The latest...

Hi! It's been awhile again since I've updated-I just can't seem to find time to do things like this-or I should say make time! When the girls go to bed, we usually go to bed! Ansley is 3 1/2 years old now and Kayleigh is almost 5 months old. Time is flying by, and the busier we are the faster it goes! Ansley is out of preschool for the summer and will return first of September. She LOVES school. She missed alot of it last year due to her cough. She had no other symtoms besides the cough and her doctor finally diagnosed her with RAD (Reactive Airway Disease), which is another term for asthma. The dr said her airways are reacting to an unknown allergen. I want to have her tested for food allergies to see if its something she's eating. I don't want her to continue having this cough if we can help it. She has been doing breathing treatments for about a month, one in the am and one at night, but I hope that we don't have to continue doing that for much longer. She seems to be better, for now. Ansley is having a good summer so far-playing outside all the time, riding her tricycle, playing with friends, and doing stuff with the Moms Group all the time! I don't know where I'd be if I hadn't joined that group-its a wonderful group of ladies! Ansley was recently the flower girl in my cousin Paige's wedding. She did an awesome job-I was pleasantly surprised. Ansley tends to be shy when she is first around people she hasn't seen in awhile, so I didn't think she would like having to walk down the aisle and stand in front of all those people, but she did it!



Kayleigh is growing so fast. She rolled over for the 1st time last week! She coos/talks all the time, laughs, smiles, gives kisses-is so sweet! She loves to stand up in your lap (all the time!) and can even sit up pretty well! She will probably be an early walker like Ansley, who was walking at 8 1/2 months old!! Until recently, she would scream when people held her, other than me, Gary, and Nana. But she has gotten better-thank goodness! She loves to be outside and watch the kids play! She has been sleeping through the night since about 8-9 weeks old, but lately she's been waking up to eat-She must be going through a growth spurt. Between her midnight feeding and Ansley's bad dreams-I'm up at night alot! But for the most part, they both sleep well.



Gary still doesn't have a job:( I never thought he would be out of work for 5 months!! Hope he finds one soon. He did get to join us on a field trip at Ansley's school to a farm. Afterwards we had lunch and went to Monkey Joes ( a jump place). It was a wonderful family day. We need to make time for more of those!! Gary's sister, Missy, is expecting a little girl in August, so we are looking forward to another addition in the family!!



My mom continues to have headaches daily, some worse than others, and we don't get to see her and Dad as often as we'd like to. She also broke her foot a few months ago and is still healing from that. My parents recently celebrated 40 years of marriage! I feel so blessed to have parents that are still together! They have been so good to me and my family-we love them so much.



My sisters were living in an apartment and moved in with a friend recently, and have now decided to buy a house on their own. They move in this week! I am very excited for them and can't wait to see it! They like to come get Ansley and take her out and spoil her rotten! It gives me a break-which is nice!



Its hard for me to remember what all to put in here! I know I am forgetting stuff to put in here, so I will just put it in the next blog!

Hope you are doing well.
Love
Courtney

Yes, we are still alive!!

Hello! Sorry it has taken me so long to update, but we have been adjusting to all the the new things going on in this house! Gary has been home for 6 weeks searching for a new job. The week after being laid off, Kayleigh arrived. It has been nice having him home to help, but we are ready for him to have a job!!!

Kayleigh is a precious little baby. She sleeps pretty well, as well as a newborn is expected to sleep, getting up every 3 hours to eat. She likes to eat and weighed in at 10 pounds 11 oz at her 1 month check up, which means she has gained 2 pounds and 7 oz in 3 weeks (she lost a little in her first week and weighed her birth weight of 8 lbs 4 oz at her 1 week checkup). This week she has started smiling at us when we talk to her, which is absolutetly adorable, and is trying to coo a little too. She grunts ALOT, especially at night, for long periods of time (like 1-2 hours). She is growing so fast.

Ansley is getting smarter everyday and continues to amaze us. She has recognized her letters for awhile now, and knows most of the sounds of the letters. She can even tell you what letter a word starts with. I am so excited and ready to teach her how to read! She is going to love reading-she loves books and being read to. She will sit and listen to you all day! She loves her little sister, although she hasn't gotten to be around her much since she has had a cough most of the time Kayleigh has been here. The cough went away for a few days but returned recently. I took her to the dr yesterday and she has her first ear infection and bronchitis. They gave her a breathing treatment and sent me home with an antibiotic, albuterol, and a cough syrup. The antibiotic is thick and gritty-she spit it out the first time and threw up the second time, so that $40 presription is down the drain:( So I will have to call the dr Monday for a different one. This is the first time she has had to be on an antibiotic, so I guess I should feel grateful. She is still playing and begging to go outside or have friends over, so at least she isn't too pitiful. Ansley continues to enjoy preschool and also loves all the friends we have made over the last year with the Moms Group we joined. We look forward to getting back into the swing of things now that Kayleigh is almost 6 weeks old.

Gary has been great about making sure I get plenty of rest. He has also been great about letting me get out of the house some, usually to see friends but sometimes even just to go to Kroger, while he stays with the girls.

Its hard to believe I've had my degree in Education 5 years now (and that I'm not using it!). I just finished my online classes to keep up my certification for when I do go back to teaching. Hopefully it won't be till Kayleigh is in school full time:) I LOVE being home with my babies and am so grateful that Gary supports me in that. We both know that it is the best thing for our children.

Hopefully it won't be so long before I update again!! Hope all is going well for you and your family.
Courtney

Kayleigh is here!!

