Bella turns '1' and Kindergarten Graduation.....

It's hard to believe that our oldest has graduated from Kindergarten and our baby girl has turned '1'.....and lets not forget we have ALL moved into a 5th wheel in a new town and Todd has started a new job........ALL IN THE SAME WEEK!!!!  We like it CRAZY people!!
After several months without a job and lots of prayers, Todd received a job offer from the US Army Corps of Engineers at Blakely Dam and Power Plant just outside of Hot Springs, AR.  This job is more of a career change than just a job.  We are very excited about this opportunity (although sad about leaving Murfreesboro).  However, we do have a house in Murfreesboro that we need to sell.  So, after much prayer, research, searching, and more prayer, we decided to purchase a 5th wheel to live in until we sell our house and find a new one here in Hot Springs.  We realize that most people find this idea a bit crazy since we are a family of 5 with 2 dogs and a cat, but we're looking at it as an adventure!!!
Todd started work on May 19.  Blaine graduated from Kindergarten on May 20, and Bella turned 1 on May 22!  It was a busy week!!!
Blaine had a GREAT year of Kindergarten with excellent teachers.  He excelled in all areas.....making all A's in all 4 grading periods!  He is reading well and has impeccable handwriting.
Bella also had her 1 year check up on May 23.  She weighed in at 21 lbs. and was almost 28 in. short!  She loves to eat ANYTHING, talks up a storm (mama, dada, book, up, bite please, thank you, dog...), LOVES books more than any one year old I've ever known, and absolutely refuses to walk!!  She is sweet and loving and quite dramatic.
Bryce also finished up his first year of pre-school (2 days a week).  He had a good year, and I received only compliments from his wonderful teachers.  They were sad that he wouldn't be coming back next year!
Todd has enjoyed his first two weeks of work.  He is looking forward to a summer full of training and learning lots of new things.
The kids and I have managed our days alone (for the first time in 4 years) just fine.  We are looking forward to a summer full of swimming, trips to magic springs, shopping, trips to the library, and anything else we can find to get into!

I will leave you with pictures from Blaine's graduation and Bella's 1st birthday party!

Bella is 4 Months Old!

This precious baby girl is 4 months old today!  She is such a joyful, happy baby.  She rarely fusses about anything.  She smiles at anyone who speaks to her, and laughs at those she loves most. 
Miss Bella spends her days playing in the floor, rolling, jabbering (loudly), and chewing on anything she can get to her mouth.  She loves to  roll over but doesn't like to be on her tummy too long.  She got a new jumping toy this week, and she enjoys playing in it because she can stand up in it. 
She loves her brothers and they LOVE her!!  She likes to watch them do just about anything. 
Showers with Daddy are one of her favorite past-times....she prefers them over baths!  Bella also enjoys being outside, even when it's HOT!  She likes to sleep swaddled tightly just like her brothers did when they were her age.  She likes to cuddle with Daddy every night about 7:30......We call it her 'Daddy Time'. 
She is the easiest baby of the three, as she is very content almost all of the time.  We all love everything about this sweet baby girl and simply couldn't imagine our lives without her!

Life with Bella

Here are some pictures from the last 4 months of our lives with Bella!

These are the last two pictures of Bella on the inside.

 

 Bella and Kaydee at Church together for the first time.  They are only 5 days apart.

Newborn Bella

Daddy with all his babies

 

 Two peas in a pod

 

 All three in one picture is proving to be an impossible task...especially right before church!

 

 Pirate Blaine taking care of Bella



Bella's first time in her bumbo seat

 

 They LOVE her so much!

Bella's first Rattler football game.

Bella's first Razorback football game!

First trip to Church

 Helping give Bella her first real bath

Baby # 3

We are excited to announce that we are expecting Baby Kimery #3!!!  

Blaine is very excited , but he ONLY wants a sister!!!  His initial reaction to the news was, "If the baby is in your tummy, how does is taste?"

Bryce is slowly coming around.....He seems to get a little bit more excited every day!!  His initial reaction to the news was, "NO, I not want a baby!"

October and November

It seems the beginning of all my posts start the EXACT same way!!! I am behind.....I am behind....I AM BEHIND!!!! I think I've given up on ever being caught up again. We just stay entirely too busy for that!

October was an especially busy month. Todd took a new job with a consulting firm, KEMA, doing energy audits throughout Arkansas and Texas. His region is quite large, so he does his fair share of traveling. Fortunately, the boys are still young enough to NOT be in school, so we are very blessed to be able to travel with him! Blaine and Bryce both love to go, go, go, and Blaine especially enjoys staying in Hotels.

Todd's first trip was to Ohio, which is where his boss is located. I still had some accumulated airline miles from when we were flying back and forth between Arkansas and Florida, so Mommy and Daddy got to take a week long trip WITHOUT kiddos....Thanks to Nana and Grammy. The boys also got to experience daycare or school as Blaine calls it for the first time. Blaine loved it, and Bryce was OK with it by the last of three days! He has always been a bit on the clingy side, so it was no surprise that he had a hard time at first. Todd and I had a very nice, quiet week and some amazing food.

Of course October wouldn't be complete without some Halloween pics............We had a Fierce Spiderman and an Itsy Bitsy Spider.In November, we set out on our first work-related trip as a family.......in Todd's 'new to us' car, which is a little (or perhaps a LOT) smaller than my gigantic Yukon XL! We were supposed to be gone for a week, but that quickly turned into two weeks. So, you can imagine that with two little boys we were glad to find laundry facilities onsite at a couple of our hotels!! We were back and forth between Houston and Austin. The boys and I had a GREAT time shopping, swimming, and playing at a really cool park (with a train), thanks to Aunt Cindy's recommendation! They also built their first animals at Build-A-Bear, which was a huge success. They are both still wagging those little animals around EVERYWHERE we go! Somewhere I have pics of this trip, but I can't seem to locate them right now. Maybe I'll find them soon......

When we FINALLY made it back home, the boys had their annual photo shoot. I am happy to report that this year was MUCH, MUCH better than last. Blaine and Bryce were extremely cooperative, and we have the pics to prove it.............

July/August/September

Well, I guess it's no surprise that I am behind AGAIN!! I tend to stay that way lately. July and August were VERY hot months here in Arkansas. We spent lots of time playing in the water because that was the only tolerable way to be outside. Somewhere I have pictures of the kids playing in the kiddie pools and on the slip and slide, but since I'm not sure where they are, you'll just have to use your imagination!! Bryce also got his first haircut this summer, but we left the curls in the back! I'm just not ready to part with those yet! I do have a couple of pics of that for your viewing pleasure....

September brought some much cooler weather, for which we were very grateful!!! It also brought the beginning of football season and homecoming. Our sweet friend Dylan was one of the little attendants, so I was asked to go and take lots of pictures!!! It was fun for everyone except Bryce; He was a little on the cranky side ALL day!! Blaine loved seeing everyone all dressed up, taking pictures, and especially the parade!

Speaking of the parade, September also brought the fair! Blaine and Bryce (and Todd)both LOVE animals, so we always enjoy going through all the show barns at the fair. We took the kids to Pike County fair, and we even managed to make it to the parade!! Our good friends, the Pettigrews, had a float in the parade, so we got to ride with them. Blaine loved it! The following weekend, we joined our cousins Kayla, Mark, and Rylan for a trip to the Four States fair and rodeo. It was the boys first trip to a rodeo, and they really seemed to enjoy it. Blaine and Rylan rode lots of rides, and everyone was exhausted by the time we were done.

WOW! I don't guess I realized how busy September was until I wrote it all down! I'll leave you all with a few picture of the kids from homecoming.......