Sweetness

A few adorable things my kids have said to me today....

Brynlee while helping me make pies-
 "Mom you are such a good cooker!" 
 "You are just the best mom!  I love you!"

Kason while giving me a giant hug-
 Grabs my cheeks & says "I sure do miss you mom." in the absolute sweetest voice I have EVER heard! 

Sydalee has also started laughing recently =)

Days like these make me realize I am the luckiest mama in the world =)

I love my cuties

This post is LONG overdue... I surely LOVE my amazing family.  I know every post says this garbage... but its kinda true.  This is just an update on everything that's been going on...

Sydalee Rae - Well what a dollface!  She is so amazing!  She is the perfect baby!  So much great baby wrapped in to one tiny little package.  When she went to her 2 month appt she was actually like 11 weeks old.  ( I was a little late)  anyway.. She only weighed 10 lbs 7 oz.  Syd is just so tiny.  She eats pretty good & sleeps A LOT!  She wakes up once a night at about 5 am (which is amazing).  She is losing her hair =(  BoO!  The other kids love her so much!  She is such a great final fifth addition to our family.  What a great surprise blessing.  I love my little Squid!

Kaso Baso - My oh my... Where do I begin.. He is such a studly muffin. So much fun!  He has such a personality I can't even begin to describe, but I'll try anyway.  He has the cutest laugh.  He is the sweetest boy I have ever seen EVER!  He is the best cuddler & cares so much for everyone.  When he wants a drink he gets one for Brynlee as well... He always wants to help feed Syd her bottle (though that only lasts about 2 seconds at a time).  This is my fav... If I get frustrated at a driver in the car (not that I have road rage) he says "it's okay mom" in the sweetest little voice, then I just laugh.  He LOVES to play with girl stuff, but is SUCH A BOY!  He plays with princesses, cars, necklaces, guns (water guns) he calls BAM BAM etc... He is just the icing on the cake.  This boy was sent to us to keep us sane.  I LOVE my sweet Kaso Baso! 

Bryn - Well this sassy girl is in her 2nd year of Preschool & LOVES it!  On our way home from the circus tonight she said to me "Mom, I want to be a teacher when I grow up!  Like Miss Terri & Miss Becky (her teachers) so I can teach all my friends lessons & how to sing songs".  It was the cutest!  Normally when you ask her what she wants to be when she grows up she responds with "a grown up!" DUH!!  LOL!  She has such an attitude its hard to keep up.  She does have a sweet side though.. Brynlee loves her friends so much.  She always loves to play & asks all the time when we can play with EVERYONE again.  Her favorite thing in the world is Family night.  We do Family Nights on Wednesdays every week per Bryns request.   She has also always had such an unbelievable love for the moon.  She always says hi to "him", he says hi back of course!  The cutest thing? YES!  She has now taught her brother how to love the moon so much.  They both get so excited whenever they see "him".  Kason says "look! The Meoon mom!"  So sweet!  I love imaginations!  I love my sassy Bryn Bryn!

Mark & I - are fab!  He is working at the same ol place still.  I am still home with the kids.  We love it!  He just started a new schedule to get a little difference in his life.  He is doing really good with it.  We got a date night out on Monday night with my sweet sister Ally & her hubby Pete.  Pete will be moving in 2 weeks for work & we had so much fun out on a final date out with them.  We went to Tucanos at the Gateway... YUMMM!   ( We love Ally & Pete!  We wish them the best of luck on their new adventure they are about to take on!)  We are so happy that things are starting to look up for us.  We are on our way to a good place in our lives & are loving it. 

Well hopefully I can actually keep up on this better... We shall see... Pictures coming soon!  = )

INTRODUCING. . . .

