Reality? Check!

I am so excited about some of my favorite reality shows starting back up again!! I just love these shows! They are my guilty pleasure and bring such joy into my life, hehe! =)

Keeping Up With The Kardashians- OK sometimes their tantrums get on my nerves but overall I love watching this crazy family! Even though it's madness a lot of the time, it does solidify my feelings on having a big family! I love the noise, hectic gatherings, love, and support! =)



Giuliana and Bill- Oh how I love this show! I really like her a lot and he's such a great guy! If you haven't seen it you totally should catch up before the new season starts! They re-air them on Style all the time and now E! is starting to show it. My favorite is when she goes to a detox spa, cracks me up!! =)

The Bachelor- so I'm not a huge fan of Jake's (he's pretty cheeseball!) but he is nice and I just love this show so I'm excited to start watching it again! I would have much rather Reed been the bachelor but oh well, I still can't wait!!

Tori and Dean- This is like my all time favorite! Don't get too excited, I don't know when the new season starts back up but I do know that they're filming so that means sometime in 2010 it will air and I can't wait for that day! =)

Oh and even though it's not reality shows, did anyone watch Desperate Housewives and Brothers and Sisters on Sunday? Geez, could they have more dramatic endings for both shows! Of course I loved every second of the "over-the-topness" (yes, I made that word up) of both and can't wait to find out what happens! =)

Thanksgiving 09...Finally!

Me and my baby girl!!

Our kiss during one of the Ags touchdowns...WHOOP!!!!

I love these 2 munchkins soooo much!!


Daddy's pretty fond of them too!! =)

Thanksgiving was so great this year! It was the first year since we've been married that we didn't have more than one place to go in one day!! We spread it out this year which made it so much more relaxing! On Wed night we went to Kyle's brothers house for dinner with his family and had a wonderful time! The food was delicious and Keaton always loves playing with his 2 crazy uncles and his sweet Aunt Amanda!! =)

Then Thursday we had a relaxing morning with the kids before heading to my parents house for another delicious meal! Afterwards I played board games with my nieces and nephew and later watched the Ags take on the Longhorns. We ended up loosing, but it was a really great game!!!

I hope everyone else had a great Thanksgiving! I really am going to start trying to post things faster and more often. I've been such a blog slacker! Honestly it's amazing how much busier your life becomes when one tiny human being is added to the mix! ha! =) But I am totally getting the hang of juggling two kids now. (Now that I said that all hell is going to break loose and Karter's schedule will change completely I'm sure!) She has been SOOOO GOOD!! She takes naps throughout the day (on no real schedule yet) but then between 9 and 11 she'll go to sleep and sleep until about 8 or 9 in the morning!! It's so awesome considering Keaton didn't sleep through the night consistently until he was almost 2!!!

She is also smiling her beautiful toothless smile to us all the time and cooing at us which just makes my heart melt! Keaton is still doing great with her and loves her to pieces! He is still cracking us up and keeps me entertained daily! He seems really excited about Christmas this year so I'm anxious to see how he reacts to Santa considering last year he was terrified!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

A lot of my blogger friends were doing 27 days of thanks where you post something you're thankful for each day leading up to Thanksgiving. I thought that was a great idea but knew I wouldn't stick with it because with a 2.5 year old and a 2 month old I just don't have much time these days! So instead I decided to have one post that lists 27 things I am thankful for!!

In no particular order...

