the belt of the treadmill start to stick slightly when I'd take a step. This resulted in me walking like a camel through the Sahara. My crushing weight was impeding the belts ability to move. Now I know many of you will say that it wasn't the weight but really it is....a certain someone (who shall remain nameless) was also deemed 'too heavy' to walk on it and the belt did the same thing to them...actually it wouldn't even move. Needless to say it wasn't an effective workout, made me angry with every step and I needed to find an alternative.

So I looked into buying a new treadmill or elliptical but decided it was more than I wanted to spend and I was paying for a gym membership at the Y so figured I better try there. The only problem is, the Y doesn't open til 5. So now, every morning I get up, go to the Y and am literally waiting in my car for them to open the door. Then its like black Friday and everyone rushes to the doors to workout. I race down to the fitness center, hop on a machine and try to get 25-35 minutes in before I then have to race back home, get myself showered and ready, get Kate ready and get us out the door and to daycare and work by 7.

And you know what....i love it! I really have no problem getting up and I love my time at the Y watching Kare 11, just enjoying time to myself and a good start to my morning.

My goal is to continue to do 4-5 days a week (which I had been doing at home). I actually am more motivated to keep going to the Y as I see the same people every day and even though we never speak, feel like they expect me there just like I expect to see them there.

So hopefully I can keep it up for at least 2 more months and then we'll have to analyze how I'm feeling. I may want to start stock piling my sleep at that point:)

Happy New Year!

27 Weeks

2010-12-28T18:28:00.004-06:00

27 weeks and less than 3 months til my due date! This is going by way too fast and I'm reminded that I need to get working on some names for this new babe.

The holidays were great and I tried to not eat too much but of course couldn't resist all the goodies the festivities had to offer. I at least tried to keep working out over the holidays to somewhat combat it.

Not much has changed. Still growing, still waking up numerous times throughout the night to go to the bathroom and still plenty of kicking. Lots of kicks to the ribs....which i hate when i'm touched in the ribs period (gives me a gross, nails on a chalkboard feeling)....so to be internally kicked in the ribs is very disgusting to me:) Other than that, getting a little more tired and finding it harder to keep up with Kate.

Next appointment is Tuesday and then I'll start going every 2 weeks shortly after.

25 Weeks

2010-12-12T22:03:00.002-06:00

Well I had my last doctor's appointment this past Thursday and all is well. I'm measuring right on track and everything sounds good. I do have a slight rash on my stomach that we have narrowed down to the fact that my stomach is growing and rubbing more on my clothing. I had to laugh though....when going through the possible causes he says 'have you been tanning?' I bursted out laughing and said 'c'mon doc....look at me. You and both know I have not been tanning.'

He investigated the bleeding a little further and thinks its coming from a bruised spot on my cervix but there was no cause for concern. I can proceed with life as normal although I think I'll take it easy on the cleaning;)

Hard to believe the holidays are less than 2 weeks away. Still have lots of shopping to do!

And here are the latest pictures....I swear the camera makes me look smaller than i actually am because I feel huge at times. I guess it all depends on how the little baby is sitting. And he/she is an active one and is moving all the time, hence why my shape is changing constantly.

Welcome back to the pictures Miss Kate!

Baby Mozart

2010-12-07T21:36:00.002-06:00

Sorry for the angle....but I can't figure out how to rotate the video.
Here is my baby prodigy and her mad skills on the piano.

Pear Tree Greetings Giveaway Winner Announced

2010-12-01T21:22:00.002-06:00

And the winner of the $30 Pear Tree Greetings gift card is....
Emma B.
Congratulations!

Emma, you have 24 hours to email me at alnessler@gmail.com
to redeem your prize.

Thank you to all who entered and keep checking back for more giveaways!
Angie

*winner was selected at random using www.random.org

23 Weeks and Thanksgiving

2010-11-28T21:12:00.006-06:00

Well we survived hosting our first holiday! We hosted Jay's mom's side of the family for Thanksgiving and it went great. Besides the massive amounts of cleaning that had to be done, it was relatively stress free. That's thanks to everyone who brought food so I didn't have to do much (any) cooking. We hosted 26-some people so I would say it was a success!

And with hosting you get tons of leftovers! Love it.

