Trio Progression

August 2008

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November 2008

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July 2009

(and yes, I know, the older two are in the wrong spots,

don't get me started!) :o)

Jenna's 11 Months!

Can it be?!? Have we almost reached an entire year?!? I must say, it feels like quite the accomplishment! As ya'll know, Jenna has been quite the challenging baby. Anytime we meet someone new, Jacob says "Do you know her name? It's Jenna. She's a fuzzy baby." (aka: fussy) But even amidst her "fuzziness", the kids LOVE her to pieces! They are such a great brother and sister to her!
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This has been a month of growth for Jenna! Well just barely before her 11-month birthday, she finally decided to start crawling! AND she cut a couple more teeth! She has a whopping 4 teeth now, bring on the steak! ;-D Her new freedom has definitely helped her "fuzziness" issue! Being able to get herself to whatever toys she wants has been HUGE for her! Ahhhh, I love it :-) Of course along with this new found freedom comes other hurdles; choking hazards, chewed on computer cords, ten thousand pieces of napkins and kleenex all over the house, 3 times the mess to clean up, rug burned feetsies, and and and... But I tell ya, IT'S WORTH IT! Seeing that big smile on her face, less screaming, it's worth it!!!

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And what else are we super excited about?!? We are mere WEEKS away from never having to buy formula EVER AGAIN!!! Wahoo!!! I cannot tell you how excited we are about that! Nursing didn't work with her from day one, we tried and tried for at least a few weeks, to no avail, so we have bought MANY MANY MANY cans of formula, and my goodness is it expensive! We are SO ready to switch to milk! Ahhhh, what a cost savings that's going to be...not to mention it's another step of MOVING FORWARD! :-) Ahhhh, yes...

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All in all, we are so in love with "Baby Jenna", and are SO enjoying watching her grow! It's so fun watching her interact with her brother and sister, watching her big ol' diaper bootie swishing back & forth as she's crawling around the house (especially on the hardwoods! she works so hard, as her pudgy little hands slap against the hardwoods and her cute face has a look of utter determination to get to her destination!), the funny faces she makes, and she rocks her high chair like the best of them!

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So Happy 11 Month Birthday, Jenna! Next up, A FULL YEAR!!! Wow...

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Jenna's monthly growth picture next to her monkey

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Sweet Baby Jenna showing off her bottom teeth :-)

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So sweet...

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Standing against a chair, she's getting stronger!

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She sure is growing up!!!

Some Updates...

Well hello there! I sure haven't been blogging much lately :-) I update people a lot on Facebook and don't even think to blog very often, and when I do, I feel like I'm saying a bunch of things people already know! Anywho...enough of my nonsense rambling :-)
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Jacob's eye doctor appointment went well, very quickly actually. The doctor said that his eye is definitely turning in, and even turns in when wearing his glasses, but not as much so. So he's to wear his glasses for 2 months, then will be going back in for another appointment at which his eyes will be dilated and they'll do a more thorough exam. I don't know much more than that, to be continued... He's doing well wearing his glasses again, we're back to going in fairly regularly to get them adjusted over and over, argh...
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Juliana is doing SO well in dance class! She sure has come a long ways since she started back in September! It's been so fun watching her have fun in dance class, and even moreso, watching her dance at home!!! She closes her eyes and practically floats around the room! The funny thing is watching JACOB practice with her. If she isn't quite getting something right, then he goes "No no, I'll show you, it's like this..." and off he goes :-)
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I'm also happy to report that my weightloss is going well. Lost another 3.4 lbs last week, for a grand total of 17 lbs in the first 5 weeks. My goal is to hit my half-way point by my birthday (23 lbs to go to get there, in 4 months). I'm working very hard on this, I am SO motivated and SO excited!!! I've been working out every day, watching every little thing I put in my mouth, have been trying to be more active in general, and it's really paying off! I'm starting to notice the changes, both in my body in general, and also in how I feel, and I love that!!! I have so much more energy, feeling "tighter", and am finally getting back into some of my old clothes. Anywho, I'm getting there, still at least 63 lbs to go over all, but I'm getting there!!! YAY!
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Also, as for my bible reading, I'm definitely reading more often, but need to keep working towards making it a daily thing. I'm finally done with Mark and have started Luke. It's been really neat reading these books of the bible during the months between Christmas and Easter, it makes the "holidays" much more meaningful, brings them to life and helps me keep in mind the REAL "reason for the season".
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Let's see...anything else?!? Jenna finally learned how to roll over, at 9 months of age! She's also learned to wave Hi and Bye, and just started clapping this week :-) Big month of development for her!
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I hope this blog finds you well and that you have a great February! Who else has been enjoying this WONDERFUL WEATHER?!?!? We've walked to the park twice this week already and the kids have been playing outside a lot! LOVE IT!!!

