Milestones: Evelyne is 7 Months Old

She loves to swing!

At 7 months, Eve tried out rice cereal! We fed her the cereal for the first time last week while Grandma Ronnenkamp was here so she could be a part of the fun. Eve acted like she hadn't eaten in years! She was grabbing for the spoon, shoving it in her mouth, and spitting the cereal out just as fast as we could get it in. She didn't quite get the concept of swallowing and it was a super messy event, but it was hilarious! However, it hasn't gone so well since then. She seems to have a really sensitive gag reflex, like Austin, and is having a hard time swallowing without dry heaving :(.

She is so chill and just wants to be held while she watches everything around her. She is still such a Momma's girl and gets so excited when I come home from work. It makes me so happy to come home to someone who is literally bouncing with joy to see me! Austin, from the time he was a baby, would always give me the cold shoulder. It was like he was punishing me for leaving him or something. So this is a refreshing change!

She and Austin are developing a cute little friendship. It is obvious that they love each other, but she can't help but pull his hair and he can't help but shove her face into the carpet.... sibling love at it's finest ;).

I know she is super smart because she is always watching us, and if you give her the chance, she will jump right in and try to do everything we are doing! She's a very grabby child and we always chide ourselves for forgetting that little fact when we let her too close to our plate of food.... She also surprised us the other day when she started putting blocks one by one into a little bucket and then taking them out and starting over again! I swear she is too little to be that smart!

My favorite moments with Eve are at night when I am nursing her to sleep in the rocking chair and she plays with my hair and looks up at me with those big dark eyes! I can almost hear her speaking to me through them. Or when I am about to lay her down to sleep and I whisper into her ear how beautiful she is and how much I love her and she gives me this little side smile.... I am in love. This little angel holds my heart!

Some fun moments over the past month:

Cuddling in bed with Momma. We rarely get these quiet one on one moments with each other and I treasure them with all my heart!

Silly face :).

It's not hard to make this girl smile! She is the sweetest, happiest little thing in the world and boy does she love her Mama!

She gives the greatest kisses!!! She grabs your hair and pulls you in for a big slobbery wet one :).

She is officially sitting up on her own in the shopping cart! This was one very exciting day and will make shopping sooo much easier!

That face!

Our silly girl is so stinking happy in the morning! It's a breath of fresh air!

Finally big enough to wear the Harley Davidson outfit Grandpa LaFeber bought her when she was born. It makes us so sad he isn't here to see her in it :(.

Getting her first taste of rice cereal! She is so grabby with everything so it was very messy!

"I've got this Mom, just give me the spoon!"

She loves to go for walks and the weather has been perfect lately!

"Come on Mom.... let's go!"

SWINGS!!!

That smile says it all :).

The Las Vegas Rock 'n Roll 10K!!

We had bought racing shirts but sadly it was cold and rainy that day and we ended up wearing sweatshirts so you couldn't even see them :(.

 Instead of the usual chocolate and flowers, we wanted to do something BIG for our 5 year wedding anniversary! So we signed ourselves up for the Vegas Rock 'n Roll 10K! Neither of us had ever ran competitively before (no wait, Josh ran a 5K once with his Mom when he was little), but this has been something we've wanted to do for a while and would have if I hadn't kept getting pregnant....

A 10K is 6.2 miles which is more than either of us have ever ran and we planned on training weekly for it so we didn't die before we reached the finish line. I had to wait until I was cleared to exercise after giving birth to Evelyne and we did good for about two weeks and then all the drama happened with both of our Dad's getting into accidents :(. By the time life calmed down enough to breathe and focus on the fun things again, we only had two weeks left before the race! So I did my best to fit running and Insanity into my daily routine which was easier said than done. I kept hounding Josh, but he didn't feel like training at all....

Then the day came! Grandma Janis had flown into town to watch the kids for us and off we went! It was an AMAZING experience! We got there early so we could park and figure out where to go etc. Once we got situated and had time to kill, we walked over to the Stratosphere for lunch and watched some football on the big screen.

When it was finally time to go, we checked our bags with the UPS truck they provided, put on our numbers, and got in line! There was a rock and roll band playing at the starting line and it was getting us pumped! Once the gun went off we pushed past all the annoying people who couldn't even attempt to jog (Seriously though, if you are fat and lazy, start with a 5K!) and ran our hearts out! I had thought I would be running circles around Josh since I was the one who had tried to train, but it was the exact opposite! He was an animal! I did my best to keep up with his long legs which meant I was sprinting the entire way! All along the course were rock bands playing and people cheering us on. We laughed so hard because our best supporters were the homeless people! They were awesome!

Getting excited at the starting line!

The pre-race picture!

There was a point in the last mile when our legs turned to jello, our minds went numb, and all we could focus on was breathing. It was at this point when Super Josh wanted to start walking but I pushed him to keep going and we were both so glad we did! It was the greatest feeling in the world making it across that finish line and knowing we didn't stop!!! The amazing part is we finished in 40 minutes! That's like a 6.5 minute mile average!! CRAZY!!!

