Channing's Quotables

So Channing is really starting to say some cute and funny things so I decided I better document them before I forget. I will be posting his little qoutables as they come, here are just a few that he came up with the last little while.

First of all, in the hospital when he was meeting Blakely for the first time, I had to feed her so I started breastfeeding her and he looks over at me and kinda looks at Blakely and then touches my face and says," Mommy, Baby sister is eating Mommy's boobies?"
 Then he walked down the halls telling all of the nurses that Baby sister was eating Mommy's boobies!

Second- While pointing at my eyelashes, " Mommy you have black grass in your eyes!"
Me,"those are called eyelashes!"
Channing," No it's grass in your eyes!"

Long Weekend

We have been having lots of fun these past few weeks. We have had lots of visitors and been able to get out and enjoy the outdoors. 

  Alex and Joe came over to visit Baby Blakely and they also brought over dinner. We were able to have a nice BBQ and then we walked over to Menchies for some yummy frozen yogurt. It was great to have them come out and meet baby and have the kiddos play together. 

That weekend as Camilla and Ryan were visiting Channing was so excited that he ran past the table and there are cords hanging from the computers and he got his ankle caught and completely tripped. He was screaming and I could not calm him. He cried for about an hour and then Everee wanted him to play in the sandbox with him so he ran out there and then just fell to the ground screaming again. I then decided that we should take him to have his foot checked out. We had to wait for about an hour and then they x-rayed it and said it wasn't broken but a few things were torn. They said just to keep him off of his feet for a few days and then keep him in a supported shoe and it should heal well. The next day was pretty much spent on the couch watching TV. The next day he was up and walking with a limp and walking on his heals. He is pretty good now just kinda limps a little bit, but running and jumping around just fine and not complaining about it at all. 

Mike and Bailey came over that weekend and we ended up being horrible and ditching them. We went over to Ben and Linda's house for a four course meal. They had a chef come and cook dinner for us and 2 other couples. It was so yummy and everything was super healthy. 

Mother's day was to follow and Brad had a show that weekend so he wasn't able to be around at all. My Mom and Dad came out for the day and cooked dinner and pretty much catered to me. Mike and Bailey were still here so it was nice to have family around. Brad got me some really nice jewelery, 2 necklaces and a pair of earrings for Mother's Day. 

Later that week we had Camilla, Ryan, Meg and Jorge over for a BBQ. They got to cuddle up with Blakely and Everee and Channing loved playing together in the backyard. They are so cute together and really get along well. Everyone went hot tubing, except me cuz I am not quite there yet!!! Jorge kept me company as everyone else was bathing in the nice tub. 

This weekend we decided to do a little trip down south to Raymond as it was the long weekend. Saturday we went out to Waterton, taking many photos along the way for Brad's paintings.  We only took like 3 hrs to get to Waterton because we stopped like every 10 mins to take a picture. We made a quick stop at the temple to snap a few photos then we got to Waterton around 4:00 and went up to Cameron Falls. After that we went and got the famous ice cream. Channing is obsessed with throwing rocks into the lake so we spent about 1/2 hr doing that. Then it was time to go home. 

Bailey and Mike met us at Dad's house and we had dinner and then went into the hot tub! We pulled out some gooder home videos of Mike and laughed out heads off. He was hilarious, we threaten to show them at the wedding but I seriously think he would disown us. 

Sunday Morning we headed home and then Monday we were off to Banff.

We met up with Brad's parents and Kim and Glen. We went out and visited a few lakes so Brad could get some more pictures. Again Channing had to throw the rocks and sticks into the lake. Then we went and hit up The Fudgery and got the famous bear claws and a carmel apple. We stayed the night at the Douglas Fir.

It is such a great place to stay for kids. We went swimming and they had 2 big waterslides that Channing loved! He kept Brad nice and busy going up those stairs, Brad was sore the next day! They also had a playplace with slides and lots fun things to play on. Channing loved it! 

