Ashlee turned 4 months old

I can't believe how fast my baby is growing!! She is such a joy! She weighed 13 lb. 1 oz. and was 24 1/4 inches long at her 4 month checkup. That puts her in the 45th percentile for weight and 50th for height. Her pediatrician Dr. Jamieson said she is just about as average as they come and is doing fabulous! Two days (April 19th) after her check up, I went in to get her out of bed only to find her staring up at me with her beautiful blue eyes! She sleeps on her tummy, so, yes, she has learned to roll from her tummy to her back. It was so cute to see her sweet smile and bright eyes! Ashlee brings so much happiness into our home. She rarely goes more than a couple minutes without being kissed by someone. Her brothers and sisters adore her, and she loves the attention from them. She has started to actually laugh now, so the kids love to tickle her (she is extremely ticklish everywhere) and do silly things to get her to laugh. Her new thing is to click and suck on her tongue to make funny noises. She also loves to talk! I finally got a pretty good video of her "talking." She started sleeping through the night at about 2 1/2 or 3 months old. She was doing great until she got sick again. Ever since, she has decided she needs to get up at least once but sometimes twice in the night to eat. She hasn't gotten up twice in the night ever, not even as a newborn. Despite some more lack of sleep I feel so blessed to have Ashlee in our family! I am so thankful she is healthy and strong. I call her my little "life saver." If it wasn't for her, my life would probably have taken a very different path in the future. Ashlee, I know Heavenly Father wanted you to be a part of our family! You have completed our family in a way we are only beginning to see. I look foward to watching you grow and change!

We gave Ashlee rice cereal for the first time a few days ago. Of course I didn't take any pictures, so I got some of her second time eating rice cereal. She had been crying before we started feeding her, hence the red eyes (yes, she takes after her mom). She is okay with it. She tolerates it enough but it will most definitely take time for her to get used to "eating."






After a few bites, she decided that her bib would taste much better! Everything goes in Ashlee's mouth: her hands usually, her clothes, her burp rag, the clothes of the person holding her, anything she can get her hands on.

This was the end of eating! She had had it. Daddy took over feeding her part way while I helped Kenna go to the bathroom. I had kept her pretty clean but while Daddy was feeding her she decided it would be fun to stick her hands straight into her mouth right after he fed her a bite. Needless to say, she ended up quite messy. I know I need to be consistent about feeding her cereal every day, but it just seems like a chore right now. Hopefully it will help her to start sleeping through the night again. Who can resist the sweet pucker face?!!

Here is the video I got of Ashlee talking. This was after Kenna's birthday party. You would think by how wound up she was that someone had slipped her some ice cream or something. My mom put her in her swing, and she just kind of went silly on us. It was so fun to listen to her "talking." I just love sweet little baby voices. Before this my dad was tickling her and she actually kind of laughed. It was that kind of painful type laugh they have at first.

Just chillin' in the saucer! She loves to sit in this and grab whatever toys she can. Most of the time she kicks back and just watches all the craziness going on around her from her siblings!

The End...and the Beginning

Wrestling season has now come to and end. Aidan had so much fun and won a few medals and ribbons in the process. Since my last few entries he has wrestled in 3 other tournaments. He placed 3rd in Greybull, 5th in Powell, and we aren't sure what in the Worland tournament. He made some new friends and enjoyed learning more about wrestling from his awesome coaches. It was so much fun to pick him up after practice and hear about how much he loves to wrestle. He was so sad to have it come to an end. It was fun for Andy and Aidan to get to spend a few Saturdays together. Last wrestling season Andy missed a lot of his matches due to tax season. We were so excited that a job change made it so he didn't have to miss out on so much of the kids' activities from January through April 15th.

Powell Tournament

Aidan and one of his new buddies. We found out they live just down the street from us. Playing the Ninentdo DS was "the activity" for entertainment between matches. This is one of the rare times that Aidan was actually playing it. He usually brought it so that other kids could play it. He is such a cute kid!

Our little "wanna-be" wrestler! Kenna was obsessed with Aidan's wrestling backpack and his shoes and headgear in it. Not too long after this picture was taken, Aidan was called up to wrestle and Kenna sobbed cause she had to give him his headgear back. We find her wearing his shoes and headgear around the house quite frequently. We keep reminding her that it is okay to play with his stuff but that girls DO NOT wrestle!

