We have been staying pretty busy this week. Saturday Kayla and I had a mother/daughter stake activity to go to for church in Little Rock. We had a nice activity, and we got to listen to Brad's cousin Juliana speak ( I'm not sure of her married name), we had a yummy lunch and then we did a fun service project afterwords. Kayla got to sew on the sewing machine for the first time and she love it!
Also, Kayla started piano lessons on Monday, a senior sister missionary from Little Rock is giving her lessons. I am so excited for her. I started taking them in 3rd grade and although I didn't take all the lessons that I needed to be a great player, I can play well enough to get by and it something that I love to do. So far Kayla is picking up on it really well. When Brad signed her up for lessons he asked the lady if he could come and learn with Kayla. I thought that was so sweet. So they had their little father/daughter time on Monday. Kayla also had spirit week all week at school and she has carefully planned in detail each day what she was going to wear. Today she was a teacher for future career day, and she even talked me into wearing lipstick since she insisted that teachers wear lipstick. Ha ha, what a silly girl.
Also, Craig and Jillian have been in town this week with their new baby Charlotte and my sister Karren and her boyfriend Scotty are coming this weekend too, so it's going to be fun having some extra family around.
Monday night Billy and Debbie took our family out to Western Sizzler for family home evening and got fed well! Afterwords grandpa took the girls to the store to pick out some pumpkins since the pumpkin patch was way to muddy. And of course Callie picked out a balloon while she was picking out a pumpkin. But grandpa was sweet enough to get her that too!
Tonight we are having dinner with the missionaries and having a discussion at our house with a new family that has been attending our branch. So I probably better get off the computer and go shopping so I can get dinner on tonight. Just to give myself enough time to order pizza in case I burn everything ;)
The Shelton Family
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Thursday, October 22, 2009
I must REALLY love my husband...
Why, you might ask? Well, because I just finished taking about 9 hours of a hunter education class online so I can get my hunting liscence. Surprised? Yeah, me too ;)
It all started last week when I nicely mentioned to Brad that I thought it would be fun to go and watch him hunt one night. (Wrong thing to say, ha ha). He got so excited after I said that and then the wheels started turning in his head. He called me the next morning and said, "What do you think about shooting your own deer this year." And I said, "Uhhh, yeah, I think that might be fun." (Just thinking that I would say that and then somehow weasel my way out of it later. ) He then told me that I would need to get a liscence and so I agreed, not knowing what was involved with getting a liscence. So then he emails me later that day with instructions on where I need to go to take my 10 hour online hunter education course and who I need to contact to take a final examination after I complete the online portion. By now I was wondering what I was getting myself into, but I thought... well they say it's a ten hour course but really it won't take that long since it's online, and maybe I'll learn how to shoot a gun in the process. So again I decided to go along with it. Well, it really was a ten hour course :) And I didn't just learn how to shoot a gun, I learned how to identify about 50 different animals, learned how to skin and gut a deer, learned ALL the rules of hunting, learned every little part and peice of ammo, guns, bows, etc. So now I just have to take my final test and I'm ready to go. I guess I am glad that I got to learn all that extra stuff even though I will be having Brad do all of it. And who knows, I might just love hunting. I'll keep you all posted if I actually get my first deer.
Other than that, here are some cute pictures of Hailey (in her bumbo chair that Misti lent us).
Notice how content she was before Callie joined her on the bed.