It was a nice weekend to get away and enjoy the beautiful outdoors. It wasn't the warmest but it was still gorgeous and fun. Blakely did amazing. Pretty much just slept the whole time. She has been such a good little baby. She pretty much just sleeps and eats. She still is spitting up a lot. I feel so bad for her, she is just gasy and I don't know how to help her. Once she burps and poops though she is good and falls back to sleep. She is such a chunk so I know she is getting lots of milk, it just sometimes seems like she is throwing it all up. Oh well I guess every baby is different. 

First week with 2!

It's been a really good experience this time around as I feel so blessed to have my Mom around helping with everything, from hanging out with Channing non stop, doing the laundry, cleaning, dishes, etc.. she has been amazing!!! It truly helps when you have that extra set of hands. She left yesterday so today was my first day on my own. Of course Brad is around most the time so I have it pretty lucky, but he was gone all day and you know it wasn't too bad. All I can say is thank goodness it's nice outside so Channing has stuff to do all day. 

Well, Blakely is now 10 days old and it is really hard to believe, time is already just flying by. We have been having fun with her and I feel like I have been able to do allot more during this recovery then with my last.  About a week ago, Brad decided to clean up the yard and build Channing a sandbox.

Channing of course had to help!Best idea ever!! He has been in it non stop for seriously the last 5 days. He loves just digging, throwing and burying stuff. It is nice to watch him enjoy something so much and that I can just sit and relax and not beat myself up for not doing something fun with him and thinking of creative ideas! He is in heaven. 

The weather has been so nice and we have been able to enjoy are backyard allot. We have had fires to roast marshmallows, relaxing, hottubing, and running through the sprinkler(Channing has anyways). I am so glad baby brought the nice weather with her, it would suck to be stuck inside with everything new going on around here. 

 On Sunday Brad had a fun idea to throw Blakely a 0 years birthday party. He says,"Our culture doesn't have enough parties or celebrations so I am planning a party!" It ended up being really nice. To show off baby to all our family and just visit and enjoy family time. I think I will be keeping up with these parties! We love to throw parties and have people over to host. I think we are really outgrowing our house though thats for sure.

 There were lots of snuggles given to Blakely and lots of fun in the backyard. Channing got a new bike from Brad's parent and all the kids had a blast eating, playing bubbles, water fights, and playing in the sand. We even had cake with no candles to be official! Such a fun night with family. Wish we all got together more often and wish my family could live closer to come to these fun events!!

Channing just loves his cousin Alysse, she is amazing with him and plays with him nonstop. I love to watch them together.

Having two children has been pretty good, of course I have only been on my own for a day now but I hope it continues to be this good. I love watching Channing adore his baby sister. He is always waking up and asking for baby sister. He loves to give her kisses and will hold her at least once a day. He has been really good when I am feeding or changing baby and is a big help for getting diapers and always tries to calm her with his baby song, which goes something like this;" Baby, do da dedo Baby!" It's so sweet. I love this age gap as he is getting so independent and helpful! We have also started potty training and he is on his fourth day. The first 2 days went well only one pee accident per day, day 3 he had 2 pee accidents and today, day 4, no accidents at all. He's enjoying all the treats I am sure. I just hope he keeps it up.

Blakely had her first weigh in after we left the hospital on day 3 and she lost 9 oz so she weighed 8 lbs 1 oz. On day 6 she weighed in at 9 lbs 1 oz so she is getting lots to eat even though she seems to spit up  and poop up everything.  Her spitting up is really different from what I am used to. I have to make sure that I have a burp cloth ready or I will get it. I comes out in 4's just crazy, but I am getting better at being prepared. She also got her tongue tie clipped on day 6. It wasn't near as bad as Channing's but there was still a little issue with her being able to get her tongue out of her mouth. Im glad I got it done while she was still so young as it makes a world of a difference with her latching. She sleeps pretty much all day  with a few hours awake time. During the night she does quite well too, she usually wakes about 2 times. about 4 hrs in between.  I am producing so much milk that I am having to pump once in awhile to relieve myself cuz she just won't eat enough.

