24 Week-ers

My plan was to post this yesterday on their actual 24 Week Birthday ;) but like everything is my life...it didn't work out that way so here we are!

Jaxon & Layla are 24 weeks old...Almost 6 months where is the heck did the time go??

They are at such a fun age right now...They both sleep a good majority of the night (getting up only to take a bottle every so often) but they wake up so happy!  Layla is at the stage when she wakes up it isn't a hysterical "Get me the hell out of here" cry...now she babbles to herself in her crib.

Jaxon is such a happy boy also - he looks at you, flashes that tooth-less grin and deep dimples and a person can not help but melt!

They are rolling over like crazy - I witnessed their first sibling brawl yesterday...They were both laying on a blanket on the floor...Jaxon was babbling to me kicking and waving his arms...until Layla rolled over like a woman with a mission...rolled right up to Jax grabbed his cheek and squeezed like she was holding on for dear life!

Jaxon cried, Layla Laughed out loud ............I realized right then and their I will have my hands full with that girl!

Every day gets a little easier and a lot more fun!

Also just thought I'd say Congratulations to  Cassie , Josh & Stella Walter on the birth of their Beautiful Baby Boy Henry! 

Weekend Recap

Now that the school year is back in full swing  - weekends seem to fly by faster then ever!  This weekend was full of things to do I almost feel I need a weekend from my weekend gheeesh!

Friday after school and practice we ate supper at Gma J's and hung out for the evening listening to the SHS football game on the radio - we turned it off after the first half and Im thinking I'm glad we did.  At bedtime Gma J & Papa asked if they could have a sleep over with J & L to give me a little break!  In no time I was giving them kisses and running out the door! heading for home.  I never realized how much I miss sleeping COMPLETELY through the night - I couldn't enjoy sleeping in because I was up bright and early headed to the Conference volleyball tournament in Herrin.  Bus time 6:45AM ahhh

The girls did better than expected in the tournament and ended up in the championship pool - On the day we finished 3rd!

The babies gave mommy and daddy a wonderful gift Saturday night as they slept FOREVER 9p-7a!  I woke up at 7 to Layla giggling to herself in the monitor!  I let her go for a bit but when she got really  loud I was afraid she would wake Jaxon up!   That is a sound I could wake up to all the time!

We had a busy Sunday planned Gma Pat's Birthday was Saturday but we celebrated with Lunch on Sunday.  After the birthday party we headed to Coulterville for a baby shower.  Kendra & Brandon's baby boy with be wearing camo until he can drive I do believe! 

After the shower it was time.......We picked up Stephen and headed to Fairview Heights.  It was ear piercing time for Layla~ She did great and as of Today (Tuesday) she has not messed/pulled or fussed about them! I think we might be in the clear!!

Have a good day all - Enjoy the weather because I think it is going to be a hot next couple of days!

Brave Little Girl

We did it - I have been begging wanting to get Layla's ears pierced since our Destin vacation and finally we did it!

We took Layla and Jax to the mall Sunday afternoon and in about 5 seconds and a few tears it was over!  She did amazing.  The lady at Claires pierced one ear at a time which I was a little upset about.  It seemed to double the pain for her but Layla was finished crying before we left the store!  SUCCESS!

Getting ready....Mommy was more nervous

Here is the final result!

 Love it!



Results -

We're back from the Dr. Drumroll please...................

Since last month I've lost 15 lbs!! Im super pumped and determined to keep it up!  Mom lost 7 which was great as well!  After the Dr. we headed over to Davids Bridal and I ordered the bridesmaids dress for Kellys wedding  - it is so cute I just need to continue to drop the LBS so it will look cute on!

Have a good weekend! 

Weight Check Friday

Today is the day - Its my first official weight check at Dr. Keele's office...We started this program a few months ago and last month was the jumping off point.  I have been fairly strict on my 1000 calorie diet and have not been to the Dairy Queen ONCE!  For this girl that is an accomplishment!  We will see what the scale says - it might be a reason to celebrate..............with a hot fudge sundae ha Hey a girls got to cheat every once and awhile!

I will let you know after the appt how it went...My goal was to lose 10 lbs but if I lost anything thats a start right??

We shall see -

Enjoy the weather its beautiful outside this morning!!

Holy Hotness!

Well first off can you believe the weather outside?  For the first time since I've been a teacher we are keeping kids inside in the AC for PE because it is BRUTAL!  Really 97 degrees at lunchtime ahhhhhhhhhh I'm ready for jeans and hoodie weather!

Enough complaining - A little update on the VB game last night.  My JV team won! For the first game of the year I have no complaints about how they played.  Everyone played well minus a few hiccups but we will blame that on first game jitters.

I better get going - stay out of the heat!...

Wedding Shopping

Wow this last week has been a crazy one!  With the start of school, volleyball and life's general day to day task I must say Blogging has sadly taken a back seat!  Now that things are falling into routine again I might find time to fill all my readers in on whats up with the Miles4.