1. My family
2. My friends
3. My 2 adorable, healthy kids!
4. Music
5. Twilight Series
6. Girls Night Out
7. Movies
8. Sunny days with a cool breeze
9. Scentsy
10. My hubby/best friend
11. Sleep!! Karter is pretty much sleeping through the night already!!
12. My son being potty trained!
13. Egg Nog
14. Gluten free french toast sticks! MMMM!
15. Betty Crocker gluten free desserts!
16. Dancing
17. Roof over my head here and a possible renter for our house in CO!
18. Christmas decorations and music
19. Kyle's vacation days- he's off from Christmas til New Years!
20. Football- Ags play Texas today...WHOOP!!!!
21. The Ranch- Keaton is just in heaven whenever we go and I LOVE seeing him so happy!
22. My video baby monitor-I love seeing what Karter is up to without having to go into her room and risk disturbing her!
23. Books- if you have a good one you've read recently, let me know!!
24. Hot Showers- these become a luxury after you have kids!
25. Vacations- we might go skiing on our old stomping grounds in CO and then I can't wait for our annual trip to Garner this summer!
26. The funny things that Keaton says! He just cracks me up!!
27. MY LIFE!!!

Thank you God for all that you have blessed me with, I am SO THANKFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I hope everyone has a very safe and HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!!!!!!! GOD BLESS!!

Pictures Pictures

I have very talented friends! =)

I've complimented my friend, Cara, before on her photography skills. Now my friend, Lyndsay, is to thank for taking great pictures of my kids! Funny how my favorite pictures of my children have been taken by my friends instead of the "professional" photographers that I pay lots of money for!! Lyndsay is growing her business so if you need pictures taken, she's fantastic as you can tell! =) These are just some of my favorites and she recently took our family portraits so I'll be posting those soon!

Trick or Treat

Halloween was a lot of fun! My mom never disappoints with her annual Halloween party! She dresses up and decorates with the cutest, craftiest things! Keaton decided to be a pirate after watching a Backyardigans pirate episode way back. He had is lingo down..."Arrrggh!" and "Ahoy Matee!". Haha! He was the cutest pirate I've ever seen! =) I thought about dressing up Miss Karter but I decided to just put her in Halloween gear instead of an actual costume. I'm glad I did too because she slept through all the festivities! Keaton was so excited and would say, "Happy Halloween" to anybody we saw on the streets and when he'd go to a door he'd yell, "Trick or Treat!" but if they gave his cousin candy before him he'd stick out his pumpkin and say, "Oh, me too!" as if they were going to forget about him or something. =)

Mo and her grandsons!

Keaton playing one of Mo's games she invented! =)

My Pirate!

Karter in her Halloween gear. I know her bow is way too big but really is there such a thing as too big of a bow? OK maybe there is such a thing but she'll grow into it! I'm still learning the bow stuff! Ha!

Sound asleep for the whole thing!!

Christmas Is Almost Here

I just LOVE this time of year! I love the weather, all the holiday events, and all the Christmas decorations!! That being said, this months Scentsy warmer is just adorable!! If you order it this month you can get it for 10% off and have it in time to decorate your house for Christmas! There are many other Christmas warmers and plug ins that you can look at on my website: www.scentsy.com/kristinkotzebue

The scent of the month is Holly Berry and it smells so good! It's the perfect scent to fill your house with during the holidays! It too is now 10% off but if you don't think you'd like that scent there are tons of other Christmas scents like Christmas Tree, WinterWonderland, and many more!

Keep in mind this is the perfect time to host a party so that you can get free merchandise for yourself or to give away as gifts! Scentsy makes a great gift for anyone! Let me know if you have any questions about purchasing, hosting, or becoming a consultant! =)

Oh, and pics of Halloween and more coming soon! =)

Family of Four!

I've wanted to blog for a while because obviously with Karter around now there has been lots to blog about but our computer has been on the outs for 3 weeks now so I'm squeezing computer time in on Kyle's laptop from work but usually don't have much time to sit and blog. Anyway...

Things have been very busy but fabulous! We are all so in love with Karter and she's doing great! I could make this blog super long but instead I'll try to keep it short and sweet, at least somewhat short and sweet! =)

The morning of the induction, Sept 15th, I was so excited! I literally flew out of bed right when the alarm first sounded at 3:30! We headed to the hospital and I was so excited and anxious to get there but we were running late and I hate being late so that got me even more worked up! I shed some tears and told Kyle, "We can't be late to have our baby!!" but of course they weren't sitting around waiting for us and we got in the room at 4:20 and things started just as easily as they would have had we been on time so I finally calmed down. I started my first round of Cytotech (softens the cervix) at 6 so contractions began and that was the beginning of a LONG day! All morning was spent getting Cytotech and then I started Pitocin around 3. My water broke around 9PM, they called the doctor around midnight and once she arrived around 12:30 I started pushing and Karter came into this world at 1:01 AM on Sept. 16th! Whew!!

