Pictures, pictures...

I hate to admit it, but poor Kaki is SORELY under-photographed compared to her brother! I guess that second-child syndrome is true! I need to get better about it. On Saturday we went out to breakfast and I missed the photo-op for her first outing... and then today we went to the Wal-Marts and I missed it again... AND she and her big bro got to use their sit and stand for the first time! Caden was PUMPED to get to use the "new stroller" FINALLY!! Next time... I'll snap a picture... HELLO iPhone... that's what it's for, right?! Or is it for keeping track of her pees, poops and feeds thanks to my handy dandy mommy apps... there is most definitely an app for ALL things baby and I LOVE it!

And I'm rambling... forgive me...

I posted these next few pics on facebook but for those of you who haven't seen them... this is the first time we dressed Kaki up at home. They were taken last Thursday morning... I just love having a girl to doll up... TOO MUCH FUN!

In other news... we have a few routines forming around here... which brings a nice level of comfort to life at home!

Daddy and Kaki time... each night! Justin and Caden watched Wheel of Fortune every night, but Kaki and Justin are doing a little more late night action. She is most awake in the mornings and late at night. During most of the day she sleeps... and sleeps... and sleeps!! I asked my mom today... is it normal for babies to sleep this much? Because with Caden this was not my experience! And she assured me this is EXACTLY how I was... like Mommy, like daughter!

Caden and Kaki are also forming their own routine too... Caden insists that Kaki sit by him each morning while he eats his breakfast and watches his morning videos. And he LOVES it when she hangs out in her nap nanny in his playroom with him. He places toys all around the sides of her nap nanny and OFTEN (like every five seconds) says, "Kaki's eyes open?! Kaki open eyes!!" He is READY for her to open her eyes and come play!! Soon enough he'll be wishing she would be sleeping and not stealing his toys though, huh?! I don't think either one of them have a clue what the other is in for! Ha! BUT I am loving the brother/sister thing they've got going on right now! Caden is as sweet as pie to her... not to me or KK all the time, BUT to Kaki he is a dream! :)

We had a few outfit changes today due to a spit up and a pee incident... I didn't know girls peed on you?! I thought that was a boy thing! The boys spray you but the girls ... oh man... it goes everywhere... all up the back and the outfit is DONE! So funny! This is one of the few non-pink outfits Kaki has... it is one Justin and I bought for her when we went on one of our shopping trips!! Don't mind the feet in the background!!

In other news... KK just saved Justin's life by rescuing him from a bizarre pop-up thunderstorm while he was running! We were sitting here blogging when all of the sudden the wind picked up and we checked the radar and sure enough a storm had developed... so KK hung up the phone with Albi and raced around the neighborhood looking for Justin! She found him... PHEW! :) And he's only sort of wet... way to go KK!

KK also has other super hero qualities, but that might deserve a post of its own... so stay tuned for that...

Hope everyone is having a great week... Happy Hump Day!!

Due Date=One Week Bday=Happy 4th of July!!

Today was the day that Kaki was supposed to make her grand arrival... BUT instead we celebrated her one week birthday today and we are all so grateful that she is here!!

Caden and Justin started off their morning with a fun family parade in the neighborhood... it didn't turn out exactly like they had planned seeing as they were the ONLY people not participating in the parade which made them the ONLY spectators... HA! But Caden didn't care... he had his flag and he was just fine being the solo-watcher! :)

Of course, I had GREAT BIG plans to get my two fourth of July babies photographed TOGETHER today, BUT Caden HAD to get to. that. parade. So no pictures of the two... but still got a few of Miss Kaki-Pants... our little American Beauty!

Thanks Aunt Ree Ree for my 4th of July outfit!! :)

This afternoon Caden and Justin were doing some pool time in the backyard so KK and I decided we MUST dress up Kaki in her bathing suit, courtesy of Aunt Emily (can you tell that the aunts are excited about a girl??!!) and take her outside for just a bit!!

Caden LOVES talking to his little sister...

Sweet, sweet girl... seriously she couldn't be sweeter... my heart hurts!!

Crazy boys...

Bro and sis...
Before dinner tonight Caden needed to check on his lil sis... give her a few kisses and tell her he would be "right back."

And I just want y'all to look at our YUMMY fourth of July spread... be jealous!! :)

Happy Fourth of July!!