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Where To Begin...

What a day... I knew I'd be blogging today, but I thought it'd just be over two things, Jenna's 9-month appointment and my weightloss update. Little did I know...

The day began with me working out bright and early, did the elliptical, sat on the floor to do my abs workout, Mouse walks up behind me, and while standing pees all over my back... (I still have not done my abs workout today) I took a shower, made a vet appointment for her, and tried to not hate her. She has always been our problem cat. Pees on things, poops on things, pukes on things, very tempermental, won't let anyone go near her (except me...if no one is around, or if it's dark and quiet). Needless to say, I'm frustrated with her.

Got the kids ready, put Jacob on the bus, then it was off to Jenna's 9-month well child check. Was thinking it would be an easy one (like the 9-month one normally is), but she had to have a shot they didn't have in stock at her 6-month appt, also her first flu shot, and of course once she's finally not screaming and is somewhat happy again, we had to venture downstairs to the lab to get her blood drawn for an iron test, more screaming, and she bled on me. So far I've been peed on by a cat and bled on by Jenna. Good day! ;-D

As for her appointment though, it went fairly well, she didn't scream until the doctor actually took her out of my hands...then Jenna stated her opinion! ;-) She's off the charts for both her height and weight - shocker, huh??? I don't have the papers in front of me so I can't say her length, but she weighed 23 lbs 4 oz. She's been doing well the rest of the day. Spit up all down my back, that was nice (like A LOT) (and I didn't know about it until Juliana told me).

Took Mouse in for her vet appointment. The vet was noticing how she crouches down and the way she moves and sits. She's thinking Mouse is getting to the point where she has arthritis in her back legs, can't move around like she used to be able to, so she can't squat to pee, instead needs to do it standing up. Anywho, they kept her overnight and are going to call me in the morning to see if she has a urinary tract infection, or if it's just age/arthritis, or behavioral, etc. The kids were NOT happy that we left her there. "We're leaving her here??? But I might miss her!" (on the way out to the car)-"I miss Mouse...can we go back and get her?" "Oh come on, you guys never even see her!!!!!" I had just already had a day, they weren't helping :-)

Then Jacob...but we'll save that for last. Then it was off to Weight Watchers to get the verdict on how much I lost over the last week. And the grand total is...(drum roll please)...6.4 lbs! For a total of 12.2 lbs over the last 3 weeks! YEEHAW! That sure brightened up my day!!! I have been working SO hard at it, I have been working out EVERY DAY, and watching every little thing I eat. The week before was only a 0.6-lb drop, which had annoyed me because I knew it wasn't accurate, it was just because I had gone out with the girls late the night before and that threw it all off. So really it was probably more like two 3-lb drops two weeks in a row. Yaddi yaddi yadda, just wanted to explain the big drop :-) So I was very happy about that, hit a mini-goal (12 lb mark) (my next mini-goal is 24 lbs). Went out to dinner with my mom afterwards, one of my FAVORITE things to do now! It's become our weekly date and it's so nice!!! I get to eat, like immediately! No taking care of three kids first, taking kids to the bathroom, getting a bottle made, any of that stuff, just get out my own food and EAT! And have full conversations with another adult (more importantly, MY MOM!). No interruptions, no "don't do that, no screaming, that's not good restaurant behavior, do you need to lose your privilege?, let me get napkins to clean that up..." It's wonderful! I can't even express!