After she came out our Dr. said, "It's a girl!!" and we all were just so excited! There were many tears of joy shed and we were just so thankful for a healthy baby! I know I had been saying it was probably a boy but during the whole pregnancy I thought it was a girl based on how different my pregnancies felt but I guess I felt like I would jinx it or something by saying it was a girl so I just thought of course it will be a boy! But that day our labor nurse took everyones guesses on the sex and Kyle and I were the only ones that put girl. Our doctor, nurses and family all said boy. I guessed 8lb 2 oz and she ended up being 8lb 3oz so I won that wager too, hehe!

Keaton was so cute when he met her! He looked at her in awe and said, "Hi baby Karter!" He wanted to hold her and give her kisses. It was so cute! Since then he's been great! He's already protective of her and just loves her to pieces!


Once we brought her home she was just soooo good! We honestly didn't even know what her cry sounded like the first 2 weeks because she was so good! I now know what her cry sounds like, but she really doesn't cry unless she's just overly tired and let's face it...I cry when I'm overly tired too. She's starting to stay awake a lot now and she looks just like Keaton did when he was a baby! Some days seem really hard with 2 kids and I wonder what in the world I ever complained about when I just had one baby to take care of! Other days everything flows great with their naps and I get a lot done around the house and feel productive. I'm hoping those really good, easy days start happening more and more! =) It's a learning process right!??!

That second week we also got hit with the stomach bug. Keaton and I had a fever and were throwing up for 2 days and that was NO FUN with a newborn around!! Thankfully we both got over that and Karter and Kyle never got sick.

At 3 weeks old we took Karter to her first Aggie Tailgate party, WHOOP!! No I'm not the type that takes my newborn to germ infested crowded places. This was just a family/friend tailgate and she slept the entire time (besides waking up twice to eat) so she wasn't being passed around to everyone and I had hand sanitizer readily available, hehe! =) We had a great time though! It was so nice to be out of the house and Keaton just loved every second of it! Not too many people could take their 2 year old to an outing from noon-7PM where they skip their nap and are outside all day but yet act like an angel and just happily play the entire time! Sorry, I had to brag a little because he was just so well behaved! He even picked up an 8 year old girl! That's right, he's got game! =)

Gig Em' Ags!!!!

So to sum things up Karter is doing great and we just can't imagine our lives without her! Having a baby is just the greatest miracle that God can give you and we're so thankful!

Introducing...

Karter Lynn

Born: September 16

1:01 AM

8lbs. 3 oz.

21 in.

C/Karter's Eve

So tomorrow is the big day!! I can't wait! I have 12 hours until I need to be at the hospital and I'm not even close to ready! I haven't packed my bag, shaved my legs, painted my toes or showered, the baby swing is still in a box, the crib isn't even put together yet and I'd still love to pick up some more things around the house and vacuum. We'll see if that last bit gets done!

When I had Keaton everything was ready months before he was born! There are a few factors as to why I'm not prepared this time around. First being that we don't know the sex so there's not a whole heck of a lot I can do to the room anyway. Second is that we just moved in here and I've been working on getting Keaton settled in and his room finished before I work on my unborn child's room that he/she wont even use for the first month! =) I realized once I had Keaton that everything doesn't have to be perfectly finished and in it's place right when you get home from the hospital! The baby will be sleeping in our room at first and Kyle will be home all day everyday the rest of the week so he'll be able to get a lot done during the day. I'm just a lot more relaxed I guess! =)

Last night I told Kyle that this was the last night for us to tuck Keaton in as an only child since he's staying at my parents house tonight. We all laid down in his bed and we started telling him that C/Karter was coming out out of my belly and we'd get to hold him/her soon, wasn't that cool! He said, "YES!" and threw his arms in the air. He said he was going to give C/Karter kisses! He's just so cute and he's really excited! I can't wait until he meets the baby! He's going to be such a great big brother!

