Our Coffey Can

22 Weeks

2012-02-14T22:10:00.003-05:00

Today's date: Feb 14, 2012

How far along: 22 weeks

Total weight gain: 2 pounds

Size and growth of the baby:Baby can hear now: the gurgle of your digestion, the muffled, watery sound of your voice, and your strong and reassuring heartbeat that has been its constant companion. There are teeth buds under the gums, and hair sprouting on baby's head. Baby's tiny fingers are strong enough to grip things now, and fetuses at this age are often spotted holding the umbilical cord. Though baby practices breathing movements all the time now, the lungs aren't mature enough to breathe on their own. The complicated brain-to-eye wiring that will allow the baby to see is working like crazy this week, though it may be more than a month before its fused eyelids open.

Your baby is...
10.94 inches long
15.17 ounces
about the size of a sweet potato

Gender: we don't know!

Maternity clothes: yes!

Sleep: I find side sleeping and back sleeping where I am usually the most comfortable. With a couple pillows tucked around my side.

Best moment(s) of the week: Planing games for a baby shower and looking through my baby stuff. So cute how tiny everything is!

Movement: Getting stronger, baby likes to kick down low and on my bladder.

Food cravings/aversions: chocolate this week

Morning sickness: dwindling! YAY! But still present every few days.

Labor signs: none

What I miss: not having to pee every 30 seconds...hopefully the baby moves away from my bladder soon! Its not a trampoline!

What I'm looking forward to: feeling the baby being more active, and for a good friend to have her baby very soon!

Week 21

2012-02-07T20:56:00.002-05:00

Today's date: Feb 7, 2012

How far along: 21 weeks

Total weight gain: 2 pounds

Size and growth of the baby:A lot is going on for Baby this week. Fat, for one thing. The little one is finally putting on some chub, a process that will continue for the rest of gestation. With fat underneath it, its skin no longer looks so translucent. Baby's fingernails cover the nail beds completely (and may even need cutting when it's born!) and baby's eyelids and eyebrows are fully formed. But it's brain development that's really taking off: This week, the sensory neurons (the nerves that communicate the sense of touch) are starting to connect to the brain, so the baby is beginning to feel touch. Touch is one of the most important senses at birth and the sensory neurons will continue to hook up to the brain for the rest of the pregnancy. Researchers believe that those nonstop kicks and all that squirming help to program the brain.

Our little baby at 20 weeks (taken Jan 31, 2012)

Gender: we don't know!

Maternity clothes: yes!

Sleep: On the side starting more on the back...this is no fun! I'm a tummy sleeper!

Best moment(s) of the week: ...Eli Can't decide what the baby is...its either a boy baby or a grill baby! lol

Movement: Getting stronger.

Food cravings/aversions: Carrots and dip! yumm

Morning sickness: only about 2-3 times a week!

Labor signs: none

What I miss: energy

What I'm looking forward to: feeling the baby being more active.

Stuck inside

2012-02-02T09:31:00.001-05:00

The boys love to play outside. Whether it be spring, summer, winter or fall, they love them all. So this winter (with the lack of snow and over abundance of rain) we have haven't had a lot of chances to go out to play. Usually David is the one to take them out. I like going out but by the time I get the boys dress (which takes forever) I am way to tired to want to go out and figure I could use a few minutes of quite time to myself. The boys love building snow forts and being pulled on the sled. So much fun.

So what do we do when its raining out all the time instead of snowing or the temperature is way to cold to be safe enough to play outside in? We entertain ourselves inside with lots of fun activities.

The boys got a few boxes of Trios for Christmas so they love to get those out to play. Eli love the farm set. He actually got this one for his birthday but its his favorite. Ezekiel has an airplane. I try to pick the strongest thing I can to build for him because he just likes to destroy them and I get sick of rebuilding them 20 times just so he can go and break them again. But they are really fun and cool building blocks.
Or next favorite thing to do is play in our toy bins...yeah we have that cool shelf with removable plastic toy bins which is a really nice toy self. But the bins are usually empty so we take the empty bins and make use of them...Zekes favorite is to fill them with water which is a HUGE HUGE mess so its done either in the kitchen or bathroom with about 8 towels laid out all over the floor. Today we decided to use something else. Eli wanted to 'push' stuff so I grabbed the stale cheerios from the cupboard.
SCORE they thought it was great! They each have their trucks in their bins to do the work of pushing and digging and loading...such boys! lol

I think Zeke liked eating them the most...

We also make a weekly trip to the library for our Laptime Session. Its basically story time with the kids. We also pick out about 6-8 new books a week to bring home and read. The boys love it. Eli is always asking it its Laptime Day. Here are the boys reading their books before bed...all on there own. We didn't make them they just love to read!

20 Weeks - Half Way There!

2012-01-31T14:23:00.004-05:00

Today's date: Jan 31, 2012

How far along: 20 weeks

Total weight gain: maybe 1 pound?

Size and growth of the baby: Baby-to-be is gearing up for the next phase in it's development—filling out. Baby's organs are getting into their proper places. Baby's kidneys are now in position with their familiar bean shape. Baby's brain continues to form and grow. It's teeth are beginning to appear, and baby can swallow. If you haven't been able to feel baby move, chances are you'll be feeling baby move more and more over the coming weeks. Baby is about 10 inches long (crown to heel) and around 10 ounces

Our little baby at 20 weeks (taken Jan 31, 2012)

Gender: we don't know!

Maternity clothes: yes!

Sleep: I forget what that is...hum...

Best moment(s) of the week: Ultrasound this morning!

Movement: Getting stronger.

Food cravings/aversions: Goldfish crackers are disgusting, smell disgusting etc. Anything chocolate and cold is good...ice cream, milk etc. yum.

Morning sickness: still lingering around but not to bad

Labor signs: none

What I miss: I have no idea

What I'm looking forward to: The next 20 weeks going hopefully quick!

Dangling Dreams

2012-01-27T08:00:00.001-05:00

Right around the beginning of the year Zeke learned how to climb out of his crib...oh crap! So instead of bringing over the toddler bed and putting the crib into storage (especially sense we will be needing it in a few months anyways) we decided to just take the side rail off the bed and use it as a 'toddler bed.' Really it was made to do that for when baby learns to climb. Zeke is pretty used to sleeping up against the sides of the bed. He loves he head in the corners etc...but because we took of the rail that took away 2 corners for him to snuggle up to which results in the following:

I really don't know how this is comfortable...at all..I would have such a stiff neck! But low and behold here he is sleeping away with his head dangling off the edge of the mattress! Silly boy!
And its not just once that he as done this...it is often!

This time on his belly with his head over the edge.

And then there are the times when we don't 'catch' him sleeping like this in time and he winds up on the floor. This was while he was still learning to sleep in the 'new' bed so kept some padding on the floor next to the bed.
We don't know if he climbed down or fell down but he was sound asleep.

And then there is our Eli...he sleeps kind of funny to sometimes...dangling over the edge etc. No where near as much as what Zeke does but we do have to put him back in the middle of the twin size bed now and again. Here he is sleeping on the edge. Doesn't look to bad with just his arm dangling over but under the blankets both his legs were hanging over the edge as well.

And I wonder why my boys wake up so much at night! They need mattresses on the floor so they don't fall out of their beds so much!

19 weeks

2012-01-24T08:00:00.001-05:00

Today's date: Jan 24th, 2012

How far along: 19 weeks

Total weight gain: 0

Size and growth of the baby:In your 19th week of pregnancy, your unborn baby's organs continue to grow. It's body is covered with lanugo—soft hairs and a sticky protective coating that keeps baby's skin from drying out in the amniotic fluid. Your baby is moving frequently, and by now you should be able to feel those movements. Your physician can hear your baby-to-be's heartbeat with a stethoscope placed on your abdomen.

Your little one weighs in at around 7 to 8 ounces and he's between 5 and 6 inches long (crown to rump).

Gender: we don't know!

Maternity clothes: Yes! I just washed up all my maternity shirts that were left in the maternity tote. My regular shirts are getting a little short.

Sleep: Kind of on my side/tummy. I am a stomach sleeper so slowly adjusting to not sleeping on my stomach.

Best moment(s) of the week: hum...not sure!

Movement: Its there

Food cravings/aversions: CHOCOLATE MILK! Yummy! and Chocolate Moose Tracks ice cream. So good!

