It has been a month since I posted last

Sorry it has been so long since I last posted. Where do I begin?

Kinslee is FIVE months old now and growing like a weed.
She has her two bottom teeth that have broken the skin.
She is no longer having her screaming/tummy problems.
She is no longer on any meds for her tummy either.

She is eating babyfood veggies and fruits and LOVES THEM ALL!
She loves her walker and can get all over the house just fine.
She also loves her jumper that hangs in the doorway.

I truly believe she will be walking before long.
Not sure if she will ever crawl...she may just skip that step.

We had a new addition to our "family" on April 16th...Carson Taylor Widener.
He and Kinslee are going to have lots of fun together over the next few years as
they grow up together.
They had their first "date" last week. She looks huge compared to him!

We had our first Easter and First Mother's Day with our Sweet little Girl.
My little sister graduated from UGA this past weekend, so Kinslee had her first trip to Sanford Stadium.

She is growing so fast but is so much fun!

April is Here!

April is here and I love how pretty Augusta gets this time of year!
Masters Week is starting in just two days and the town never looks better than when all golfing eyes are on Augusta, Georgia.

We have had a lot of fun this past week. My best friend, Michelle Bowen Popham came to visit us on Monday and Tuesday. This was Kinslee's first time meeting mommy's college roommate. We had such a good time catching up on old news, new news, and life as it has changed for both of us drastically in the last year. She got married last March and has had an exciting year, with a job change and moving. As you are all aware, Kinslee has changed our lives forever and it is so worth it.

She has been having a rough time the past week. She has been extremely irritable and just screams. I finally broke down and called the doctor last Tuesday because I thought I was going to lose it mentally. She had cried for two days straight and nothing I was doing was working for her. Dr. Hanna wanted to see her Tuesday afternoon so I took her in. She did one of her melt downs while we were there thank goodness...at least he got to see what I was talking about and wouldnt think I was just a crazy new mom. He said he was not sure what was wrong with her and gave no suggestions. He had his nurse call the next day to check on her and she was the same. Just very fussy, not sleeping, and not HERSELF!! They decided to call in Zantac to the pharmacy because he thinks it may be reflux. So I started her on that Wednesday night and we will see how it goes.

She goes Next Tuesday for her shots so if it is not better by then we will have to try something else.
Keep your fingers crossed that she starts feeling better and this works!

Sorry...It's been almost a month since I posted

This past month has flown by!
Kinslee turns four months old this Wednesday.
My little girl is growing fast.
She can just about sit up with some assistance.
She smiles all the time.
She has discovered her hands.
She is drooling like crazy.
I am pretty sure she is starting to teeth...lots of low grade fevers.

She went and had her three month pictures done by a different photographer
and we loved the pictures. She did a great job working with Kinslee
and getting her to smile.

We go back again this week for some four month pictures with the LIVE easter bunnies.
I can't wait to see what she does with them.

We had a couple's shower this past weekend for our BESTEST friends JC and Becky Widener, who are expecting their little Carson anytime now but he is actually due April 18th.
They got lots of goodies and we had a great time visiting with friends who we just don't see often enough.
It is so strange how as you grow older you grow in different ways than your friends.
We are truly blessed to have such a good group of friends who get together as often as we do.

I can't believe it is already Spring...Summer and the swimming pool are right around the corner. I can't wait to see how Kinslee does in the pool. She is loving bathtime so I am keeping my fingers crossed that she loves the pool too!

One more month and Mark and I get to go see HIS favorite...Dave Matthews in Atlanta.
Two More months and we get to go see MY FAVORITE...Kenny Chesney and Lady Antebellum in Maryland with Jennifer, Sean, Logan, Brycen, Savannah, mom, and KINSLEE. HER FIRST CONCERT WILL BE KENNY CHESNEY AT 6 MONTHS OLD!

Kinslee's 3 month photo shoot

I had all intentions of using Fitz Symms for Kinslee's photographs but after her short little life here on earth they have made me a little mad.
Let's just say...they are very unorganized!

So...I took her to Michelle Ashe who is out of Thomson. She is actually who I had wanted to use for our Wedding but she was already booked.
She is so fun and energetic!