Flower Power

Follow-through accomplished... cute bloomers and a bow for sunbathing day #2! Check out our Kaki-Flower-Power-Pants!!

And Picky Sticky #1... or zero as it may be!

My name is Kaki-Pants and I am ZERO months old and I LOVE HUGE BOWS!!!!

AND my big bro!!!
Just a sneak peek of what's going on around the Cox House... lots of busy boys, working hard to keep the women of the house, changed, fed and well taken care of!

Happy Weekend!

Yellow is the NEW Pink!!

Well, we did it... we survived our first day at home! With MUCH help of course. Both of my parents were here today which was a GREAT thing since we woke up this morning to a yellowing baby girl... :) Caden was also a jaundice baby so I knew when I saw those yellowing eyes on Miss Kaki-Pants that I needed to call the doctor...

So KK and I loaded up this morning about 10 and headed out to the doctor with Kaki. And Albi held down the fort at home with Caden. Sadly, Albi had to go back to San Antonio today BUT Justin is taking tomorrow off after popping back to the office today... so we'll have ALL hands on deck for a full day of doctor's appointments tomorrow for Kaki and Mommy!

Kaki's levels were not high enough to send her under the lights... at least for now. So our doctor suggested feeding her EVERY two hours throughout the day and night and some time in the sun four times a day... SO Kaki and I have been VERY busy girls today... lots of eating has been done today!! Good thing my milk came in the SECOND we walked in the door from the hospital yesterday afternoon... because boy did we go through some milk today!!

AND... this afternoon Kaki caught some rays in the ONE spot we could find direct sunlight in our house... the stairs! :) KK was sweet enough to sit with Kaki while I snapped some photos of my sunbathing beauty!! If we had been prepared we'd have had a SUPER cute pair of bloomers to put on during her sun bath...BUT alas, we have learned from our mistake and will be fixing that problem tomorrow!

Until then... I present to you... Kaki Cox... The Rock's Finest Sunbathing Beauty!!

Time to flip... but first a cool down with KK!

Ahhhhh... nothing like a little vitamin D! :)

Tongue action... hehe!

One of her sweetest little smiles... I know they are probably just gas but we are LOVING every one we get!! :)

Isn't she the sweetest??!!!

Kaki-Pants is HERE!!

Well... she's here... and we're home! And we couldn't feel more grateful to have our family of four all together for the first time in our home, sweet, home! I'll be back more with LOTS of pictures from the hospital and all of our sweet visitors and our BIG arrival home, but for now just a taste of a few and of course a peek at our PRECIOUS Kaki-PANTS!

Before leaving for the hospital Monday morning...

FAST FORWARD... on our way home!! LOOK AT THAT BOW!!!

Kaki was born on Monday, July 27, 2011 at 12:37pm, weighing 9 pounds 6 ounces and measuring 20 inches long! She is a big, strong healthy girl!! :)

Sweet, sweet face!!!

Our hearts our FULL!!

And her older brother couldn't be happier to have her home with him!! Look at that face!! PURE JOY!!

Plenty of Pink and a Bit of Blue, A Tour of Kaki's Room, Just for You!

FINALLY... like three days before we head to the hospital kind of FINALLY, I have some pictures of Kaki's room to share with you! My family in particular has been DYING to see them, although I am excited that they will likely get to stop by and see it person in the coming days because I really think it is WAY cuter in pictures... they are just not doing the room justice... or maybe it's my photography skills that aren't doing the room justice, REGARDLESS... here it is... Kaki's Plenty of Pink and Bit of Blue Room...

It all started with a shopping trip to Pottery Barn Outlet in San Marcos many moons ago. KK and I met up there one day while Caden was at school to start our search. I knew I wanted something soft that would allow me to use this AMAZING vintage PINK furniture my Grandmother and Aunt Martha stumbled on in Abilene one day. They snatched it up before I even knew if I was having a girl, and boy am I glad they did because it was the jumping off point for designing her new room.