The Rice Family is so happy to introduce the newest member of our family... Sydalee Rae Rice.. She was born July 11, 2011 weighing in at 7 lbs & 19 inches long.  She is a dream!  She sleeps all night long since day 1!  I have to wake her up to feed her in the mornings then she sleeps more.  Brynlee LOVES her!  She is such an amazing BIG sister!  She is such a big help.  She loves holding her & playing with her.  I think its SO funny cause she is only a week old & Bryn always wants to "play".  She mostly gets in her face & says boo... Holds her hand & shares her dolls with her.  Cutest thing ever!  Kason is learning to love her!  Every night he says "Goodnight Sydawee" & gives her kisses!  He loves to look at her & always says "aww Cute baby".  He is a great big brother & once he realizes he's not the baby anymore he'll be even better!  LOL!  Mark of course melts for her every minute!  He tries to act tough, but when it comes to kids... There is NO such thing!  He is such a wonderful dad & husband.. I hit the jackpot with this one!  We love our family & have such a good time together.  Sydalee just adds to all the excitement! 
Yesterday we had a photo shoot with my good friend Jamie Healy.  She is amazing!  You can view her work at Jamie Healy Images  on Facebook.  She's fab.. Here are a few shots we got yesterday & I am so excited to share them with you! 

Our Outdoor adventures!!

Like I said in my previous post we have been spending a little time outside.. I thought I would do a seperate post for the outdoor fun!!  I hope you enjoy!!  This is mostly pics, but I can't help but share them!!

Bryn helping her Mr fix it raise the seat on her bike. =)

Bryn & Mac had a picnic outside =)  I loved the rainboots she picked out!

The kids flying a kite for the first time with their daddy.  Mark says this is the first time he has ever flown a kite!  He had a love/hate relationship with it =)

Fun Park Day!!  CHEEEEESE!!

I LOVE how much my kids LOVE their daddy!!

Kason wouldn't play at the freezing water park so he went to the regular park instead =)  He climbs up EVERYTHING at the park & goes down the slides all by himself.  It scares me but whatever!! 

Bryn enjoying herself at a birthday party!  This is the first Bday party of a friend at school!  She was SOOO excited! =)

Kason helping Daddy fix the car at Papa's house!!

Trev helping Kason ride his bike =)  It was the cutest thing EVER!

See ya next time =)

What have we been doing...

Well I sure love to blog.. I just need to be better about it!!  This past month has been quite busy.  We have been having park days, playing at Papa's house, we welcomed 2 new nephews/cousins into our family.  Hazen Gleyre Richards & Makai Vincent Diaz were both born last week & we could not be more excited.  They are the cutest boys ever!!  We love welcoming new family into our lives!!  I am so excited for another new nephew & a new baby to come in the next few weeks!  We love family time! 
Brynlee is now 4 & so smart.  She is just the best little girl I could ask for!  (Even though she is kind of a pain sometimes!)  Kason will be 2 in 3 short months!  I seriously cannot believe it!!  He is the sweetest, happiest, smartest boy ever!  He always has a smile & is such a joy to have around!!  He is going to be our one lucky happy boy!  Mark is thrilled he is such a boy cause Bryn has turned into such a girl!  LOL!  She used to LOVE to work with Mark on his Bike & go on rides.. Now all she wants to do is play dolls, but Kason is happy to take her place with the bikes =)   We only have 26 days til this sweet baby makes her way to us.  We are So EXCITED!!  Here are some pics of what we have been up to the past month =)

Brynlee & Macie got their makeup done by my wonderful friend Jamie Healy at Sephora.  They LOVED IT!!  Then found these hats & I thought they were SOOO cute!!

Kason needed a pic with Bryn's Shades on

Kason protects his milk!!  It is his favorite thing on the planet!!  LOL

Our kids wrestling!  They LOVE it!

Brynlee finally tried a meat she likes!!  The healthiest one - BACON!!  She asks for it every day & calls it Bacon Toast!  Since it is SO healthy.. She doesn't get it very often at all!

Bryn's last day at Preschool.  I LOVED her whole outfit!!

Bryn got her hair done by our great stylist Amanda Cox.  We love her & Bryn was so excited to have such beautiful hair!  Kason just naturally looked like a stud that day!  =)  I have this pic as my background on my phone & every time I look at it I realize I have the cutest kids ever & am so lucky!

The girls getting ready to go to the water park =)

Brynlee loves making "funny faces"

Kason trying to make the same face as Bryn hahaha!!

My baby bump with just over 4 weeks to go.  PS... this is the day I found out we are having a GIRL!!  YAY!!

Kason with his cute aunt Toni takin a little nap at Papas =)  (FYI - I could NOT get Kason to take a nap this day & Toni grabbed him & sat with him... he immediately fell asleep... PUNK!)