And here I sit at 23 weeks. Things still about the same. Hair continues to be drier than than dry. Hence why I am now sporting the 'curly' do more often these days. It just doesn't pay to fight it. Over Thanksgiving I had a slight scare with some bleeding so they had me come in for an ultrasound but all is well with the baby and fluid levels (which was a HUGE relief) and doctor told me to take it easy. Which I wish they would define 'taking it easy'...like what does this mean exactly? Its so vague....or perhaps I should of just asked.
Anyhoo, they're a little uncertain as to why this is occurring, which as long as the baby is doing ok, I'm ok with their lack of explanation. I have my next doctor's appointment on the 9th so I'll just lay low til then I guess. I was just excited they didn't do anything dramatic like put me on bed rest. I couldn't even imagine...especially with Jay starting to ref 3 days a week. Ish.

And now for the pictures....

And an updated full body shot from our ultrasound

And a new 3D...just for you Christy:)
If you don't know what you're looking at,
you can see the baby's face and hand
peaking from around the placenta (or whatever that may be)

November Giveaway Time!

2010-11-24T11:44:00.003-06:00

So it’s been awhile since I’ve done a giveaway
and I think it’s about time! Don’t you?

So get excited, here it is!

1 lucky reader is going to win a $30 gift card to Pear Tree Greetings!

This gift card can be used for anything on the site. And what perfect timing….it could be used towards the purchase of adorable photo holiday cards!

I just ordered mine and cannot wait to see them!

So, here’s how to enter to win:

-Post a comment on this post telling me what you’re thankful for (it is Thanksgiving after all) – (This is worth 1 entry per post. Leave as many as you’d like for multiple entries)

-Post a link to this contest on your Facebook with something along the lines of ‘Win $30 in free product from Pear Tree Greetings. Adorable stationery products, at affordable prices!’ and then post this link: http://nesslerfamily.blogspot.com/2010/11/november-giveaway-time.html Make sure you post another comment to this post telling me you did so. (This is worth 1 entry)

Contest ends November 30^th at midnight.

Winner will be selected at random on December 1^st using www.random.org .

Coupon will be good thru 1/31/11.

And even if you don’t win, you’re still all winners

as I’m giving everyone 20% off their entire order

from Pear Tree Greetings.

To get the code, just email me at alnessler@gmail.com
and I’ll be more than happy to share with you….Even if you’re a closet reader:)
Any reader is a friend of mine!

So good luck and happy shopping!

Angie

22 Weeks

2010-11-21T21:07:00.004-06:00

All is well on the pregnancy front. My only complaints are super dry hair (breaking off left and right) and occasional back pains. Otherwsie everything is going good. I felt my first kicks a couple weeks ago and now they are more frequent. Makes this all much more real and I love feeling the kicks.

I'm finally getting a belly and people who didn't know I was pregnant at work are finally taking notice. Probably due to the fact that I am finally wearing a good selection of maternity clothes which always seem to accentuate your belly.

I finally have a few names down on paper that I like for both genders but still am looking and not set on anything in particular.

Oh and a quick recap on my last doctors appointment which was a couple weeks ago. We went over the ultrasound results and all is good. Enough fluid, baby looks good so that is good. Kate was able to come along as well which was fun for her to listen to the heart beat. She seemed a little confused though and kept asking 'what you doing mommy'.

And now for the pictures. No Kate this time...she wasn't feeling the camera.

4:45 am

2010-11-15T21:29:00.002-06:00

4:45 am.....the time I've been waking up the past few days to work out. Insert gasp here....i'm as shocked as you all.

I wasn't happy with my lack of energy and my growing rear so I decided to do something about it. Since last Wednesday morning I've been getting up early and hopping on the treadmill in our basement. I turn on some past episodes of Glee and I'm good to go. Yes I probably could work out at night but by the time I get Kate to bed, I'm exhausted and ready for bed myself.

Before you go on being all impressed I should note that I'm just walking but it feels great! I start the morning off right and feel like I'm doing good for this new baby.

Hopefully I can keep it up. My goal is 5 days a week so we'll see. And by admitting this to all of you hopefully it will hold me accountable and I can keep it up. Have a good night.

20 Weeks

2010-11-09T20:10:00.003-06:00

Well, over half way there! Officially 20 weeks and 4 days or so. Feeling good but really starting to pop now (promise you'll see a big change in next week's pictures). Need to break out the maternity clothes soon as the pants are getting a little snug and shirts are a little shorter than I'd like. I'm a little tired but I think its mainly from chasing a very active 2 year old around.

We have our next appointment this Thursday and I will report anything after that.

Other than that, not a whole lot to talk about. Pregnancy brain has definitely set in and I feel like a ding bat 90% of the time (hold your comments).