The end of wrestling season brought in the beginning of soccer season. The two seasons overlapped by a few weeks, so Aidan was not able to participate in soccer but Aaron is. Soccer season in Wyoming has not been ideal. The weather has not cooperated very well. He has only had a few warm practices. The two games he has played have been windy and freezing. I stepped out of the van during the first game for a few pictures. Thank goodness the kids are busy running up and down the field to stay warm. Aaron wasn't so sure about playing, but now that it has started he absolutely loves it. He looks forward to soccer whether it is practice or a game. He wishes he could go every night! He is so lucky to have a wonderful coach - Coach Cannon. I am very grateful for the parents that are so willing and able to volunteer their time.

Aarons loves to play defender and is pretty good at it. He is not scared to sacrifice his legs to make some good stops. He is on the Blizzards and has a few of his friends on the team with him which makes it even more fun! We are hoping for at least one game with good weather. I would love to get some better pictures!

Grandparent's Day - April 9, 2009

Every grade in elementary school has something special to look forward to. In 1st grade, Grandparent's Day is the BIG event! Aidan was so lucky to have his Grandpa Mark and Grandma Linda Lynn and Great-grandpa Bill and Great-granda Joyce Lynn come spend the day with him. They came to school with him in the morning and enjoyed various class activities and then the girls and I met them at Papa and Grandma's house (Great-Grandpa and Grandma Lynn) for pizza for lunch. Then Aidan went back to school to ride the bus to the high school auditorium where all the 1st graders from all three elemetary schools entertained grandparents and families with a special program. There are 8 1st grade elementary classes in Powell. They have the most students of any grade. It was so much fun to see them so excited to sing and dance for their grandparents.

Fun in the classroom with Grandma Linda and Grandpa Mark!

Fun with Great-Grandpa Bill (Papa) and Grandma Joyce

Hard at work with the help of grandparents.

Aidan won this book for his Great-Grandma and Grandpa Lynn having the most grandchildren (I will need to ask them the count again). He would have won by a landslide if Great-Grandma George had been there. As of our last count she has 58 grandchildren and 115 great-grandchildren.

Yummy pizza for lunch at Papa and Grandma's! Thanks so much!

All of the kids fill out a fun "information" sheet about their grandparents. It was so fun to read what Aidan said about each of his grandparents. I wanted to share those with the pics of him with each set. (Our children are so lucky to have both sets of grandparents and 5 great-grandparents within about 20 minutes of us. Their other great-grandma lives in California but we sure enjoy the chances we have to talk to her on the phone. She is 95 now but as sharp as ever!)

Grandma Linda Lynn

My grandmother is special because she has a lot of care for me.
I like it when my Grandmother hugs me.
My Grandmother can do many things! I think she's best at playing with us.
My Grandmother has a great smile! I like to make her smile by making a funny face.
My Grandmother is smart! She even knows what 100 + 100 is.
My Grandmother is as pretty as a chicken. (Mom's side note: watch for a pattern in these answers! It will tell you a little about what Aidan loves.)

Grandpa Mark Lynn

My Grandfather is special because he works for our family.
I like it when my Grandfather tickles me.
My Grandfather can do many things! I think he's best at tickling me.
My Grandfather has a great smile! I like to make him smile by tickling him.
My Grandfather is smart! He even knows how to teach me fun stuff.
My Grandfather is as handsome as a lizard.

Grandma Kathy Jacobsen

My grandmother is special because she's a nice grandma.

I like it when my Grandmother plays with me.

My Grandmother can do many things! I think she's best at working at the credit union.

My Grandmother has a great smile! I like to make her smile by telling a joke.
My Grandmother is smart! She even knows how to farm.
My Grandmother is as pretty as a pie.

Grandpa Jeff Jacobsen

My Grandfather is special because he does stuff for me.

I like it when my Grandfather makes me laugh.

My Grandfather can do many things! I think he's best at farmwork.
My Grandfather has a great smile! I like to make him smile by making a funny face.

My Grandfather is smart! He even knows how to do problems.

My Grandfather is as handsome as a frog.

Great-Grandma Joyce Lynn

My grandmother is special because she gives us pop.

I like it when my Grandmother gives me gum.

My Grandmother can do many things! I think she's best at making me laugh.
My Grandmother has a great smile! I like to make her smile by telling her a joke.

My Grandmother is smart! She even knows what 1 x 1 is.

My Grandmother is as pretty as a pumpkin.

Great-Grandpa Bill Lynn (Papa)

My Grandfather is special because he loves me.

I like it when my Grandfather makes me laugh.

My Grandfather can do many things! I think he's best at getting stuff down.

My Grandfather has a great smile! I like to make him smile by telling him something funny.

My Grandfather is smart! He even knows what 10 x 10 is.

My Grandfather is as handsome as a turtle.