The next piece was the rug... we found it in a stash at Pottery Barn... it was mostly blue with a pink and white gingham border that I fell in love with. From there it was a work in progress... more pink here, less pink here... I NEED MORE BLUE there is too much pink! What about using this... and that? Piece by piece it came together and I think it turned out splendidly... of course I do... :)

Since we were moving Caden up to a big boy bed we were able to use his crib which is a DARK brown... originally I considered painting his crib, but I just didn't want to mess it up and I have ALWAYS been a fan of non-matchy furniture... I like a little bit of old and a little bit of new all thrown together as if it was meant to be. So with the crib being dark I picked up some additional dark accents with the rocking chair, which happens to be an outdoor wicker rocker we found at Pier One... and let me tell you... it is SO comfy! I hope it is the perfect chair for late night nursing! :) The wrought iron lamp on the table near the chair and the mirror in the doorway helped finish off the rest of the brown to tie everything in. The mirror is actually a mirror my Mom bought on Choir Tour when she was in high school. I was determined to use it in my little girl's room if I ever got the opportunity someday!

There are two pieces of vintage pink furniture in her room. Since the furniture was REALLY pink we decided to only paint one wall in the room pink and the rest white so the furniture wouldn't get lost in a sea of pink. The frame on the right of the dresser will eventually contain Kaki's Bible Verse, something that we did for Caden as well that still hangs on his wall! The canvas is something I painted and with the help from my friend Staci and her cricut she has a perfectly pink and blue monogram to finish off that space!

I think Ks and Ms are some of the prettiest letters!

The far wall is the PINK wall that hosts the white changing table which was originally my brother's and then it was Caden's (it was painted navy in Caden's room) and now for Kaki we painted it white! We used old, dark hardware from another piece of furniture that we had sitting in our garage to coordinate with the hardware from the other pieces of furniture in the room. The mirror above the changing table was mine growing up... it hung over my white sleigh bed for YEARS and now it will be in Kaki's room! The hats are vintage hats of my grandmother's that she had NEVER worn. They were still stuffed in perfectly kept hat boxes with the tissue paper and tags still in tact. They were the perfect accent for that space... I love them!! The changing pad and the pillow that sit in the rocking chair were both a little sewing project of mine. I have always loved light blue toile and I felt that the pink wall needed more blue so off I went... I love how it turned out!

From the closet, an across the room shot. My sweet friend Casey and her super talented self painted the series hanging on the wall. The middle is a peacock, Kaki's animal and the other too are drip painting that coordinate with it! I LOVE them and I know Kaki will too! I am hoping these are ALWAYS something she'll hang in her room... even in college! :) Ha!

Aren't they great?!! Thank you, Casey!!

Another shot from the doorway with the light on... AGAIN the pictures just don't do the softness of the room justice... so y'all just need to pop on over and take a peek yourselves! :)

Caden thought he'd plop down and stay awhile... oh and excuse me, I meant to say Dr. Cox!

There are MANY THANK YOUs that I need to hand out for the completion of K's sweet room! Uncle Josh, Aunt Emily, KK and Justin ALL painted Kaki's room in ONE NIGHT after attending my shower back in May! They came with paint brushes in hand and went to work! It was crazy how fast our lime green and navy boy room went to perfectly pink. They went ABOVE and BEYOND and we would have never finished without them... especially considering I am just NOW getting these pictures up!! ALSO... thank you KK for always being on the lookout for various things and not being afraid to give me your honest opinion and for supporting me when I decided to get CRAZY and sew a few things for her room... while I was nearly 9 months pregnant! :) Thank you KK! AND thank you to my grandmother and Aunt Martha for scoping out these awesome pieces of furniture in hopes that we would have a little girl! I L.O.V.E. them and they were JUST the inspiration I needed to get started!

So I think we're as ready as we are going to be...

Prayerfully, we will have a healthy little girl to bring home to this room in just a matter of days! I can't wait!! :)

Two's Company, Three Was Never a Crowd, BUT Five Might BE!!

In November of 1981, my grandmother's first two of eight grandchildren were born. Twins girls, Amanda and Michelle, born to my Mom's middle sister, a lady who I know as Aunt Terry. About nine months later in August of 1982, I was born, just in time for the three of us to grow up tracking each other in the same grade in school and setting us up for a lifetime of friendship!