Kinslee really made her work today though. She was being so stingy with her precious little smiles.

We took some in just her little diaper covers laying on a real pretty piece of formal fabric. She did some on her back and some on her tummy. Miss Kinslee was not too content on her tummy. Michelle kept trying to cross her little feet but Kinslee was way to active. She was trying to walk away. Needless to say if she keeps it up she will be a great little swimmer...she was steadily kicking her little legs.

We also did some more formal pictures in the dress that my mom made her for her baby dedication shown above. It is gorgeous! It is a long white dress with lots of simple smocking, lace and ribbons. Michelle put Kinslee on this couch like piece of furniture so that the dress could hang off and show the detail. GORGEOUS!!! She got a little sleepy towards the end so we turned her over on her tummy and placed her little head on the armrest. SO SWEET!!! I can't wait to see the proofs in about two weeks!

The first of March

Can you believe it is already March?
Crazy weather always happens in late February early March.
We live in such a crazy place...not even a drop of snow, yet school was cancelled today!

This past weekend I had to work three days straight and it stunk!
Work was slow so that made the time go by even slower...TICK....TOCK

Working in a children's hospital is bittersweet.
It makes me go home everyday and kiss my little girl and thank God for her health.

I can't imagine what some of these families go through.
The pain.
The stress.
The unknown.
The heartache.
The questioning of their faith.
The feeling of loss.
The sadness of holding your child for the FIRST time...after you have stopped all medical support.

I am so thankful for a healthy baby.
Her sweet little hands.
Her long little toes.
Her tiny little ears.
Her cute little rolls on her inner thigh.
Her unique little personality.
Her trust in me to take perfect care of her each and every day.
I love her so much and trust God to guide me in how to raise her to be a Christian little girl.

I love my job and yes it is rewarding but often times sad. As you can probably tell we lost a baby this weekend after 22 days. I was only there for part of the time but I can only imagine the pain and heartache that the parents and family must be feeling. My Prayers are with them today, tomorrow, and always.

I found it really ironic that after the loss yesterday I get home to watch Home Makeover and it was about a lady who does photography of premature babies. This is such a trying time for these families and she does this so that they have memories that they can hold on to for a lifetime whether the child makes it or not. I can not imagine what these families go through but through her generosity she helps capture the smallest little babies pictures for their families.

Everyone has such a sweet and special place in this world and how anyone can not believe in GOD I just don't know.

We went shopping today!

So Kinslee and I ran a few errands this morning.
We went Birthday shopping for my mom and got her the best present!
She is going to be so surprise!
We went to the mall just to look around and left empty handed.

We were going to meet daddy for lunch at 1130 but then he called and said to come at 1200...so we had to waste a little time.

That is when we found this super cute little froofroo (however you spell it) outfit at Surcie's.
This is one of my favorite little stores here in Augusta.

We had lunch with daddy, did a little more running around and then headed home.

I posted the picture of the little outfit. I can't wait for it to get warm enough for her to wear it!

Kinslee turns 12 weeks today

12 weeks ago...
I was sitting in a hospital bed.
Waiting patiently.
Wondering when my little girl was going to get here.
Was I going to have her naturally or were we going to have to do a C-section.
What color hair would she have?
How much hair would she have?
Who would she look like?
How painful would the birthing process be?
Would my wonderful husband make it through the delivery?
Could I possibly love someone instantaneously?


16 hours passed and she was finally born at 10:24pm.
I had her naturally but they had the C-section forms sitting at my bedside ready to be signed just in case.

She came out screaming!
She was absolutely beautiful!
10 little fingers, 10 little toes, perfectly pink lips!
Yes, I could love someone so much in a matter of seconds!
She had some hair but not TOO much!
She had my little nose, her daddy's chin, and she was GORGEOUS!
The first little kiss I will never forget!
The way she looked at me like she had known me forever!
Words can not describe the emotions that you feel the first time you hold your baby!

It is hard to believe that just 12 weeks ago she was inside of me and so many thoughts were running through my head.
She is an absolute blessing!
I say my prayers with her every night and thank GOD for a healthy and beautiful little girl!

