Kaden's Turns TWO!

Well this is about 6 months late but it has been busy being a mom of a toddler, enjoying newlywed life with Chris, and becoming pregnant with baby #2!!

On August 19 this last year Kaden turned TWO! Wow...when people say time flies when you have babies, they aren't joking at all.  I mean in two weeks Kaden will now be 2 1/2.  Crazy.  For Kaden's birthday I wanted to do something really fun for him but didn't want to plan a huge massive event considering we just had our big wedding 2 weeks prior on August 3 (Wedding planning is a lot of work!!).

First I picked a theme: Construction because he loves trucks
Second I chose colors:  Easy with this theme. Black, orange, yellow
Third I picked food and decorations!
Last.... get going!

We got back from our honeymoon and we were exhausted.  I said I was going to start with Kadens decorations but never got arround to it until the day of! Yikes. I was going to order from Etsy before the wedding but that never happened either lol.  Somehow it all worked out... and it worked out better than I pictured!!

I threw this party together in about 2 hours from start to finish! End result= awesome.  Kaden was so so happy.  Hope you enjoy.

What I had to work with lol

Caution Kaden is 2

Entering Terrible Twos 

I made that cake in 30 min lol

The birthday boy!

Our happy fam!

I wish I could take awesome professional quality pictures but these pictures from my iphone 4s will have to do :) Now 6 months to plan Kadens third birthday and add a little newborn baby in there too!

My Job

This past September I got my first real "big girl" job.  My job has nothing to do with my college degree but has everything to do with who I am.  This job allows me to plan, be creative, be organized, be busy, multi-task, think out of the box, meet a lot of new people, and help design and decorate huge events.  I enjoy doing all of those things.  If I could do college over, I think I would have majored in event planning and design.  I just love it.  I still love exercise science, don't get me wrong :) 

I work for the Rypien Foundation here in Spokane and this is a little bit more about:

"The Rypien Foundation was built with the heartfelt devotion of its founder, Super Bowl XXVI MVP Mark Rypien, who lost his three year old son, Andrew, to cancer. Mark and his family experienced firsthand what families go through when fighting this potentially deadly disease, and recognized the value that quality care can bring to both patient and family. In the wake of his difficult personal experience, the Rypien Foundation was created with a commitment to provide HOPE for local families battling childhood cancer."

My job is pretty cool and I love knowing that everything I do no matter how big or small is helping these local children and their families battle cancer.  The Rypien Foundation recently donated $3 million dollars to Providence Sacred Heart Children's Hospital here and the hospital was able to re-do the children's ER and make everything there a little bit easier and warmer for the kids there.  If you ever come to Spokane, I encourage you to check out what the Rypien Foundation has done for the hospital. We put up huge shadow box displays of sports memorabilia of past and present athletes who have battled life challenges of their own.  After personally walking through the new remodel, the Children's area of the hospital doesn't even feel or look like a hospital but more like a huge inviting playground and a fun place to be.

Currently we are getting ready for the 9th Annual Winemakers Dinner on March 16th! Work is getting really busy but it is great.  I got to write up and send out over 400 donation requests to local businesses as well as across the country.  It is exciting to see all the generous donations coming in to the office everyday. Lots of caring and supporting people out there!  At the Winemakers Dinner there will be both loud and silent auction items for guests to bid on and all the money goes to help these kids and families with childhood cancer.

I smile just thinking about my job.

Another great part of my job is that it allows me to still be a full time mom and not miss a beat of Kaden growing up.  Some days I can work from home and some days I go down to the office for a couple hours while Kaden goes to Grandmas.  I don't just sit behind a desk all day which is GREAT!!  Chris and I were both raised in households were the dads worked and the moms stayed home and took care of us.  My mom always tells me to have an education and try to work while being a mom because she wishes she did.  I am glad I took her advice and working part time has been amazing.  I am still with Kaden all the time but I also feel like I am contributing to my family and to a great cause.  I feel very blessed.

I am excited to see where this job takes me over the next year or so.

Well there ya go. I don't really talk about my job much on social media but now you know a little bit more of what I do!  :)

seriously..

who has time to blog!?!? Life is soooo busy.

Anywho, here is a little update...

1. Kaden is starting to talk and it is so cute!  He runs instead of walks. He has 8 teeth (4 up and 4 down).  He had his 4th haircut last week.  He hasn't thrown up ever.  He is getting really tall.  He is a really good little hockey player already.  He is obsessed with hockey sticks and tools.  He is really smart and learns new things evey day.  He is a mamas boy and can't be without his blanky.  He sleeps through the night from 10pm and sleeps in until 8am.  He takes 2-90 min naps during the day.  He is the most active baby I have ever seen, he doesnt stop moving.  He is a picky eater though but hey I am not surprised because I am the world's pickiest eater.