Here are my 21 week pictures and Kate jumped right in on the action this week:)

Seriously no prompting...just followed my lead
And yes Janelle, I realize we captured just the 'HO' part of my home sign again
:)

Exposed Bellies

October Recap

2010-11-06T12:00:00.000-05:00

Well a lot happened in October and I never really got the chance to blog about it.... so here it is.

To start off the month we recarpeted our basement. Pictures of that will come when I get it back to a more complete state.

We also went out to some of Jay's parent's friends house for some horse back riding and hayrides...

Back in the saddle...literally.
I bet you couldn't guess that this guy went to horse camp as child

Kate and Grandma on the horse

I believe she was saying 'whoa' over and over

Kate and I on the hayride....of course stuffing our mouths with puffs

Kate got to drive the tractor!

Jay's brother and his wife took me to the golf club for 'Lobster night' to celebrate my birthday a little early....AMAZING!

Jay and I attended the March of Dimes Chef's auction. Dress up, chow down on tons of food provided by local chefs = a perfect time for this pregnant lady.

Went to Mystic Lake with mom, bruce, emily, chris and of course Kate and Jay to celebrate my mom and my birthdays. It was an awesome time of shopping, golfing, swimming, eating, gambling and enjoying each others company. (this too will be a large post so I'll post those pictures on their own)

Celebrated my 28th birthday....Kate made me this fabulous cake!
Seriously delicious

Other days of the month were filled with gymnastics, continuing to organize the house and who knows. We also managed to squeeze in Halloween, the Mankato Marathon, and a work trip for Jay but i'll blog about those separately. Looking back it was a whirlwind and looking forward to a relaxing November ahead.

Tubes

2010-11-03T20:00:00.004-05:00

After 1 1/2 years of constant ear infections Kate finally got tubes today. She had been getting about 1 a month and the antibiotics were having less and less effect over time.

So last Thursday we went to the ENT (ear, nose, throat) doctor and she was able to get us in this Wednesday.

We arrived at 6 am this morning. I had slept horribly the whole night just worrying about the whole thing, if we would oversleep, etc.

They prepped her for surgery and gave her a sedative to relax her. It was quite funny watching her on it. It was like she was high....dazed looks and patting my face as if to feel if i was still there. It was good for separation anxiety for sure!

She was then wheeled away....she returned in less than 20 minutes and was not a happy camper. I think the shock of waking up in a strange place along with the heart monitor on her toe that she was trying to rip off made things worse. Once she saw us she calmed down. We left about and hour later and headed home. Her ears continued to drain throughout the day (which was good) and we laid low and watched movies all day long and cuddled. It was great.

So now, she's back to daycare tomorrow and hopefully we are on our way to an infection free winter and many nights of sleep ahead of us:)

Wagon Ride Before Surgery

Mom and Kate - mid loopiness

19 Weeks

2010-10-31T20:05:00.003-05:00

Jeez almost to the 1/2 way point. Crazy! Here is the weekly picture. Not much to update since the last post....just growing. Next appointment in a couple weeks. Its about time I start looking at some baby names...pretty much have nothing. Any suggestions are welcome:)

And Kate has started to make it a tradition to take her picture with me as well
It usually takes us a good 5 tries to get a decent one...

5 Little Monkeys Swinging from a Tree

2010-10-30T06:58:00.003-05:00

Here is a cute little video that Kate and my sister Emily made. I wasn't even aware Kate knew this song but she must do it at daycare....this was the first time i've seen her do it but boy did she get into it....as does Em:) Enjoy!

Ultrasound for nessler nugget #2

2010-10-27T20:49:00.004-05:00

Today we had our 'big' ultrasound. From what we could tell today, baby is doing good and still on track for a March 25th due date. He/she weighs a whopping 9 oz. and the heart rate was 144. We were able to get some decent pictures of the little tyke. I did ask the technician if she was able to tell the sex (had we wanted to find out) but because baby was so tightly scrunched in the fetal position she said it would be nearly impossible. Which is good, because had she said yes i may have buckled and said 'tell me!'

And here are some pictures from the ultrasound. Still so amazing to see everything!

Bottom of one of the feet

Legs and the butt (imagine looking up from under the legs and butt)
and no that is not a penis between the legs....she said it was the cord:)

Leg and foot

All of baby....my fav:)

Little hand

And time for Christy's favorite...the 3D shot (she actually hates these)
Really hard to see because the placenta is covering half the face
But you can see the shoulder, mouth, part of the nose and eye

18 Weeks

2010-10-26T21:46:00.001-05:00

Well its about that time for a a pregnancy update. I am now 18 weeks pregnant and feeling pretty darn good. To be honest, i forget I'm pregnant half the time. But then there is my growing waistline to remind me. And of course i find myself uber sensitive at times as well.