Recovery has been going pretty good. Of course I am sore and it takes a lot for me to get up and move around but everyday gets better. It is so much different then with Channing. I have been able to do a lot more a lot faster, thank goodness. I think the hardest thing is relaxing and not trying to do too much. I have a problem with just sitting and doing nothing so it's quite difficult for me to just let others cater to me and just sit. I hope this only last for a bit longer as I just want to get out and enjoy the sun with my kids.

I feel so blessed with both my children. They are truly little miracles and blessings in my life. I often reflect back on my life before I had them and honestly sometimes I wonder how I lived without them. I know I felt that way once I got married about how lucky I was to have such an amazing husband and it just keeps getting better. Channing and Blakely really are the light of my life and I would do anything for them. Just that simple smile or laugh can brighten my day. I love to watch just the simple things that amuse these sweet spirits. If only I could have such simple things bring joy to me like a simple thing does to a child. I look forward to watching Blakely grow into the little girl that she will become and I know I will enjoy all the special moments.

Blakely's Arrival

Ok it's only been like a year and a half since I've written up on my blog but I am making it a goal to be better and keep more of a journal on here since I don't write one on my own. I had to write all this down before I forget all the details!!

So it all started on Wednesday, April 24, I was at the Science Centre with Channing all day and on the way home I felt the first contraction. We made it home and I had probably 3-4 contractions on the drive home. The rest of the night I was timing them and they stayed about 30 seconds every 15-20 minutes apart. I called my Mom just to give her an update but told her not to get to excited as they weren't getting any stronger. She told me to continue to keep her updated. Nothing changed so I decided to go to sleep. NOTHING..... I woke up the next morning at 6:30 am to a knock on the door. It was my Mom, she was so excited and didn't want to miss the birth so she drove through the night. Unfortunately for her she missed her last day of school for nothing. The next few days there was nothing, absolutely nothing. I couldn't believe it... Every thought from then on was, "when is this baby coming." I was miserable, uncomfortable but full of adrenaline, I wanted this baby out and I was ready.


Sunday came and I went to church and then came home and continued on with the day. At around 4:30 PM I felt my first contraction. They were lasting about 30-40 seconds and every 10-15 minutes. I continued to time them and they seemed to get closer but no longer in length. So I decided to take Channing to the park to see if walking would help. We got home around 9:30 from the park and contractions were now about 5-7 mins apart but still only about 30 seconds. At 11:00 I was talking to Shannan on the phone when the contractions were getting a little longer, 45 sec-1 minute long. This went on for about an hour and I decided it was probably time to get to the hospital. We got to the hospital at about 12:30 am. It was crazy busy so they had to check my vitals in a chair in there office and then I had to wait in the waiting room for just over an hour. I finally got into triage and they checked my out and gave me an IV for the GBS. I was at 4 cm and they said they would be admitting me to delivery right away. I got into delivery at 2:20am they checked me again and I was at 5 cm. They asked if I wanted them to brake my water to get things going. I said ,"yes please!!" They broke my water and I dilated to 7 cm. Contractions were intense now!! They said they would check me again in an hour or two... I went through one more contraction and I needed to push. They said they would check me again if I could get though this contraction. I was at 9cm. The next contraction was unbearable if I had to do one more without being able to push I thought I would have to get some pain relief. I got though it and they told me I was ready!! I laid on my side and 3 pushes later  on Monday, April 29, 2013 at 2:55 AM, Blakely Anne Holt was born into the world. I couldn't believe she was here and so fast, only 15 minutes of active labour and pushing. What a difference from my horrible delivery with Channing. I was in shock, I was shaking as Blakely was placed onto my chest. She was here and was beautiful.

