Swweettt Memories...

Today I was flipping through Archer's pictures, from birth until now....and started sobbing!!!!  I regret having to work, even though I know at the time it was sort of a must do thing...but looking back through the months (9 of them...what do I really have to complain about) that I was home I started to think about out quiet routine and our days filled with nothing other than snuggling, playing, or running errands together...BOY WE HAD IT GOOD!!!!  I think about our second babe only to realize the two of us will never have that special time...and I thank God for Archer and that chance we had to just be buddies all day everyday for nine months.  I also thank God that Colin is about to start a job and at least for the first six months I shouldn't have to work...and if I work after that it will just be PRN somewhere for my own sanity.  I miss lazy days of not a thing but playing.

In other non-depressing news.. haha, I kid, I really did learn an incredible amount working for this past almost year, but I suppose as my year is wrapping up and we are preparing for the move I am filled with excitement to once again be just mom for a bit.  If I could figure out how to land a really cool phone triage job that would be amazing, but if not...than if not!

OK, so the point of this post was to put up a picture of what baby #2 belly looks like at 14.5 weeks...I was waiting to get big early like most people often claim happens...I do think this time it is taking it's time.  Some days the belly seems bigger than others...but for the most part still looks like I either never lost the weight from Archer or I had a really good time partying in college....

Love from the almost UTAH Kimbles.

Ok Christy...

I totally agree with my friend Christy...how dare I stalk so many blogs but fail to ever update my own!!!

The move to Salt Lake is getting super close, but somehow it feels like it is never going to happen. I AM SO READY TO BE DONE WORKING!!! I love my job, I LOVE being a nurse, but before that I love being a mom, and I dont think Archer is selfish (or the next babe in line) to ask for a few years of me being mommy full-time, with a promise to return to nursing...eventually, and who knows perhaps sooner rather than later, but that's a grim outlook!

15 weeks preggo ALREADY. I totally feel guilty for this babe getting second born syndrome already!! I never really think about being pregnant unless I am at work (which means I actually have SOME time to think) or about to go to sleep or wake up and have to pee for the millionth time! I think I love this baby more at this point because I actually know and realize what it will be in the end, but I also spend my days playing/chasing around a very busy 18month old!!! The other night at work we borrowed the ultrasound machine from the ER and I got to watch the little bean open and close its hands and move around like CRAZY! Perhaps Colin and I are going to get what we asked for this time...or at least get a run for our money.

Archer has been sick the last couple of days, high fever. I'm pretty sure he has Roseola...blah, first time for baby boy to be sick, and sick he is!!! He has been getting lots and LOTS of mommy daddy love, and in fact spent the past two nights sleeping with mama and last night with dada...I'm not going to lie...Colin PUSHED me out the door to work (with tears in my eyes) because he was so excited to get the chance to snuggle with Archer all night (if mama is around mama generally wins).

blogging...

I think blogging is a vicious cycle...an extreme love/hate relationship. On one hand I simply love to look back and reflect on all blogged things over the past 1.5 years, but on the other hand it is a dauting task. I feel like I am always trying to convince myself that I need to blog daily (but then the blog suddenly becomes a "blogging daily" kind of blog without much meaning or sentiment) or perhaps nominate Monday to be blogging day...somehow in the time I have been blogging I haven't figured out a reliable timeline that satifies my blogging spirit....

Therefore, perhaps I will add an additional committment to what seems like my giant mound of weekly duties (the mound only recently became overwhelming as the typical pregnancy/working full time nights exhaustion kicked in) and try to blog "weekly" without setting a day...I really do feel like I'm forgetting the simple things that make us laugh and smile from week to week.

This past week Sonia, Kreider, and Silas made the trek from snow laden Philadelphia down to visit...Kris, Ellen, Eliza, Colin, Archer, and I had A BLAST! Good people are everywhere but sometimes there are really good people that simply make your soul sing....the Grasse's are the soul singing kind of people to me (as are the Mecholsky's!!!!). We had an amazing time watching the superbowl, going to the Baton Rouge Zoo, and then through the generousity of Kris and Ellen we stayed with them in their two bedroom time share in New Orleans Monday night. It was really fun to watch Archer and Eliza smooze around together until 10:30pm....so sweet, two little toddling people. They are also really starting to get each other and realize/want the other person there. Kris took Eliza into their room to put her pj's on and she was screaming to Archer (being the prince charming he is) quickly made his way to the bedroom door and opened it freeing his beautiful princess! Tuesday we spent the day going to the Aquarium and preparing for the Saints welcome home parade. We once again had a wonderful time, said good bye to Kris, Ellen, and Eliza who had to return to the working life, and thanks to Sonia we spent the night in their room....