I've regained most of my energy and my skin has hopefully learned that I am not 15 and can quit producing pimples.

Kate continues to look for babies in my chest and is always talking about her baby 'seeester'. She has been preparing for her new role by welcoming the younger toddlers into her class, holding their hand and giving them hugs. Her sheet said the other day that she is the 'mother hen' of the class.

And now some belly shots. I'm kind of slow getting started but figured i better start now than to start out with like 28 weeks and all of you be like 'holy crap she's huge'. So we'll do a gradual progression so its not as big of a shock.

Here's an unofficial picture at 16 weeks. Ignore the extremely messy background of clothes.

Here is 18 weeks. I swear within moments after taking this picture I gained an instant 10 pounds. You will see in the next week's picture.

And me and the inch worm on my 28th birthday (morning of the pictures)
Love her all cuddly and warm in her jammies:)

We have our big ultrasound this coming tomorrow. I'll be sure to post afterwards and update.

Mr. Fix it does it again

2010-10-04T20:35:00.004-05:00

I spoke too soon. As I sat upstairs blogging my last post a few minutes ago....unbeknown to me, my 'lovely' husband was downstairs mangling my basement. When we bought the house, a rather large tv came with the house....well because it was built into the basement wall and there was no option of removing it.

Jay decided to take the liberty to remove it himself, without my knowledge and in the process ripped part of the wall off, not to mention left a GIANT hole in the wall from the living room to the bedroom. WTH?!?! are we going to do with this hole, i don't know. He claims we can just put our tv from upstairs, downstairs and buy a new tv for upstairs. This was all part of his evil plan to get a tv. I know it!

To top it off, we have guests coming to stay in that room this weekend. Talk about privacy!
Jay claims we can just hang a sheet there....como se what? Stay classy. So much for my nice looking basement!

Not noticable at all!!
Take your pick on which door you want to use to get to the bedroom

The crazy fool who mangled my basement
I swear everything he touches ends up costing us more
Love you!

New Carpet and Such

2010-10-04T20:03:00.002-05:00

Well tomorrow is an exciting day folks. We get new carpet in our basement. As some of you may recall, we got water in our basement, twice, back in June. Needless to say we attempted to clean the carpet twice and still the stains remained. Also, there was somewhat of a concern for mold and so we are getting new carpet. I'm super excited because the basement needed some warming up and hopefully this new carpet will do it.

This new carpet process has also forced us to paint our spare bedroom in the basement (because the carpet and all the furniture were out it just made sense and was quite easy).

So anyhoo, I'll post pictures of before and after once we're all complete.

For the rest of the week....tomorrow we have gymnastics...which I will say is getting better. The first few weeks were like herding cattle. Kate had no idea what was going on and was terrible at following directions. Now that we are in our 5th week or so she's starting to pick up on moves and is listening slightly better. I'm exhausted at the end of every class though.

Other than that...feeling good. Just feeling like i'm growing non-stop and wish i would get out of this chubby feeling stage. More about my pregnancy in a later post.

Have a good night.

14 and Counting

2010-09-25T14:30:00.003-05:00

For those of you who aren't aware by now, Jay and I are excited to announce that there will be a new addition to the Nessler family. I'm due March 25th or so which makes me 14 weeks as of yesterday.

We told our families about two weeks ago. We recently had pictures with our good friend at Jennifer Bahn Photography and she helped us with telling our families. I had her send me a few of the proofs to show our families and within them was this little picture:

Some expected it and some were shocked. My mom's reaction was probably the cutest, shock and then tears:)

We then told Kate she was going to be a big sister and she has been talking about it non-stop since. Not sure if she fully grasps the concept though as she tells people she's 'going to have a baby sister' instead of 'i'm going to be a big sister'. She also thinks that the baby resides in my chest....which they have grown so i can see the confusion:)

This pregnancy I've felt very different than when I was pregnant with Kate. I really haven't felt sick at all but have been extremely tired and am in bed by 8:30 every night. Other than that, besides having the skin of a 15 year old I'm great. I have a slight baby bump that seems to appear each night but am able to hide it for the most part. I'll probably start taking belly pictures at some point but not sure when.

Since this baby is due at the exact opposite time of year Kate was due I need to find a new pregnancy wardrobe. Luckily it'll be winter and I'll be able to cover myself up for the most part and not have to worry about sweating my butt off like last time. Hopefully I'll be able to wear my normal clothes for a while here and just buy enough to get by.

