Happy birthday Aunt Lindsay

my very best friends birthday was the 24th and I am just sitting down to type out a little birthday message for her! Lindsay is beyond a best friend to me, she is another sister! We have literally grown up together, from basketball camp, to homecomings, to proms, to winning games and losing them, to graduation, to the lake in Texas, to my wedding day and to the birth of my daughter Lindsay has been my constant friend. Never has she left my side. She has been a constant encouragement, constant support to not only myself but to my family. Despite any fears she willingly stood by my side throughout Averi's birth, Kevin and I will never forget her support and joy in the birth of Averi.

Lindsay is more then a babysitter to Averi, she is in the truest since another Aunt. Lindsay came over just last night to babysit while we went to Bradley class and as soon as she came in Averi LIT UP!!! She is as head over heals for her Aunt Linz as her Aunt Linz is for her!

Words can not describe how indebted we are to Lindsay. She has been there every step of the way and I know she will be there for the rest of my life. Rarely do you find a friend whom you have that kind of bond with, a bond that doesn't break NO MATTER WHAT, a bond that is deeper then description, a bond in which you know each others thoughts just by looking at each other! Thank you Lindsay for laughing, crying, cheering, supporting, encouraging, and praying both with and for me! I hope that my daughters grow into the amazing Godly women I have witnessed you growing into!

one year shots...

Thank you Uncle Jon for these amazing pictures, we are thrilled with how they turned out!

Here is a link to Jons flickr account so you can see the other amazing pictures he has done
http://www.flickr.com/photos/halfchanceironbridge/

Poor Mickey...

Averi LOVES to hang out in our downstairs bathroom/ laundry room while I am getting ready or doing laundry. She "helps" me pull clothes out of the drier- I then fold them, she spreads them throughout the downstairs but hey at least she wants to help! Well yesterday I was in the bathroom straightening my hair and Averi waddled in carrying her baby Mickey Mouse, thank goodness I had just cleaned the toilet that morning because that's where Mickey ended up, face first in the toilet! I couldn't help but laugh, I shouldve known better then to keep the toilet open! So I fished Mickey out and immediately put him in the wash with HOT water... while i was doing that Averi walks in with TWO more stuffed animals ready to give them the same death she attempted to give poor Mickey, I sent her back in the living room with both stuffed animals and closed the toilet before she executed her plan! Oh how fun toddler years are going to be, especially while I have an infant to keep up with too, at least these little escapades are FUNNY!

Thank you Uncle Jon

My brother is very talented behind the camera- and becoming more talented by the day! He took Averis "ten month" pictures and shot some fun ones at her 1st bday party and then today he took what were supposed to be her one year pictures, we are a couple months late! He said he will get the one year shots back to me soon but today gave me the disk with her bday pics on them! Here are a few favorites!






Thank you Uncle Jon for your willingness to capture memories of averi growing up! We love and appreciate you!

She loves her daddy

We have wedding pictures over our bed that averi has recently discovered. She has started pointing to a specific picture of Kev and saying "DADA" over and over again AND if that didn't melt my heart enough she gives the picture a BIG kiss! She loves her daddy so much! Here are some pictures I tried to capture of her loving on her daddy's picture!

Big changes!

We have had some BIG changes lately! I had begun to really stress about the idea of watching the little girl (Emma) and her brother (Blake... whom I only watch before and after school and on school breaks) once miss Sofie came. I was feeling totally overwhelmed at the idea of having an 18 month old and a newborn much less adding two other kids to the picture!
I began to pray daily about my concerns, I know that me staying home full time without babysitting just isn't an option for us right now, as badly as we both wish it were! I prayed the God would either grant me peace about watching Blake and Emma or he would open another door for us!
I talked to Kevin about it and we both committed to praying for the whole month of July before making any decisions... well we didn't even get to July before God showed us his answer! Blake and Emma's mom was layed off this past week therefore not needing childcare, they were so sweet and offered to watch Averi for free so i could work extra at the nursing home until Stacy found a new job then i could go back to watching their kids. We were n a situation where it called for quick decision making, Kevin and i both love the family i sit for and letting them go was extremely hard! I have watched Emma daily for a year and love her to death. Stacy (their mom) and I are far more then an employee/employer we are friends- God truly blessed our lives with them this past year. Despite that we felt that since I had already been battling with watching them when Sofie comes that this was Gods answer it was time to say goodbye to babysitting!
So what does this mean for us? Alot of things are still up in the air. I am blessed with a job that allows me to work as many or as little hours as I want. So for now the plan is I will work a double on Sundays (2pm-6am, I have already been working Sundays 2pm-10pm to make extra money so this is nothing new!) Averi will go to a mothers day out program on Mondays from 930-130pm so I can get some rest (kev will take her and I will pick her up) this was a great option because it only costs $
15 dollars a day! I will also work Tuesdays 6pm-6am and my mom will come to our house and stay with Averi so I can rest.
I am excited because my days off that I am not sleeping are Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and Saturday which means I get four full days to focus on just Averi... Monday and Wednesday I will be sleeping until 1230 or 1 but get most of the rest of the day enjoying my girl! I am excited to focus on her alone especially since we have another baby on the way so soon! Kevin is REALLY great with her by himself and he has enjoyed getting to bond with her alone on Sundays while I've been at work, she adores him!
Please say a prayer for us as we transition once again into a new pace of life! Pray God continues to grant us peace in our jobs and decisions and especially that Averi enjoys Mothers Day out, I am most leery about sending her off for it then anything else!

