You are doing a good job

I had a lot of friends tell me "going from 1 to 2 kids is easier than going from 0 to 1." I think that they were all just being nice to me so that I would have another kid. I am struggling a little. It has been 6 weeks since Lily was born. I am doing better than I was when I first had her but 2 kids is still tough. Landon has started to show his love towards his sister, which is wonderful. However, I feel like I spend a lot of my day making sure he doesn't smother her, poke her in the eye, stick toy cars in her mouth, or jump on her. He LOVES to "help" her swing by pushing it really hard. It is so sweet though to see him with her. He has also learned that when I am feeding the baby I am immobile so it is the perfect time to get in to mischief. I have found him sitting on the counter in the kitchen eating candy, going through the trash can looking for treasure, taking DVDs out of the case. I always think about friends with 4 or 5 kids and wonder "what the heck were you thinking?!?!" I know that as he gets older he will be able to play with his siblings and it won't be this crazy but right now it feels pretty insane.

A couple of days ago I was at Walmart and Lily started crying which made Landon start to whine a little so I was trying to be quick at the self check out to get us out of the store. This cute little grandma came up to me and said "You are doing a good job mom. I know they don't seem cute when they are crying because they are yours but enjoy this time because it goes by so fast." It was nice to have some one tell me "you are doing a good job." I think that the hardest part of quitting my job has been that I no longer have any validation that I am "doing a good job." Josh can say it to me all day but he has to :) To have another person say it has a bigger impact on me. Because this is a job. Being a stay at home mom is a job.

My goodness I love these kids. Of course there are days where I want to scream but most days they are amazing. Time has gone by so fast already! I can't believe Landon is two. Check out my beautiful babes.

A year has passed! (almost)

Wow I can't believe almost an entire year has gone by. Well let me recap the past year. Got pregnant, turned 30, ran another half marathon (while pregnant), Josh started his master program at the U, went to California to visit the Cooks, Landon turned 2, celebrated the holidays, had a baby... yup that pretty much sums it up!

Lily Helen Knell was born on January 9, 2013. She weighed 7 lbs 10 oz and was 19 inches long. She was (and is) perfect. I had a pretty crazy pregnancy though. I ended up having food poisoning, pneumonia, strep, and the flu. Plus I had terrible morning sickness just about every day. It was pretty crazy but I guess it could have been much worse. Then after she was born I ended up with a uterine infection, an inflamed bladder, and the cartilage around my right rib cage was inflamed which made it hurt to breathe with every single breath. Needless to say I am happy that she is here.

Here we are (don't mind my puffy face)

Landon has had a hard time with the new baby but he is adjusting. I just can't leave the two of them alone together...... It is a lot more work having two then one but it is fun. Landon is in the crazy age of exploring and touching everything and throwing tantrums when he doesn't get what he wants. I pretty much pray for patience every single day. But he is so sweet and turning in to such a handsome boy. He has such a funny personality. He is OBSESSED with airplanes. He always has one in his hand and he can spot them in the sky from any distance. 

We are doing great! Josh hasn't had a relapse with his cancer, he will be tested again in about a month. We are hoping for a calm 2013 -no cancer, no quitting jobs, no getting pregnant (I would die if that happened).

Hopefully I will blog more this year too : )