As for me I really can't believe it's tomorrow!! I can't wait! Please keep us in your prayers and I'll post the sex as soon as I'm up to it! =) My guess is boy! =) We'll see! Oh and my feet...they look like Professor Klump from The Nutty Professor!! No lie! Actually my right foot does, the left isn't tooooo bad but it's just unbelievable what pregnancy can do to a girl! =) I honestly have no ankles at the moment! Just 2 tree trunks! I really should drink more water as I hardly drink any but oh well, baby will be out tomorrow!

Here's some video I took the other morning of him eating breakfast. I love the stage he's at right now, the kid cracks me up! =)

37 Weeks and 3 Days!

Well little C/Karter is doing great! We went to the doctor today and everything was good, heart rate was 144. The big news is that we're going to be meeting the little guy or girl in exactly a week!! Yes that's right, I'm being induced on Tuesday, September 15th!! It seems soooo surreal! We've been so busy lately and when you already have a "baby" to look after you're just not thinking about your pregnancy every second like you did with your first so when delivery date gets here it's like, "Whoa!! Really?? Already?". I can't believe I'll have 2 kids in a week!! So please keep our growing family in your prayers and pray for a healthy little baby to be brought into this world! =) Brought EASILY into this world would be nice! hehe! =)

So why am I being induced?? My family has BIG babies...you think that's funny but seriously! Me, all my cousins, and most of my nieces and nephews have all been 10+ pounds, including an 11lb 7oz!! So when I was pregnant with Keaton I told her my concern about this and she ended up monitoring his weight and induced me 5 days early and he ended up being 9lb. 2.5 oz. The delivery was pretty dramatic and I ended up having to stay 2 extra days in the hospital. Soooo, this time around she's been monitoring the weight again and baby is measuring just like Keaton so she decided to induce at 38 weeks instead of 39 like we did last time. She's thinking the baby will then be a 7-8 pounder so we'll see! I can't wait!!

I've loved C/Karter since the moment I saw a positive sign on that stick but on one hand I'm kinda sad that Keaton wont be my only baby anymore. I know this probably makes no sense to some of you (especially if you don't have kids yet) because I remember my sister talking about how much love she had for her one son and couldn't imagine loving another child so much. I thought she was so silly...of course you can love all your kids, it sounded ridiculous! But now that I know that love you have for your child I completely understand where she was coming from and after talking to all my friends that have more than one kid I found out they all felt the same way! You're excited about number 2 but apart of you is sad because you love your first child soooo much and you don't want your time with them, or attitude toward them to change at all. I know my heart will only grow and I'll love them both unconditionally but right now I want to soak up every second I have with Mr. Keaton! =)

Oh and talk about perfect timing... thank you God!! We're settled into our new "home"! After all the hard work we're now living here and loving it! Keaton got new bunk beds and I'm in the process of decorating his room so I'll be sure to post pics of that! Now all we need is to hang a few more things on the wall and bring C/Karter home and we'll be all settled in!! =) I can't wait and feel so blessed!

Keaton's first night in his new bed. He loves it, can't you tell!! =)

Canada and More!

September has started so that means tons of new things are going on at Scentsy!!

1. September's warmer of the month is this adorable Jack-O-Lantern and the Scent of the Month is Spiced Carmel Sugar...YUM! This warmer and scent is 10% off this month so get it before Halloween! I also started Kristin's Scent of the Month Club that you can join so check that info out on my website: www.scentsy.com/kristinkotzebue or contact me at kkotz04@hotmail.com for more info!