After the finish line we were met with people handing out protein bars, chocolate milk, water, gatorade, bananas, etc. We walked for a while trying to catch our breaths again, and then turned around and attempted to make our way back to where we had parked our car. This was especially difficult since there was still  the half marathon and marathon going on so we were going against the stream of runners. There was an unfortunate incident when we tried to hop a fence and Josh got his crotch caught and almost took the whole fence down with him hahaha! It was super painful for him but I couldn't help but laugh. He needed a minute to recover from that so we watched the Bellagio Fountains and cuddled in the meantime. It was the perfect post-race moment. We couldn't stop kissing and there was this beautiful feeling of camaraderie between us from conquering the race together.

I can't even describe the feeling we had when taking this picture with our medals! We conqered our fears AND our weaknesses!

It took us almost 4 hours to get to our hotel room at Mandalay Bay because of all the streets that were closed off and the INSANE traffic! Vegas drivers are the worst! We also discovered the hard way that setting off your own car alarm and not having the clicker with you to turn it off results in a very loud scene and your car shutting off.... grrrrr.

We couldn't have been more happy to get to our hotel room than we were that night! We drew ourselves a hot bubble bath in the giant garden tub and relaxed together. Our muscles were shot and we were in a lot of pain once the numbness wore off so the bath felt like heaven.

The next day we could barely walk, but managed to make it to breakfast at the buffet there in the hotel and then headed home to see the kids and Janis. They had a great time with Grandma and we all had fun talking about the race! Austin liked hearing about the race and playing with our medals! He was so cute as he sprinted across the living room, pretending he was racing. At the finish line he would hold out his hand for his medal and then put it around his neck and start racing again! He cracks us up :).

Wearing Daddy's medal.

Grandma Janis made it all possible! Austin Loved having here here :).

Eve LOVES her Grandma and was a ball of smiles the whole time!

She also LOVES Austin, but that's nothing new ;).

Grandma took the kids to the park and wore them out! Austin was actually asking to take a nap that day!

Daddy and Evie :).

cuteness overload! We don't have a guest room anymore since we turned it into Eve's room so we put a mattress on the living room floor for Grandma to sleep on. Both kids thought this was great for jumping and even Dad is asking if we can keep it there....

The night before Grandma left, Austin snuck downstairs and climbed into bed with her. I wasn't happy about finding him out of bed, but this was too cute to not smile at :).

Happy Veterans Day 2015!

We had a great time at the Parade!

Veteran's Day was a lot of fun, but very exhausting. I was already tired from working the day before and both kids have been giving me trouble at night, making it impossible to sleep. In fact, I almost cancelled our plans so I could stay home and take a nap because I had to work the day after but I'm glad I bucked up, grabbed a Starbucks latte, and made some really fun memories with  my kids :).

My cup of sanity right here!

Austin wanted to go home with Grandma the night before (she was babysitting while we were working) which was just fine with us! So that morning I only had one child to get ready so we could head out the door. I don't know why but it STILL took 2 hours! I think that's just how tired I was....

Baby girl and I made the drive to Logandale, and once we met up with my Mom, Nate, and Austin, we headed over to the parade! We got there fifteen minutes early so we could find a good spot and set up our chairs, which was just enough time for Austin to get bored and throw a temper tantrum in front of everyone.... it was pretty embarrassing :(.

Who knows what started it.

As you can see by my face, I was not amused, and was quite honestly wondering why I didn't just stay home and take a nap!

But soon a helicopter did a fly by with the pilot waving out the window, and like all two year olds, Austin suddenly perked up and found joy in his life again! The police cars were the first to come by with their sirens going, throwing candy out the windows. Now Austin was really loving it and I was again happy with my decision to not stay home.

"Look Gama! Fire Truck!" He doesn't know the difference between the police and the firemen yet ;).

Running out with Grandma to grab some candy!

Once he got the hang of it, he no longer needed someone to go with him. He was ready!!

We had a great time watching the marching band, the cheerleaders, and teaching Austin to put his hand over his heart when the flags went by with the Boy Scouts. It was at this moment that I felt an overwhelming feeling of gratitude. I felt so grateful for the Veterans who put their lives on the line to keep our country safe. I felt grateful for my little family and for the opportunity to take them to this small town celebration so we could salute the old Vets as they passed us by. They especially loved Austin by the way as he ran out into the road and waved to them ;). I don't think we take the time to stop and realize how blessed we really are. Life gets rough, but we still have more than most and we want for nothing. Who could ask for more than that?

I am thankful for my sweet Mom, and how much love she has for us and our babies. She saves me by being our babysitter so I could go back to work. I don't know what I would do without her!

I'm grateful for Nate and the great support system he has been to me and my sisters when our Dad decided to not stick around anymore.

I am beyond grateful for my sweet babies. They mean the world to me and I would die for either of them without hesitation.

I am grateful for family and how much mine loves to be involved in our lives. I truly believe it takes a village to raise children. Everyone has a different personality and different traits that will help my kids learn and grow in countless ways.

