Finger Painting!

Gracie finger painted this past Saturday for the first time.

  She thought she was SO big to be able to participate in "Craft Time" with Big Brother!

She even managed to keep most of it out of her mouth ;)

Masterpiece!

Of course, all this fun required some clean up!  So, the fun just continued into the bath tub!

I think our walls will have several more works of art created by these two little Picasso's :)

My Lovies!

Seriously, there are just no words to describe the love I have in my heart for these two!

Can You Believe It???

 This handsome lil guy is officially 2 1/2!

And this dirt-diggin' diva is officially 6 1/2 months!

National Champions

Did I tell you that Kentucky are the National Champions? 

Did I have to tell you? 

Throughout the NCAA Tournament we cheered them on!

Papa, Tucker & Daddy

Look at that form!

Even Lil Mama was cheering on the CATS!

And enjoying some lovin' from Memaw!

Mommy & Gracie Girl



 And for the Championship game....  Well, Daddy was cheering on the CATS from NOLA with some of his best friends!

And Tucker Bug tried so hard to stay up and watch the game with Mommy

Proud of our CATS!

Easter 2012

Getting both kids to look at the camera simultaneously is pretty much impossible!

 Daddy & his Buttercup!

 Cousins:  O'mauri (7 years), Joshua (8 years), Makenzie (5 years), Tatum (3 years), Tucker (2 years), Nash (6 months), Gracie (6 months)

 By the time the opportunity for family pictures came around, Tucker was done lol! 

Happy Easter!

From,

The Keene's ;)

The two posts below have been sitting in the "draft" folder for 2 months now, along with other started posts that I just haven't had time to finish.  Mostly I have a few minutes to type some things up but don't have the time to browse through pics to find the perfect ones to accompany the post.  I couldn't just not post the ones below, so they're posted late and with out pictures...  Because I'm having a very hard time finding time to blog lately, posts may be written late, be without pictures, or be only pictures from here on out.  I've got to start documenting life a little, even if it's just a little bit here and there....

However, this post will have a couple pics of the little people in my life that make my heart SMILE ;)

4 Months

My Sweet, Sweet Gracie Girl,

I don't even know where to begin with this letter....  So very much has happened over the past 4 months since you have come into our lives and stretched our hearts!  I wish I had been able to blog over those 4 months way more frequently, but the life of a mama with 2 little ones is, well crazy busy!  I have a zillion pictures but haven't had the time to post them; a zillion sweet memories about the past 4 months but haven't had time to write about them.  One day, when you're the mama to 2 precious little ones, you'll know exactly how easy it is to just get caught up enjoying and living life!  AND how much little time is left for much else!

So, to summarize the past 4 months....

From before you were born, you let us know that you are boss.  Things happen on your time and we all just abide by that lol!  The way you came into this world should have cued me into the fact that you would be in control!  Mommy was scheduled for an induction 2 days before your due date.  Nope, things would happen on your time.  The day before I was to go to the hospital to began the induction, you decided to make an appearance all on your own (which was an answer to prayer as Mommy did NOT want to be induced).  And when you decided you were ready, you meant NOW!  I started having contractions that morning at Church.  By lunch time they were getting closer together, but we still weren't thinking they were actual labor contractions (I had been having random, inconsistent contractions for a while).  After Tucker's nap, Daddy decided if we all go for a walk it might help to move things along.  About 30 minutes into our walk I realized these contractions that were starting to get more intense just might be the real deal.  We got home from our walk and by that point, they were 3 to 5 minutes apart.  Thirty minutes later and they were consistently 2 - 3 minutes apart.  I'm not sure why we waited so long to head to the hospital.  I think we were somewhat in denial that things would actually happen on their own.  Again, if only we knew that you were destined to be in control :).  To make a very long story short, we made it to the hospital driving 90 miles per hour with Mommy barely making it through contractions, and an hour and a half later I was pushing.  There were some complications and ultimately you were born via an emergency cesarean. 

I can't even describe my gamet of emotions then.  Things were so scary one second and literally the next second I was holding you and kissing the face of the most beautiful and perfect baby girl I had ever seen with tears of praise streaming down my face.  I will never forget how you snuggled your sweet face into my cheek.  You knew I was your Mommy.  And to hold my healthy baby girl in my arms, to feel you on my chest, to smell your sweet scent, to feel my heart hurt as it over flowed with love for you, it was worth everything that we had just endured.  So, so worth it.