It all started last week when I nicely mentioned to Brad that I thought it would be fun to go and watch him hunt one night. (Wrong thing to say, ha ha). He got so excited after I said that and then the wheels started turning in his head. He called me the next morning and said, "What do you think about shooting your own deer this year." And I said, "Uhhh, yeah, I think that might be fun." (Just thinking that I would say that and then somehow weasel my way out of it later. ) He then told me that I would need to get a liscence and so I agreed, not knowing what was involved with getting a liscence. So then he emails me later that day with instructions on where I need to go to take my 10 hour online hunter education course and who I need to contact to take a final examination after I complete the online portion. By now I was wondering what I was getting myself into, but I thought... well they say it's a ten hour course but really it won't take that long since it's online, and maybe I'll learn how to shoot a gun in the process. So again I decided to go along with it. Well, it really was a ten hour course :) And I didn't just learn how to shoot a gun, I learned how to identify about 50 different animals, learned how to skin and gut a deer, learned ALL the rules of hunting, learned every little part and peice of ammo, guns, bows, etc. So now I just have to take my final test and I'm ready to go. I guess I am glad that I got to learn all that extra stuff even though I will be having Brad do all of it. And who knows, I might just love hunting. I'll keep you all posted if I actually get my first deer.
Other than that, here are some cute pictures of Hailey (in her bumbo chair that Misti lent us).
Notice how content she was before Callie joined her on the bed.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Callie's boo boo and my silly baby...
Little miss Callie was still feeling a little sick the other night, but after laying around all day, I guess she had a little burst of energy because she started playing tag with her daddy. Well as they were tearing through the hall and into the bedroom, she fell face first into the corner of the computer desk. It gashed her forehead open and we thought for a minute that she would need stitches, but after we got it cleaned up we decided to just use a butterfly bandage and that did the trick. Thank goodness we had some Dora bandaids on hand too, because that made it all better :) Just as soon as we got her all bandaged up (we were still looking at the blood all over Brad's shirt) she looked up at her dad with a big grin and said "Daddy chase me some more!" Ha ha.. she's such a tough little booger, she doesn't even skip up beat.
Hailey has been growing like a weed. I think she's going to start laughing pretty soon because she has already made a few attempts (smiling while grunting "huh, huh"), it's pretty cute. She also has started to find something quite humorous about breastfeeding. I have to completely cover her while I am feeding her, because if she sees my face at all she just starts smiling and talking and wanting to play. She'll spit the milk out and start cooing and kicking, this makes me laugh because she's so silly and the more I laugh the more she tries to play. So we've had to resort to no interaction during feeding time or we both end up a giggling milky mess. Silly girl.
She is pretty much happy all of the time and especially when she wakes up first thing in the morning, here is a video of me waking her up the other day:
And on to other good news. Brads hunting bow has officially been replaced with an even better and newer bow. It's the only thing that could heal his broken heart :) Ha ha. He has already killed another deer with his new bow. My man knows how to hunt! Only one more and he will be all tagged out. I'll post pictures of his new bow later.
Hailey has been growing like a weed. I think she's going to start laughing pretty soon because she has already made a few attempts (smiling while grunting "huh, huh"), it's pretty cute. She also has started to find something quite humorous about breastfeeding. I have to completely cover her while I am feeding her, because if she sees my face at all she just starts smiling and talking and wanting to play. She'll spit the milk out and start cooing and kicking, this makes me laugh because she's so silly and the more I laugh the more she tries to play. So we've had to resort to no interaction during feeding time or we both end up a giggling milky mess. Silly girl.
She is pretty much happy all of the time and especially when she wakes up first thing in the morning, here is a video of me waking her up the other day:
And on to other good news. Brads hunting bow has officially been replaced with an even better and newer bow. It's the only thing that could heal his broken heart :) Ha ha. He has already killed another deer with his new bow. My man knows how to hunt! Only one more and he will be all tagged out. I'll post pictures of his new bow later.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Sick of being sick...