Then off to worship practice (my other favorite thing of the week!). During prayer time at the end, I could feel myself winding down. I had a chance to process what had happened throughout the course of the crazy busy day and the most important thing - Jacob. And I cried... And then I cried again... And the whole way home... (I'm sure exhaustion has something to do with it!)

We've been noticing his eye going in just when he's looking at things really close up, like when he's holding something right in front of his face. But it's been like that for a while now and that has been the only time it goes in. Matt noticed yesterday that it seemed like maybe more than that. Then today after the vet appointment, I saw it...again...and again...and again...and not just when he's looking at something close up... He kept looking at things with his head cocked to the side too. I asked him if he was having a hard time seeing, he paused and said no. I asked if things were blurry, he again paused and said no. About 30 seconds later, he said "...yeah...things are blurry..." Oh how my heart breaks for him!!! I have to admit, I am so sad and so frustrated for him and even angry. Not at the doctor, we knew this very well could happen, it's very common. It was just going so well, and we were hoping, hoping, hoping that he'd be one of the lucky ones that didn't have to have the surgery redone. I don't want to look at that pasty white face at Children's again as he's coming out of his anesthetic, I don't want to see him have another reaction that causes his eyes to swell up out of his eyelid and turn orange again, I don't want to catch him in the bathroom staring at himself in shock at how he looks, and then crying because of it... Oh how my heart breaks for him... We called his eye doctor to see if we should be doing something until his appointment (which is a month away), and they want to see him sooner, so he has an appointment on Thursday. Please be praying, for God's will, for peace, for this very sad mommy not wanting to watch her son go through that again, but of course willing if it means he'll finally have this over and done with! I don't know if he'll have to do the whole process of glasses & patching it until it's stable again before they can perform the surgery. We'll see... I'm very anxious for Thursday.

Anywho, so there ya have it, Tuesday at the Earnhardts :-)

This-N-That!

It's been quite a while since I've posted a blog! I think I got a little blogged-out over the holidays, needed a break from it :-)

Jenna's 9 Months!

Jenna turned 9 months old day, YAY! She has her 9-month appointment on Tuesday, I'm sure I'll be blogging again after that with all her stats and stuff ;-) She's been pretty fussy last week, had an icky cold (which most people heard about on Facebook, she was center of attention at the school bus stop the other day). We think she's also getting ready to cut a couple teeth up top, so she's looking to be fussy for a while! Let's see...9 months old...she has rolled over one time, doesn't crawl, has two lonesome teeth...but she's cute as a button and is just taking her own sweet time on all those milestones! (as all our kids have)

Resolutions

I'm not big on making resolutions, I have more the mindset of "if you want to make a change, do it NOW, don't wait until a specific date!" That said, I do have two resolutions for this year :o)

#1 - To finally finish reading thru my bible! I technically have read the whole thing by now, but I'm trying to read it from cover to cover Life App wise. I started about 2 years ago, I read every verse and every life app note that corresponds, every bio, etc. Needless to say that takes a long time. HOWEVER I have also been slacking in that area ever since Jenna was born. SO I want this to be my year to finally finish! I am currently in the end of Mark. I'll get there!!!

#2 - To finally lose my insulation!!! Yes, it's very obvious that I need to lose weight. I've gone up and down, up and down, up and down, but never gone ALL the way down to where I'd like to be. Although I know that I most likely will not lose ALL 80+ lbs in this calendar year, this is my year to be serious about it and get as far as I possibly can! Even better yet, my mom & I are doing it together!!! She has been such a great support system and accountability partner for me! We've been working hard since Tuesday, December 30th. To date I've lost 9 lbs. I feel great about that and am SO motivated this time!!! Since then I've worked out all but two days, have been eating well, and already can feel a difference. I am SO excited about that!!!