We brought you home and you just fit right in with us.  It was like we had something missing and we didn't even know it until you came in and filled that spot.  Our family of 3 grew by leaps and bounds then!  And you, little Miss Gracie, seem to have all of us wrapped around your little finger ;).  Your brother can't even walk pass you without smiling and saying, "Fracie!" then walking over to kiss you!  You are literally smothered with hugs and kisses from him!  When Tucker walks into a room, you immediately stop, listen and then scan the room for him.  You love him right back :)!  Sometimes, when the two of you are loving on one another, you'll accidentally pull his hair or pinch him.  Tucker will say, "Gracie pulled my hair!  It's okay.  She doesn't know."  Of course he then says, "Mommy, tell Gracie don't pull my hair."  He is so protective of you.  He doesn't like for someone besides Daddy or I to hold you.  He will say, "Mommy, get Gracie!"  I have a feeling he will always be protective of you. 

When it comes to Daddy, you smile every time you make eye contact with him.  He can make you laugh and giggle like no one else.  I mean an all out belly giggle!  Daddy calls you his "Little Buttercup" and that's exactly what you are to him. 

With all that, you are still Mommy's girl.  You prefer to have me in eye sight.  If someone else is holding you and I get you back, you grab my face and snuggle your face into my neck.  You.are.my.girl.  We already have such a special relationship. 

Sooo, a little about you at 4 months old:

* You are tipping the scales at slightly under 17 pounds.  You have rolls and rolls and your rolls have rolls and rolls.  I.LOVE.IT! 

* You were a champ nurser right from the start and I would say it's your favorite thing to do.  For the first couple months I think you nursed 24/7, seriously.  We have since gotten a little bit of time in between feedings; anywhere from 1 to 3 hours.  We nurse on demand, so we're not on a schedule.  You pretty much run that show ;).

* Sleep.  Sometimes we do, sometimes we don't lol!  Actually, you started sleeping through the night pretty early on.  I'm talking stretches of 7-9 hours!  The only problem, you wouldn't actually go to sleep for the night until 11:30 - midnight.  You and I would spend 3+ hours in your room trying to get you to sleep.  You are always very sleepy during this time, you just fight sleep like none other!  We would nurse, burp, sleep, wake, nurse, burp, sleep, wake.....for hours!  Just when I would think you are completely asleep and lay you down, you would perk wide awake!  Finally, around 11:30 - midnight, you would go down and stay down.  Then, Mommy would go to bed because big brother Tucker is up bright and early!  (So, see, no evenings for blogging lol!)  Thankfully, we have just recently started doing a little better in this department.....well sort of.  You tend to go down earlier now, but are waking two+ times through the night.  I'm thinking we're in a growth spurt and I'm praying our sleeping-through-the-night habits come back, but that we keep the reasonable bed time habit.

*  You have also started doing better with naps.  Before, you would nap for 20-30 minutes here and there, unless Mommy was holding you.  If I hold you while sleeping, you will sleep longer.  But, with a big brother running around, Mommy doesn't have too many opportunities to hold you while you sleep.  We are starting to get on a little bit of a nap schedule now though.  You get a really good nap in the morning, a small nap in the afternoon, and a mid-size nap in the evening. 

*  Speaking of sleep, you have been in your own crib in your own room since you were days old.  We tried the bassinet beside Mommy and Daddy's bed but you would not sleep.  I believe you could tell Mommy was so close and you wanted to nurse (remember, I said you were a 24-hour nurser!).  After several sleepless nights, we tried putting you in your own crib and it worked!  Don't worry, we've got a video monitor so we can see your every move whenever you make any type of peep!

*  And you do move when you sleep!  One morning, I went in to get you and you had turned yourself completely around!  Your head was where your feet started out!  I have no idea how you did it.  You managed to wiggle and scoot yourself all around (you're a belly sleeper)

*  You rolled from your back to your belly a few days before turning 4 months.  Now you do it all the time.
*  You LOVE bath time.  Just like Tucker did when he was a baby, you kick and kick in the bath.  Typically there's water everywhere from you kicking so much.


*  You were, and still are, GORGEOUS (I know, I'm bias, but seriously, you're just so perfect :)).  I could stare at you forever. 