Aren't we adorable in our little dresses on our great-grandmother's couch in Chattanooga, TN? Of course I may be biased, but I think that little cutie in the middle looks a lot like my little man... wonder why?! And that sweet girl on the left looks strikingly similar to Caden's THIRD cousin Cy... don't you think?! :)

So there we were... put together from birth whether we liked it or not, BUT lucky for us and for the rest of the family we liked each other A LOT! We always had the MOST fun when we were together... and boy did we do all sorts of things... We were quite entrepreneurial at an early age... in fact etsy had NOTHING on us and our card and party shop we affectionately named Cous-ann's. I think we grossed at least $5-$10 each holiday which in the late 80s and early 90s was a KILLING! In fact, we used that money to walk down the road and stock up on candy, primarily of the fruit variety, when we went to check out videos from the video store. Apparently, times have changed because our parents used to let us walk down there ALL BY OURSELVES and the video store was just mere steps from a major highway... trusting or stupid? I'll let y'all be the judges of that one! :) Of course, we were always up for an adventure... the three of us... one time while they were visiting my family and I in Marfa we got lost in the Davis Mountains with some teenage boys who had promised to have us home by lunch. After being pulled up onto different pieces of the cliffs and falling into a cactus we were full-blown Indiana Jones girls of the wild! It would appear that by the time we were 10 we were destined to become something greater... obviously or how else would we have ever survived some of our parent's greatest choices!?!? By the grace of God! :) (Just kidding KK and Terry... SORT OF! HA!)

I mean look at us... the picture of success...

In homemade dresses and AWESOME hair... we were TROUBLE! :) From left to right... Michelle, Amanda and ME! Look how much shorter I was... come high school I would surpass them by INCHES... about 3 to be exact! :) I was a late bloomer!

Before we went off on our own... into the great big world of college... my Grandmother took her first three grandgirls to Myrtle Beach for a little graduation trip! Our days consisted of mornings BAKING in the sun, afternoons catching episodes of Real World from the pull out sofa and nights out on the town of Myrtle... As you can see NOT one of us was concerned about age spots... or wrinkles... and apparently WHITE eye-shadow was ALL the rage! And those overalls I'm sporting... were capri overalls... can you get enough of those? They were my favorite!! And paired with an Old Navy halter top, and chunky Reef flip flops they were the perfect thing for the beach! :)

Bless our crispy hearts... how were we ever going to find a man?!! Well... Michelle had DONE found her man by the end of middle school... she and her hubby Kaleb were middle school sweethearts who survived the test of time and made it...

Amanda and I still had some searching to do. I was hoping to go off to college and meet somebody new and she wasn't sure if she was wanting to stick with the old of high school or find something new too... turns out... I didn't find anything new and she did! And Rick and Justin would be the men that would later join our family!

The three of us getting hitched added to our family size ten-fold... then it was time to have babies... Caden came first... then my cousin Amanda had Cy just 5 months later. And then there were two... two boys... two great-grandbabies for my Grandmother with the hopes of many more to come!

And boy if 2011 isn't going to be our year because excitingly... we are about to grow from 2 to 5 in a matter of months! We are ALL THREE PREGNANT!! Can you believe it?

I am due in late June...

Amanda is due with her second (ANOTHER BOY!!) in mid-October.

Michelle is due with her first (A GIRL!!!) in mid-October too.

Their due dates are just days... four days to be exact... apart!! So by Thanksgiving this year we are going to be having a FULL BLOWN baby party!! Kaki will have two new playmates... a girl to play dolls with and a boy to pester!! :) Caden and Cy will RULE the roost but it won't be long before the three youngest will use their higher number to give them a run for their money! Watch out big brothers!!!

So needless to say we are THRILLED beyond belief and blessed just the same to be bringing in three new babies to the family in 2011. Kaki and the other two will not be in the same grade, but they will be closer in age than both Caden and Cy and me and Amanda and Michelle, SO I have no doubt that the grade separation will in no way impact their relationship from blossoming into something to be treasured!

How cute are they??!!! I wish we had a picture of all of us pregnant together but the last time we were all together I was LARGE and they were just finding out so I am afraid our bump picture would have been kind of one-sided! :)

Twins... each with a baby... due just four days apart! Couldn't be more excited for them both!! I love you two!!

So as you can see...

Caden and Cy are company...

And Amanda, Michelle and I were the THREE that were NEVER a crowd...

BUT... with five grandbabies on the loose... you just never can tell what will happen!

Whether it is crazy or calm... we are ready!! Bring it on babies!! :)