I've had 2 doctor's appointments. The first one was at 8 weeks and we were able to see the little nugget on the ultrasound. Very cool! At my 12 week appointment two weeks ago the heart beat was around 160-170. I should also mention that I had to switch doctor's. The doctor that delivered Kate moved to another clinic so I had to find another doctor. Luckily I was able to get in with the doctor that I had originally wanted 3 years ago but at the time was too busy to take new patients.

Other than that, just trying to enjoy the ride and my expanding waistline. I'm sure I'll be a better blogger now that there will be more changes to come:) Enjoy your weekend.

Kate's 2nd Birthday Party Bash

2010-09-13T20:10:00.005-05:00

We had Kate's 2nd birthday this past Saturday at our house. The weather was perfect and it was so nice to be in a house that could actually hold everyone! We had our family over and it was a great time. We had wonderful food (thanks to everyone who brought things), super yummy cupcakes, sang multiple rounds of 'happy birthday', opened presents and ended the evening with a bonfire. Kate is very loved little girl. Thanks to all who came to celebrate and for all the wonderful gifts!

My tutu gal riding a 4-wheeler

Slaving away in the kitchen...ok perhaps just cutting buns

Kate and Max eating at Kate's new adorable table from G&G Nessler

The delicious cupcakes....they were Raspberry Lucy....so tasty!
And of course, I ordered them....I am not capable of such a thing

Opening gifts

Showing off one of her new outfits

Blowing out the candles. We sang happy birthday to Kate 3 times
and once to max:)

All the grandparents and great grandparents!

One would think this is Kate jumping but its actually her 'skipping'
I will try to get a video....believe me, its worth the wait:)

Em and Chris at the bonfire

Family photo that for once turned out ok:)

Chris and Max roasting marshmellows

Kate in her adorable new apron from Great Grandma Cleo!

Resting after a long day with her new baby doll

Empty Nesters

2010-08-31T21:06:00.002-05:00

Well, Jay and I are officially empty nesters for 3 days. Kate left today with Grandma and Grandpa Nessler for a mini vacation in Alexandria. Funny story about this too....
on their way to Alexandria today they stopped in Paynesville to eat at the A&W, long story short, they were approached by a woman who recognized Kate from the blog. Turned out it was my friend Christy's aunt Rita and she has been following the blog. So shout out to Aunt Rita if you're reading:) Yet again, more motivation to continue blogging! I heard Kate may have been a little sassy towards you to begin with Rita....I apologize if that is the case!

So for our first night of alone time Jay and I had a date night at a local restaurant, bought a new mailbox at Tractor Supply and went to the grocery story. Fabulous/relaxing night if I do say so myself.

Tomorrow I plan on cleaning. Thursday I'm getting a massage. Kate will return later Thursday night.

Then on Friday I have the day off to celebrate Kate's birthday. Saturday we are going to the state fair, Sunday annual bocce tournament at the Magers and then Monday recover from it all!

Woofta....should be a great time with great friends. Hopefully pictures to come sometime soon.

New Friend/New Leotard

2010-08-26T12:46:00.003-05:00

A couple weeks ago, our good friends Adam and Amanda welcomed a sweet baby girl into their world. Her name is Coryn and we think she's pretty cute!

Kate was super excited to hold her new friend

A proud moment for miss Kate

Excuse my wet mop head....
Kate was not very good at sharing Coryn with me
and anxiously awaited her turn again

Also, we signed Kate up for gymnastics starting in September
Perhaps she can follow in the footsteps of her mother
If nothing else, she can burn some energy during the winter months

Striking a pose in her new leotard

Practicing some of her moves

More state baseball this weekend with games both Saturday and Sunday nights. Other than that, just enjoying the lovely fall-like weather we've been having! Have a good weekend!

Relaxing weekend, for once

2010-08-16T22:04:00.002-05:00

What a nice weekend we had! Friday night we traveled to Marshall to watch the Mankato Twins play. We won and secured the #1 seed from our section going into state.

Then on Saturday, I slept in, didn't shower the ENTIRE day and just hung out with the fam.

Sunday, repeat of Saturday.

Now that playoffs for baseball are over and softball is over our schedules have really freed up which is awesome. I almost forgot what it was like to be home at night.

State starts Sunday in Bird Island, but other than that, not much going.

I signed Kate up for gymnastics so that starts after labor day. I'll have to blog pictures of her new leotards! I'll also have to blog pictures of our new living room furniture we got.

Anyhoo, off to bed I go. Excited to enjoy the GORGEOUS weather we're having this week!