27 Months, 12 days

Wow has it been a while since I posted an update on my ever-growing boy!  And man has he grown!  So much has changed.  I must say, "Oh, I need to do a post on Tucker doing.....(fill in the blank)!" a million times a week.  He has such a personality, so silly (something he totally gets from his Daddy!), so very smart (I'll take credit here, ha!), such a charmer, mischievous, loving, so GROWN! 

1.  You LOVE your baby sister.  I think it takes everything in you to not just grab her and squeeze her to death.  Instead, you kiss all over her, sing to her, talk to her, give her toys, try to *shove* her paci in her mouth....  You are the best big brother.  And oh my goodness, does she love you right back!  I pray every day that you and Gracie have a very close bond through out your whole life. 

2.  You are still OBSESSED with anything that has wheels, especially trucks.  Trucks of all kinds, and you call them by name.  There's semi-trucks, pulling trucks, tow trucks, the Dollar Store truck, the Walmart truck, flat bed trucks, cement trucks, snow trucks, fire trucks, garbage trucks, mail trucks, work trucks, excavators, bull dozers, cement trucks,....the list really does go on and on!

3.  Your two favorite books right now are the Little Blue Truck (that you have completely memorized, and so does Daddy), and Bear Snores On (a book we got from the library).

4.  We go to the library once a week and you always go work the two puzzles with the trucks first.

5.  At your 24 month check up you weighed 27.3 pounds (25%) and were 38 inches (97%).  Yep, you're still long and lean!

6.  Since you are so long and lean, most of your pants have some trouble staying up.  I see you grabbing at them and pulling them up all the time.

7.  If we let you run around naked, you use the potty 100% of the time.  Once we put big boy underwear on you, you have accidents....  We're not sure how to get past this so we're just letting you do your own thing right now.

8.  If you don't have a diaper on and you have to poop, you will say, "Mommy, put a diaper on me."  Then, you will poop and say, "Mommy, change my diaper."  However, just this past week you have asked to and have poopied in the potty twice!

9.  You are speaking in paragraphs.  We have complete conversations and I LOVE it!

10.  I am always amazed at the things you say and the things you come up with.

11.  Your teachers at school always comment on how well you talk and what a good eater you are, especially how well you eat your veggies.

12.  Ms. Jill and Ms. Becky are your teachers at school.  You talk about Ms. Becky all the time.

13.  You randomly ask where people are.  Like you'll say, "Where's Ms. Becky at?"  or "Where's Katie at?"  People you frequently ask about are Katie, Ms. Becky, Caden, Charlie, Memaw, Papa, Aunt Holli, Uncle Mikie, Tatum, and sometimes Walker Webb.

14.  You know all the people in your play nativity scene.

15.  You like to pretend that baby Jesus is baby Nash.

16.  You pretend to talk on the phone just like Mommy.  I'll hear you say, "Hi, what are you doing?"  "Yeah I know."  "Where are you at?"  "Okay, be careful driving."  When asked who you are talking to you always say, "Holli."  Yeah, Mommy talks on the phone to Aunt Holli a lot!

17.  You are a back seat driver.  You always remind us to be careful driving, to go at green lights, slow down at yellow lights, and stop at red lights.  You don't quite understand that it's okay to turn right on red.

18.  For some reason, you always tell me to bump the car that's in front of us if we're at a red light or the drive through.  I guess you figure they're in the way lol!

19.  You ask "Why?" ALL.THE.TIME! 

20.  Your favorite bible story is David and Goliath.  You can tell it yourself.  It took forever for us to get across to you that Goliath is NOT nice.  For the longest time you would always say, "Goliath's nice."  I think it's because the picture of him in your Bible Book is kinda scary and you wanted reassurance that even though the picture's scary, he's nice.  Finally you would say, "Goliath's NOT nice."  However, then you started calling people who were not nice "Goliath!"  You would tell me that one of your friends hit you at school or at Sunday School and you would say, "He's Goliath!"  We had to have a serous sit down talk about not calling people Goliath!

21.  When you wake up in the morning, you always call for Daddy saying, "Daddy!  I awaken boy!"

22.  You have quite an imagination.  This is so fun to watch!  The stuff you come up with, it just amazes Mommy.  Hopefully I'll get more consistent at blogging again and can document some of this...

23.  You know the alphabet.  You say it all day long, while you're playing.  The only error you make is you say the letter K twice instead of J.

24.  You sing Jesus Loves Me and it.melts.my.heart.

25.  You love Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, especially the Road Rally episode.  We watch it all.the.time.  You know every one of the characters by name.