After going back to work and working with sick children I am truly blessed to have such a healthy little girl. She is absolutely perfect! I can't believe three months have already passed. She is growing and changing so much each and every day. She is now sleeping 6-8 hours a night! I do kind of miss waking up with her and rocking her back to sleep. She is such a sweetheart and we LOVE HER SO MUCH! I can not imagine our lives without her.

Kinslee is 11 weeks old!

Kinslee turned 11 weeks on Wednesday.
It seems like just yesterday she was still inside of me.
She is changing everyday.
Smiling.
Cooing.
Trying to sit up.
She "stands" up according to her daddy.
Sleeping in her bed (well most of the night).
Going to daycare like a BIG girl!
Sleeping about 6-7 hours at night.

My little girl is getting too big too fast.
This week was rough on me because I worked Wednesday
and Thursday. When I got home both nights she was
already asleep. It is really tough not getting to see
her for 13 hours and then for her to be asleep when I get
home really stinks! I thought I would try and wake
her Wednesday night to eat but she slept through the entire bottle.
Then last night she was asleep in her bed and did not wake up
until around midnight. I miss her so much!
Her cute little smile that lights up her entire face.
Her crinkly little nose.
I am so thankful to only work three days a week though.
I do not think I could do a Mon-Fri job.
I would never see her!
I hope we have a good weekend and we will start it all over again on Monday.

First Weekend of Work

So this weekend was my first two days away from Kinslee for longer than just a few hours at a time. Saturday was really tough because she was asleep when I left for work and I put her down for the night about an hour after I got home. It was really tough not getting to see her for longer than an hour. Saturday night she was having a rough time staying asleep so around 230am I went and got her out of her bed and put her in bed with me. I was all for her sleeping with/on me since I had not seen her but a few minutes today. Sunday was a little better because she woke up before I left and stayed awake a little longer when I got home. She actually seemed to know that I was at home and wanted to stay awake so she could see me. I can't wait for her to get super excited when I get home from work.

Sunday at work Kind of hit home though. We had a two week old come in through the ER that the mother had fed and layed down to sleep. When she went back four hours later to check on the baby he was not breathing and had blood coming out of his nose. I can not imagine what went through that mothers mind! As I was standing in the room with her I felt tears coming to my eyes because it could have happened to me. Working in a children's hospital is such a blessing but once you have a child of your own things really hit home! I can not imagine the hurt and pain she is experiencing and the guilt she must feel. I can only pray for her and her family and pray that Kinslee stays healthy and happy!

Today Mark, Kinslee, and myself just hung out at the house. Mark did a little yard work while I tried to take Kinslee for a stroll. I bought a "used" jogging stroller last week because I want to start running again. Kinslee and I went up to the neighborhood track while Mark worked in the yard but she screamed from our house and through the first two laps so needless to say that is all the running I got to do. I came home and finally got Kinslee to take a nap until it was time to go meet Uncle JC and Aunt Becky for dinner. We are supper excited that baby Carson will be here in approximately 2 months! I can't wait for our little ones to become best friends. They will have no choice since their parents are! We are supper excited for JC and Becky and can't wait to meet little Carson!

Taking a nice little Stroll with my little girl...

It has been a great week for Kinslee and myself. We have had ALOT of bonding time and I love spending my days with her. She is changing each and every day! This week I made her a promise to try and go for a walk through the neighborhood everyday. She loves to be outside! I am hoping this is a good sign that she will love the swimming pool at Grandma and Grandpa's house this summer too! As you can see in the pictures she LOVES her sunglasses! We made several walks this week but today of all days we did not but we did go sit out on the back porch and rock for a little while and let the doggie's come and get to know her a little better. Gage our Golden Retriever is really interested in her. He comes up and smells her, licks her, and tries to steal her pacifier. I really wish he didn't shed so bad because he would make a great watch dog of her in the house.

Today Kinslee has been a bit fussy but I truly believe she KNOWS that mommy has to go to work for the next two days. It may sound crazy but she has been extremely clingy today for some reason. I am sure it is just my imagination but I hope not. I hope she misses me while I am gone. I can't wait for her to get a little older so that she gets super excited when I get home from work! I can't wait for the day when she is old enough to come running to the back door when mommy gets home from a long day at work and gives me a big hug. However, I don't want to rush the baby days. They are so much fun! Yes, it is hard work and can be frustrating at times but I love holding her and I know she will soon out grow that.

