Pumpkin Patch 2011

Our visit to the pumpkin patch was a little different this year with 2 girls. Leila posed beautifully but Skylar slept through the whole photo shoot. She is also too little to wedge between 2 pumpkins since she can't quite hold her head up yet. Skylar is a very strong little baby so I do not think it will be long.

This was my first opportunity to dress the girls in matching outfits. Missoni did a line for Target and I was thrilled to find these dresses. They are so beautiful and I hope they get to wear them again. Dad was slightly dismayed to find I dressed them in matching outfits but little does he know it will not be the last time.

Such a sweet big sister!

For some reason, Leila especially likes the bumpy pumpkins




Skylar turned one month old on the 29th! I can't believe it. She is such a little doll

Introducing Baby Skylar!

She is here!

Skylar Alice McKinney was born Thursday, September 29 at 11:29 p.m. She weighed 7 lbs., 9 oz., and was 20.5" long. She looks like Patrick, but not like Leila, who also looked like Patrick. We have decided she has Patrick's eyes, cheeks, and mouth; my ears; my mother-in-law's nose; and my mother's chin. She is long like me. She has a full head of light brown hair and deep blue eyes.

September 29 was my due date and I went into labor naturally in the afternoon. She was right on time! While we waited for Skylar to arrive, my family and Patrick's dad were hanging out with us at the hospital. We had a little party while we waited--after the epidural of course!! I had an easy labor & delivery and Skylar was just perfect when she was born. Screaming her head off, of course, which is somehow really cute on a newborn. Everyone was a real trooper, wating until after midnight to see her.

I have literally not had minutes alone to blog up until now. Two kids is a whole new ball game. Let's just say mommy is reallllly tired. Skylar is a sweet, good baby, but she wants to eat all of the time. She basically has an insatiable appetite. She is gaining weight quickly and is outgrowing her newborn onesies fast. She is really long but not chubby though. She does have cute baby rolls though!

Leila loves her little sister--"Sissy"- and helps me by holding her and feeding her, with help of course. She is so sweet to the baby and wants to take care of her babies too like we take care of Skylar. It is just adorable. Her baby dolls go in the swing, and in Skylar's bed and in a sling. Oh so cute!

Mommy loves you Skylar!

Our first family portrait. This was around 12:00 midnight so Leila was fast asleep...

My sweet Skylar! Oh so cute. She is very alert and just likes to take everything in.

Leila holding Skylar for the first time!

Daddy will teach you how to nap well....

Aunt Lili is the sweetest! She drove in from Austin and came to the hospital at 1:30 a.m. to meet you! Of course, mom was awake.

Nana and her new granddaughter!

Pops is a pro with babies!

Skylar, your Mimi will spoil you rotten!

Skylar and her Dude. He stayed for the whole party!

Uncle Jimmy and niece #4!

Aunt Courtney will teach you to be crafty!

Uncle Sean & Aunt Aimee with their new niece

Our last family photo as just the 3 of us. This was during my labor but not while contracting, haha.

Horseback Riding Lessons & Dance Class

For Leila's birthday, we purchased private horseback riding lessons but have waited until it cooled down to start them. We had her first lesson last Saturday morning so both Patrick & I could go. She is a natural. The instructor was really great, and started the lesson by making her work. She helped brush her horse and gather all of her equipment. Once she got on, she was ready to go! They rode around the equestrian center property and finished up inside the arena. She was on her own with the instructor. We go back next weekend (assuming there is no baby) for another lesson. It of course helps that she is not scared of animals since horses are so big. She was so excited and loved it.

I feel a little bit like we are cramming things in before Skylar comes. Leila's world is going to be changed forever and I know we all really enjoy doing things just the 3 of us. Chances are she won't remember these days before her little sister came, but I will! I love being Leila's mommy and doing all of the fun things we do. I have also been cramming in fun things for myself, including book club, bunco, and mom's club nights out in anticipation of being attached at the hip to Skylar for a while. I have been reading a lot, since I'm pretty sure in the year after Leila was born all I read were parenting books! Patrick has been doing his part and enjoying playing golf and watching all of the football he can stomach. And poor Shrek, his walks are sparse enough as it is without another baby coming to take more time away from him. I hope once the weather is nicer we can go on walks during the day. My parents got us a great double stroller I can't wait to try out.

Dance class is going really well, and oh my goodness are those girls cute. Leila's Mimi bought her some adorable leotards for class and she almost likes dressing up as much as the actual class, lol. Hopefully she will love dance and keep at it. The recital is not until late spring so we have plenty of time to see if it works out. Her "best friend" Adelyn is in class with her and they are too cute for words. They take breaks to hug! When Leila fell down, Adelyn fell down too, for sympathy maybe?? Their teacher, Miss Monica, is sooo patient and really fun and exciting for a class of 3-year olds that lasts an hour. They just love it, and at then end she is excited to get her "little dessert" (candy).

3-year Photo shoot out takes

A lot of people ask if Leila is ready for the baby... yes and no. She knows what is going on, we have prepped her, and she is super-excited to be a big sister. She knows she is not allowed to boss us around, only Shrek, and I think she is ready to boss someone else around, haha. But for 3 years, she and I have done everything together and now we will have to share our time. I think it will be hard for both of us. I am as prepared as I think I can be. Everything is washed and sterilized and I have a huge bag of REAL coffee waiting for me to brew in the pantry. The nursery is almost ready, and I will post pictures soon.