Morning sickness: Yeah still in the morning but way better.

Symptoms: Definitely feeling the growing and stretching around my belly

Labor signs: none

What I miss: nothing really this week

What I'm looking forward to: One more week until a lot of exciting thing happen! I will be half way next week and we get to have our ultrasound next Tuesday! (Jan 31st)

18 Weeks

2012-01-17T14:41:00.003-05:00

Today's date: Jan 17

How far along: 18 weeks

Total weight gain: -2 pounds

Size and growth of the baby:At week 18, your baby-to-be's senses are maturing. Baby's able to hear sounds within its own comfortable environment, such as the sound of your heart beating, as well as external sounds, such as your voice. Baby may become more active for certain sounds, and you'll feel its movements. At this point in baby's development it's still small enough that there is plenty of room to wiggle.

Your little one is about 6 ounces and 5 to 6 inches long (crown to rump). Baby is about the size of a grapefruit.

Gender: Unknown :)

Maternity clothes: Mainly Maternity. My regular shirts are getting shorter.

Sleep: Boys are sleeping better at night which allows me to sleep better to but I have a bad head cold right now so that kind of stinks when it comes to having to blow my nose constantly during the night.

Best moment(s) of the week: Zeke now will point to my tummy and say 'baby, baby'. Its very cute.

Movement: Small little flutters every now and again.

Food cravings/aversions: Chocolate milk shakes...I posted on FB at 10:30 one night that I wanted one and my mom said she would make me one if David came and got it! It was sooooo good!

Morning sickness: Just mornings now really.

Symptoms: Tired, morning sickness, itching and stretching pains.

Labor signs: none

What I miss: Waking refreshed

What I'm looking forward to: Our Ultrasound which is scheduled for Jan 31st!

17 weeks

2012-01-10T15:19:00.002-05:00

I had a dr. appointment this morning. Blood pressure is great, baby's heart rate is 155 strong!

Today's date: Jan 10, 2012

How far along: 17 weeks

Total weight gain: -2 pounds

Size and growth of the baby: This week your little one weighs in at around 5 ounces and stretches to just over 5 inches (crown to rump). Baby is about the size of a red onion. Around this time your baby's ears pop from the head and Baby-to-be can now sense sounds. After all, baby has plenty to listen to in utero! Baby's accustomed to the strong beating of your heart, blood rushing through your veins, and your stomach grumbling. Baby can also discern sounds outside the uterus, like your voice and music.

Gender: Unknown :)

Maternity clothes: Mostly Maternity. My regular shirts are getting shorter.

Sleep: Who needs it? When it happens its good and then its interrupted by a little boy or two.

Best moment(s) of the week: Went to the library with the boys and signed up for the winter lap time session. The boys love going to the library.

Movement: Small little flutters every now and again.

Food cravings/aversions: Really wanted Pork Chops Ole but it took way longer than I expected so we just had plain ol' pork chops major disappointed. Nothing sounds good to eat.

Morning sickness: Still a daily visitor but typically only in the mornings.

Symptoms: Tired, morning sickness, itching and stretching pains.

Labor signs: none

What I miss: Waking refreshed

What I'm looking forward to: Our Ultrasound which is scheduled for Jan 31st!

16 Weeks

2012-01-02T08:00:00.001-05:00

Today's date: Jan 2, 2012

How far along: 16 weeks

Total weight gain: -2 pounds

Size and growth of the baby: This week, your little one is around 4.5 inches long (crown to rump) and weighs in around 3 ounces. Baby is about the size of an avocado.
By week 16, your baby-to-be's body is doing more to support itself. The kidneys function and produce urine that then passes through the umbilical cord. Within the stomach, bile is secreted, although baby relies on you for all of it's nutrients. The baby's appearance changes as the scalp hair grows and may even have color. Developing facial muscles make it possible for baby to open and close it's mouth, maybe even give you a smile or two.

Gender: Unknown :)

Maternity clothes: Maternity pants for major comfort. And some maternity shirts.

Sleep: I am pretty sure Zeke is making it impossible for me to get any sleep especially now that he learned to climb out of his crib. Hopefully at some point I can rediscover what sleep is...

Best moment(s) of the week:Its the New Year! Both Eli and Zeke stayed away until after midnight to watch the ball drop with Mommy and Daddy!!

Movement: Small little flutters every now and again.

Food cravings/aversions: Everything sounds un-appetizing even though I am starving. Hard to find things that sound good. Sweets usually are a no go for me.

Morning sickness: Still a daily visitor. :(

Symptoms: Tired, morning sickness, a lot of low back pain this past week.

Labor signs: way to early

What I miss: Waking refreshed

What I'm looking forward to: An ultrasound in about 4 weeks! and Feeling better

A Merry Coffey Christmas

2011-12-30T16:30:00.004-05:00

This has been a very busy holiday season for us at the Coffey Household. But a very fun one for sure. After quite a few holiday parties we finally made it around to Christmas Eve when we allowed the boys to open their stockings. Here they are waiting to open them up. They loved all their goodies that they got in them.

After the boys went to be Christmas Eve Night my parents brought over their big gift (still boxed up) but they were very awesome and stayed to help David put it together. I did a little bit of work on it but David and my Dad did most of it. I put the wheel barrow together a couple nights earlier and put that in a closet so the boys couldn't find it. The play house went together fairly easy but the roof on it was kind of a pain. Here is our tree and presents with the stockings handing on the back wall.
With Christmas being on a Sunday this year we knew we would only have so much time in the morning to open gifts so David and I opened ours on Christmas Eve after we had everything else all finished. Here we are in front of the tree and the boys goodies.
Christmas morning Elijah woke up before Ezekiel so he had to hang out in mommy and daddys room until Zeke got up. Which wasn't to long. Then we made them wait in the hall way so that I could get the camera ready.
We decided to wrap the play house just in case one of the boys (mainly Elijah) woke up in the middle of the night and happen to see it. We used some twin sheets to do the job and some ribbon I had. Looked pretty good.

We let the boys unwrap the house and they loved it! Eli thought it was just a big tent at first and wanted to know how to get in it so we told him he had to unwrap it and see what was inside. After we let them play for a little bit we let them start opening up presents.
They each got one big present at the end. Elijah got this hay lift tractor and a gravity wagon.

Zekey got a cool helicopter which he loves!
After a busy holiday week everyone was tired out. Elijah climbed on mommy and we both fell asleep then Ezekiel woke from his nap and laid with us and fell asleep as well!

We hope everyone had a great holiday season and wish everyone a wonderful new year!

Thirty-One Outlet Salehttp://www2.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

2011-12-28T12:08:00.002-05:00

I am super excited to share a great sale with you all. If you haven't heard of My Thirty-One then you really need to check out these great deals. I have so many of their bags in different styles and prints and LOVE them!

They are currently running their OUTLET SALE which includes discontinued prints that are so cute.

The Organizing Utility Tote is great for a diaper bag. ($11.00)

As well as the All In One Organizer ($9.00)

I love my Short Utility Bin for either toys, blankets or laundry ($16.00)

They have so much cute stuff I can't even list them all! So just go to their outlet sale and check it out for yourself. You won't be disappointed in their products!

15 Weeks

2011-12-27T21:42:00.004-05:00

Today's date: December 27, 2011

How far along: 15 weeks

Total weight gain: 0 pounds. This is actually impressive considering with my boys pregnancy's that at this point I was at 10-15 LOST

Size and growth of the baby: At week 15, your baby-to-be stretches its limbs and bends at the elbows. It's getting big enough that you can feel many of these movements.
This week your baby is roughly the size of a small apple or orange. Bones are continuing to grow and lengthen. While it looks more like a baby, the skin is still thin and translucent with the veins visible.

Gender: Unknown :)

Maternity clothes: Mainly maternity pants. I only have one pair of regular pants that fit me and they were big on me to begin with but are starting to get tight as well. I am wearing a few maternity shirts as well but my regular ones still fit.

Sleep: ...Well considering I have two other boys who have been having some rough nights sleep is limited. Although when it does happen its good and baby doesn't bother me. Side sleeping with a pillow in front of me is so comfy.

Best moment(s) of the week: I haven't had to take my medicine for nausea as often which is good. Plus my Sister Katie and her new husband Jesse announced to our extended family that they are having a baby as well! They are due July 17th, about 4 weeks after us.