Kelly & Ben's wedding is getting closer with each passing day!  We are down less then 2 months!! We are so excited  - this weekend we took J&L to get their wedding wardrobe and I think we did pretty well!!

I know Im somewhat bias but these are 2 pretty cute kids!

Aside from our shopping adventure - this weekend was pretty low key as it was Stephen weekend to work. 
Things officially start to pick up again tonight, it is the first Volleyball game of the season on the road at Wesclin.  Its my first test of being a coach & mom - I have all the confidence in the world stephen will get them fed, baths and bed! All I have to say to him is Good Luck!!

Until Next time  - take care and stay out of the heat!

Back in the swing of things....Sort of~

I have been MIA on blogger lately I'm sorry - I have been crazy busy with the start of school, volleyball not to mention living the past few days with 2 teething babies aghhh.  School started for teachers Monday, kids came to school for a 1/2 day Tuesday and today was D-Day...The first full day of the 2011-2012 School year.  It is always nice to see the kids after the Summer vacation - and with my maternity leave last spring...I had been off since MARCH!

I'm sure some of you are wondering how I did leaving the babies...Well I had a bit of a breakdown Sunday night but Stephen reminded me they will only be 2 blocks away and I can come home every day at lunch to see them!!  It also makes things much better to know they are in great hands part time with Stephen and the other time with Gma J & Papa R.

We are 3 days in and our routine and the babies are settling in pretty well!

Jaxon & Layla have started teething and let me be the first to tell you it is brutal on them!  But it isn't the best situation for momma either - Sunday night Jax was up almost every 30 min. (translation = Mommy was up every 30 min)  Monday night was a bit better...only up every 2-3hours...and last night Hallelujah - last night they both slept 9:30ish PM - 6:00AM!! PTL for a full night sleep for all of us!

Im hoping we are back on the sleep thru the night train because I am not a fan of being up all night AND going to work all day NO FUN!

well it is time to start our bedtime routine ...Stephen is off work tonight so he is helping out with everything and it is sooo nice to have an extra set of hands.

Enjoy the weather - Its beautiful outside these days!!

Back to reality!

Well we're back - mostly unpacked - and ready to start the juggling act we plan to call "Operation Mommy back to work."  Yes the time has come, after 5 months it is time for school to start!  We started HS volleyball practice yesterday and that officially brings my summer vacation to a close.  

Now a few things about the babies - Jax has hit teething full steam ahead...I can only hope it gets better but I know in reality we have a long road ahead of us.  PTL my mom and dad were here last night (they are staying at our house while their house is being rented out by shooters)  Stephen had to work and Jaxon was up every 15-20min. crying about his teeth.   He slept in my room  while mom got up with Layla a few times.  Needless to say I'm exhausted and hope the kid sleeps a bit better tonight!  

I know I know pretty boring post but thats all I got - Im headed to VB practice 

take care and enjoy the weather its Beautiful 

*I lOvE fall weather - this sneak peak we have been having with the weather makes me think of all that is fall

 - Fall smells, sights and sounds!"

Vacation Continued!

The vacation is coming to an end...Today is our last day on the beach - We will be going home and its back to reality...I have been off work for close to 5 months and Im starting to think it will be a good thing to get back into the swing of things!  Although I will miss J&L like crazy! Ahhh lets focus on the present instead of the future!

We went out to eat yesterday and headed back to the Outlet mall for a little Carter baby clothes shopping!  After we got back to the Jetty we took a few family pictures at Sunset!

to be continued............

Vacation Continued!

We have been swimming, eating, tanning and shopping the last few days!  The babies are continuing to love their first trip to the beach - Which makes me one happy momma!!

Here are a few pics of the trip so far - 

Yesterday we had a pretty lazy morning/afternoon - We decided to keep the babies inside for the majority of the afternoon.  Stephens cousin Ben & Jessie came over from their vacation in Gulf Shores to visit with us and go for a swim with the babies!!

After supper we headed out to Destin Commons yet another shopping mall ;)  Stephen wanted to hit up Bass Pro Shop - 

Another good night for J & L as they were in bed around 10 and woke around 7:30am!

On the way down to Destin I got a text message from Nicolette Kordys telling me about a amazing Beach Themed Art Project - She found it on Tori Spellings Twitter acct. 

Check it out  http://www.torispelling.com/cat/craft

It was a perfect way to capture J & L's first footprints in the sand!!  We didn't do it directly at the beach because I didn't want to wait an hour for the prints to dry - We brought sand in buckets up to the condo and did the little project out on the balcony.  

We wet sand a little bit - smooched their little pigglets in the sand and filled it with the cement from an "at home stepping stone kit" 

I wanted to be like Tori and have the option to hang the foot/hand prints on the wall above their cribs so we took stirng ....Well I didn't have actual string but I did have 2 shirts that had those annoying strings in them for hanger purposes...Who really uses them anyway SO I cut them out and set them in the heel of the footprint!  