She has a full set of dark brown hair and a skinny little body with long legs, fingers and toes. Pure perfection. She looked so much smaller then Channing as she cuddled up to me. The doctor said she had to of been around 7-8 pounds but no more then 8. She weighed in at 8 lbs 10 oz and 20 inches long. We were all shocked. My doctor, Doc Yuu, and nurse were amazing and just let me bond with her for half an hour. It was such an amazing experience.

After about an hour I was brought to postpartum. I did not sleep at all that night I just loved on baby!

Later that day Grandma brought Channing to visit baby sister. It was adorable to watch him with her. He liked to give her kisses and look at her. He held her for about 10 seconds and had enough of that. He is so gentle and sweet with her. I am so happy that he is so good with her(so far).  I had to stay at the hospital for 24 hours so that day we just hung out in bed and tried to sleep a bit. I had a shared room that night and I felt so bad for the lady beside me, her baby cried all night. Thank goodness Blakely slept well. On Tuesday at 10:30 I was discharged and came home.

 My Mom will be here for 2 weeks which is so nice to have someone have 100% attention of Channing. Being home is nice and I am recovering really well. I feel great! Blakely is eating ALLOT, sleeping pretty good, and is just a content little Miss. She has been pooping and throwing up a ton though, something Channing never did. So I have to learn to always have a burp cloth beside me or I will get it!  Other then that we are adapting well and enjoying every minute with our new and growing family.

Hopefully I will keep this writing up as I love to look back and remember the special times.

He's doing it....

Crawling that is! The day he turned 8 months old he found his hands and feet and started pushing himself across the floor. Now he's got the whole army crawl down. It is a lot busier for me as I now have to watch every move he makes. Sometimes I look away for a few minutes and I have lost him. He is usually under a chair or behind the coffee table. He is getting into everything and his favorite thing to get into is Skeeters bed. YUCK!! He is really keeping me busy but it is so fun to watch! I am just so proud of my little guy.

Check him out!!!



Just one more video that has nothing to do with crawling but I thought it was funny!
This is what Channing thinks of Broccoli..

7 MONTHS

I'm a month late on this post but I wanted to make sure I wrote it down!
It is amazing how time flies by so fast. I'm sure soon enough it will be a year! Channing has started to be quite the little gabber. He is always talking baby talk and he does not hold back! Either it's screaming at the top of his lungs(good screams of course) or just blabbing continually, he is always making sure he is heard. He is such a good little boy. So mellow but at the same time a little squirmer.
He took his first plane ride and did awesome both there and back. He would just flirt with the stewardess' or fall asleep. Never a peep out of my little guy. He also went on two long trips to Utah in a span of 3 weeks and did amazing. We had to stop a few times but other then that he was just a happy little guy. I truly feel blessed to have such a happy boy. I always feared that my boy would never smile or make strange but he does the total opposite which makes it easy for me

I'm not too certain on his weight but I am sure he's gotta be around 18.5-19 pounds now. He is getting chunky. I am always calling him my little chunk! He still struggles with eating. Always clamping his mouth shut so I have to trick him by putting his sippy cup to his mouth and as he opens it rush food in. So it takes quite a long time to feed. Hopefully he will quit this soon, it really is frustrating! He still does not like to take a bottle so I think I will just switch to trying a sippy, as he is pretty good at sucking from that.
This is what happens when I let him feed himself!


Channing loves people whether they are grandparents, friends or complete strangers(especially girls). It is so funny when he see a bunch of girls he totally flirts with them. He will get real excited and kick his legs and smile and make lots of noise!! It is so funny to watch! He loves his grandparents and loves all his many cousins!

He is the youngest but I think he kinda loves it as all his cousins love him so much and just are always playing and holding him.
3 generations!!