Movement: None yet but its there.

Food cravings/aversions: Cheese and Crakers are so good as well as olives and pickles. I can't stand the smell of chocolate and peanut butter together which is so strange because that combo is typically a favorite of mine!

Morning sickness: Every morning I make a visit to the trash can. Through out the day I get nauseous a lot but I am able to control it by eating a couple crackers every hour and a half or so. If that doesn't help then I have a Rx for it. At night I tend to get sick again especially after a shower when the bathroom is really hot and sticky...that combo makes me sick. I need cold fresh air to help me feel good. But I can say that I don't think this time around it is anywhere near as bad as it was with Ezekiel.

Symptoms: Tired, head aches, morning sickness

Labor signs: way to early

What I miss: Not having to worry so much! Seems strange but with two little boys running around thinking you are a jungle gym to climb on makes it a little worrisome. I also miss being able to wake up and spend the first morning minutes with my boys rather than being sick.

What I'm looking forward to: In about 4-5 weeks we will be able to have an ultrasound and see our little Coffey Bean again!

We had an Ultrasound at 12 weeks 4 days of our baby. Here is a picture from that ultrasound. Heart beat was 159

Easter

2011-04-27T09:41:00.004-04:00

This year we celebrated Zekey's first Easter. We had a great day!

The boys basketsElijah RussellEzekiel Henry

Happy first Birthday Ezekiel!

2011-04-26T16:16:00.002-04:00

Happy 1st Birthday to Ezekiel! We had a great time celebrating Zeke's first birthday this past Saturday. We went all out in the boy department and did a Construction theme party. Here are some of the decorations:

The food was served in and around trucks! With cones and cation tape everywhere. We had Jello molds in the shape of construction trucks and vehicles too! The sandwiches were in the big truck and forks in the cement truck. Condiments in the tool box!The cake was a dump truck my Mother in law made. Then we had ice cream cakes to go with it. Ezekiel smash cake was a little round cake with a dump truck and candle on it.
Ezekiel loved smashing his cake! Really he did but he HATED it when I put this birthday hat on him
Zekey opened up a few presents first thing in the morning. He got some new cute books!

Walking and Wearing

2011-04-09T23:02:00.002-04:00

Ezekiel loves to be outside. Today we met up with Daddy and Elijah who rode the bike and trailer down to the park and went for a walk with them. I wore Ezekiel on my back in the Mai Tai Carrier...Unfortunately he leaked through the diaper... we both were wet when we got back to the car! YUCK!

Ezekiel...

2011-04-07T21:46:00.001-04:00

When I grow up I want to...

...be a chef.

(11 months)

E

2011-04-04T15:09:00.002-04:00

Can't help but love this boy!

Throwing a stick into the river

B.F.F.

2011-04-03T21:04:00.002-04:00

Ezekiel loves his froggy snuggy blanket. He gets so excited when he see it. It is also great for calming him down. Notice the boogers?...

He decided to help himself to the kleenex to get those boogers. What a sweet heart!

Adventure 365

2011-04-02T23:40:00.005-04:00

So I have abandoned this blog. So sad! BUT I have returned with good intentions. Having two wonderful little guys running and moving all over the place keeps me really busy plus I have my other blog Cloth Diaper Addiction that keeps me very busy and on a schedule for posting. So anyways, I have a new goal for this blog. I will try to post at least one picture a day of the boys. This is a fun way to watch them grow physically, developmentally and emotionally. I will try to include a short caption with each photo as well as the date the picture was taken. I hope you enjoy! Also, I will be updating some things on the blog layout. You will soon have the option to subscribe to my blog which will allow you to get an email each time the blog is updated. You will be able to read the whole post right there in the email without actually having to visit the blog. However I would love for you to still visit the blog too!

So to start us off on our Adventure 365:

JAM PILE!
If you haven't guessed already we are all boy over here! Elijah came up with the wonderful idea to Jam Pile with Ezekiel. He will grab Ezekiel and pull him on him. Its now gotten to the point (when Zekey is in the mood) that when Elijah is laying on the floor Ezekiel will start laughing and charge on all fours over to where Elijah is and jumps on him. There is nothing better than the sound of your boys laughing and loving each other like this!

Neglected...opps

2010-09-24T10:19:00.003-04:00

Hi to the few of you who actually read this blog. I have been super busy and often times forget to update this, especially since most of my stuff is on facebook.

Here is an update on our family and what we are up to:

David has been at ISD Corp. for 2 months now and is really enjoying it. He likes being able to leave for home at 5 and get home shortly after. Its a close job!

I have been keeping busy as a Stay at Home Mommy. It is a huge blessing for all of us that I am able to stay home and take care of the boys. I also watch Colton on Fridays while Katie is in class. I run a blog called Cloth Diaper Addiction and really enjoy it and I am learning quite a bit about cloth diapering. The blog is only 3 months old and I already have close to 300 followers. I also have a facebook page to go with my blog and we are almost to 600 followers on that. I am meeting some other great ladies who cloth diaper and love to share their stories. For the blog I do reviews on cloth diapers as well as other great parenting products. I contact companies with review requests and they will send me a product for free as also a second item for a giveaway. I love being able to try out things that we typically would not buy for ourselves. Having the blog does take some work though because you have companies that are rely on you to get word out about their product but its fun and I enjoy doing it.

Elijah just turned 2 on the second. So we celebrated his golden birthday with a tractor themed party. I think he now owns every tractor toy that is made. Grandpa C. also built him an awesome big barn for him to store all his tractors in. We are working with him on his sleep habits. He has a hard time going to bed and will wake up quite a bit during the night. He was 28 pounds and 36 inces at his 2 year check up.

Ezekiel is doing good too. He is rolling over both ways now and loves to grab and at his toys. We gave Zeke his first bottle at 4 months and he did really well taking it. After slowing introducing it we decided we were ready to wean him and switch him over to formula. This past week he broke out in a horrible rash and the doctor wasn't quite sure what it was. He also started projectile vomiting and so the doctor suggested we give him pedialite. His rash is now gone and he seems to be doing a little better with the vomiting. He was 6.4 ounces at his 4 month check up and was 17.2 a week and a half later when we went in for his rash! He is big growing boy!

12 weeks?

2010-07-15T14:46:00.006-04:00

Tomorrow will be Ezekiel's 12 week birthday! My time truly has flown by during this maternity leave! Everyone is doing great over here in the Coffey house. Elijah is still loving on his little brother like crazy, he has his naughty moments to and we do time outs when that happens. He doesn't like that but it seems to work and calm him down. I'm waiting on a book to come into the library to read, "The Strong Willed Child" by James Dobson, I hope to get some insight on how to deal with Eli's strong willed nature. Ezekiel is doing great also. He sleeps about 6-8 hours a night usually from 11-6 or 7. Which is so wonderful! He is still eating like a pro and growing like crazy. I like the fact that he is 12 weeks old and has not had a single bottle yet! Makes me feel proud of myself for sticking to nursing when it was getting hard. It saves a lot of money too! Both boys are still in cloth diapers. I don't think I will ever go back to disposables. As a matter of fact I'm about ready to sell off the 2 packs of size one diapers and 3 packs of size 2 diapers I had gotten while still pregnant with Zeke! Make some money off them and buy some more cloth diapers. Eli seems to be really interested in the potty to lately. He always tells me as soon as he goes poopy because he wants to be changed (even though he fights the changing like crazy). He also loves to just sit on his little potty and tries to go on it as well. Its so funny to watch.

David and I also have some very exciting things going on in our lives. I was supposed to go back to work on Monday because my maternity leave would be over, however, David was offered a position at ISD Corp. as an Information Technology Engineer which will allow me to be a stay at home mom! This is truly a huge blessing that we have been praying about and are so excited for this opportunity that has been given to both of us.

2 Months Alreay!

2010-06-29T09:54:00.002-04:00

We went in on Friday for Ezekiels 2 month check up (9 weeks old) and he is a growing boy! He weighed in at 12 pounds, 14 ounces and was 23 inches long. The doctor was very pleased, especially since it took him 3 weeks to get back to his birth weight. We asked about him spitting up and she said not to worry about that either since he was gaining weight so well. Elijah is doing well also. He still loves to hold Zekey when ever we let him. He always checks on him and asks where he is first thing in the morning when he wakes up. We have both boys in cloth diapers full time and that is going great. It has helped with Elijah's scratching on his bottom. Only 3 weeks until I have to go back to work...bummer!