2. Anyone Know Anyone in CANADA!?! Do you live in Canada? Starting October 1st, Scentsy will have the ability to sell to and recruit team members in Canada. There aren't ANY consultants in Canada right now. Just imagine if you could be the very first consultant in an entire country. Your team would grow massively and so would your paycheck. Canadians have an amazing opportunity to get in on the company while it is brand new to their area. The first Scentsy consultant in America brings in a nice little paycheck of $75K a month! Wouldn't that be nice! =) You can sign up from my website starting Oct 1st to become one of the first Canadian consultants! Contact me if you, a friend, or relative that lives in Canada that would be interested!

3. NEW PRODUCTS :
-New Mid-sized warmers $25 (these are smaller than the normal warmers, yet bigger than a plug-in)
-Travel tins $5 -Scentsy System now $40 instead of $44
- Plug In Packages available now!! We also have plug ins available in lots of new colors!

4. NEW SCENTS: Most of the old favorites are still available but now there are lots of new scents for the winter months! Just to name a few newbies...Pomegranate Ice, Spiced Grapefruit, Christmas Tree, Coconut Macaroon, Cutiepie Cupcake, Coffee Shop, Mochadoodle, and MANY more!

5. Christmas is right around the corner so if you're wanting to earn free product for yourself or as Christmas gifts then get with me now to book your party! Obviously since I'm having a baby in about 2 weeks Sept. is the best month for basket parties. This is when you take my bag of smaller scent testers, catalogs, and order forms to work, your kids games/practices, share it with family and friends, anyone you can think of! It's an easy way to make lots of sales and earn your free stuff without having an actual party at your house. You can keep my stuff for a week or two while you make your rounds and then when you bring it back to me, we calculate how much free stuff you've earned! =) EASY!

Mas Bueno!

Thanks for your prayers yall! I feel so much better! I was really feeling stressed but everything is coming together and I see a light (bright, happy light!) at the end of the tunnel! We've gotten a lot more done with the house and yesterday my mom was off work and kept Keaton while I went down there and worked ALL day! It was so great to get soooo much done and not have to worry about entertaining Keaton at the same time. He's been acting so much better these last few days and he had a great time with Mo (that's what Keaton calls her)! She took him to Inflatable Zone to jump and then to Chick-Fil-A for a yummy lunch and more play time! I got so much done at the house and then Kyle and his parents have been working everyday when they get home from work so we're almost there! I wish I had taken before and after pictures yall because this was a BIG, BIG chore! I now feel more relaxed and like we'll be settled in before C/Karter gets here! YAY!!

Speaking of C/Karter...I was very excited when I saw that my little pregnancy ticker at the bottom of my blog was at the last picture!! This baby will be here in a few weeks and I can't wait!! We go to the doctor on Tuesday so I can't wait to see what she says! I feel like my tummy gets bigger everyday! I'm pretty uncomfortable, especially in the evenings, but overall I'm getting around great! Although, after yesterdays day of cleaning my back and I took today off! =)

Big Girls Don't Cry

OMGOSH!! I am just an emotional wreck lately!! First off I'm 9 months pregnant which can be very uncomfortable at times, I'm not sleeping very well and of course the hormones...oh the hormones!!! So being very pregnant is enough but on top of all that we're moving. As most of you know, we've been living with my parents while we wait for our house in CO to sell but it still hasn't sold and we're already crowded here and just really don't have any room for the baby! Kyle's grandma has been living in assisted living for a while and they're not ready to sell her house yet so we're going to move into it until our house sells! I really love the house and I'm excited to have some more space for all our stuff but this was a HUGE chore as his grandparents had saved EVERYTHING!!!! So for the last month we've been going through the whole house and attic and separating what to save, what to sell, and what to donate. We then had an estate sale and Kyle left last Tuesday and packed up our CO house and arrived back here Sunday. I had spent the whole week cleaning the house and getting things organized. Now we still have to have a furniture sale and finish emptying out the house, then move our stuff from the garage to inside and organize, organize, organize! I am in major nesting mode so I want everything clean and perfect which brings on A LOT of tears during this chaos of moving things in and out at the same time! My mother in law asked me yesterday as we were moving some things in if I wanted her to vacuum Keaton's room, I just started crying and said through tears, "I don't know!!". Haha, I was slightly overwhelmed and didn't know what to do with anything! I do find myself quite amusing once I feel better though. Then whatever made me cry so hard seems funny, or almost funny! Ha! I'm feeling a lot better now though because I got my tears out (I know there's way more to come!) and I know our families are really helping us out and everything will turn out OK!!! Just breath!!!