Great- Grandma Ruth Goller

My grandmother is special because she loves me.
I like it when my Grandmother helps me.
My Grandmother can do many things! I think she's best at working.
My Grandmother has a great smile! I like to make her smile by telling her a joke.
My Grandmother is smart! She even knows how to build stuff.
My Grandmother is as pretty as a fly.

Great-Grandpa Don Goller

My Grandfather is special because he teases me.
I like it when my Grandfather tells me a joke.
My Grandfather can do many things! I think he's best at building houses.
My Grandfather has a great smile! I like to make him smile by telling a joke.
My Grandfather is smart! He even knows how to build.
My Grandfather is as handsome as a toad.

Great-Grandma Evaleen George

My grandmother is special because she helps me with stuff. She has cows and she used to have pigs.
I like it when my Grandmother plays with me.

My Grandmother can do many things! I think she's best at farmwork. She owns a farm.

My Grandmother has a great smile! I like to make her smile by telling a joke.
My Grandmother is smart! She even knows farmwork.

My Grandmother is as pretty as a flower.

Great-Grandma Enid Jacobsen

My grandmother is special because she tells me Happy Birthday by singing it.

I like it when my Grandmother calls me.

My Grandmother can do many things! I think she's best at singing.

My Grandmother has a great smile! I like to make her smile by calling her on the phone.

My Grandmother is smart! She even knows how to use the phone.
My Grandmother is as pretty as a fly.

Grandma Enid with Aunt Juleen (Hopefully we can get a picture with Grandma Jacobsen sometime.)

My children are so lucky to be blessed with so many grandparents. Sometimes they get confused as to which one we are talking about but they have their own methods for keeping them straight. Each house has something special that they look forward to: chips and chocolate at Great-Grandpa and Grandma Goller's, gumballs and pop at Great-Grandpa and Grandma Lynn's, ice cream sandwiches and playing in the cottonseed at Grandma George's, ice cream at Grandpa and Grandma Jacobsen's, and fruit snacks, pop tarts, and the sensory room at Grandpa and Grandma Lynn's. What spoiled, lucky children!!!

Kenna turns 2

April 4, 2009 was Kenna's 2nd birthday! When she woke up, we told her happy birthday and that she was 2 today. Her reply, "I not two. I one. It not my birthday." We tried to convince her all day that it really was her birthday, but she just didn't believe us. Guess it was okay that we couldn't celebrate it for a few days. But when Monday came around and it was birthday party time, she finally started to realize what it was all about. She was so excited for her family to come and to get presents. We started asking her about a month or so before her birthday what she wanted. Everytime she told us a "Dora Boots backpack." It never changed. She told all her grandmas and grandpas this too.

As you can see she got her Dora Boots backpack. Too bad I don't have a picture of what the front of the backpack looks like. It is so adorable! She also got a Dora baby, another baby, some absolutely adorable spring/summer clothes and dress, cute Easter egg, and a princess nightgown. She was in heaven! Kenna loves baby dolls. She plays with them a lot during the day. She loves to use Ashlee's swing, saucer, car seat, and high chair for her babies. She feeds them, changes their diapers, gives them baths, and sings to them. She is such a good mommy! Her new backpack usually has a baby or two in it also. To end her special day, she wanted to dance with Daddy. She is such a Daddy's girl. She misses him while he is at work and cries for him several times a day. She is usually right there to great him when he comes home from work. She stands at the top of the stairs yelling, "Daddy!! Daddy!!"

Kenna is such a fun little girl, but I do have to admit telling Andy today that if our older three had been like her when they were two we might have stopped after Megan and that Heavenly Father knew we needed to have Ashlee come before Kenna hit this stage cause we probably wouldn't have had Ashlee cause I don't think I would have wanted a baby on top of Kenna's antics. Kenna's smile just melts me. Her sweet little voice just makes me smile. Her fun little gallop as she comes down the hall makes me giggle. But she is also such a handful!!

She has not had a pacifier since she was 14 or 15 months old, but she just can't help her self when she sees on of Ashlee's pacifiers. She sneaks them whenever possible. I find her with the pacifiers in her mouth as she hides behind the couch, in cupboards, in closet, wherever she can go cause she just NEEDS it. She will climb into Ashlee's crib just to get one. I have never seen a child so addicted to something that she has not had for a long time. She also loves to climb into Ashlee's crib to wake Ashlee up. She just can't stand for Ashlee to be taking a nap. She wants to hug her, hold her, and kiss her all the time. I am glad she loves her so much, but I really need Ashlee to sleep sometimes. Kenna also loves clothes! She loves to change her clothes constantly all day long. She also loves Megan's clothes and often comes out of her room very proud of herself for having found a "cute Megan clothes" to wear. Just yesterday I found her with Aidan's dirty (GROSS!!) underwear around her waist and his Superman pajamas on over the top. I couldn't help but laugh and just waited for her to decide on her next outfit for the day and then promptly put Aidan's stuff in the laundry.