Well, she has gone to sleep for the night (well until she wakes up again) so I am going to try and get a little rest myself! I hope everyone has a wonderful Valentine's Day. I personally am Blessed with the BEST husband and Daughter in the world!

First Day Back at Work

So today was my first official/unofficial day back at work after 10 weeks of maternity leave. I cried last night and this morning and was joking around that I did not want to go back...I guess God heard me because I was at work about two and a half hours and I passed out. Yeah, I PASSED OUT!!!! No it wasn't in the silence of a back hall, I was right by the nurses station. Two nurses and two doctors were right at my side immediately. They called my supervisor and I was wheeled to the Emergency Room to be checked out. If it would have been up to me I would have just sat there a minute and gone back to work but instead I spent from 915am-4pm in the Emergency Room. You would think an employee would have some kind of perks to be pushed to the front of the line...not happening! After sitting there all day with no food I can promise you my blood sugar was extremely low.

Mark lucked out on his first day of daddy daycare and instead had to sit in the ER with me while my mom was at home with Kinslee. I guess he can try again this weekend when I officially go back to work at MCG.

I told Mark that Kinslee prayed last night and asked that her mommy not have to go back to work and this was God's way of getting me back home to her faster! Hopefully this will not happen again and now I know I must EAT BREAKFAST so my blood sugar doesn't bottom out and resulting in me hitting the floor and just about breaking my knee cap.

Kinslee's First Shots

So today I had to take Kinslee to get her first shots at Dr. Hanna's office. I was a little worried about her but more myself! I hate to see her in pain and the worst part is there is nothing you can do. I kept telling myself that it was for her good but I was really worried about how she would react.
1. I can't believe she will be 9 weeks old tomorrow
2. She weighed 11lbs 5oz today! I guess she is eating and growing just fine since her birth weight was 7lbs 11oz.
3. She also had grown in length from 20.5in to 23.25in


She did better with the shots than I thought she would. They gave her an oral "vaccine" first and then three shots. One reason I chose them as her pediatrician is because they use Pediarix which combines some shots so that it is less sticks for my little girl. She screamed while the nurse held her down and gave them to her but as soon as I could pick her up she was fine. I did better than I thought too! NO TEARS! I did talk my mom into going with me since Mark had to work for back up support in case I was unable to perform.

She has been a little sleepy and cranky today but poor baby got stuck three times! As we speak she is sleeping soundly in her crib so cross your fingers she stays there for the night!

Kinslee's First Visit to Aunt Allison's House in Virginia

This past weekend we took a rode trip to visit Mark's sister and her family in Hampton, Virginia. Kinslee has become a professional traveller already at her young age of only 8 weeks. We had a great visit with them and had so much fun watching Hadley and Kinslee enteract. Hadley is 13 months old and was really unsure of the baby at first but by the time we left she was wanting to hold her. She would get a little jealous everytime that Allison or my mother in law would hold Kinslee because she wanted to be held too. We had a good visit it just stinks that they live so far away! It took about 8 hours to get there but with my husband driving it seems like we could have gotten there faster! (that is if he wouldn't have gotten pulled over for speeding in South Carolina) I think just about everytime we go on a road trip he gets pulled over but thank goodness he is a COP because he always manages to get out of them! I wish I had that luxury...I keep telling him I am going to borrow his uniform and go have my driver's license picture taken so that they all think I am a cop too!

But back to our visit. We went out to dinner a few times, went to a birthday party for one of their cousins and visited with Tre's family as well. Kinslee racked up on new/hand me downs from Hadley too while we were there. The girl is set for the next year when it comes to clothes. We are so lucky that the two girls are on the same size schedule since they both were born in December just a year apart! I have to take the time to go through the boxes but for now they are just sitting in the den staring me in the face to go through them.

We got home Sunday night just in time to watch the Super Bowl and give Miss Kinslee a bath. She is such a good rider. She only gets fussy when she is hungry or dirty. I am so lucky to have a good traveller and shopper because that is what we like to do!