2.  Wedding plans are going really smooth.  We have everything booked and so now we are just relaxing until all the little details from the menu and diy crafts and table numbers, etc.... have to be done.  We are 8 months out from the wedding day and I am amazed at how organized I am at this.  Wedding planning is fun! :) I can't wait for all the other fun wedding festivities as well like the bachelorette party, bridal shower, rehearsal dinner, and post-wedding brunch! yayy!  OH and I didn't mention this yet on here but I won the most amazing prize ever! I won not just a prize but thee GRAND PRIZE!  I won a free wedding dress, free engagment session, free sweet heart table, free centerpieces, free designer clutch, and some other little things.  Can you believe that?!?!  I went dress shopping 3 weeks ago and I found my dream dress!! I am in love with it and it makes me feel amazing and the best part is that it was free since I won!

3.  Our 11 month old puppy is HUGE!  He is a big furball and I love him.  He is bigger than a lot of 5 year old retrievers that we know and he isn't even full grown! He is 100 lbs, WOW.

4.  Home sweet home.  We have been living in our house for almost a year now and it is perfect.  We plan to live here for 3-4 years and then move into a house that we plan to live in for a long long time!  Our house is pretty big but we want 3 kids and our house will not be big enough for our growing family.  But it is perfect for our family now plus another baby in the near future! :)

5.  I work part time with the Rypien Foundation and it is a lot of fun.  The Rypien Foundation raises money here in Spokane for kids and families battling cancer.  Mark Rypien, a friend of the Rector's, is a   Super Bowl MVP whose son died of cancer at a very young age.  I am thankful to be working for a good cause.  The Winemakers dinner is going to be March 9 this year and I get to pretty much run the event with my boss!

6.  Chris is still working at the pharmacy.  He is going to be promoted to manager of the lab and that means more $$$. That is always a big plus.  I am so blessed that Chris works sooo hard and has a great job so that I can stay home most of the time and raise my son and not miss a thing! :)

That's just a little of what is going on in our lives!

KADEN IS....

WALKING!!! All over the place :) Took his first as well as many steps today!

Kaden's First Birthday!!!

Just a couple pictures from Kaden's little man party yesterday! It was so fun.  I cried a little.  He was spoiled with many toys and lots of books and clothes!  So thankful that he is SO loved!  ahhh I love decorating parties!  We had a taco bar and ice cream bar.  Personally, I think it's all about the little touches and details when it comes to decorating a party! I love trying to be creative and add my own touches! Hope you enjoy :) I hope Kaden enjoys these pics as well when he is older.  Love my little man.

 

:)

Tomorrow

My son will be ONE!

Chris and I were laying in bed last night thinking wow....how much has happened in one year.  We were remembering what we were doing this time last year and boy I am so glad I am not in labor right now :)

My labor experience was very interesting.  It didn't go as I thought it was going to go at all.  I thought I was prepared from the birthing classes....but it went nothing like the class said it would.

I was admitted to the hospital at about 10pm on August 17th and was 3 cm.  Then at 3 am on the 18th, I was told by all my nurses and doctors that I would be meeting Kaden today!!  Well that didn't happen.  I made it 17 hours with no drugs except pictocin, then I decided to get the epidural.  I was running on no sleep and no food in my belly.  All I wanted was a chocolate milkshake or a big can of sprite!! I got stuck at 5.5 cm but thankfully the epidural allowed my body sleep and relax and I progressed to 7 cm but got stuck AGAIN for a couple more hours.... eventually I made it to 9cm and pushed myself to 10cm.  I thought that was it and that Kaden would slide right out.. I forgot you had to push! I pushed and pushed and pushed....and pushed some more...  I kept on telling my doctor to just cut me open and give me a c-section.  The epidural was worn off, I could feel everything.  Three hours after pushing, my doctor said okay you have 4 more pushed or were going to have to do an emergency c-section.  On the fourth and final push Kaden came!  He was born at 6:38 am on August 19th,  20 inches and 9lbs 13 oz :)  I was so happy but couldn't believe what my doctor said, "Wow, we should have done a c-section in the first place"  Oh sure you say that now after 30 hours of labor and 3 hours of pushing and tons of stitches down there!!!

Labor...what an adventure....

But yes...Kaden is ONE year old tomorrow!  I can't believe it! :)  He took a few steps today.  He is basically walking but I won't call it official yet... I'm not ready for it!

Busy weekend!

Tomorrow my parents come into town to help get ready for Kaden's first brithday! We have to make decorations, get everything for the taco bar and ice cream bar, shop for some presents, decorate/clean the house, make a photo booth station, and so much more!  On Saturday we are going to go to the lake for just a couple hours since its sooo hot here and then head downtown to look at hotels to book for the wedding and go out to eat and get some half off yummy cupcakes!  Sunday is the BIG day! Kaden turns ONE year old.  I am so excited for his "little man" birthday party.  Tons on mustaches and ties everywhere.

ahhhhh :) !!!!!!!

Heads up, I will probably cry on his birthday. Yup, I know I will.