Well as much as I hate blogging about being sick, unfortunately that is all we have been up to lately. Kayla started getting a sore throat on Saturday morning. And I had an enrichment activity to go to for church, so while I was having a lot of fun making a christmas craft, little girl tu tu's and having a yummy lunch, Kayla was in the nursery watching Callie and started getting sicker. By the time we got home she had developed a fever. She kept the fever of 102 over the weekend and I called first thing Monday morning to get her in to the doctor. Well, I didn't think it was going to be that big of a deal getting her in, but it ended up being crazy. I guess that's what they mean when they say a flu pandemic. Practically every office I called or my mother in law called said that they weren't taking new patients because they were so overloaded with extra patients right now. So because I didn't have Kayla established as a patient anywhere (she's the healthy one in the family), nobody would take her. Finally I found one in North Little Rock that would take her the next day. By this time she had already had a high fever for 3 days, so I took it. Then my mother in law called and told me that there was one other option. That there was an 82 year old doctor in town (that still had a practice even though he was retired) and they accepted patients first come first serve. So my mother in law came right over so I could try to get Kayla in somewhere earlier. By this time Callie was crying that she was feeling sick, so I thought what the heck, might as well take them both. Well after waiting for an hour and a half with 25 other people in the waiting room and being told that it would be at least another hour and a half, I decided to just wait till morning. So we went the next day, and after another three hour office visit we found out Kayla has bronchitis and Callie just has a cold. The girls are finally doing a little better (now that their fevers are gone). But the moral of this story is that you better hope that you don't get sick, because the doctors offices right now are a nightmare. If you didn't have something before you made your appointment, you'll probably have caught something by the time you leave ;)
Monday, October 12, 2009
Remembering...
Today I was just reflecting on how differently I felt after the births of each of my daughters. It is amazing that I can go through the same experience as a mother, but feel so differently with each child just because it is a new stage in my life.
First let me start with Kayla, I remember when I was pregnant with her that I found everything very fascinating (I guess because it was my first and I didn't know what to expect). I remember just being so curious about how my body was changing, about how she was growing, etc. I don't remember feeling scared to be a mom, and I think this was because I was to young and naive to realize that I was young and naive. So consequently I wasn't that nervous. I had babysat so many kids and cared for my own brothers and sisters so much that I felt well prepared of what to expect. And after she was born, I feel I handled it all pretty well considering I was only 17 years old. What I remember the most though about Kayla being a baby was how much I needed her. Usually you think of a baby needing their mother, but it was the opposite with me, I needed her. Because of the abusive and traumatic marriage and divorce I went through, I found myself relying on Kayla for the comfort that I needed. I can remember so many nights that I would feel so lonely and scared and I would go get Kayla out of her bed and bring her into mine, because I didn't want to be alone. I can also remember how she would find me sometimes crying (despite my best efforts to not break down around her) and she would say "It's okay mommy, I love you, don't cry." And she would sit and wrap her arms around my neck until I would quit crying. She always seemed so advanced for her age and I'm sure the reason is because she had to see and deal with so much that was beyond her years. Even though it makes me so sad to think that she had to go through that time, I am so grateful that I had her. It was like her and I were a team and no matter what happened around us, we had each other to make it through. I received a blessing from my dad once and in it he said that he felt impressed to tell me that Kayla had been sent to this earth to help me and to teach me the things that I needed to make it through this life. I will never forget those words. I had always thought that it would be me who would be teaching and guiding her since I was the parent, but I have found it very true that Kayla is the one that who has helped me. Every time I looked at her sweet little face it gave me the determination to want more for her and for me. I wanted for her so badly to have a loving father in her life who would care for her and be a good example to her. And as I learned to want and expect more for her, I also learned to realize that I deserved more to. I think Kayla and I will always have a special little bond that only we will share because we went through that difficult time together.