That very night, for the first time in his little pumkin life, we let Archer "cry it out." Archer has never ever had issuses going to bed, and in fact is probably the easiest kid to put to sleep---even sometimes requesting sleep. We simply rock him with his "baba" while singing him a song, once his baba is gone he says, "ni night" gives a hug, kiss, and pat to mom or dad and that is it....and that has really always been it...SUPER EASY KID. HOWEVER, those conditions generally apply only to the confines of our house/his bed! This kid does not like to sleep away from home! After Monday night in the Kris and Ellen's room with Archer tossing and turning all night in bed with me (and Colin getting kicked to the couch because Archer screamed anytime he was put NEAR his pack and play) I was beyond exhausted...not to mention the daily events. Archer also hadn't really had a nap and we knew the following day would be long so we sort of decided we would put him in his pack and play in a quiet room and let him convince himself through tears to sleep...WHAT WERE WE THINKING/THIS WOULD COME BACK TO GET US! Needless to say, after an hour of NONSTOP "mama mama mama" I decided to go in and sing Archer his timeless favorite "the wheels on the bus" to which is instantly crashed and then held onto me with all he had...slowly and over the course of minutes I was able to lower him into his bed while repeating "mama is right here baby, mama is right here." FINALLY he was out! He ended up sleeping until almost 9am the next morning and we had cafe du monde and headed to The Children's Museum (WHICH WAS AMAZING).

Lunch, back to the hotel to attempt to put Archer down for a nap, followed by more play time and then packing the car to head back to BR and our neglected dogs! So tough to say goodbye to Sonia, Kreider, and Silas, all while knowing we couldn't let an entire two years go by again without a visit (kids grow up too fast).

LONG STORY SHORT...Archer would NOT sleep for the next three nights....he would saw logs on our chests but the second we tried to put him down he would scream...BROKE MY HEART, it was almost as if we had broken a bond...a trust he had and it was awful. The past two nights; however, he has gone back to the old routine of going right to sleep...and in fact has been sleeping in much later than usual so perhaps we got more than we asked for :) YIPEE!

Ok, I have spent far too long at sskfsdkjfhworkwoksldjfl blogging and need to get lots done in order to get home quickly to my boys and my warm bed!

Oh, we had an ultrasound on Monday and saw a lovely little bean (our est. due date is Sept. 14th, but the baby was measuring Sept 19th...) we are sticking to a Sept. 19th due date to avoid the feeling of lateness and agigtation! It is much easier to be early while huge/fat/miserable, then sit around waiting for that day.

Ok, Ook, back to work. I will write more in my weekly blog and add some pictures and a very interesting video when I get home/wake up.

Love,
The ever growing, on our way to a family of 4....
Kimbles

Christmas and such...

We have an awesome holiday!!!  We got to go to Utah for an entire week and bunk up with the entire Kimble clan (which included 5 delightful babies under the age of 2).  It was sooo much fun and it was awesome to be able to relax and enjoy family for a week.   When we got home it was hard to believe Christmas was only a few short days away!!!  Needless to say, Archer's second Christmas was SLLLOOOOOWWW and amazing.  Archer actually seemed to really enjoy his gifts and the gift opening process.  EARLY Christmas morning Colin woke up (around 3am) and was throwing up...so he spent most of Christmas day on the couch.  Around 5pm the bug hit me, and hit me hard....we took turns in the bathroom and also trying to keep an eye on Archer.  It REALLY hits you that you are a parent when you are beyond ill and still someone needs to feed/bathe/and put baby to bed!  It was an interesting situation but we made it!

New Year's was great, we had some friends over, lit some fireworks, played games, and drank champagne.  HORRAY FOR 2010!

Other than that, Archer is now a very amusing toddler boy.  He is busy constantly and as happy as I imagine they come.  

I should write more...and could write more, but while the babe is sleeping I should be productive....

Love the Kimbles

gruff.

Everytime I'm at work I miss Colin...I literally walk around thinking to myself, "I miss Colin." PRETTYYY pathetic.

Also, Archer's two favorite things right now are: 1) a family hug and 2) a family...chain kiss. Anytime Colin and I hug Archer crawls over and says "UP" we scoop him up, he pulls Colin close and says "awwww." If Archer sees Colin kiss me he then has to kiss both Colin and I...pretty darn awesome.

Ok, back to work, tonight has been INSANE! I am off from Dec. 12-22nd though, and then off for Christmas Eve and Christmas day so I REALLY cannot complain!

-The overnight working Kimble Mama.

big words...

I forgot to post the big words segment...