On top of all that Keaton is really acting up for me lately. He is normally so easy going and just an all around easy kid! He'll go from perfect, to tantrum, then back to perfect in no time, I just don't get where it's coming from and I could handle it so much better if I weren't so stressed!! Yesterday was the worst when he had his first public breakdown in Toys R Us. It was horrible and by the way he was acting I think people in the parking lot probably thought I was abusing him!! I of course was in tears too by the end of it. Afterwards he turns back into an angel and gives me a hug and says he's sorry and just melts my heart. Ahhh, only your child can make you absolutely crazy one second and then melt your heart the next! =)

Pray for my sanity yall!! I will be so happy when this moving is over!!!!

Bull Ridin'

I don't know how I forgot to post this video! This was taken in May and it is so amazing to me how much Keaton has grown up since then!

So if you can't tell from the video, Kyle is a bull. As for Mr. Keaton, we never taught him what bull riders do with their hats, etc...that was all him. I hope that doesn't mean he's destined to be a bull rider! That is way to dangerous a sport for a mother to enjoy her son doing! =) Oh and that hat?? We call Kyle's dad Snow because he has white hair so as a joke somebody sewed that gray wig into a visor for him. It's hideous I know, haha! So to this day Keaton still asks daddy if he can ride the bull when he gets home from work and a hat during bull riding is a necessity!

Baby Fortune

On Sunday we ordered in Chinese food and even though I hate fortune cookies, I love seeing what my fortune says just for fun! As I was opening it I was hoping maybe it was say something really sweet about a baby or labor. It said...

" An alien of some sort will be appearing to you shortly!"

Haha!! I just think that is too funny! I've always said the movement of your baby inside you is kind of "alienesque" (I made that word up I think). So I just thought that was a perfect fortune! =) Although it would have been even better if it said, "An angel...". That would be more true! I can't wait to hold that baby!

We went to the doctor today and everything looked great!

• I'm measuring 35 weeks and the heart rate was 138.
• Baby weighs as much as your average cantaloupe (4.75 pounds-ish) and is almost 18 inches long.
• Baby has had hiccups quite a few times the last couple weeks and I love watching my stomach rhythmically jump! =)

Has it really been 10 years??

Friday night I went with my hubby to his 10 year reunion. Now unlike a lot of couples that go to their spouses reunions, no introductions were needed since Kyle and I were HS sweethearts and went to the same school (he was '99, I was '00). It was really fun to see so many familiar faces! We keep in touch with so many people from HS so there were some people that I saw just last week, then another handful that I might have seen randomly throughout the years but loved seeing them again, and then another group that I probably hadn't seen since they graduated! It was really a great time although I thought I could have gone into labor I was so tired at the end of the night from standing up for so long! Seriously, at one point I started getting really hot and dizzy and couldn't wait for this guy to stop talking to me so I could go sit down before I passed out or something! After that I demanded to Kyle that we leave! =)

