The sleeve is finished... for now ;)

I had an appointment this past week to add the finishing touch to my sleeve, it turned out amazing.

The detail in the gates is unreal--- the pearly gates :) This was just after we got done so the skin is a little angry yet. I am so in love with all the work that Brian has done... like I said this finished up the sleeve..... but we will see if I'm done yet.

As for the kids they are all preparing for the end of the school year. They both get done June 4th, then it's SUMMER! I think they are both ready for a break and Aryssa is ready for more of a challenge. Aryssa will then be entering kindergarten and Carson will do another year of speech 2 times a week. Maycee seems to be learning new words every hour! She is repeating things after we say them and also asking what things are. When we don't understand her she will grab our hands and show us. Too smart! I can't believe she is almost 2! 

That is about it from here. If you didn't notice I added a new affiliate link on the left sidebar- Honest Company! Click here if you want to check them out!

I am very excited to get my samples to try out and review!

Until next time folks :)

Quick Update

I know I know it has been forever! So I am jumping on quick to post updates...
Aryssa:
Loving dance class
Seems to learn more everyday
Working on obeying the first time and sassy back talking

Carson:
Doing AMAZING with his speech- I have lost count of his new words and am so proud of his progress.
Slowly breaking out of his shell
Still my cautious little man

Maycee:
Says mama and dada
waves Hi and Bye
trying to say uh-oh
blows kisses
claps hands
slowly starting to stand without holding on to things

They are all GROWING TOO FAST!

I mean look at them!

Anyway stay tuned I have an amazing review and giveaway coming up soon for any iPhone user!!!!!

Painting on a cold day

Don't forget to enter my boubeads giveaway

It has been COLD in Wisconsin lately. Seriously we are getting excited about positive 15 degrees F lately. Today it is a high of -2 F and wind chills of -30s. BRRRRRRRR!
So Aryssa has been asking to paint the past couple days but always at goofy times. So this morning I told her after I showered we could paint.
I got done getting ready - meaning putting on new yoga pants and a t-shirt after my shower, oh don't forget the mommy ponytail. Then it was time to paint! Both kids came running ready to paint, even Carson was yelling "aint" I didn't know if he would want to paint since it always seems like he doesn't do the project at church. Although it may be because they ask him if he wants to do it and he almost always answers "no" to all questions.
Both kids sat down and away we went!

Aryssa and Carson both loved it!
Then I remembered when I worked at a daycare we used to use cars and make tracks. Well I didn't want to wreck a good car of Carson's...then a lightbulb went off in my head! I went and grabbed a cheap mcdonald's toy and let them use that to paint with. Carson thought it was really cool and if it got to messy or gross I could throw it away and not care!

I love when the kids paint, but then comes "what will I do with all these pictures?" Well at rest/nap time today I cut out the artwork and put them into frames. I can't wait to hang these beauties in the hallway when Grant gets home.


So what are you doing on these cold days?!?!? Let me know in the comments some fun you and your kids had :)

Carson's First Speech Therapy session

First off don't forget to enter my toy/bottle leash giveaway!

Ok so today was Carson's first speech therapy session and I think it went GREAT! Ms Jen came over at 8:30 am- which if you know Carson was early lol. She came in and explained how the sessions would go and what to expect then we dove right into it! She had a book with real pictures in it and would have Carson point to things and try to copy her when she talked. Carson's main problem is not using consonant sounds so that is what she was working on. BaBy, PuPPy, BuBBle, More, etc. Ms Jen would use gestures along with the sounds to help show what his lips should also be doing. Carson did soooo great. It took a couple times but he was copying her and trying to do it on his own also. Of course he is only 2 and would get bored, but did so great. Ms Jen kept commenting on how great and cute he was :) I loved seeing him get it and he was so proud of himself when he did it all on his own. She worked with him for 45 min and it was pretty hard core since this was the first session and she wanted to see how he acted and learned. She even commented she was going pretty hard core to gauge his learning style and how he reacted. Like I said he did great the whole time, I had to remind Aryssa a couple times that this was his class and she needed to let him do things first before she "helped". We scheduled another session for next week at 9:30 am (gives him more time to wake up lol)
I think it was a little much for the first time though. Or that I need to let him take a break after before asking things of him. He was a little more emotional afterwards and when I would ask him to use his words he got upset at me and frustrated. I have to remember he is learning and not to push him too much. I also think he was getting frustrated when he didn't get the sound perfect. He would move his mouth but wouldn't always make the sound because he didn't want to be wrong. We would just encourage him and praise him when he tried anything!
I think after his classes I will make sure to have down time and alone time for him. Right now Aryssa is playing play dough and Carson is playing trucks in the living room by himself. Too much interaction this morning for him. Ms Jen said he is super smart and thinks he will do an amazing job as we continue.
It made me so proud watching his little mind work. I loved seeing his face when he "got it" or even tried. Melts a mom's heart.