Our precious baby has finally arrived! I decided to be induced, after the doctors gave me the option, in case she was big. If I had continued to wait for her to come when she got ready, she may have been almost 9 lbs, which the dr said I would not have been able to have without c-section.

Kayleigh Jo West was born Wednesday, January 28th, at 2:54 pm. She weighed 8 lbs 4oz and was 21.25 inches long. She has dark hair, but is missing some at the front of her head:) She is a wonderful baby and seems to be pretty happy. She only cries when she is hungry or when you are changing her diaper. I love to watch her sleep after eating-she smiles and laughs alot. Its SOOOO cute!! Ansley is a good big sister. She loves to help and loves to rub her head and give her kisses. It has been a big adjustment (which we expected) for all of us. But each day seems to get a little easier! Gary has been wonderful-taking care of me, Ansley, and Kayleigh, and all the stuff around the house that has to be done.

We are so grateful to have 2 precious, healthy little girls. Our family is complete. We are just going to enjoy every moment while we can because it is going so fast. We have also been blessed with wonderful family and friends that have been so good to us. Thank you to my awesome friends in my Moms Group that have been bringing us dinner every night (which they are doing for 2 weeks!!!)-what a relief to not have to worry about whats for dinner-my least favorite decision of the day!!!! Thank you to Rebecca for keeping Ansley so we could go to the hospital to have Kayleigh-I know Ansley had a great time and I was happy knowing she was in good hands! Thank you Anna for bringing Ansley to us at the hospital so she could meet her little sister and for bringing dinner and cookies (YUM) the night we got home from the hospital.!! Thank you to Mom and Dad for taking care of Ansley and always being there for us-Gary and I don't know what we would do without you!And thank you to all those that have kept us in your thoughts and prayers, came to see us, called to check on us, and everything in between. I'm sure I am forgetting someone or something, so hopefully you will see it on my next update.

Courtney

Kayleigh is hanging in there!

Hello! The latest is that I AM READY TO HAVE THIS BABY!! It is definitely harder to be pregnant with a 3 year old needing your attention and help 24/7 verses when I was pregnant with Ansley with no children to take care of (except the husband!). My back is hurting and I can feel the pregnant "waddle" beginning. And there are contractions too. Knowing that she is gaining an ounce a day is making me nervous, but I really hope she comes on her own. I don't really want to be induced. At my dr visit this week, I was 2 cm and 50% effaced, so I am making progress, but not fast enough!! I have another appointment Tuesday, so we will see how things are then!

Our bags are packed and we have been talking to Ansley about what will be happening so she is prepared. I am sure she will be fine. She knows she will be spending the night with Rebecca and Max or Nana and Pop, and she is looking forward to it.

I am trying to enjoy the last of eating without too much guilt. I am looking forward to working on being healthier-eating and exercising. After Ansley, I knew I was going to have another baby and wasn't very motivated to get to my goal weight (that last 15-20 pounds is so stingy). Since this will be my last pregnancy, I am motivated to get my body back. I have a great group of friends that live close by that will walk with me and Gary to support me in eating healthier, so wish me luck!

Gary is looking for a new job so wish him luck! Your prayers are needed:)

Courtney

Kayleigh is already a big girl!!

Hi everyone! We had an ultrasound on Friday and Miss Kayleigh is already bigger than Ansley was when she was born!! If she goes full term, she could be 9 lbs!!!! Yikes! I have another appointment Wednesday, so we will see if anything has progressed. If not, they said they would induce so that I don't have to wait for her to get any bigger!! I would really like to wait till she is ready to come on her own, but I don't really want to wait till February either, so I am not sure what we will be doing!

I am getting more uncomfortable every day and more tired, but I still love feeling her move around. It is the most amazing thing ever!!

Ansley continues to keep us busy! I can't wait for her to meet Kayleigh! She will be such a wonderful big sister and a big help to me! I am glad that we waited till she is 3 to have another one!

Hopefully I will be giving you good news here very soon!

Hope you are doing well!
Courtney

The new year

Hello! Just wanted to let you know what is going on these days! Ansley is growing so quickly and asks me all the time if February is here. I am sure it really has been forever that she's been hearing about this baby sister, cause it seems like forever to me. In some ways though, it has gone by really fast. Its hard to believe I won't be pregnant ever again:( Ansley still enjoys going to school to play with her friends and make art projects. She knows her letters and most of their sounds, so I am looking into teaching her to read, its just hard to start something like that with a baby coming any day now!

Ansley and I stay busy with our friends we made through the Jackson County Moms Group. We also like to spend time with family whenever we can. I get out a good bit, thanks to my wonderful husband who supports me getting out of the house by myself and he enjoys some Daddy and Ansley time. It will be interesting to see how it goes with 2 little girls by himself!!!!

I have gotten my 2 girlfriends into scrapbooking, so we do that whenever we get the chance and we also go out to the movies or to someone's house for dinner and a movie occasionally.

The winter gives Gary a chance not to work so much, since there isn't much to cut in the winter. He has been busy though lately-getting ready for Kayleigh. Our little 1400 sq ft house is getting smaller and smaller. We have to keep getting rid of stuff and taking stuff to our parents for storage. We may try to find a little bit bigger house in the near future.

We only have 3 weeks left till Kayleigh's due date of February 6th and we are so ready to meet her! We will keep you updated! We have an ultrasound Friday-can't wait!

Love
Courtney, Gary, and Ansley