Now on to Callie. Callie was due EXACTLY nine months after I married Brad. She was the true definition of a honeymoon baby. Now some of you might be wondering why I would want to have a baby so quickly after getting married. Well I wanted to because I love children, I always have, and all I ever wanted to be when I grew up was a mom. I had this idea that I would start having my kids while I was a young and I would space them all about two years apart. Well because I went through such a long time after Kayla was born before I married again, there was already going to be a huge space between Kayla and the next baby, so I didn't want to waist any time. So Callie was very much planned and wanted. However, because Callie came about 6 1/2 years after Kayla, I had had a lot of time to mature and grow up in between them. It's funny because when I was younger I thought I knew everything, and it wasn't until I was a little older that I actually realize how much I didn't know as a mother. So consequently I was the most nervous about mothering Callie. You would have honestly thought I had never had a baby. I couldn't remember anything about pregnancy, childbirth or even what to do with an umbilical cord stump. It's really funny when I think back to how inadequate I felt with my middle child. I should have felt that way on my first ;) I really enjoyed my time when Callie was born though, because I really got to focus on her. My life was so happy and complete that I was just able to enjoy the joys of new motherhood because I didn't have any other major stresses in my life.
And last of all there is miss Hailey. How would I describe I feel right now with her? I would say that I am cherishing her. I don't feel nervous at all with her. In fact she has been probably the easiest out of all three of my baby experiences. I think that because I lost a baby right before her and then had to wait a year to try to conceive again, it made it that much more special when she was born. I'm sure that any mom who has had a miscarriage can agree with me on that. She is just so calm and sweet. She is a very good baby and very easy to care for. I feel so blessed to have her.
First let me start with Kayla, I remember when I was pregnant with her that I found everything very fascinating (I guess because it was my first and I didn't know what to expect). I remember just being so curious about how my body was changing, about how she was growing, etc. I don't remember feeling scared to be a mom, and I think this was because I was to young and naive to realize that I was young and naive. So consequently I wasn't that nervous. I had babysat so many kids and cared for my own brothers and sisters so much that I felt well prepared of what to expect. And after she was born, I feel I handled it all pretty well considering I was only 17 years old. What I remember the most though about Kayla being a baby was how much I needed her. Usually you think of a baby needing their mother, but it was the opposite with me, I needed her. Because of the abusive and traumatic marriage and divorce I went through, I found myself relying on Kayla for the comfort that I needed. I can remember so many nights that I would feel so lonely and scared and I would go get Kayla out of her bed and bring her into mine, because I didn't want to be alone. I can also remember how she would find me sometimes crying (despite my best efforts to not break down around her) and she would say "It's okay mommy, I love you, don't cry." And she would sit and wrap her arms around my neck until I would quit crying. She always seemed so advanced for her age and I'm sure the reason is because she had to see and deal with so much that was beyond her years. Even though it makes me so sad to think that she had to go through that time, I am so grateful that I had her. It was like her and I were a team and no matter what happened around us, we had each other to make it through. I received a blessing from my dad once and in it he said that he felt impressed to tell me that Kayla had been sent to this earth to help me and to teach me the things that I needed to make it through this life. I will never forget those words. I had always thought that it would be me who would be teaching and guiding her since I was the parent, but I have found it very true that Kayla is the one that who has helped me. Every time I looked at her sweet little face it gave me the determination to want more for her and for me. I wanted for her so badly to have a loving father in her life who would care for her and be a good example to her. And as I learned to want and expect more for her, I also learned to realize that I deserved more to. I think Kayla and I will always have a special little bond that only we will share because we went through that difficult time together.
Now on to Callie. Callie was due EXACTLY nine months after I married Brad. She was the true definition of a honeymoon baby. Now some of you might be wondering why I would want to have a baby so quickly after getting married. Well I wanted to because I love children, I always have, and all I ever wanted to be when I grew up was a mom. I had this idea that I would start having my kids while I was a young and I would space them all about two years apart. Well because I went through such a long time after Kayla was born before I married again, there was already going to be a huge space between Kayla and the next baby, so I didn't want to waist any time. So Callie was very much planned and wanted. However, because Callie came about 6 1/2 years after Kayla, I had had a lot of time to mature and grow up in between them. It's funny because when I was younger I thought I knew everything, and it wasn't until I was a little older that I actually realize how much I didn't know as a mother. So consequently I was the most nervous about mothering Callie. You would have honestly thought I had never had a baby. I couldn't remember anything about pregnancy, childbirth or even what to do with an umbilical cord stump. It's really funny when I think back to how inadequate I felt with my middle child. I should have felt that way on my first ;) I really enjoyed my time when Callie was born though, because I really got to focus on her. My life was so happy and complete that I was just able to enjoy the joys of new motherhood because I didn't have any other major stresses in my life.