New Blog

2010-06-24T21:24:00.005-04:00

Hey everyone, I started up a new blog...dont worry I will try and keep this one up and running with the family items. My new blog is about cloth diapering. I hope to get a lot of followers and be able to get some items from companies to do reviews on. A lot of times they also give an extra item for me to give away to a lucky reader! Head on over to Cloth Diaper Addiction and become a follower. Even if you don't cloth diaper yourself it will be a fun site to follow. I hope to include lots of other items about parenting and motherhood and the joys of having children. You can also 'like' me on facebook under cloth diaper addiction. The more the merrier! I hope you 'like' and 'follow' me!

Here we go...

2010-06-14T21:56:00.003-04:00

Things are going great over here in the Coffey house hold. David had been doing a lot of work in various gardens around the county...Dale and Joys, My Mom and Dads, and our own (we just have a few buckets of strawberries and raspberries). The gardens are looking great and I can't wait until we have fresh produce to munch on.

Im still doing good. Im enjoying the summer off with my two little guys. There is never a dull moment! I signed Elijah and I up for a laptime session at the library once a weeks. We have only had it once so far but it seemed to go well. Zeke slept through the whole thing thankfully. I also got both boys signed up for the summer reading program and we are reading away. It will only be week two when we go back this week and Im pretty sure Elijah has read enough books to finish level one! (There are only two levels) He loves to read and have us read to him. Tonight he actually fell asleep in his bed while reading his book. It was too cute! Elijah is also learning his ABC's and numbers. We usually do them both a couple of times a day and I will find him counting his cars and tractors randomly while playing...not always in the correct order but with numbers non the less! Its so cute to see him growing and learning more and more each day. We have decided to offically switch Elijah over cloth diapers full time. Im hoping to go this week to ecobuns to pick his out. The ones Im getting for him are nice because they can fit newborn up to toddler so they fit both Zeke and Elijah so that when we get Eli potty trained we can use the diapers on Zeke! Eli seems to have a big interest in the potty lately. Whenever we do a diaper change he wants to sit on his potty. I hope that he potty trains early then we will only have one in diapers. I have heard that putting kids in cloth helps them to potty train fast so we shall see.

Ezekiel is doing really good as well. He is growing like crazy and is getting so long! We haven't had a weight cheek for a few weeks so we don't have an official weight to share. He is still nursing really well but he seems to have a problem with spit up. We can sometimes get him to burp but not to often. He spits up quite a bit like Elijah did. Elijah had reflux and Im wondering if Zeke has it to. With Eli we put a little bit of cereal in his bottle to help keep it in and that worked but with nursing you can't really add cereal to thicken it up. We have his 2 month check up next week and we will find out what his weight is, length is, and what we can do for his spitting up. Zeke can often times be found laughing and smiling in his sleep and its to precious. He is sleeping well through the night...about 6-7 hours before waking up to eat. He is still cloth diapered full time for the most part. We occasionally will use disposables mainly because we have a lot to use up. I will probably just sell what we dont use.

Picture time:
Elijah had to try out our new double stroller as soon as daddy finished putting it together. He claimed the front seat and started reading his books!

Ezekiel loves to sleep on his belly...back to sleep i know... I only put him on his tummy during the day when I am awake and right there by him to keep an eye on him. I do love the little butt in the air though!
Ezekiel and Elijah have matching diapers. They are the Thirsties duo diaper cover in blackbird print. I love this cover a lot however you have to use a prefold with it which isn't hard...unless you are trying to put it on a very squirmy wiggly 1 1/2 year old who hates being changes. But i do manage to get it on him somehow. lol

Elijah caught reading Daddys 'funnies' as we call them. He loves the comics just like his daddy. He usually will pick out and name all the trucks, tractors, cars, and fire trucks that he sees in them.

Free Coupons

2010-06-03T08:31:00.006-04:00

I have the following coupons available. If you are interested please email me at kristina(at)thecoffeycan(dot)com NO SPAM! Please be willing to send a SASE or arrange a local pick up

$1.00 off any Gentle Naturals Product ex 6-30-10
$5.00 off any Gerber GoodStart 2 Formula ex 11-10-10
.55 cents off any two boxes Gerber infant cereal
(2) .75 cents off 3 4-pcaks or 3 32ounce bottles of Gerber Juice ex 8-15-10
$3.00 off any Huggies Pure and Natural diapers ex 6-30-10
$1.00 off Huggies little swimmers sun care product ex 6-30-10
(3) $2.00 off Huggies Pull Ups ex 6-30-10
$1.00 off pull ups wipes ex 6-30-10
(4) .75 cents off Gerber ultra-thin nursing pads ex 6-15-10
(2) $5.00 off any Enfagrow Premium or next step formula ex 6-30-10
(2) $1.00 off any pampers cruisers ex 8-31-10

Diaper Giveaways

2010-06-01T14:15:00.002-04:00

I've been reading a lot of blogs lately about cloth diapering because that is what is on my mind. A lot of blogs have give aways and will pick a person to win a cloth diaper. Here is one blog I found that is giving away the Thristies diaper cover (duo wrap) which is what I am using and LOVE! So I wanted to share the blog with those of you who actually read this blog. Check it out!

www.thebudgetmommy.com

they also have lots of other neat deals and reviews of lots of great products.

here is the direct link:

http://www.thebudgetmommy.com/home/2010/5/17/thirsties-duo-wrap-insert-tiny-bubbles-giveaway.html

Cloth Diapering and Nursing

2010-05-25T21:41:00.006-04:00

After much researching and debate David and I decided to give cloth diapering a try. This was a hard decision to make because I didn't want to have a baby wearing a huge bulky diaper and honestly, shaking a poopy diaper above a toilet does not seem that appealing to me. (and it still doesn't) We are hoping this will get us one step closer to allowing me to be a stay at home mom by helping us save some money. I have been keeping track of the amount of diapers used since Ezekiel was born. We used around 190 newborn diapers and around 100 size one diapers in a mere 4 and a half weeks! Now granted I did get great deals on those diapers and didn't pay full price for any of them, but I don't know if I will always be able to get the good deals in the future. So anyways we are taking the great adventure and are trying out cloth diapers. There is a local company in town called ecobuns (ecobuns.com). It is ran out of a ladys home and she has great insight on all the items she sells. Dana (SIL) and I went over to her house one day and she gave us a mini diapering class and explained all the in's and out's of cloth diapering. She showed us all the different types of diapers and how they worked and shared the pros and cons of each kind. We ended up being there for almost two hours going over things and trying to decide what way we wanted to go with for our diapers. I ended up buying prefolds and covers and Dana got AIO (all in one) diapers. So far we both love our diapers and have purchased more. I will still be using disposables for long days away from home and when we go camping just because we don't have the supply needed to make it through the longer periods. Here is a picture of my covers I purchased:
There is a new way of cleaning off poopy diapers too, Its a sprayer that hooks to your toilet. It is kind of like the sprayer that is in your sink but it is hooked to the water behind your toilet and you can spray off the poo into the toilet rather than having to shake it out and worry about dropping the diaper into the toilet. However they run kind of high as far as price goes so Willy (BIL) is making a home made one for about half the price for Dana and I to have on our toilets.

Zeke looks great in his diapers by the way...okay he doesn't like to get his diaper changes that much so that is why he is mad in the picture with the blue diaper cover on.

Elijah is still using disposable diapers at this point. We wanted to see how it goes first with Zeke and then make the decision to switch over with Eli or not. I might buy a couple of nice AIO's for him at night though instead of buying overnight diapers. Here is a picture of Eli because he is a cutie pie too! Did I mention he loves his fruit!
Switching topics now...