He continues to roll around, but doesn't do it too much, he would rather be in the jolly jumper or exersaucer! I need to buckle down on leaving him on the floor more so he can start to learn to crawl. His favorite toy is his little blue guy with lots of different textures for him to chomp on. He loves Skeeter and is really beginning to notice her and want to play with her. Skeeter also is starting to look at Channing as a person, always wanting Channing to play fetch with her. Channing is almost sleeping through the night, usually going down at 9:30, wakes at 12:30 for the last feed and then usually wakes at 2 or 3 for a soother and then wakes at 7 for a feed and then sleeps until 9:30 or 10. Oh how nice would it be to have no interruptions!! He's not too bad though.
He is super good at sitting up and no longer topples to his side or forward!

He continues to steal my heart more and more each day, whether it is a new sound, look or movement. He is just the sweetest little guy that is so cute. I could just eat him up!! I love that he loves me and always needs me and knows when I enter a room and just gets super excited and kicks his legs and moves his whole body until I pick him up. He loves to dance with me and have me throw him around. He just laughs hysterically. I love his laughs, he is so ticklish and loves when I chew on his side. His laughs are just my favorite!! He is always grabbing at my face and giving me kisses or in other words latching on to my face and drooling all over me. It's cute but I could do without the slobber!
I think I kinda love this guy!!

Virginia

So last week we were in Virginia with the whole family, minus Lindsey and Michael(we missed you guys). Every year my parents try to get everyone together. I think this is so important, as we live so far away. So as Josh is graduating dental school, they decided this to be the perfect time to go visit and make it our family trip of the year. It was so much fun. We were there for about a week. We first went to Virgina Beach for about 4 days, spent the days on the beach,parks, shopping, and allot of swimming in the pool at the hotel. Our hotel was right on the beach so it was so nice to be able just to walk to the beach and hang out. I lost my little point and shoot camera so there are very little pictures for this post. One night at Virginia Beach we decided to rent the bicycles and ride them on the board walk.

It was so much fun. The waves were rushing in and was just such a beautiful night.

We had many races and had to of course stop for ice cream.

Here is my family getting crazy on the board walk rocking out to some band playing in a concert!! Stacy is due any day now and she was really busting a move, she can move better than me and I'm not even pregnant.


Channing just loves his cousins and they just adored him.


All the kids were just obsessed with Channings soother, they were always stealing it from him and suck on it. Even little Rachel would snatch it a few times. Shannan took some family pictures on the beach but that will be in another post!

On Thursday we went to Williamsburg where my parents had another resort. We swam in there pool and had a bbq. It was a really nice place with a ton to do. The girl had a night out that night and went and got our nails done. We got mani/pedi's and man was it relaxing. I need that more often. They look so good! After we went to the outlets and only hit up Carter's cuz there was so many good deals there. Then we went out to AppleBees for dessert. YUMMY!!! It was so fun just to be with the girls. We were gone for about 5 hours and had left the kids with Dad and Brad. Well as we came home we heard Talmage screaming, James dressed in Channings clothes, Izzy still in her wet bathing suit, and the 2 babies sleeping. Oh the boys tried!!! HAHA we had to laugh... That night Brad and I headed to Stacy's house with her family as in the morning was graduation.

Josh spent the last 4 years in dental school and he is now a graduate from VCU!! Congrats Josh, we are so proud of you and the hard work you put in. Congrats to Stacy as well as of course it takes two to accomplish this great goal. And to raise 3 kids during this takes quite the amazing women.

Well it doesn't stop here. They are now off to Nebraska to do another 3 years in periodontics school. I'm sure that will just fly for them. Good luck and I know you will do great.

The Graduate

All the supporters

I got to be the photographer for the big day. So I followed Josh around most the day. After graduation we went for dinner at Bottoms Up Pizza, SOOOO good! I am going to miss visiting Virgina, it is so beautiful! and really who want to visit Nebraska?? Of course we will cuz Stacy will be there but really..

Stacy is due anyday now... I wish I was there. My mom and Shan stayed for a few more weeks so they get to meet the baby. I am so jealous.

I miss my family already. I just have so much fun when we are all together. Love you guys!!