Trial Run at the "Daycare" (aka my aunts house)

So today I have somewhere to be at 2:15 so I thought it would be a good day to let Kinslee "try" out the daycare. It's not like she is going to have a choice about going because I go back to work in 17 days! I really need to come up with a way to be a stay at home mom so that the two of us could hang out everyday together! That way I will not miss any of her new tricks that she will have over the next few months and years!
I got her dressed this morning and packed what seemed like her whole room to take to my Aunt Diane's house. (she keeps about 5 other children in her home). The picture below shows what we both looked like by the time I left her there. She was being fed so she was happy but mommy cried all the way back to Augusta. I don't know how I am going to be away from her for 13 hours a day when I have to go back to work. I know she will be taken good care of by my aunt and that is the main reason we are making the sacrifice to drive her to Thomson each day that we need a sitter. I really struggle with the idea of her having to go to a real daycare center and me not personally knowing who is taking care of my child. SO HOPEFULLY THIS WILL WORK OUT FINE!! and did I mention it is FREE!!!! I am truly blessed to have so much family close by who are willing to help out. I can not imagine living far away and having to do this all alone with no one to come and give us a break once in a while.

Naptime stinks!

Today I decided that it was time to break little miss kinslee of being held ALL day long since she has to go to my aunt's on Wednesday for a few hours. She has to start going next week on a regular basis to get her ready for when I go back to work in two weeks.

I feel so sorry for my aunt who is kind enough to keep her for us along with a few other kids in her home. She has a "daycare" if you want to call it that in her house. She keeps 3 kids plus my little cousin so that she can stay home with her girls. Needless to say, I am extremely thankful that I have a family member that can keep Kinslee on the days that Mark and I have to work. I hope she never has to do a real daycare but you never know....but I am keeping my fingers crossed. With her being so little I am terrified of her getting sick. I guess I worry so much because I work in the Children's Hospital where I see perfectly healthy babies end up so sick from RSV, stomach bugs, and much more. I pray everyday that she remains healthy. I also and happy my aunt can keep her because I KNOW she will take good care of her!!

Today I tried several different methods on getting Kinslee to fall asleep on her own in her bed. I started out by feeding her, laying her in her swing to watch BABY EINSTEIN (these are great!), and once she started looking sleepy I took her to her room and layed her down. It lasted about 15 minutes with not a peep from her but then the hollering began. I looked at my watch and it was 2:15. I let her cry for 15 minutes and then went in to pat her and let her know it was okay. She continued to scream. So....I got the ipod and its dock and put it in her room because she always sleeps when there is alot of noise. So, for her daddy and put the ipod on Dave Matthews and walked away. At 2:40 she was still crying. At this point I tried my favorite, Kenny Chesney. She was still crying. At 3:00 I went in there and put her on her belly and rubbed her back. At 3:15 she was FINALLY asleep and I was crying! It is so hard to watch/listen to your baby cry when you know all you have to do is pick them up and it will stop. I am trying so hard to break her of sleeping with us and being held all the time. Several friends say by the end of the week she should be broken of it...Keep your fingers crossed 'cause I am going to keep trying until we Succeed.

Bless all the mothers out there who have had to go through this and for all you soon to be mothers who will!

Trip to Athens

This morning mom and I (kinslee of course too) took a rode trip to athens to deliver a few things to my sister but the REAL reason we went was to go to the Elephant Trunk. For those of you not familiar...this store has been around since I was a little girl. Back before my mom learned to sew and smock this is where she got a lot of my little dresses. I am now lucky in the fact that she can make anything I want her to and does it for free. I just usually have to provide the materials and the idea to get her in the "mood" to smock.
Back to my story about the Elephant Trunk...they have the cutest smocked clothing for little girls and boys. Timeless outfits! We rode up a few weeks ago to see if they were having an after Christmas sale ( it is a little pricey but so worth it according to my mom since she knows how much it costs and the labor put into making clothes) and they were closed until after the first of the year. Every year around MLK day they have a 50% off sale to get rid of the winter clothes. Lets just say Kinslee got two adorable dresses for when she can wear 12mos and she also got two dresses for now. Absolutely Adorable. I also got her a pair of white shoes and two pairs of "churchy" socks. If you have never been it is so worth the drive. (It is off Baxter down from Clark Central High School on the left for those of you familiar with Athens. OH! and if you need a riding partner let us know!)