Also yesterday Maycee turned 5 months!!! Where have the last 5 months gone?!?!?! Here is a cute pic of the newly 5 month old.

And a couple of the whole Krew... I have learned with 3 kids you just keep snapping and one should turn out :)

How blessed am I?!

Carson's appointment updates

So we had Carson's birth to 3 evaluation Thursday and it went well. It was like a pre-evaluation to see if he qualified for the program, and which areas he needed help in. He for sure is getting a speech evaluation done and some work with using utensils. He chooses not to use his fork or spoon so that is something we really need to work on. I should be getting a call this week to set up the "real" speech evaluation and then from there a course of treatment.  I am happy that we are going forward with the programs and am excited to watch Carson's speech grow! 

Friday we had Carson's audiology apportionment to test his hearing. It was fun just being alone with Carson for awhile. While we were waiting at the office carson was playing with my lock screen on my phone so I kept saying "where did Carson go?" And he started to copy me saying "goooo!" I was so proud of him! He also has been using "no" correctly around the house. Anyway back to the hearing test. Great news he passed! She did some tests and he has a little bit of negative pressure in his right ear. Normal is 0- (-)150 and Carson was (-)180. Horrible is (-)400. So just out of normal range. He is getting over a cold so the dr figured that was the reason he was slightly over. She was not concerned at all-- and neither was my cousin who just graduated and is an audiologist :) I'm so relieved his hearing is fine. I didn't think there was an issue, but with a family history you just can't be sure. So now we wait for the birth to three to call and get started on speech :) 

4 yr and 2 yr check ups

Today we had Aryssa and Carson's check ups. It went great. The nurse said Aryssa was able to get shots today and then be good until she was 11. So I talked with Aryssa to let her know, she was not excited about it but was ok with the fact she was going to get them. Onto stats!

Aryssa : 42 lbs 89% 

42 inches tall 89% 

Carson : 34 lbs 96%

35 inches tall 68% 

I was actually surprised with  Carson's. I thought his percentile for height would have been higher because he seems so tall but when you put his height and weight together he is at 75% so still a big solid boy. 

I am so proud of Aryssa and how far she has come. When she was born and they did percentile she was 3% or 5%, then she became tall but still low for weight. Finally when she was 15 months she made it to 82% and 61%. And now 89% for both! Amazing! She did pretty well with the shots, it was nice that she had seen me get some of mine while pregnant so I could explain that she was going to get 3 shots and yes they hurt but I will be right there for her. She cried but was able to calm down fast. She even got a little beanie baby monkey for the great job she did. She also got 2 stickers :) 

Carson has always been my big boy! From 2 months on he has been off the charts! First at 15 months he was only 94% and 92% everyone on Facebook laughed because I was excited he finally made it back on the charts lol. He seems taller than 68% but still that's above average. When you put his height and weight together he is about 75%. I talked to his dr about his talking also. I should say his lack of talking. Carson is the strong silent type.... Honestly he doesn't say much of anything. I know you are not supposed to compare kids, but aryssa was talking way more at this point. He doesn't put 2 words together and doesn't really say full words. For Elmo it is E, for Ernie (my parents dog) it is E, for Maycee it is E, aryssa is sysa, he says mama and dada but doesn't call for us with them. He will point to things excitedly but doesn't really repeat words after us. I should say he will repeat things, but won't always continue to use the word. I know he is smart he can do puzzles and can figure out problems easily but just doesn't have the communication skills. So we have an appointment set up with birth to 3 to evaluate his speech. I'm going to try and stay calm about it and pray away my fears. So if you have a second say a prayer for us :) 

So I just got a call also for carson to get a hearing test with the audiology dept at the hospital. His pediatrician wants his hearing checked to make sure he hears what he should and that there isn't an issue with hearing causing him to not understand correctly. 

So please pray if you have a second I don't think there is anything wrong with his hearing but I guess you just never know. 

So overall a great day. 

Happy birthday Carson!!!

Today my little man turns 2 ! 

You came screaming into this world at 8 lbs 10 oz of pure boy! 

Your personality is so sweet and innocent   

You are my little man that can make me smile no matter what my mood is. 

You are all boy! Trucks, tractors, climbing, balls, yet love to take care and kiss babies. 

As you grow you still look exactly like daddy! 

You love playing with daddy and just sitting on his lap. 

You can always be seen with your hippo! You have 3 but only one has just the right tag that you rub across your lips when you are tired or scared. You are mommy's little man and an amazing little and big brother! When your sisters get older you will be an amazing protector for them. I already see it in you. 

You have grown so much this year and when I look at you I don't see any baby anymore. You are a little man learning new things everyday. You are a strong silent type and only talk when you want to. We are working on words with you and you catch on quick when you want to. 

You are an amazing boy and I love you so much.