I always thought a 10 year reunion would be a huge deal! That I would be so excited and get a haircut, pedicure, eyebrows waxed...you know really pamper yourself and care about what I looked like. However, I wasn't as excited. Don't get me wrong, I was looking forward to it but I felt like I was just going to dinner with a group of friends or something. The big effect of "10 year reunion" wasn't there. That said I didn't start getting ready until 6 and we left at 7. After my shower I realized that half my toes were painted pink and half of them were white where it had chipped off. I just painted over the chipped parts, who can tell from that far anyway? =) Next I realized I hadn't had my eyebrows waxed since our cruise so I started plucking some strays here and there. And my hair? I haven't had it cut since March so none of my pampering or caring about what I looked like really took place either. I just got ready and had no worries. Maybe it will be different next year when it's my reunion or maybe it was because I'm pregnant and I always have the mindset that I can get away with things because I'm pregnant. You know..."I can eat more of that, because I'm pregnant", "I can dress down and wear this, because I'm pregnant. My wardrobe is limited.", "I can sit here while everyone around me works, because I'm pregnant and should take it easy!". You get the picture! =) So I guess this time around I was thinking, "I can wear chipped toe polish, bushy eyebrows, and stringy hair, because I'm pregnant!" hehe!

I don't know why I didn't take pictures, I guess we were just too busy talking and then moving onto the next person to catch up with that I didn't think about pictures until later. I only took these 2 once I was sitting down at the end of the night but it's with 2 of my favorite people that I have a amazing memories with!

Me and Darby

Darby was one of my best friends in HS. We cheered together and always went to the most fun places on double dates... monster truck shows, WWF wrestling matches, Schliterbahn, Splash Town, camping, you name it we probably went there! We then roomed together at Sam Houston before I transferred into Texas A&M and she to Texas State. We've always stayed in touch since but don't see each other nearly as much as we should! I love you Darby! =)

Me and Mandy

Ahh, this girl has always cracked me up!! She was on our cheer squad as the mascot and we also were super close because of church youth group. In HS she had a yellow mustang convertible and Mandy, Darby, and I would drive around blaring Beastie Boys and dancing like crazy! Good times!! =) I love her, miss her, and hope to see her more in the future! =)

All in all Kyle and I both enjoyed ourselves and loved seeing old faces! Next year it's my turn! Weird, HS feels like it was just a couple years ago!!

Shower #2

Catching up...my sweet sister in law, Amanda, threw me a wonderful shower at her house with the help of her mom and my mother in law. It was a family shower (with a few close family friends that are like family) and it was wonderful! I loved having all my family from my side and Kyle's side all there at once and we had a great time together!

There was a "station" to decorate your own onesie for baby K/Carter which was fun. Mine looked like poo because I am NOT very creative but some of the other people produced some pretty cute ones! =) Then we had to smell the baby food jars and guess what was in them, guess the size of my belly and played a baby gender wives tale game. We're still clueless on the sex and my mind changes all the time! I really thought girl through most of the pregnancy just because my symptoms have been different and I'm carrying differently but now that it's getting closer I'm just thinking boy!! We'll see! I can't wait!

I'm so thankful to my family for coming to town for my shower, I had such a great time and got some great gifts for the baby! Thanks everyone!!

Me with my lovely hostesses

32 Weeks

Amie, Me, and Carrie...my beautiful sisters!

Me and my cousin who is due 4 weeks after me with baby Dylan!

Me with my Grandma and Mom. =)

FYI

Well for those of you who have been looking at Scentsy but debating on whether or not to buy anything, this is the month for you! Everything is 10% for the month of August so whether you want to stock up on scents or buy that warmer you've had your eye on, this is the time to do it! www.scentsy.com/kristinkotzebue

September will start with a new catalog and some new products will be added to your original favorites! There are a handful of warmers and scents that will no longer be available so contact me if you would like that list!

Feel free to contact me about purchases, hosting a party, or becoming a consultant yourself! Have a great weekend!! =)

From The Mouth Of A Babe...