This is the list of words Archer is now saying, perhaps not always understood by the outside world---but Colin and I almost always know what little man wants.  We have been strongly discouraging WHINING and instead asking, "Archer, what is it that you want?"  Generally, he will tell us---which is super weird! We are actually communicating!!!

Here is the list (and because I do not remember what I posted previously, I am just going to write them all):

Dada (which he shouts when Colin is out of the room)

Mama 

Truck (anytime he sees a truck or hears a siren)

Dog (which he will tell you says, "ouff ouff:)

Kitty kitty (which says "meow meow hiss)...adorable by the way!

Up

Out

bath

bubble

eat

juice

cheese

ba ba

santa (super fun right now)

aunt (for his aunts...)

baby or babies (twin cousins)

hey (which accompanies many things, "hey jonezy, or hey baby, or hey dada" but hey is said in a soft high voice like heeeeeeeyyyyyyy)

bye bye

grandma and grandpa which both sound like "pa pa" (the other night my in-laws came to stay and Archer crawled back and forth between them saying "papa up" 

Eliza

Andrew

busy 

happy 

apple

(oh yes, he will hold his little finger up when you ask how old he is to say "one" grandma kathy taught cousin Brody and Archer how to do that)

hot

ball

nose (which says "beep beep")

eyes

hair

hat

bike

house (for his little playhouse)

night night

diaper (he will grab a diaper and sit on it when you tell him it's time for a new one)

shoes

socks

poo poo

potty 

pee pee (the other night he was pulling on it in the bathtub so I gave it a name...ops.he now grabs it all the time and says, "pee pee")

yuck

no no no no no (DADDY!!!)

vitamin which actually sounds like "bu bu im"....but we know what he means...

berry 

book

penny

I think that might be it...I will try to only update this list from now on.

It is soooo fun to have a talking little man!!!  This really does just keep getting better and better!

broken bones and big words...

I was just finishing the very last sentence of this blog---when our computer shut off....we have "vintage" macs  and Colin's computer has to be plugged in in order to work-so as I began to get up I unplugged it causing it to abruptly turn off.  I vowed to stop cursing last night (in lou of Archer's ever increasing vocabulary) but cannot honestly say I didn't let a few choice words out when that happened; however, this is what I was trying to blog...

On November 23rd, sometime around 5:30pm, Colin and I were outside visiting with Colin's friend Jesse while Archer sat patiently on the bottom step eating a cracker.  Soon Ellen, Kris, and Eliza arrived to deliver a wonderful loaf of pumpkin bread before heading out of town.  As we were all standing in a circle around Archer he stood up, grabbed the railing as we had told him to over and over again, and began his six inch descent to solid ground.  Somewhere between railing and cement Archer went toppling off of the step.  He instantly burst into a cry unlike any we had ever heard from him (which is when I should have known something was terribly wrong...instead I thought he was just terrified).  I scooped him up relieved that he hadn't hit his head, and decided he was simply scared from the fall.  Unfortunately the crying didn't stop, nor did it deescalate.  I took Archer inside and while nursing him searched every inch of him for even the smallest scratch that could be causing his cry, but nothing!  I think started to move all of his joints thinking perhaps he hurt deeper than the surface, but once again, nothing!  Perplexed we gave him some motrin and dipped him into a warm, soothing, bubble bath.  This seemed to calm him down quickly, we fed him dinner in the bath tub, and then cuddled into dreamland. 

The next morning is when the injury became blarringly apparent.  Archer refused to bear any weight on his right leg and when he did by accident, would become hysterical again.  He had full range of motion and no bruising or swelling, but not bearing any weight seemed to be a tell tale sign of a fracture.  I placed a call to our pediatrician and anxiously waited for him to call back....for hours.  It wasn't until I called back around 4:30pm then they then told me he was out for the day and one of the other peds would be called me back shortly.  FINALLY I got the phone call and the sweetest lady put my mind at ease saying she didn't see a need to do anything about it that night and that they would refer us to a specialist in the morning.  Now...that wasn't quite good enough so we decided to take Archer to the after hours clinic in town.  They did Xrays, confirmed a "buckle break" and wanted to cast him.  We decided to opt out of the cast at the time (he was crawling everywhere and by this point not even attempting to bear weight on that leg) and take the xrays to our ped the next day. 

Needless to say, Archer is still crawling around and recovering.  Never did I imagine my sweet little 14 month old would fracture his leg---but I suppose anything is possible!!!  He really has been quite the trooper and doesn't complain at all, just crawls around about his business.  We talked with Dr. Rao (our ped) yesterday and he said in another 7-10 days we will need to get another set of xrays to check the healing. 

That's it for now.  Buckle broken baby boy!

-The Kimble