Dear 29 year old me...

Dear 29 year old me...

    The world is not coming to an end because you will no longer be in your 20's!  Your 20s were full of so much life and lessons learned.  Your early twenties were filled of college life. You also experienced your first true loss at the age of 20, your grandpa Tjelmeland. This was a life changing experience and one that would teach you so many things you didn't realize until later in life.
 At 21 you could finally drink legally! You also met Jon, moved back in with your parents, and graduated from college.  At 22 you worked full time, became engaged, and bought a house (which you shared for 7 months with your parents)! At 23 you got married, took an amazing trip to Hawaii, and started to form what would be your new life with Jon. At 24 you learned life does not always work out the way you think. You had a miscarriage. You were broken.
 Also at 24 you became pregnant and at 25 you  gave birth to Reagan. Your eyes were now opened to a new world and you let go of what you had experienced. At 25 and 26 you learned there was a new level of love. You continued to work full time but were blessed to have Reagan with you. Also at 26 you were done with your job of 5 years. It was so bittersweet. You celebrated Reagan's first birthday (which was also the year anniversary of your miscarriage, you let go a little more).
At 26 you took a new job and were still able to be with Reagan for the majority of the time. You felt happy. At 27 you lost Jon's grandpa. It was a hard time for both of you, but you were there for Jon. You grew closer to him and his family during that time.
 Also at 27 you found out you were pregnant. You made it through the first trimester and were excited for what was to come. You celebrated Reagan's 2nd birthday. Eleven days later you experienced your 2nd loss. At 16 weeks your water broke and you lost your child. It was intense with many unanswered questions and again you were broken. But you made it through.
 Also at 27 you found out you were again pregnant. Your fear overtook your excitement for the better part of the pregnancy. At 28 you experienced a loss of a different kind. A niece. Although you didn't get to know her, she taught you so much. It was a hard time and again full of unanswered questions. You were so sad and so upset, but glad you could be there for the people who needed you.
 At 28 you experienced preterm labor, bed rest, multiple trips to the hospital, and stretch marks. You gave birth to Kamryn and again found a new love. Life was looking up, and then life happened (again!).  When Kamryn was 2 weeks old you experienced a loss on a new level. Your dear friend Karen was killed in a car accident. You will never forget that day or the months that followed. You were numb. Life had to keep going on and you had to find a way to keep going on. You were broken, but you didn't have time to put yourself back together. Too many people needed you- and you needed them. You celebrated Reagan's 3rd birthday. It was hard for you to try and focus with everything going on when her birthday came around. She was 3, she won't remember, but you will. Life was now different and you had to learn what your new life would be like. It was not easy, but you made it through.....you are making it through.
 At 28 you realized (with the help of Jon) that you did not need the added stress of a job, so you didn't go back to work. It was a hard decision but one that was made easier after finding out your own boss did not keep a spot open for your own child. I think that was a sign for above! This was not an easy adjustment, but the right one.
  At 29 things started to settle down...kind of.. You and Jon sold your home that you lived in for 7 years. It was bittersweet! You moved into a rental one house away and are beyond thankful for that (even though you complain sometimes).  You stay home full time now  (which is still an adjustment). You celebrated Kamryn's first birthday and Reagan's 4th. Reagan started preschool and for the first time in her entire life she is not with you all day. This was hard for you at first, but it is a good balance for the both of you. Kamryn keeps you on your toes and she is a little naughty. You have, learned to take more time for yourself which is not an easy thing for you. You are starting to love working out- weird- and you remind yourself how blessed you are. You are 29.... for 11 more days.

You learned a lot in your 20s. There is a lot things that didn't make this letter, weddings, nephews born, funny stories...etc... You have A LOT of memories from your 20s.. some are good, some are bad. Some things you wish to forget and others you wish you could have changed. The truth is these things have made you who you are.  You have learned A LOT of valuable life lessons in your 20s and I am sure there will be a lot more in your 30s.

YOU ARE BLESSED!!! You have a wonderful husband who you love, two healthy, beautiful daughters at times can seem like a handful, but you wouldn't change it. A family who loves you, friends who are like family, and people you can count on. You are getting ready to build a house and make it a home for your family. (This is stressful for you, but relax and enjoy this process).  You are finding new things you enjoy and are realizing some of the things you used to enjoy you don't as much any more. Now you just need to work on being ok with letting some of those things go. 

You 30s are looking exciting already!

Today we PLAY

Today we PLAY!! I often struggle with finding a good balance with being at home. I feel obligated to clean and do housework when sometimes I need to just play. So today- WE PLAYED!!!

Kamryn loves playing with the dollhouse right now!

Oh yeah... time for a little FUN with packing peanuts!!

Come on Butters, play with us!

Kamryn is dancing, rockin' the mullet!!