Going to the deer lease and ranch is absolute heaven for Mr. Keaton! He loves being outside, loves riding in the tractor, ranger, and jeep and just has a blast helping daddy fill feeders and all that fun stuff! So this last weekend we went to the deer lease and he had a blast like he always does. The second I told him we were going he was so excited!! I didn't take any pictures (I always take pictures, don't ask me why none were taken, what a horrible mother!) but Keaton said some things that made all of us laugh and I never want to forget those little moments so here they are:


Keaton sneezed and Mrs. Berger said, "God bless you!" to which Keaton says, "Your Welcome!" =)

When Kyle took him out on the jeep they checked the corn feeders and a raccoon was caught in a trap they had left out to catch them from eating all the corn. Keaton walked up to the dead coon and pointed at it and asked daddy, "That cat sleeping?".

When they got back from their ride he said, "Tanks daddy jeep ride!" (thanks daddy for the jeep ride!)

If he sees one of Kyle's guns he puts his arms out in front of him with his hands up as if to say STOP and says, " We don't touch daddy's guns!".

He slept with daddy that night and that next morning Kyle had woken up and sneezed and Keaton just popped up in bed and yelled, "Enough sleep, jeep more!!". Kyle started cracking up! He must have dreamt about the jeep all night or something! =)

These little quotes probably aren't as entertaining to you as they are to us but man, he just cracks me up and if you don't write this stuff down, it's so easy to forget and forget is something I don't want to do! I cherish these moments! I can't wait for the many memories we'll make with Keaton at the lease and ranch, so fun!

Birthday, Baby, and Bachelorette!!

Birthday: Well on Tuesday, July 28th, I turned the big 27 years old! =) It's funny to think that the first birthday I spent with Kyle was when I turned 16, that's 11 years ago people!!! CRAZY!!

The day was a beautiful, hot one and I went to La Centerra with Keaton, my mom, and mother in law to shop around and then have lunch at Panera Bread. It was a lot of fun and then that evening we went to Los Cucos with our families. It's always great to all be together so I loved talking and laughing with everyone and I got some great gifts too!! From gift cards, to shoes, to books, to house decor, I love it all!! My hubby gave me my new Storksak diaper bag that I've been wanting and I just love it!!

I must say the best gift that I got was a flower Keaton had picked from outside and his version of "Happy Birthday". I've never heard him attempt to sing it so I was pretty impressed and it melted my heart! The first time he sang it, DeeDee (my mother in law) thought she was recording but she wasn't so this is when she asked him to do it a second (or was it third) time for the camera. Still just as cute but by this time he was a little distracted by his puzzle! =)

Next is an ecore version where he's looking right at the camera instead of at Mommy!

Thank you all so much for making my birthday special!!

I need to get all the birthday pics from DeeDee, this was the only one I took. She has the good ones with the sombrero and all that! =) I'll have to post those later! hehe!

Baby: The baby is doing great! I still can't get over how low this one is sitting compared to Keaton who was up in my chest, and how much this one moves! It's just crazy and so fun to sit and watch my stomach move all over the place! Last Tuesday, at the doctor, my belly was measuring a week ahead and everything looked great. I've been going to the doctor every 2 weeks and it will soon be every week!! I can't believe it! I'm so excited to find out if this will be a little boy or girl! My mind changes all the time! The baby is about 16 inches long now and weighs about 4 lbs. My wonderful friends, Jaimie and JoDee, gave me a baby shower on Sunday and it was so nice! It was wonderful to see so many friends and celebrate Baby C/Karter!! We got some great gifts that will really help us out once baby arrives!! Thanks so much to everyone, it meant a lot having you there!

Jaimie, Me, and JoDee...thanks ladies!!!

Kristel, Jaimie, Candyce, Me, and JoDee

Bachelorette: OK so I was right...she picked Ed. I'm still not very fond of him but you could tell from many episodes ago that he was going to be the one she picked! They really seem to love eachother and you could totally see that a while back, I just tried to think positive that maybe, just maybe, the obvious one wouldn't be chosen. I still just love Ried! I love that he came back! I like how he puts his forehead on hers and just looks at her, and then when he hugs her he buries his head by her neck like he never wants to let go, you can tell he loves her and he's just so sweet! Ahhhh, I think I have a crush! =)