26.  You think it's hilarious to call Mommy and Daddy by "Tiff" and "Wes".

27.  When asked what your whole name is, you say, "James Tucker Bug Keene."

28.  Your friends still call you "Tucker Bug"

29.  You love to go out to eat.  Your favorite part are the mints after the meal.

30.  You also always search Papa's pockets for mints.  He usually makes sure he has one in one of his pockets for you to find.

31.  When asked, "Where's God?" you answer, "In my heart. And in Mommy's heart, and Baby Gracie's heart, and Daddy's heart."

32.  You learned how to put your pants on yourself.  As a result, you change your pants all the time.  They are always pulled out of your dresser drawer and all over your bedroom floor.

33.  You flushed your toothbrush down the toilet yesterday.

34.  Mommy recently started back to work part time and you are having a hard time with it...

35.  This makes Mommy so very sad.

36.  You are a negotiator!  You most definitely get this from your Daddy!  It doesn't matter what it is, you try to negotiate.  I will tell you we are leaving in 3 minutes and you will say, "FIVE minutes Mommy!"  I will tell you can have a snack AFTER lunch and you will say, "Snack FIRST, THEN lunch." 

37.  You talk about your birthday all the time.  You always say, "I have a birthday coming up."  When asked how old you will be you typicall say, "26."  On the morning of Mommy's birthday we had the following conversation.  (Yes, it was so funny to Mommy that I immediately wrote it down.)

Tucker (while eating a birthday cupcake at 6:15 am): I have a birthday coming up.

Mommy: You do?

Tucker: Yes, I two now.

Mommy: Well how old will you be on your birthday?

Tucker: 7-27. But I 2 now.

Mommy: Oh, wow, that's old!

Tucker: Yea. I 2 now.

38. You also tell me you're 7 a lot because I told you when you're 7 you can have gum.

Okay, way past 27 things, but so much has changed since I last posted.

Check back for pictures!!!

Happy 4 Months Gracie Girl!

Wow!  4 Months Already?!?!

I'm Back (at least I hope!)

Oh my gosh, it has been FOREVER! 
But, in all that time, this blog has not been forgotten.  I have wanted to come back so many times, but life got in the way.  Yeah, something about having baby #2 that does that to ya..... 

I am always worrying that Gracie will think I don't love her as much as I do Tucker due to the lack of posts on her....  I feel very guilty about failing to document her life the past (almost) 4 months as much as I did Tucker's first 4 months.  I'm hoping that she will understand how much more time I had when it was only Tucker.  Besides, a large portion of my lack of time to dedicate to this blog is in fact HER fault!  That girl does not sleep!  She's a night owl who views the hours between 8:30 and midnight as her chance to have Mommy and Daddy's undivided attention while Tucker Bug is snoozing away.  And during the day, well that's no different.  Why sleep at the same time as Tucker does (or why sleep at all!) when that is time she can have Mommy all to herself!?  Yeah I'm not quite sure why when I was 9 months pregnant and enduring sleepless nights due to insomnia, my literally larger than life belly, and Gracie dancing on all my organs that I looked forward to her actually getting here so that I could sleep.  I've definitely grown accustom to surviving on very little sleep these days. 

But, with all that said, sweet Gracie and that devious brother of hers are way worth it.  In every way possible.

So, Gracie, know that when Mommy wasn't blogging about you, I was instead spending that time loving on you, smothering you with kisses, making silly faces at you, NURSING you, rocking you, singing to you, changing a GAZILLION of your dirty diapers, dancing with you in the kitchen, and just plain staring at your gorgeous-ness!

Pretty much, we've been busy, the FOUR of us, living life versus documenting it.  I do plan to do a quick photo recap of Christmas.  (After all, it was Gracie's first!)  And I HAVE to update you on Tucker, and give you a glimpse into Gracie's ever-developing personality.  So, stay tuned!


Until then:

Do you think my babies look alike?

Taken 12/17/2011

What about Daddy & Tucker?  Everyone says Tucker's "Lil' Wes"  :)

Taken 12/18/2011 After church service

And what about my little princess?  She's got my eyes, right??  Yeah, I'm probably pushing it...

Taken 12/24/2011, before bed on Christmas Eve

And just to prove that even with two kiddos, Daddy and I still manage to get out ONCE in a while:

Date night, 12/23/2011