Bryn napping at Papas house after having a great afternoon playing on his bouncy house & blowup waterslide.  She was exhausted!!  =)

Getting an educational nap in the car.. He fell asleep while playing on the computer =)

This is what we have been up to!!  Sorry its a little long!  I will try to be better!   See ya soon!!!!!

Mothers day is great!

Yesterday gave me a lot to think about.  I love my kids & I love every thing about them!!  No, I didn't need any extravagant gift to tell me I'm an awesome mom...  My kids & Hubby told me Happy Mothers Day & so did my fam!  That's all I need!!  I feel so lucky to be a mother!  I have never realized until now how many people do not get this wonderful blessing in their life.  I also never realized how many mothers take it for total granted.  If you have children, you NEED to love them no matter what! 
I have the most AMAZING mother in this entire world.  She has never once turned her back on any of us (no matter how bad we mess up)  ;).  She is kind, considerate, helpful, giving & perfect!  I LOVE MY MOTHER!  I also love that she taught me about being a mother & how to be a great one!  I know I'm not perfect, but that doesn't stop me from trying!  Our family is so close & we owe it all to my mom.  She has held us together so well!!  This summer we have 2 siblings moving out of state for the first time ever!  It is going to be very interesting & give us a reason to go visit other places!  I cannot wait!! 
Yesterday Mark woke up with the kids & let me sleep in as long as I could (which is not very long).  My wonderful mother made me breakfast cake (TOTALLY FABULOUS) & we all enjoyed the day!  Brynlee sang with the Primary at church.  It was awesome!!  She was standing right next to the pulpit & there was a box of tissues sitting there so mid song she grabs a tissue, wipes her nose & calls out for me to come get it!  LOL!  It was the funniest thing ever!!  I started crying I was laughing so hard!  Then we came home & made dinner for my whole fam!  It was so nice to have them all over.  The kids are getting so big & can make more noise, but its still extremely fun to have them all together! 
I had a wonderful day!  Nothing could have made it better!  Thanks for reading this special post!

A lot of randomness

We love to have fun in our house!!  Lately the kids think the most fun thing is to not sleep at night... LOL!  They have both had such a hard time sleeping since we moved in with my mom.  I know they are adjusting I just hope it happens quick =)  Bryn & I have been doing a lot of baking lately!  We made some great cupcakes for my brother in laws graduation.  They turned out great!!  We also made a banana cheesecake for Easter with Marks fam!  All of those boys LOVE banana cream pie, so I thought I'd change it up a bit! 

Here are the Grad cupcakes!  They are Orange cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.
They also have "diplomas" & "Graduation caps" on them! =)

We woke up Saturday morning & went to an Easter Egg hunt with our great friends the Gants & Groningas.  We then went & enjoyed some delicious breakfast.  The kids love to hunt for eggs!!  Our kids did 3 hunts this year between fam & friends.  It was such a great Easter!  We went to Marks Dads & spent the day with his fam.  Dad made some delicious food for us!  Of course the kids loved it more cause they get spoiled by Grandma & Grandpa Rice!  ;) 

How cute they looked on Easter Sunday!



Bryn about to get another egg



Kason on the hunt for eggs

My kids LOVE each other!  They love to hug each other & get their pics taken!  If Kason is in his diaper only, Bryn needs to get in just her underwear!  If Kason is in jammies, Bryn needs jammies!!  I'm so glad they love each other so much!  It makes for easy pics. =)  Followed by some fun pics I had to share!

Notice Kason is also wearing some of Bryn's flip flops & holding her necklasces... He loves her! LOL



Kason LOVES his blanket the hospital gave him =)  It has duckys on the other side =)







Gave this extremely tired boy a tiny piece of Chocolate... Rookie mistake

Bryn (with her buddy Ian watching her)  riding the spiderman ride at Fat Cats after enjoying some lunch with friends!