While browsing blogs today I came across one that I was able to relate to as a nursing mom. After I had Elijah I tried nursing and it didn't work out. He lost weight and didn't gain it back the way he should have so we had to start supplementing and it just kind of went down the drain from there. He ended up completely on formula. This time around with Zeke nursing is going really well, even though it took him 3 weeks to get back up to his birth weight. He latches on well and eats for a long period of time. I have to admit there are times when I just wish he was formula fed, it gets tricky when you have a 20 month old getting jealous and decides to jump, bite, kick etc, while you are nursing and knows you can't put him in time out or give him vinegar for biting because you are in the middle of a feeding. Hopefully this will calm down after a while. So back to the blog I had mentioned. The lady wrote about nursing in public and overcoming her fears of doing so. The article can be found at: http://www.theclothdiaperwhisperer.com/2010/05/overcoming-fears-of-nursing-in-public.html This really hit home for me because I am just like she was. It is uncomfortable going out in public and having to nurse the baby. But I find myself gradually working up my nerves and becoming more comfortable with it. At first I was locking myself away from family and friends to go and feed Zeke, and I would miss out on 20-30 minutes of conversation and time with them. I enjoy spending time with people...I don't enjoy spending time alone by myself, locked away in a room. So I am gradually overcoming my fears and am starting to nurse more in 'public' I should say more around family while using a nursing cover. It is hard though to make sure Zeke is latched on and keeps latched on while hidden under the cover but eventually over time as he gets old he will hopefully start to get the hang of latching himself on with out a bunch of help from me and this will become even more enjoyable.
I do have to say that I am proud of the fact that Ezekiel has never had a bottle at one month old and Im pretty sure he won't get one for a while because things are going really good for us. I have pumped once, more to help ease some pain, and that milk is probably going to need to get tossed out.

And to end the post...Elijah is such a great big brother to Ezekiel. He always asks " Hold me?" when he wants to hold Zekey. He will sit so good on the couch and hold him, he will look at him and talk to him and give him so many kisses. Its the most precious thing in the world.

Way over due!

2010-05-12T21:20:00.007-04:00

We have been super busy here the last two months getting ready for the new baby and then having the new baby. But I finally have time to update and hope to do so more frequently now that things have calmed down for us.

On April 23 we went in for our scheduled c-section (we were hoping I would go into labor on my own so I could do a VBAC but that didn't happen) we went in at 8 am and the section was schedule for 9. We didn't know what we were having so we were very excited at this point. Finally around 9:20 we heard that the baby had a ton of dark hair, which is way different from what Elijah had when he was born, then at 9:26 we heard the cry of our new little baby and David looked over the sheet to tell me that we had another baby boy! Ezekiel Henry! He weighed in at 9 pounds 4 ounces and was 21 inches long. He was a big baby and the doc said I probably wouldn't have been able to have him naturally if I would have gone into labor on my own. David was able to cut the cord and bring him over to me to see. I got to see him for a couple minutes then they went upstairs with the nurse. I went back into recovery for not quite an hour and was brought back upstairs to my room. Shortly after being in there Dr. Worpel came in and talked to David and I and told us that Ezekiel had wet lungs. Normally when you labor and deliver naturally most of that fluid gets pushed out of the babys body and because Ezekiel was a c-section he didn't have that chance to get that stuff out. So he was put on oxygen right away to help his heavy breathing and she said it could take 12-24 hours to clear up his lungs and then he would be able to come into the room with me and I would be able to hold him. They said if I started feeling better then they would wheel me down to the nursery to see him. Finally after 7 hours the nurse came in and told us that his levels were back where they needed to be and he could come down to our room and I would finally be able to hold him. He was put on limited holding (only mommy and daddy) until the next afternoon. They had to tube feed him once and then they bottle fed him for his second feeding and he did well with that so they let me nurse him for his third feeding and he has been nursing since then. No bottles yet! When we left the hospital he weighed in at 8.10 and 4 days later was still at the same weight so we had to go in for a weight check at 2 week and he was 8.12. He only gained 2 ounces in a week and was still below his birth weight. We go in on Monday for his 3 week check up and will see how he is with weight gain. Hopefully it has gone up enough that I don't have to supplement and give him a bottle. He seems to latch on well and will eat for 20-30 mins every 2-3 hours.

Elijah loves being a big brother and is always wanting to hold Zekey and hug and kiss him. The first thing he does every morning after I get him out of his room is run into mommy and daddys room to check on Zeke. He is starting to want to pick him up out of his bouncy seat and swing so I have to keep and extra close eye on him with that.

I'm feeling quite well since having the c-section. I can get around really well and I am no longer sore. I can even fit back into my pre-pregnancy jeans! We are hoping that over the next couple of months we can figure out some way for me to be able to be a stay at home mom.

Week two and three of couponing

2010-02-02T20:49:00.004-05:00

Week Two: This was Meijer band week with the sales which means that most of the items on sale were meijer brand and you can't really get coupons for that stuff. However they did have the Buy 10 for $10 get on free so I did get some good deals that way. Week two I spent $63.24 and saved 32.19 Not to bad for it being Meijer week.

Week Three: This week was kind of a last minute shopping trip. Elijah has a double ear infection so I figured while I was at the store I might as well do my grocery shopping while I was there. I only had about an hour to put together my list and gather my coupons but I dont think I did to bad. Here is what I got:

They had a lot of good deals this week. Bread was buy one get 2 free! Plus I had a .55 cent coupon so it was even cheaper. It was 2.99 a loaf but I got three loaves for $2.44 a total of .81 cents a piece! They also had the Jacks pizza that is uaully $3.33 each and I got them for $1.09 each. I spent $6.20 on grapes but they were cheap for $1.24 a pound and my boys and myself love to munch on them. Cream cheese was probably my best deal. I bought 4. They usually would be $6.96 for 4 of them but I paid$3.00 for 4 of them! Shredded Cheese I got 6 bags for $1.16 a piece and we love cheese over here so its a good deal! There were a lot of other good deals that didn't make it on my list so Im probably going to head back over there some time this week to pick up those few missing items.
Total spent tonight: $67.85
Total Saved: $54.67

The 'Pantry'

2010-02-02T20:42:00.001-05:00

Now that we have started couponing our pantry is starting to change looks. This is the picture I took the first week I started: (two weeks ago)

This is what it looks like today. There is so much stuff in there! And I'm sure it will continue to grow which means more cleaning it out. The games on the top shelf need to be moved to the large storage closet.

Tuesday

2010-01-26T17:02:00.003-05:00

We started a new schedule this week at our house and are slowly getting adjusted. I think its hardest for Elijah because hes the one who gets to nap. lol. I'm now working 7:45 - 2 instead of 2 - 6:30 which is so much nicer. I like having the whole afternoon and evening off rather than the morning and a few hours at night. Elijah got out of his crib yesterday when I put him down for a nap and he fell out and hit his head on the rocking chair which resulted in a big ole bump/bruise on his forehead. Poor little guy. But he is doing fine now. He fell asleep in my arms today for his afternoon nap so I put him in his toddler bed for the very first time to sleep. He is so small in there! For the most part he will still be in his crib for sleeping but we have to make sure he is out or close to being out before we put him in there otherwise he will climb out and hurt himself again.

I haven't been shopping yet this week to get groceries. I don't think I will get as many cheap items because its brand week (all meijer items on sale) and its hard to get meijer specific coupons for those. But I hope to do well anyways! I got a big packet of Target coupons in the mail today (well Nick did and gave them to me) and they can all be paired with a manufatuer coupons which means double the savings. So I might make a trip out to Target too but we shall see. I have a few (5) blogs that I follow that have all the good deals posted on them and on one blog I found this great way to organize your coupons. Lucky me had the perfect basket, that already sits on my desk, that I can use for this organizing. What you do is take small envelopes and I used note cards and labeled each one into categories. The note card sticks into the envelope (flap cut off or folded in) and then goes into the basket. This is a really cool way to organize the many coupons I have. Plus if I want to bring it shopping with me it will fit into the seat of the cart. However I dont think I will be doing that seeing as how Elijah is my shopping buddy and they would all more than likely end up on the floor! YIKES! Usually I put the coupons I am planning on using in on envelope that is labels "Coupons to use this week" and bring just that with me. Its really handy. Here is a picture of my organizer:

Meijer Saturday Trip

2010-01-23T12:04:00.003-05:00

This is getting exciting for us! But I don't think I have a whole lot of storage spots available! But I will not need to buy anymore diapers for Elijah or the future baby. I have plenty of those stashed up. I also have plenty of cereal as well. I hope next week to find some good deals as well but I don' t think I will buy as much stuff as I did this week. It was a lot of fun to see how much I can save and how much food and toiletries I bring home for that amount of money. So my final trip for this week was back to Meijer for their Super Saturday Sale! Here is a picture of what I bought.