There are so many reasons why I want to lose weight... My relationship with my husband, Matt. My kids, both to be a good example AND so I'll be here when they get married and have kids of their own! For myself, so I can feel good and comfortable in my own skin. So I can finally wear something other that workout pants and a t-shirt! For my confidence level, up on stage when I'm up with the worship team, when I'm just walking around in front of people, when I'm at my old work (which happens to be Matt's current work!), all the time! I'm tired of being the fat daughter, the fat sister, the fat friend, the fat mom, the fat worship team member, etc. I know that sounds harsh, but that is completely the way I view myself, and am SO ready to NOT be that person anymore!!! So as much as I hate to admit it to everyone else (because then I will be "watched" more closely), I have to shout it to the world that I want to work hard on this and finally SUCCEED, and by you all knowing, I'll be held all the more accountible and be all the more supported. So there ya have it!

Alrighty, that's about it! Oh yeah, and Matt & I kicked butt today at getting stuff done around our house! We went through so many boxes of baby clothes and various other items, dropped stuff off at Goodwill, listed a few things on Craigslist, put all our holiday boxes up in the rafters, SO many things we've been wanting to do! WAHOO!!! :-D I am sooooo excited about it!

OK, that's all :-) I hope you are all having a wonderful 2009!!!

Jenna's 9-month growth picture next to her monkey
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She wasn't cooperating very well...but she's so super cute!
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Still not cooperating...

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She's mobile in her own little way, turns and scoots a teensy bit :-)
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She is SO much cuter than me! But I'll be cuter soon!!! Watch out world!!! ;-D

Snow Gallore!

Man alive, it just keeps piling up and piling up, huh?!? It has been such a wonderful couple of weeks of snow!!! The kids went in the back yard to play in it for a long time today, I held Jenna for part of it, and put her inside for part of it (in and out, in and out, in and out I went) (she wasn't very happy I left her alone, but hey, I want to have fun with the older kids too!). Anywho, we love the snow, love it, love it!

Jacob loves hulahooping!
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Jacob's mega-sandwich!
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Jenna checkin' out the snow outside.
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Juliana being silly :-)
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Juliana trompin' through the thick snow!
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Jacob sliding down a snowy slide!
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She's so cute :-)
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Jenna checkin' out the snow from outside.
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Juliana swinging :-)
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Juliana eating the snow off the sliding glass door :o)
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The boys hard at work.
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Mommy enjoying the snow.
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Jack playing in the snow too.
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Juliana chasing me with a snowball!
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Jacob making a snowball.
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Happy siblings :-)

Tinkerbell Returns

Every now and then Juliana just HAS to put on her Tinkerbell costume (which I'm surprised even fits as she wore it 3 Halloweens ago!) (although I'll also add that it's a bit "thongy" on her nowadays). ;-) And also a picture of Jacob showing off his wiggly tooth, he shows us at least a few times every day!

This one is for you, Karen! ;-D

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Of course Juliana had to put the tiara on Jenna.
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She's so beautiful :-)
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Silly Sibblings :-) I'm glad they love each other so much!
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"I Love You, Gacob!!!"
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Jacob pulling his wiggly tooth forward for all to see!

(although the picture still doesn't do it justice,

getting closer, but it still has a while...)

Jenna's First Snow!!!

OK, so I have been LOVING watching the snow last night and this morning! It's not accumulating to much of course, but I have resolved to enjoy just merely watching it fall :-) Anywho, this is Jenna's first snow, so of course I had to get a picture of it!

McKinstry Winter Carnival

The kids meeting Santa for the first time in 2008!

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Jenna's first time meeting Santa EVER!
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Jenna getting her first face painting!

The lady did awesome, did it in like one second flat!
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YAY! Success!
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The Chow girls with their faces painted (I sure love my neices) :-)
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Juliana getting a candy cane on her arm.

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"You always catch me on camera under compromising circumstances, Denise!"

(my previous boss, Mari, she's so awesome) :-)
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Mari's Christmas Tree

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McKinstry provided Circus themed entertainment while we were eating dinner.
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A balancing act, they did great!
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McKinstry never ceases to amaze me with what they come up with next!
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Yet even MORE entertainment!
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She looks like a star :-)
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Jenna enjoyed the entertainment too, apparently!
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Jacob, Juliana and Gabe providing entertainment of their own!
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The boys chasing each other :-)
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Jacob finally decided to get a candy cane of his own.
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He sure is growin' up :-)