I am grateful for the pure love of Christ and how often I see it shining through the eyes of my children and their sweet spirits. All we can do is hope we are doing it right and life doesn't take away their inner beauty.

After the parade we went to Sugar's for breakfast as is our long standing tradition since I was a little girl actually being a participant in the parade! Both kids did great which was a happy surprise and Momma got to eat her breakfast! SCORE!!

We went back to my parent's house after that and sat on the front porch for a while, enjoying the weather and looking at my old baby pictures. I wanted to see if our kids look anything like I did as a baby and it was shocking. Eve has my chubby cheeks, and every once in a while you could see it in the eyes. But Austin, that boy is my twin! Even HE thought the pictures were of him and he kept pointing to the 2 year old me in the pictures and saying, "It's Aus'in!!" We tried correcting him but he didn't understand. Seriously though... the resemblance is remarkable!

Around nap time we headed back home to see Daddy who only had to work half the day. The kids slept in the car and then we spent the rest of the day watching movies and spending quality time as a family. It was the perfect day!

Mommy and Eve's Little Time Out

Having a picnic lunch at a park nearby in the beautiful sunshine :).

I have been dying to go to Time Out For Women this year! I have needed it big time. I've needed the inspiration, the enlightenment, the time out from life... I brought Eve with me which was special because it gave us some bonding time without Austin around stealing all the attention. Eve is our sweet child that for the most part doesn't ask for much. She lets Austin be his demanding self and she rarely complains. This has been such a blessing for us but sometimes I feel bad that she isn't getting as much one on one attention as she might need.

I dropped Austin off at Emmett's house Friday morning. Those two have been best friends since they were little babies and Austin LOVES to go to his house. Josh would pick him up after work and then the two of them would have a boy's weekend while the girls were away!

We carpooled with Sadie and headed off to St. George to meet my Mom, Aunt Tammy, Aunt Heidi, and cousin Jessica at my Grandma Wiegel's house so we could all go to the conference together. Grandma has this big mirror in her hallway and Evelyne had a blast playing with her reflection in the mirror. She kept trying to give herself kisses and bonking her head hard every time! Then she would laugh it off and try it again ;). She was so adorable!

Silly baby playing with her twin ;).

Her hair is getting so long!

We had fun sitting in the hallway and watching her!

Getting a pony ride from Great Grandma Wiegel.

Right before we left for lunch, Eve had a blow out and I didn't pack enough clothes :(. So she was naked for a while until I could wash out the poop stains and try to dry her clothes. That's okay though because she is even more adorable naked!!

I had woken up 3 hours before everyone else in hopes to have time to do my hair. But of course, the kids decided to wake up early too, leaving me once again with the pony tail.

Once everyone made it to Grandma's house, we headed over to Chuck a Rama for lunch! It was yummy and the baby did great! She is so opposite of Austin....

Our gang (minus Heidi and Jessi who were late) eating wayyy too much and feeling super sick afterwards.

After that we went to the conference and spent the next two days laughing, learning, and enjoying each others company. It was just what the doctor ordered for us all and we were sad to have to go back home. I loved holding my baby and walking around in the back while listening to amazing people talk about uplifting topics. There were multiple moments when the spirit was so strong, I couldn't help but squeeze Evelyne tight and cry into her hair. Life has been so hard lately and I am so grateful for the opportunity to feel the spirit and be around some pretty amazing women.

Eve had a fun time getting passed around from person to person, each giving plenty of loves and kisses.

Cousin Jessica is the sweetest and she loved little Evie!

Our 4 generations of women picture.

Getting goofy for a minute... gotta keep it interesting!

I love my Momma and sister soooo much! I only wish Briana could have joined us. Sadly she had to work :(.

We don't get to see Aunt Tammy very often because she lives in Utah so it was fun getting to catch up with her and hear how her family is doing!

Getting some loves from Aunt Heidi!

It is the support from the women in my family that gets me through the day. It is their love that encourages me to be better. I am so blessed!

Meanwhile, Austin and Daddy were having a great time! They ate at Burger King for every meal, watched Back to the Future (Austin's favorite movie), and met up with Grandpa Porter at the movie theater to see the new Peanut's Movie! Josh and I had our doubts on how well Austin would do since we have never been brave enough to take him to the movies before. We both imagined him jumping on the chairs, and throwing popcorn everywhere. But it sounds like it was the exact opposite! He calmly sat in his chair in between Dad and Grandpa, proudly in charge of holding the popcorn. Josh said he kept looking up at Dad and Grandpa and getting this adorable, proud look on his face like he was officially one of the men! Josh also said he kept yelling, "uh oh!!" every time Snoopy did something crazy and starting saying, "Mommy and Daddy!" when Snoopy gave his girlfriend a kiss ;). I loved hearing all about it and look forward to possibly visiting the movie theater again in the near future!

Since it was a children's film, they had a little play area set up for the kids to go inside Snoopy's dog house and play!

Austin even got to meet Snoopy in person!! :)