And the run down:

Non coupon items:
Loaf Pan
(2) Cheese Toast Meijer Brand

Sale Items, Coupon Items:
(2) Post Cereal: Reg $2.39
Sale for .99 cents.
Final Price 1.98 for 2 boxes
Saved: $2.80

(2) All Liquid Laundry Detergent: Reg $5.14
Sale for $3.00
Coupons: $2.00, $1.00
Final Price: $3.00 for 2
Saved: $7.28

(5) Colgate and Aquafresh Toothpaste: Reg $1.97 and $2.17
Sale for $1.00
Final Price: $5.00 for 5
Saved: $5.45

(2) Quilted Northern 6pk double rolls Reg $2.13
Sale for 1/2 off
Final Price: $2.13 for 2
Saved: $2.13

(5)DelMonte Veggies Reg. .99 cents
Sale: 69 cents
Coupons: $1.00/4, $1.00/5
Final Price: $1.45 for 5 cans
Saved: $3.50

(2) Kellogs Frosted Mini Wheats: Reg?
Sale: $2.50
Coupons: $1.50/2
Final Price: $3.50 for 2

Honey Nut Cherrios: Reg $3.39
Sale: $2.39
Coupons: $1.00
Final Price: $1.39
Saved: $2.00

(2) Gold Fish Crackers Reg $2.19
Sale: $1.00
Final Price: $2.00 for 2

Soft Soap Hand Soap Reg $2.84
Sale: $1.50
Coupon: .35 cents
Final Price: $1.15
Saved: $1.69

FINAL GRAND TOTAL:
Total Before Coupons and Savings: $61.18
Total After Coupons and Savings: $30.30
Total Amount Saved: $30.88

I saved more than I spent!

Friday Trip Out

2010-01-22T14:23:00.004-05:00

Today we ventured out to Target and to Meijer again. Today is my last Friday off until April when we have our next baby. So we made a day of it by shopping and saving. First we hit up Target to get some shower and wedding presents. I also was checking out diapers because I have some good coupons to use there. While looking I found a pack of size one diapers that someone had purchased online and then returned to the store. I guess when that happens they mark them really cheap to get rid of them. The top of the pack was also opened and taped back shut but for the price that I got them for it is worth it. (price to come after picture). They also have a TON of clearance going on right now. I found two 2T shirts for Elijah next winter that are so fun and 50% off so I picked them up. Those were my major deals for Target. Then we went to Meijer (had to take mom to get grocerys) and I brought along a few more coupons that I printed off. I got 4 boxes of granola bars and a G2 Gatorade drink. Here is the picture of my deals for the day!

Okay, so here is the run down:
Sunbelt Granola bars on sale for 2/$4
I used two BOGO coupons
Final Price for the 4 Boxes of Granola Bars: $4
Amount Saved: $4. 38

Gatorade G2 on sale for .99cents
Used a .50 cent off coupon
Final Price: .49 cents

Two Shirts original price: $6 each
Clearanced out at $3.00 each
Final price for 2 shirts: $6.24
Amount Saved: $6.24

AND THE DEAL OF THE DAY...
Huggies Diapers Size 1, 84 count
Regular price: 16.99
Marked down price: $4.26
Coupon used: $1.50
Final Price: $2.76
Which averages out to be around .03 cents a diaper! When usually that pack would be about .20 cents a diaper! WOO HOO!!

Couponing week one:

2010-01-20T11:32:00.005-05:00

Today we adventured out to Meijer to do our weekly grocery shopping. I ended up with two grocery orders.

Order one consisted of the following:

2 pks Huggies diapers
regular price: 9.97
sale price: 8.97
final price: 6.72 each after coupons
received a $4.00 CAT OYNO coupon

2 pks Huggies wipes
regular price: 5.99
sale price: 5.49
final price: 4.86 each after coupons

5 boxes of Betty Crocker fruit snacks
regular price: 2.22, 2.22, 1.88, 1.88, 1.88
sale price: No sale
final price: 1.53 each after coupons
received a $3.50 CAT OYNO coupon

5 Breakstone Cottage Cheese doublers
regular price: 1.00
sale price: no sale
final price 1.00 each
received a $5.00 CAT OYNO coupon

Total before coupons and sale prices:
$48.92
Total after coupons and sale prices:
$37.59
Amount Saved:
$10.65
Received:
$12.50 CAT OYNO (coupons good for money off your next order)

Order number two:
The second order consisted of all my 'regular' grocery items as well as a few extra things that I was able to get for really cheap.
Here are the really good deals:

-Buy two milks get a 1/2 gallon of chocolate milk free (with coupon) valued @ 2.79

-Italian sausage
reg $3.89
final price $2.15

-(2) Quaker Oats 18oz.
reg. $3.28 each
final price $.98 cents for both! could have been free but couldn't get the extra coupon to print!

-(3) Goldfish crackers
reg.$2.19
final price $1.00

-(2)Starkist Tuna pouch
reg $1.89
final price $.04 cents each!

-(2)Aunt Jemima Syrup
reg $3.48 each
final price .99 cents each!

- 2 pk Gerber pjs
reg $9.99
final price $5.99

-(4) Delmonte canned Fruit
reg. $1.49 (2) and $1.36
Final price $.49 cents each

-(4) Cereals (Frosted Flakes-2, Corn Pops, Apple Jacks)
eg. $2.69, $3.39, $2.95
final price $1.75 each

I obviously bought more than what was listed above. Those were just the good deals I got. I used the $12.50 CAT's that I got from my first order on my second order. My Final Totals were:

Total before coupons and sale prices:
$86.59
Total after coupons and sale prices:
$42.52
Amount Saved:
$44.07

The two orders combined I paid the following:
Total before coupons and sals prices:
$134.83
Total after coupons and sale prices:
$80.11
Total Amount Saved:
$54.72

I do have to say this is the most I have saved using coupons ever! And I am happy to be saving it. I hope in the future I can learn new tricks and save even more but I am proud of myself for getting this far. I have always 'clipped coupons' but never to this extent and its nice to see that the 2 hours I put into this with finding all the coupons is worth it! I would also like to thank Rosaria who checked us out at Meijer, she was very helpful and friendly and didn't mind the coupons at all! There were even a couple that I had items for and they were not working so she did the adjustment thing and made the computer take them! YEAH! Oh here is one last picture for fun...
Yes that right, thats my grocery list! YIKES! What a mess! Yet I still survived! WooHoo!

Savings of the week...

2010-01-16T16:53:00.003-05:00

I think I am going to start adding some different things to my blog besides family updates and such. Today I will start of by sharing some of my great deals that I have gotten over the last two days.

Friday we make the trek up to Muskegon to the Lakes Mall to visit the motherhood maternity store. I was looking online at some of their sale items and was going to buy online but I don't really like to return stuff so we decided to make the trip. I was looking to get a dress or two for a few upcoming weddings that we have as well as some nursing bras. I was lucky enough to find 2 new dresses, 2 long sleeve t-shirts, 1 sweater, 1 pair corduroy pants, and 3 bras. I was really excited to finally find some dresses to wear and other warm clothes for the winter. I spent $175 dollars which seems like a lot but I saved $112 dollars which is also a lot. Plus, Motherhood has good quality clothing that will last for all the rest of my pregnancy's and I will be able to use them over and over again.
While at the mall we also stopped in at The Childrens Place. I've been looking for some pj's for E and they have their monster sale going on. I found 2 pairs of pj's and 1 red and white stripped sweater for him. The pj's were on sale for 6.99 and the sweater was only $5 bucks! Which is really cheap for childrens place. I dont know how much I saved there at the moment. but I know it was a lot!

Saturday (today) mom and I went over to Carters to look for a b-day present for her neighbors son who will be 1. Of course you can't go into that store and not buy anything. So once again I was looking for p'js and found some along with a lot of other stuff. I bought a baby present for a friend, a spring jacket, 2 sets of pj''s, 1 pair of fleece pants, and a shirt for E. The original prices for everything before taxes came to a total of $125 dollars! That is so much money! But they had a lot of sales/clearance with an additional 30% off and then I had a coupon for 25% off your total purchase so I was able to get all those items for a grand total, after taxes for only $18.88! Now thats a great deal!

It's the holiday season...