Grace came to play!

Our friends little girl, Grace, came over yesterday to play for a little while, her and Averi are only a few weeks apart in age... it was so fun to watch them interact with each other! They were really good about sharing toys and Averi kept giving Grace lovins, so sweet! Grace has to be the best tempered baby I have ever seen, she didn't cry one time and just kept laughing!

Here the girls are watching some Barney... Av is a HUGE barney fan- she will actually sit still for the whole thirty minutes and watch!

2 year anniversary

Today I have been married to the man of my dreams for TWO years! I can not believe how quickly time has flown! I am SO blessed to have a Godly husband whose desire is to provide for his family, love his wife and children and most of all serve our maker! We have had a whirlwind of events throughout our marriage, 2 of the biggest being Averi and Sofie... but despite the challenges of two babies in just over two years of marriage we have only grown to love each other that much more! We recognize we are blessed to be parents and even more blessed to be parents together!


Kevin,
I love you forever, i love you deeply, i love you passionately, i love you more today then i did the day i married you... i love being your wife and the mother of your daughters, I love watching you with Averi and feeling sofie kick when she hears her sweet daddy's voice. I love spending those few moments we get alone just talking to you! Thank you for your patience, thank you for keeping me grounded thank you for loving me!

love, rach


We celebrated our anniversary last night... we ate Mongolian Grill, went to our Bradley class and then spent 45 minutes chatting over homemade pie and Ice cream Kitchen... it was the perfect night!

23 weeks

the last 23 weeks:

We found out in February we were expecting baby number two!



7 weeks!

16 weeks


Happy mothers day... 17 weeks



18 weeks.... i love the spray tan, i wish I was that dark year round!


19 weeks... it's a girl!!! Sofia Pearl Yates!


22 weeks... starting to get REALLY hot out... this summer is going to be ROUGH!



23 weeks!!!



It has been a joy to grow you inside my womb Sofie... to feel you squirm constantly and sometimes see a little limb poking through my lower belly! I can not wait to hold you in my arms sweet Sofie girl!

Happy fathers day

Daddy,
Thank you for being the best daddy in the world! For loving me before I was born, for caring for me, for changing my diapers, for all your patience during the many all nighters we pulled in my first few months of lives, for playing with me, for taking me to the playground, for providing for me, for telling me i am beautiful, and for not only telling me how much God loves me but showing me by how much you love me!
I am one blessed little girl, I couldn't ask for a better daddy! I can't wait for Sofie to get here so you can spoil us both! I love you daddy- forever and always your baby I'll be!
Love, Averi

Future Auburn cheerleader?

The almost perfect summer day!

Today Averi and I headed to the pool with my sweet friend Laura. Averi hasn't been to the pool since last summer when we visited my sister in Florida, she was only 3 months old! I didn't know if she would like it or be scared of it but to my relief she LOVED it!
We started of in the kiddie pool, she walked through it like there was four feet of snow lifting up her feet as high as she could and then stomping, at first you could tell she was a little afraid but after some minor encouragement from Laura and I you would have thought she had been swimming a hundred times! She would sit on her bottom, then walk, and even ventured into the fountain which was in the middle!
We then put her in her floaty which is shaped like a crab and played with her in the "big" pool! She loved being pulled around and was full of giggles! It was so nice to spend the afternoon hanging out with Laura, she is expecting a little girl (her first) the same day Sofie is due so we have really had the privilege of getting to know each other and enjoy our pregnancies together!
The only thing missing was Kevin! He was stuck at applebees, he would have LOVED watching his baby girl in the pool and we would have loved to share the time with him... hopefully next time he can come along!
testing the water


Catching some rays



Av and mommy taking a break for some oreos... YUM!

Summer days!

According to our car it was 95 degrees today... the perfect day for a long walk under some shaded trees and then a good play on the playground... along with several water breaks of course! Look how big sweet Av is... she thinks she owns the playground!

Allergic reaction

I know they suggest babies not have peanut butter until they are two, and i was trying to stick to that rule, but my girl is a food snatcher and snatched up peanut butter crackers and a peanut butter jelly and chowed down before i could catch her. She had no reactions so i assumed she wasn't allergic and peanuts were OK. apparently I was WRONG because despite the fact that she has been eating peanut butter for about a month and a half now after eating it this morning she broke out into hives. In about a thirty minute time span she went from one small hive on her back to her whole back covered, her whole stomach covered, creeping up her neck, the sides of her face, one eye swelling shut, and all down her legs! Needless to say I was FLIPPING out! We rushed her to her pediatrician where they gave her an antihistamine and asked me what she had had to eat. i guiltily explained the peanut butter thing and my pediatrician sweetly explained to me that babies under two do not have a tolerance for peanuts and that you can give it to them ten times and they will be fine and then one time they will have a reaction, I had NO clue. He said to avoid peanut butter, peanut cookies, peanuts and peanut candy and see if it happens again... if it does then we will have to see an allergy specialist to be sure it is not anything more serious! For now she is sound asleep and I am feeling like a terrible mama for giving my baby something that made her sick!

walker

Our girl is officially a walker! She is moving all over the place with only a few falls! i will post a video soon, she is growing up too fast!

Alayna came to play

It has become a rare opportunity we get to see my god daughter Alayna! So spending two weekends ago with her was a PRIVILEGE! She has grown into s little girl, she will be FOUR in October, I can not believe it! She has the sweetest nature, always wanting to help! She adores Averi and is So gentle with her, what a sweet girl she is we wish we could see her more!