And last of all there is miss Hailey. How would I describe I feel right now with her? I would say that I am cherishing her. I don't feel nervous at all with her. In fact she has been probably the easiest out of all three of my baby experiences. I think that because I lost a baby right before her and then had to wait a year to try to conceive again, it made it that much more special when she was born. I'm sure that any mom who has had a miscarriage can agree with me on that. She is just so calm and sweet. She is a very good baby and very easy to care for. I feel so blessed to have her.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
The good and the bad....
The good news......
Brad shot his first deer of the season! (Notice there is no smile present in this picture)
I feel so bad for my poor husband and father in law! For anyone that knows these two well, they know how much they LOVE their bows. They clean them, baby them, fine tune them... these bows didn't have a scratch on them. I about cried when Brad told me because I know how much their bows mean to them. He is probably having an awful day at work just thinking about it. I sent him an email saying that maybe someday we will be able to look back on this day and have a good laugh, I have a feeling that day might be a long ways a way though ;( ...It's a sad day at the Shelton house.
Brad shot his first deer of the season! (Notice there is no smile present in this picture)
The bad news...
He ran over his and his Dad's Mathews bows about five minutes later. (No, his bow was not originally L shaped).
Monday, October 5, 2009
Aunt Karrens birthday
This past weekend was my sister Karren's birthday. And we were lucky enough that she decided to drive down from Jonesboro and spend it with us. She was going to wait and come Saturday afternoon, but since Callie was crying for her she decided to come Friday night. On Saturday morning we had planned on going to a festival in Jacksonville, but after my mother in law told me how busy it was, we started to think that maybe we would just go shopping instead. But then Brad called and told us about a community activity that a nearby church was having, so we decided to go to that instead since it wouldn't be nearly as crowded. The girls all had a lot of fun. I'm sure it was just what Karren wanted to do for her birthday ;) They had hay rides, pony rides, inflatables, face painting, free food, and a cake walk.
After that we headed to the mall and did a little shopping, we again decided to do something that was just in honor of Karrens birthday.... we headed to build a bear workshop! Ha ha.. I didn't realize until I did this post that most of our activities were focused on the kids instead of Karren. Oh well, I think she had fun. Last of all we let aunt Karren pick where she wanted us to take her for her birthday dinner and she chose Texas Roadhouse. Brad was stuck at church so it ended up being just all the girls. We love Texas Roadhouse rolls, yummy!
On Sunday we opened Karens presents and then we all sat around and watched general conference for church. At lunch time my in laws brought us over some yummy lunch, it was so nice to not have to cook. That night we had Karrens birthday cake, sang to her,
and we talked her into staying one extra night ;) Thanks aunt Karren for letting share your birthday with you!
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Cutest cousins ever!
I am sure that some of you have heard me talk about about our cousins Keith and his wife Misti Shelton and their two little girls Kennedi (3 years old) and Raegan (3 months). Well we just love being around their family because as most of you know we also have a 3 year old and a 2 month old. So today while Kayla was at school, I went over to their house with Callie and Hailey and we had a little cousin photography session. I think the pictures turned out so sweet! Brad's brother Craig and his wife Jillian also just had a little baby girl on Monday and they named her Charlotte. Misti made a tutu and onesie for her as well. So as soon as Charlotte gets big enough we will have to get a picture with her, so we will have one with all three of the Shelton babies that were born this year. Raegan was born first, five weeks later came Hailey and eight weeks after Hailey's birth came baby Charlotte. I think they are going to have a blast growing up together.
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