2009-12-01T21:02:00.003-05:00

Our Christmas Tree

This year we went with the Coffeys to the Leber Tree Farm and loved the selection they had. We had gone there the first year we were married and hadn't been back since because we tried out different places. So we went there this year and you take a tractor wagon back to the trees pick out your tree load it back up on the wagon, hop on and ride back up to the barn. Elijah LOVED the tractor and riding on the wagon. We decided to check out the balsum fir trees this year and we loved them. They have soft needles so you don't get all poked when you decorate it and they hold the needles better so they don't fall off as quick and won't hurt to step on! It has a really nice color as well. Elijah had a lot of fun walking through all the trees helping to pick one out. There were so many good trees to choose from. They were all trimmed so nice and hardly any had huge gaping holes!

Here are some pictures from our adventure:

Elijah and Grandpa standing by the tractor.

Elijah helping Daddy cut down our Christmas tree!

After Dale and Joy dropped our tree off Elijah got really excited and ran around it squealing with happiness! He was so excited even though I'm sure he didn't really know what was going on. lol

Time to open up the tree. Elijah helps Daddy take off the netting...we did it nice and slow so he didn't get slapped in the face with branches. Notice its not hurting him to touch it! It's such a nice soft tree!

Our finished, decorated tree. No other decorations were up yet at this point. They are slowly going up this week. I will post more pictures of them when I get the time to take a picture! LOL

Opps! A little behind...

2009-11-14T11:37:00.003-05:00

...but i have a good excuse this time! I have been super busy plus I have been super sick with morning sickness! After battling it for a while I ask my doc for something to help and he put me on unisom and B6 which might have worked a little better if it hadn't knocked me out. When ever I took it all I wanted to do and could do was sleep which isn't that great when you have a 14 month old at home and have to drive a half hour to school twice a week...no falling asleep while driving for me thank you! So after trying that out for a while he put me on a new Rx and it really helps with the nausea which is great. I can actually make it through the day with out barfing my guts out! So things are going much better for me this time around because of the new medicines I'm on.

Elijah is doing good as well. He is a very active and injury prone little boy. If you are around him much you will know he is constantly getting hurt. We visited the ER a couple of times, once for a smashed finger in a door, no broken bones which was good, and the second time because he fell while walking and bit his lip, and a major blood vessel in that lip! After about 8 hours of bleeding and multiple blood soaked bibs, rags, towels, and blankets we thought that would be the good thing to take him in. After being looked over by the nurse, Physicians assistant and then the actual doctor that came to the conclusion that they didn't know what would work. They suggested we could wait another hour to see if it would stop( it had already bled 8 hours) or they could put in a stitch but they were not even sure if that would work. So after mommy and daddy were kicked out to the waiting room they three (nurse, pa and dr.) all held him down, which is a challenge in itself) and inserted 2 stitches into his lip which worked! We were glad it did! And the doctor (who we really liked) was glad that it worked to. They gave him a little stuffed teddy bear with a rattle for him for being such a good little guy! He is still very active and gets into and onto everything and gets hurt a lot but i guess thats all a part of who he is!

Picture time!

This was after we carved pumpkins. He loved taking the lid on and off and looking inside. However he HaTeD the carving part. He would cry if we tried to get him to touch the guts or if we put it near him. It was to funny!

Our little froggy! I got this costume at a garage sale in the spring and it fit Elijah perfectly! It was so stinken adorable. This was at the Smith Grandparents house on the front porch. He is quite the poser sometimes!

This picture was walking into our church for their fall festival. They had a lot of fun games, a couple which E could do but he got a ton of candy and enjoyed playing there!

These are a little out of order but oh-well! E, NyNy and Linin (as E calls them) sitting in Grandmas rocker Halloween morning waiting for their orange breakfast. And last our new little Coffey bean! At our 10 and 14 week check ups the doc couldn't pick up the heart beat so he sent us in for an early ultrasound. We (the u/s tech) found a heart beat of 163 and showed us our sqwirmy little bean. We are NOT finding out what we are having!

Big Brother!

2009-09-28T20:17:00.003-04:00

David and I are proud to announce that Elijah is going to be a big brother!

Our Flower Garden

2009-08-05T21:11:00.002-04:00

ELijahs first time playing in the sprinkler!

Our Flower Garden in the front of our apartment

Snap Dragon!

Walk Walk Walk!

2009-07-29T09:57:00.002-04:00

Here is a video of Elijah walking...it was taken right after he first started. He is now walking all over the place and usually walks, not really crawling anymore unless he needs to chase his older cousins!

Happy 3rd Anniversary David!

2009-07-22T12:52:00.003-04:00

Our First Anniversary

Our Second Anniversary

Almost our third anniversary

Sweet Victory!

2009-07-20T12:37:00.002-04:00

David, Elijah and I spent the last two weekends out in Hasting at family camp. During one of the last services we sang Victory in Jesus and it really touched my heart. Its an older song but it sure is powerful. Here are the lyrics:

I HEARD AN OLD,
OLD STORY
HOW A SAVIOUR CAME
FROM GLORY
HOW HE GAVE HIS LIFE
ON CALVARY
TO SAVE SOMEONE LIKE ME

I HEARD ABOUT
HIS GROANING,
OF HIS PRECIOUS BLOOD'S
ATONING
THEN I REPENTED
OF MY SIN
AND WON THE VICTORY

OH, VICTORY IN JESUS,
MY SAVIOUR FOREVER
HE SOUGHT ME
AND HE BOUGHT ME
WITH HIS REDEEMING BLOOD

HE LOVED ME
ERE I KNEW HIM
AND ALL MY LOVE
IS DUE HIM
HE PLUNGED ME TO VICTORY
BENEATH THE
CLEANSING FLOOD

I HEARD ABOUT HIS
HEALING,
OF HIS CLEANSING POW'R
REVEALING
HOW HE MADE THE LAME
TO WALK AGAIN
AND CAUSED THE
BLIND TO SEE

AND THEN I CRIED
"DEAR JESUS,
COME AND HEAL
MY BROKEN SPIRIT"
AND SOMEHOW JESUS
CAME AND BROUGHT
TO ME THE VICTORY

OH, VICTORY IN JESUS,
MY SAVIOUR FOREVER

A little behind!

2009-07-16T10:21:00.006-04:00

So its been a while since I last blogged so I thought I better do some updating on here! We have been quite busy at the Coffey household experiencing new things. Elijah and I go to the library every week and get new books. He loves to listen to them. Eli is enrolled in the summer reading program and this week he finished the first level and got a cute little pirate ducky (He picked it out of the bin!)

We also went to the zoo a couple of weeks ago and Elijah LOVED looking at all the animals. I don't think he quite understands the whole animal thing but he loved looking at everything.

We also went camping for the first time and stayed in our tent. It fits our queen size air mattress and Elijah's pack and play perfectly in it with a little extra room to spare.

Elijah also had his first trip to Family Camp out at Hastings Winding Creek Campground. That was a lot of fun and he got to play a lot with his Coffey Cousin's! (Xavier learned to ride his bike with out training wheels!) Elijah has also accomplished something new...taking steps! He has taken five at the most during a try! He is getting there. Soon he will be walking. One of his favorite things to do is once he gets up to the standing position is clap...another new thing he learned... he does it every time, its so cute! David has been picking black raspberries, and tonight he is picking some blueberries..YUM!

We have taken Elijah down to the farmers marker in Holland on Saturdays and Wednesdays and that is a lot of fun. He loves looking at everything and I enjoy the fresh cut flowers for my kitchen counter. :)

Kids

2009-06-03T21:52:00.004-04:00

Wonderful Children!

Elijah, Colton, Lincoln, and Nyla

Elijah Russell 9 months old

Best Friends and Cousins, Nyla and Colton

Cousins Nyla and Elijah

Sibblings

Nyla Marie 2 years old

Mommy's Peanut

Colton Robert 19 months old

My Little Man

End of May

2009-05-29T23:42:00.004-04:00

- Memorial Day Weekend - Lincoln Richard Deppe

Memorial weekend was a lot of fun, David Elijah and I all went up north with my family and Uncle Bob and his family. It was so nice to just relax and enjoy myself for a change. Things had gotten to be so busy I never was able to relax and enjoy myself and that weekend I did. So it was wonderful of course! We hung out in the cabin (didn't have a single bon-fire or play games outside - so unusual), we walked to Bitely and went to the Up North Store and some garage sales, and then of course had to make the trip to Baldwin for Jone's Homemade Ice Cream! I let Elijah had just a little lick and he liked it but no more until he is 1 year old!