Here are a few pictures of the process.  We started with feet and will do hands later on this evening!..... Tell me what you think!

 And it begins - Layla hates stuff in between his toes it was sooo funny!

 Layla's feet

 Jaxons feet

 Stepping stone I made with shells!

Waiting for them to dry!

Well I'm headed out to the pool! Will post more later!!

Destin - Day #2

I finally found my camera cord so I added some pictures from Day 1 of our Vacation - 

Today we had a great day - Babies woke up well rested from a FULL NIGHTS SLEEP!  Happy Babies/Happy Mommy!!

It rained a bit this morning but turned out being a good ocean/pool day.  We all headed down after lunch - j&l swam in the pool with Gma & Momma until they zonked out and took a decent nap.

Stephen relieved me from babysitting duties so I could head out and attempt to catch a tan - After tanning floating in the ocean a bit Katie, Gpa, & Myself came up and got ready for SHOPPING!  I scored some major loot at the Silver Sands outlet mall

-Coach Purse!

-Clothes from Gap

-Baby Clothes from The Childrens Place & Baby Gap

-Shorts from Nike Outlet

Ahhh I LOVE that place, best Outlet Mall I've ever been to!  

We are planning on hitting up Destin Commons tomorrow - Stephen wants to shop til he drops at the Bass Pro Shop!

This evening we went for a night swim of which the babies LOVED...The sun/heat really zaps them during the day but at night they could swim forever...or atleast until they passed out!  Of which they did...they both were asleep before we got back to the room.

Here are some pics from the day/evening!

 Family Picture - Headed to the Pool

 Layla W/ Aunt Katie

 First Dip in the Ocean!

 Love my little AquaBoy

Vacation!

As I type Im sitting in the condo looking out at the crystal clear ocean - Wishing it wasn't raining...


But so far our vacation has been going well - The babies got their feet in the sand yesterday which was a big deal for this momma...I LoVe the beach and (hope) they will too!


Yesterday was our travel day
-up at 3am headed to the airport
-we used my frequent flyer miles and of course we couldn't get a direct flight into panama city SO we had to fly to Baltimore and then on into Panama City...Babies did well once again on the flight only a little fussing as they were both fighting sleep the first few minutes of the flight.
-we landed in Panama City around 11 and Gma J & Papa R picked us up at the airport and I am sure they were much happier to see J & L than they were to see us (Stephen, Katie and Myself)  but with good reason!


We are staying at the Jetty East which we have stayed several times before and it does not disappoint!  Beautiful ocean view, "heated pool"  I say that jokingly...but the temp of the hot tub was the same as the pool...Like every other place in the country right now, Destin is under a extreme heat advisory...


Well we settled in yesterday afternoon, got dressed for the beach/pool and headed down - Layla was asleep before the elevator hit the main floor...needless to say she slept under the umbrella on a towel.  After a short power nap she was back in action and Daddy helped her put her toes in the ocean!!  She is a fan!
Jax was exhausted from the travel day and the combo of him teething and being tired made for a VERY Fussy baby.


Stephen grilled fished out on the pavilion, mom boiled shrimp and we had a delicious supper!  We were all beat after traveling so we turned in early - Jaxon slept almost 9 hours!!  He is a different baby this morning!!


*Dont mind the fuzzy pictures...My camera didn't have time to defrost from the AC inside the condo to the 95 degree weather!

 August 5, 2011 - Jaxon & Layla's 1st Time at the Beach

Destin, Fl.

 Both asleep - Before hitting the waves

Well better get going WE'RE GOING SHOPPING!!

Wednesday Night Dinner w/ Friends

The night before we left for vacation we spent the evening at Tequilas with a big group of friends.  It was great for Stephen and Myself because everyone else played pass the babies ..Translation...We could eat USING BOTH HANDS!! which is always a good thing!

We had a good time catching up with everyone, and showing off J & L. It was especially nice getting the chance to chat to Brandon & Kendra who are expecting a baby boy in a few months!   

- They are going to be great parents! 

Can't wait to meet their new baby!  This kid will have more camo then the law should allow ;)

After dinner we got the kiddos to bed...we had to be on the road for the airport around 3am YIKES!

Good Morning!

I know I know it's 5:00am what in the heck am I doing up when my babies are still sleeping? And even more crazy why in the world am I blogging? Well a couple things

#1 I'm awake because we fly out early early tomorrow and I have to check in online 24hrs in advance

#2 I wanted to snap a picture of my two favorite boys. Jaxon was a bit fussy earlier in the night so I brought him to sleep with us so he wouldn't wake sissy- I just gOt up to do the reservation thing and took a second to check out my boys.... 

Talk about making me smile im looking at both of them laying in bed next to each other with a little competition snoring going on... Like father like son! I love them so much (and Layla too- can't fault the girl for sleeping in Her own bed... Right?!?)AMEN!!

Well enough said I'm catching a few more hours sleep while I can!