One of Kenna's favorite foods is fruit snacks. The thing that is hard to resist when she asks for them is her way of saying it. She call them "new nacks." We have had to put a baby proof knob on the pantry door so she can't just freely help herself to them. Kenna also loves pizza, pop tarts, and crunch berry cereal. She is not a picky eater though, which is very nice. I know that my challenge as her mother is to channel her endless energy and stubborness in the right direction. It can be used to do a lot of good in her life if I can teach her to use it to be stubborn in the right things. She loves going to church and nursery. She loves her nursery teachers and friends. She loves learning about Jesus, and she loves to sing! Her favorite Primary songs are "Popcorn," "Sunbeam," and "Child's Prayer." I am so thankful for my sweet little Kenna. She is a handful, but she reminds me daily to be thankful for the little things that Heavenly Father has given us. I am so thankful that Heavenly Father has allowed me the chance to be her mother. The eight months I was pregnant with her were full of stress and worry, but I am so thankful that He blessed me with a healthy, beautiful child. I am amazed at His trust in me to be her mother. Kenna, I love you, my baby!

Hopefully the Last!!

April 10th was a fabulous day!! First of all, my wonderful sweetheart had his 33rd birthday!! To make it even better, he got the day off from work for the Easter weekend. And to make it the best day ever, we got to spend the day and night in Billings with no children!! My mom and Andy's mom and sister Juleen were wonderful in helping us with the kids so we could get away and enjoy some time together, go shopping, and most importantly attend the temple. This trip started off with it being a day that I had a doctor's appointment. This was to hopefully be the day I got my drain out for good. Well, I do have my drain out for good, but I ended up getting it out the week before due to ending up in the hospital overnight in Billings because of some horrible pains and dehydration. After blood work and a CT scan, they decided the drain was sitting so shallow that it was causing problems. My solution to this pain, before going to the doctor, was to not eat. Not eating meant no pain. The doctor didn't like this solution, so he had me come up to see him. I had lost more weight and was pretty dehydrated, so he had me stay the night in the hospital for tests and IV fluids. I really didn't want to stay, but it ended up being for the better. I left not feeling so "puny" (as the doctor put it) and I no longer had my drain in!!! I have been amazed at how much better I feel now that the drain is out. My energy level is beginning to come back up and I am starting to be able to eat a few more of the foods that I couldn't eat before.

So, my doctor appointment on the 10th ended up being the LAST appointment instead of next to last!! He said all my scars were healing nicely but that is looked like someone had taken a knife to me and a few bullets. (Sorry, I am not posting a picture of my lovely stomach.) Since I have still been having problems with foods that have food or grease, he gave me some pills that will hopefully help my pancreas digest these better. I have had a 1/2 a hamburger since getting the pills and was able to tolerate it, so there is hope that they will work! I still have to be careful, but I am grateful to be able to eat a variety of things now. It is nice to start to put these surgeries behind us and return to a "normal" sort of life. I actually went running one night this week, and it felt so good. I have done some walking which is nice too, but to say I ran two miles just less than 3 months post-surgery makese me smile. Running gives me a sort of "high." I look forward to slowly working into more days a week of running.

Andy and I were able to enjoy a peaceful trip to Billings. We didn't have to worry about rushing through the stores cause we needed to get home. We were able to do some shopping for bunkbeds for the girls, let Andy pick out his birthday present, get some new spring/summer clothes for me, and just enjoy holding hands and talking without getting interrupted by children! I love being married to my best friend! He is so patient, kind, hardworking, unselfish, fun father, caring husband, worthy priesthood holder, my support system, a good listener, my better half, and has done so much for me these last 7 or 8 months to help make our trials easier. I don't know how I got so lucky to have him ask me to be his wife!!

So Far Behind!!

I am so far behind in my journaling!! I have everything tucked in the back of my mind that I need to update, but I just haven't found the chance to sit down and actually get it done. So, be on the watch for updates on Aidan's wrestling, Aidan's grandparent's day, Kenna's birthday, Andy's birthday, the FINAL!!! doctor appointment and trip to Billings, Easter, and just some everyday happenings at the Jacobsen house. We really do not go anywhere, so I am not sure why it is so hard to get this done. But it is a lot to keep up with 5 kids and the things that just "have" to be done to survive. Thank goodness my energy level is starting to pick back up!!