I love this time of night when Kinslee and her daddy are sitting together trying to go to sleep (Both of Them). It is so sweet to watch him with her. She has him wrapped around her little finger and there is nothing sweeter than a little girl and her daddy. I bought her the cutest little sign to go in her room long before we knew if she was "for sure" going to be a little girl. It says " My heart belongs to Daddy." So appropriate for a little girl.
I had to explain to him that when she first got here and now she wants her mommy but there will come a day when the only person she wants is her DADDY. I tell him to be patient, because it will get here soon enough! He is doing so good with her. It is so sweet to watch the love of your life interacting with a little baby that the two of you made together.

Good night!

7 weeks and growing up too fast!

here is my sweet little baby girl, growing up so fast and learning so many new things each and every day. She has such a sweet smile and dimples on both cheeks! It is so hard to even think about having to go back to work in just two and a half weeks. She will be 9 1/2 weeks when I go back to work and let me tell you I know I will cry that first time I have to leave her for 12 whole hours.
I am so afraid I will miss all the little "Firsts" that she will have. I do have to admit, I am lucky that my job only requires me to work three days a week but those 36 hours away from her are giong to seem like enternity.
Today we just took it easy. I am trying to convince Miss Kinslee that her cribs is not such a bad place after all. Mark and I aren't quite sure where she gets the fighting sleep from (even though as a baby I acted the same way.) I am able to sit here and type right now because she actually went down for a nap in her bed about 45 minutes ago. Typing with one hand is extremely difficult but I am learning very quickly how to do many things with just one hand. It is so hard to just lay her down in her bed and let her cry because she is so content in our arms. I am trying to do what all of those parenting experts out there say but man does it pull on your heart strings! I hope everyone has a great weekend and know that we will be having lots of fun with miss kinslee.

Well, last night Kinslee slept in her crib from 930pm-130am without a peep. Once she woke up to eat we tried to lay her back down in the crib but for one hour she kept on crying off and on so I finally gave up and put her in the bed with us. I really think once she stops waking up to eat she will be just fine in her own bed.
Today was a busy day. We went to Thomson to pick up a piece of antique furniture that my grandmother bought for me. It is really pretty and I can't wait to get a picture on here for everyone to see. After we picked up the furniture we went by Mema's office so that she could see Kinslee and show her off to all of her employees. She is such a PROUD GREAT GRANDMA. She is trying to convince Kinslee that her first word is going to be "Mema".
We also went over to my inlaws house for dinner and so that they could visit with Kinslee. She is changing so much each day everyone wants to see her as much as possible so they don't miss out on any of her new moves. Right now she is able to coo and smile. She is also really strong...she holds her head up really good and tries to roll over already! She is such a big girl for only 7 weeks old.

Welcome to the blogging world! I thought this would be a good way to keep out of town family up to date on little Miss Kinslee. Can you believe that she is 7 weeks old today? Crazy that just a few weeks ago I was in the hospital getting ready to have her after a 16 hour day. Crazy to think that just 7 weeks ago we brought her home for the first time...scared to death! Crazy to think that she has been home with us for the last month and a half and we are all still alive...a little sleep deprived at times but over all it has been a blur/blast.
This past weekend she went on her first rode trip to visit Great Aunt Jennifer, Logan, Brycen, and Great Uncle Sean in Maryland. She handled the 10 hour rode trip (such a little trooper she is). She got to see her first snow while we were up there visiting! She has had so many "firsts" in her short time here on earth. She has had a Christmas, been shopping ALOT, gone to two movies (marley and me/hotel for dogs), driven through six states and much more. She is such a beautiful and healthy little girl.
I have to sit back and thank God for her being so healthy. I think about all those poor little children I take care of at work each and everyday that are not as lucky and blessed as her. The struggles they face at such a young and vulnerable age. I say my prayers every night with Kinslee and thank God for her and for our families health.
I will keep the posts coming. God Bless and Good night!