This is Brynlee pretending she is like my good friend Brittni that just had twin girls =)

Bryn still loves her Einsteins!!  =)

Battle wound # 465... In his little life he has had so many bruises & bumps, not to mention his broken wrist.  Well, last night Mark was playing with the kids & they were loving it!!  Suddenly Kason started falling off the couch, Mark put his arm back to catch him & Kason's eye hit Mark right on the elbow.  Mark is doing okay.  ;)  Kason instantly got his first gigantic shiner!  It swelled up & turned black immediately.  Poor bubba is such a tough guy!  He only cried for a min, but would not let us touch his face at all.  We couldn't even put a cold pack on it.  He didn't sleep well last night, but I'm thinking if I just give him a bottle of Ibuprofen tonight instead of Milk... he will be okay ;) 

This is about 3 mins after the "beating"



Here he is today peacefully sleeping after being up all night!  It looks much better in this pic.  It's a little darker in real life.  We are hoping for a quick healing!  But who are we kidding... He's still the cutest kid even with a black eye =)



 All in all we have a wonderful life!!  We are counting down the 11 weeks we have left until this baby makes it's appearance into our little family!  We are grateful for wonderful family & friends!  I know this is going to be a good year for us no matter what challenges we have to face!  =)



One smart boy

I just have to say that Kason amazes me every single day!!  This is a conversation we just had....
I was getting a drink of water when
Kason says "drink?"
Me "You want a drink bubba?"
Kason "ya"
Me "Where's your sippy?"
Kason "I don't know"
Me "Ask Daddy"
Kason "Daddy, can I have some milk please?"

It was the cutest thing I have ever seen in my life!!  He is just so smart & adorable & happy... I just love how blessed we are with this smart 19 1/2 month old! 

Mark keeps asking me what we are going to do with another baby cause we just love ours so much!  LOL!  I think we will figure it out!!  12 weeks & counting til we have our new addition to the fam & we could not be more excited!! =)

Kid time = Fun time

We went to the park on April Fools Day... I wish I could have played a major joke on my husband, but had nothing to do... Every woman is always obsessed with the "I'm Pregnant" scam... that doesnt work so well for me!  =)  We had a blast at the park!  The kids love playing outside & I love nice days! 
Brynlee made a new friend there.  He walked right up to her & hugged her then said "do you want to play with me?"  It was the cutest thing EVER!!  Brynlee told me about 300 times that he was her friend!  LOL  I love kids!! 



Brynlee made a new friend at the Park. He walked right up & hugged her then said "Do you want to play with me?"  It was so cute!!  Brynlee only told me about 300 times that he was her new friend!  It was the cutest thing EVER!

 Kason was actually able to climb up the stairs & slide down the slides on his own.  He is just getting soo big I cannot believe it! 

We did a project of Jelly Bean necklaces with Brynlee & my neices while I was babysitting!  It was so much fun, but time consuming!!  Not something I would recommend! ;) 

Last night we had some friends over for dinner & dessert... mmmm... I made this delicious recipe I found blog shopping... Red Hot Cupcakes...

They are so extremely delicious I cannot even express it enough!!  The frosting is the very VERY best part... Seriously!!  Not just because it was frosting, but because I used my very own Buttercreme recipe & added a few things from her deliciousness.. Oh my!! If you like Red Hots.. Please let me make these cupcakes for you!!!  Mmmmmmmmm!
Jamie Healy.. This post was especially for you!!  I hope you read & enjoy it =)

RIGHT NOW

Right now Brynlee is 3.  She will be 4 in 1 month!!  CRAZINESS!!  I cannot believe I am going to have a 4 yr old!  She goes to pre-school & loves every minute of it!!  She loves to play all the time!  If you ever want a play date CALL ME!!  Kason is 1.  He is an ANGEL!!  He is such a happy little boy we truly are blessed!!  He is so smart I cant stand it!!  He also repeats everything you say... So be careful!!  I stay home with the kids & love it! (most the time =) )  We are expecting mystery baby #3 in July & cannot wait!!!  Mark is currently at Associated Foods, but we are waiting to hear from a welding school for him to get into & get an apprenticeship!  Please pray he gets that!!  It would be the best thing ever for our family!  We love to play outside & go lots of fun places around town!! Camping is something we would like to do A LOT of this summer!!  We will see how it goes =)    That's all for now =)

BLOG!!!

BLOG TIME!!!! Hopefully I can figure out how to use this thing!! LOL If you have any tips BRING EM ON!!
I think this will be nice to have since I feel like I talk about my kids too much on FB. Now I can do it on here & you just have to deal with it!!