Happy Birthday Daddy

We celebrated Jon's birthday over the weekend. Saturday I dropped the girls off with my parents for a slumber party. Jon and I headed to Des Moines to do a little shopping. After shopping we went with some friends to eat at Latin King. We enjoyed some drinks and appetizers, then we weren't able to eat the main course! We got to-go boxes and headed to a bar by our friends house. We watched some football and then headed back to their house. While we were there we all got hungry so we heated up our take home food. Jon and I headed home around 10:30. We slept in until 7am-yes we had no kids and we were up! We got ready and went to the gym together then headed up to Ames for lunch. We ate with my parents at Pizza Ranch. Jon took Kamryn and headed home (She had tonsilitis and had an allergic reaction to medicine so she needed new meds and a nap!) I got some groceries and then picked Reagan up from my parents and headed home. Reagan and I made Jon a birthday cake. Reagan wanted to frost it like a rainbow because Jon likes rainbows- according to Reagan. Jon loved his cake so much he ate it for dinner! We spent the rest of the day hanging out at home.

Reagan's Cake with some help from Mommy.

Happy Birthday Daddy!!

Cousins

The week after Christmas my sister, her husband, and boys were in Iowa for a few days. We loved spending time with them. I didn't tell Reagan they were coming back so she was so surprised when Michael opened the door to my parents house. Here are a few pictures from our time together!!

Reagan's New Years Interview 2012

Here are Reagan's Answers at 4.5 yrs. old!!



What is your name? Reagan

Where were you born? At the hospital
How old are you? 4

Who is your mommy? Kim
What does your mommy do? Works and drives
Who is your daddy? Jon

What does your daddy do? Works at the pharmacy
What is your favorite color? The colors of the Rainbow
What do you want to be when you grow- up? A Salon girl
What is your favorite food? Macaroni and Cheese, Hot dogs
What is your favorite animal? Zebra
What do mommy and daddy do after you go to bed? Clean the dishes
What does daddy say? We like the Hawkeyes
What does mommy say? We like the Cyclones
What is your favorite song? Motorboat
What is your favorite movie? The Grinch, Little Rascals
Who is your best friend? Emersyn, Veda, Ava, Reese
What is your favorite book? The Grinch
What is your favorite thing to do? Go Swimming
Where does Daddy work? Pharmacy

Where does Mommy work? At home
What do you think about your little sister? She is cute
What do you love about Kamryn? I love hugging her, holding her, and kissing her
What do you like to do with Kamryn? Play

If you were an animal, what would you be and why? I would be a LION so I can scare everyone

What grade are you in? Preschool

Where would you like to travel to someday? California

I love hearing her answers every year. This year I realized how grown up she is (which makes me a little sad)!

Too cute not to post!

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!!

Christmas at GG's

After a busy morning we headed up to my grandma's for our last Christmas. As always there is lots of yummy food to eat. We snacked and the kids played GREAT! Kamryn kept everyone on their toes. I believe we found her in the shower, on the bed, and table. Reagan loves playing with my cousins kids and they had a good time. They played the game Headbands. It was entertaining to watch! Kamryn and Ben kept taking each others toys. Brock got an ISU shirt (from me) as a joke! He is a huge Hawkeye fan so when Reagan drew his name I thought it would be a fun prank!! He opened it and looked at his mom and said "You are taking this back!" I got him a real gift!! It was a good way to wrap up Christmas!

We had a wonderful Christmas Season and really enjoyed all the family time together. The girls still haven't played with everything they got!

Christmas Day

We started Christmas morning off opening stockings then waiting until after breakfast for gifts. Kamryn was up coughing in the night so I was a little tired and needed to shower to get moving. The girls were so patient. We made out traditional Buttersctoch Cinnomon Rolls and Bubble Bread. My parents and Becki were there and enjoyed watching the girls open their presents. Favorites included:

*Baby Doll - Kamryn

* Purse - Kamryn (from Reagan)

* Camera -Reagan

* Lallaloopsy Tree House and Dolls- Reagan

* Salon- Reagan

It was a wonderful morning. We got ready and headed up to my grandma's for our last Christmas Celebration.

More presents...

We went to Church on Christmas Eve with my parents and Becki. The church was packed (which we knew it would be). Jon and the girls made it almost the entire time, but they were getting tired and fussy so they left with about 20min. left. We got back to my parents house and ate a yummy meal. We then got the girls in the Christmas Jammies and opened presents. We got home around 8 and got Kamryn to bed. They were having so much fun playing with all their new stuff we left them stay up and play for a bit. We had to get ready for Santa to come to Reagan headed to bed about 9! We set out candy and milk for Santa.

Christmas Eve

All Dressed up and Ready to go!!

Gingerbread House 2011

Lake City Christmas

The week before Christmas we celebrated in Lake City with Jon's parents and Grandma. Jon wasn't feeling the best, but it was still a good day. We had a wonderful meal, opened lots of presents, and headed home thinking the girls would sleep in the car. It was a good day!!

Reagan's response to her Lallaloopsy playhouse was " You have GOT to be kidding me!!"

Both girls where so excited and had a fun day!!

All dressed up

Christmas with the Gogertys. Reagan insisted on wearing this dress, so Kamryn had to match!!