The Coffeys in front of the Cabin

Elijahs first taste of ice cream

A tradition at the cabin is to give the babies a bath in the big pans... Elijahs turn!

Playing in the kitchen/dinning room/ living room

Chelsea and I goofing off at the Cabin. We were sitting in the big wash pans that we use for the babies.

Then ...

Lincoln Richard Deppe was born at 9:32 am at Zeeland Community Hospital via c-section. He weighed in at 6 lbs 5 oz and was 20 inches long. He has so much dark hair on his little head. Elijah loves looking at Lincoln, He kept laughing and giggling and wanted to touch him! Nyla is a great big sister and got to hold Lincoln and she even got to watch him get his very first bath. The other day I asked her if she wanted a brother or a sister and she said brother and I asked her what she wanted to name him and she said Cheese. But they went with Lincoln Richard and he is a cutie!Look at all that hair

Mommy and Lincoln

Elijah Loves his Little Cousin

Aunt Kristina and Lincoln

So little!

So much in May

2009-05-15T10:08:00.004-04:00

This month we have been quite busy. We have celebrated my first mothers day, and a trip to Binder Park Zoo, Elijah's first hair cut and beautiful weather to play outside with! Here is a collection of pictures from the month of May. Enjoy!

Elijah by the turtle at Binder Park Zoo

Elijah's First Train Ride (at the zoo)
He loved moving and watching things go by, which is why his head
is turned in every picture I took while on the train!

A Family shot while riding the train

Daddy and Elijah
Elijah loved to look at the giraffes, especially when they were up close!
He was so excited to watch and check things out.

Growing up!
I bought a new push walker toy at a garage sale for a buck and Elijah loves it!
He can walk across our living room while pushing it with out falling over.

Play Time Outside
Elijah is just like his Daddy, He is always moving...here daddy is flying him
through the air and he loves it as you can tell by his expression!

As you can tell, Elijah is growing up fast, he is 8 months old already. He is a very happy boy and love playing with mommy and daddy and all his cousins.

SO BIG!
Elijah is now starting to stand...well kind of...
We hold him up and then let him go. The longest he has stood up
was about 8 seconds but hey its a start!

Mommy and Elijah

Me and my 'E' man

Daddy and Elijah

David and his very first home made rhubarb pie

A before shot of Elijah's hair...
This picture was taken while he was playing in some water that we put in his high chair tray...
at first he didn't know what to think but he loved it!

The Final Cut
Mommy was so nervous about cutting Elijah's hair but it turned out really good. It was kind of hard to cut because he is constantly moving but we got the job done!

A busy Boy is a tired Boy
Elijah fell asleep in daddy's arms and it was to precious to pass up.

Good Night My Love!

The Price of Children

2009-05-12T20:07:00.001-04:00

The Price of Children

Here is something absolutely positive for a change. You have repeatedly seen the breakdown of the cost of raising a child, but this is the first time you may have seen the rewards listed this way.

The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 and came up with $160,140.00 for a middle income family. Talk about price shock! That doesn't include the cost of post-secondary education.

But $160,140.00 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into:
* $8,896.66 a year,
* $741.38 a month,
* $171.08 a week.
* A mere $24.24 a day!
* Just over a dollar an hour.

Still, you might think the best financial advice is: don't have children if you want to be 'rich'.
Actually, it is just the opposite.

What do you get for your $160,140.00?

* Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
* Glimpses of God every day.
* Giggles under the covers every night..
* More love than your heart can hold.
* Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
* Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
* A hand to hold usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
* A partner for blowing bubbles and flying kites.
* Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day.

For $160,140.00, you never have to grow up.
You get to:

* finger-paint,
* carve pumpkins,
* play hide-and-seek,
* catch lightning bugs,
* never stop believing in Santa Claus.

You have an excuse to:
* keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh,
* watch Saturday morning cartoons,
* go to Disney movies, and
* wish on stars.

You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.

For a mere $24.24 a day, there is no greater bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for:

* retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof,
* taking the training wheels off a bike,
* removing a splinter,
* filling a wading pool,
* coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and
* coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless.

You get a front row seat in history to witness the:

* First step,
* First word,
* First bra,
* First date,
* First time behind the wheel.

You get to be immortal. You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren. You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match.

In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, so one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost. That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!!

Love & enjoy your children & grandchildren & great-grandchildren!!!!!!!

It's the best investment you'll ever make!!!!!!!!!

Worth EVERY penny!

Garage Sale

2009-05-09T19:36:00.003-04:00

It the time of the year when everyone is cleaning up and organizing their homes (including myself) trying to get rid of extra stuff they no longer need. This weekend we had a garage sale at my Grandparents house and we made a combined total of around 600 bucks which is pretty good. I got rid of some nick knacks and some baby clothes and made some money...then I also went garage sale-ing to buy more stuff...but just stuff for Elijah. I've found that almost all the garage sales that I have been to only sell girls clothes and that's not good for me! I did eventually find some boy stuff and got Elijah some pj's and clothes. My seal of the day is a little ride on toy that I got for a buck!

Tulip Time

2009-05-05T18:42:00.003-04:00

Well this week is Tulip Time and of course we had to get the babies all dressed up in dutch costumes and take them down to the beautiful tulips for pictures. On Saturday David and I took Elijah to Dutch Village and bought him his first pair of wooden shoes! They are so cute and he looks adorable in his little costume. Then Monday night Mom, Jen, Nyla, David, Elijah and I all went down town to watch the dutch dancers and take even more pictures. It was a lot of fun and I thought about getting out my costume that Grandma Blaauw made for me and wearing it for pictures with Elijah.

A Challenge...

2009-05-01T14:34:00.003-04:00

I am going to challenge myself to try and update my blog at least once if not twice a week. I don't really know if anyone even reads this but hey its a good place to put my thoughts and talk about my adorable son! HAHA So today is friday (good) and its May 1st(good-april showers bring may flowers so hopefully not to much more rain) and its Tulip Time kick off tonight at the park and we are taking Elijah to his first fireworks! We are going to borrow Coltons Dutch Dance Costume from last year and Elijah is going to wear it. I will post pictures as soon as we get some.

Looking back 5 years ago:
Where was I and What was I doing? It was my senior year of high school and for the month of may I was pretty busy. Now only was I excited to be finshed up with school soon but I was busy with Track and Field, Dutch Dance, Marching Band and of course Senior Prom. Here is a picture of David and I at my Senior Prom. We were both seniors and had been dating for a year.

2009-04-30T08:32:00.003-04:00

After reading every ones blogs that I have bookmarked on my browser I decided that I better update mine as well. Today is they day my Grandpas 'cremains' get buried. He wanted to be cremated and that takes a week to be done after the funeral so my mom and dad are going to the cemetery to bury him. No one else is going to go, just my mom and dad. Also another sad note, my brothers good friend Tommy that he works with, had his 5 week old daughter pass away yesterday morning. She had had hernia surgery and gone home and the doctors said to watch out for vomiting and other things and I guess during the night she threw up and choked on her vomit and when Tommy found her in the morning she was cold and he tried to do CPR but couldn't save his little girl. Please keep them in your prayers as they prepare to bury their little angel.

So on a happier note now...

Things are going good for us now. Elijah isn't sick anymore and he is doing way better sleeping through the night now. Its kind of weird but usually when kids get sick it throws off their sleeping habits but when Elijah got his his sleep actually improved. He went from getting up a lot to not getting up at all during the night. It's been nice to actually get some sleep and I hope that it continues to stay the way it is. Also Elijah is still moving all over the place. I think he finally realized what he can do with his crawling skills. He has learned that he can follow us around the apartment and he likes to explore. His favorite spot to crawl to is the kitchen. He will sit next to the linoleum and pull his fingers across the floor and make them squeak. He gets the biggest kick out of the noise he makes. Elijah had also been pulling himself up for a while but now...he is taking steps while holding on to his toy shelf, or crib, or the couch... He is getting brave and wanting to keep up with his cousins. We also will hold him up and then move our hands away and he will stand for a few seconds on his own. But usually its not to long because he is such a wiggler and moves and falls over.