We have a busy schedule, though I cut back on activities for the fall. Leila goes to school MWF for 4 hours. She LOVES it, and says each day is "great." She just finished swim classes today, and we will pick those up again in March. We stopped gymnastics in July due to her being promoted into a new class with terrible schedule options! Maybe we will start again in January. And we decided to sign her up for dance. She is so cute, and she loves it. Her little friend she adores is in the class too so I think it will be a great experience. Patrick & I also have Bible Study on Sunday nights. Poor Skylar really is going to be hauled from place to place. I am a firm believer in good sleep habits so we are going to have to figure this one out. Leila was sleep trained and has always been an excellent sleeper (despite the nap battle, she still gets plenty of sleep at night.) Hopefully I can offer Skylar the same training, since it is good for them and for tired parents!

We are currently experiencing what may be the "terrible threes." The twos were great. But all of a sudden we are having a more difficult time, mostly due to Leila not napping. I am sooo tired. She needs a nap, only won't sleep at nap time, leading to some cranky evenings. I am feeling more energetic, so I have not been needing a nap as much. But I still need to rest!

All of this to say, Leila's 3-yr pictures were a challenge. We got some great shots, but also some hilarious faces. Most of these were her imitating her dad, who was trying to make her laugh. She is such a ham. I've posted some of the best out takes below. One of the best good photographs is on our header for the blog.

New School & Unbirthday Party

Leila started a new preschool this year. It is closer to our house and runs a little bit later than her old school, which I think will work out better for us with the baby coming. So far, she said the first day was "fun" and every day after that was "great." Quite a good sign considering all 6 of the 3-yr-olds we know at the school are in the other class. What are the odds?? She is proud to be a Sea Turtle this year and has already made new friends.

Last week her class celebrated her summer birthday and she got to wear a special crown and bring treats for her class. The whole chapel sang "Happy Birthday" to the kids selected to celebrate their summer birthdays today. I am so happy for her to get to celebrate because I think when we were in school those kids got overlooked. When I went to pick her up, every kid in her class had a blue mouth from the sherbert treats I brought, haha.

My camera lens fogged up that morning!

This is the face I got in response to "Say cheese and look at the camera."

All of the selected summer birthdays got to go to the front of chapel while we sang "Happy Birthday" to them.

3rd Birthday Party

WOW was Saturday a fun day... Little Bit's 3rd Birthday Party was a blast. We had a princess-themed splash party and her dad went all out on the "splash" part.... Our backyard was like a waterpark. I think all of the kids had fun! Leila did and she was really good. She loved her cake and is now "officially" 3, according to her. A big thank you to our parents who helped out a lot, especially the dads! And also a big thank you to everyone who drove so far to be here and celebrate her special day.

Leila's 3rd Birthday!

Another sign of how girly our daughter is... She is in denial about turning 3, just as I was about turning another certain age. Today is her birthday, and she told me this morning, "She is not 3 yet, she is still 2 1/2, and she is still a little girl." I am not sure what exactly constitutes a "real" birthday to her--a cake?? A party??

We had another great, long day though! She woke up happy and we had a breakfast of organic waffles and berries. She picked out a cute outfit since I made her wear pants to Jump N Jungle (a moonwalk playplace) and we went and played with a bunch of her friends. Then we came home to eat lunch with her dad and open presents. We had macaroni & cheese and peas for lunch, per her request :)

The big gift from Mom & Dad this year was the Rapunzel dress & doll, which she wore until we had to leave. We also got her some other little things, mostly princess-inspired, of course! And books, my favorite. We had to watch the Tangled movie once she opened the dress, so we did that, skipped her nap, and went to swim class where she did great. From there we came home to change into a dress and then went to her Dude's retirement party. It made for a long day but she was a trooper.

It is hard to sum up Leila in a short post. At age 3, she is such a joy and so much her own person. She is smart, funny, kind, caring, and definitely a firstborn. I say this because, being one myself, I see a lot of the traits I have... such as being bossy, a perfectionist, and determined (We hear, "I do it myself" about 15 times a day.). She is such a little lady; and all about fixing her hair, painting her toenails, and wearing jewelry and playing dress up. She always wants to match and has a certain order for things. She wants to understand things about the world and asks a lot of questions. She loves smaller children and babies, as well as animals. She is basically fearless and was throwing herself down the moonwalk slides today headfirst. She loves to sing songs, read books, say prayers, and play Pretty Pretty Princess EVERY day. Her current favorite lovey is a small pink pig named "Princess Hoppy." Her favorite books/stories for the last few months have been Grover's The Monster at the End of this Book, The Crucifixion (since Easter), the Little Red Caboose, and Pinkalicious. Her favorite shows are Elmo's World, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, and Clifford. Her favorite movies are both Disney: Robin Hood & Cinderella. Her favorite food is macaroni & cheese and her favorite snacks are Ritz cheese crackers, jelly beans, and Icees. She loves her family and tells me she misses her daddy when he is at work. She has said to me before "I just love you so much," which never fails to make me tear up. We feel so lucky to have this precious girl!

Having fun at Jump N Jungle

Headfirst AND backwards down the slide... It may have been 15 feet long, or more.

So excited about presents!

'August' Barbie was an exciting gift. The doll has a peridot green dress and comes with a matching ring. In 2 months we will again consider such things "choking hazards."

A new game since we have had enough Pretty Pretty Princess for a lifetime....

Disney Princess cd player, wow!

New Books!

And her favorite gift, the Rapunzel dress and matching doll. Leila kind of looks like her I think.