Welcome, Walter Lewis

It's hard for me to believe this is my reality, 2 sons. :) Walter joined us at 2:11pm on Friday, July 18, 2014 (6 days late). He weighed 7lbs 3 oz and was 20 inches long.

With it being my second time around, I expected labor to be "quick" and while painful, manageable. I was wrong.  

Contractions started at 7pm while we were over at Nic's dad's house. We made it the hospital and the following morning at 9:30am I was told Walter was sunny side up and labor was not progressing.

I got an epidural around 10:30am and then with a little more patience on our part, Walter Lewis Kline was born.

It's been over 5 months now and all be it exhausting, it is a blast hanging out and living life with these two little boys. I'm trying to take photos each month, but man life is full and it is hard.

more of newborn wlk...

so helpful when lincoln would try to pick him up, aka push him.

 1 month wlk

wlk at 2 months, limited photos of this age. I think exhaustion was the primary factor in September. 

Lincoln at almost 2 and wlk 3 months 

4 months and almost 2 was busy. Below is the best shot I got of these two. Lincoln is saying "cheeeeeeese". He's getting the hang of smiling for the camera...

Still need to do 5 month photos. :)

Lincoln is speaking in 4 word phrases and tonight I was the victim of his manipulation: "I poopy" he told me during bed time. So I got him back up, took him to the nursery to change him... And, of course, there was nothing! He did not need changing, that little trickster. But really, he is a happy kid who loves learning, music, chasing Neosho and especially motorcycles and trains.

Walter still primarily eats, sleeps, and cries. He is rolling around and finding his hands tasty.

Nic has been an incredible father to these two boys. I love hearing him read, pray, and sing to them. So grateful for life with these 3 boys.

Merry Christmas!
-Nicolas, Julie, Lincoln (2), and Walter (5 months)

I have a toddler.

I's official. My little tiny is now a toddler. He is a little man that loves to pull everything out of any drawer or cabinet he can open. His words consist of "dadada", "mumumum", "dawwwww" (dog), "crk cr" (cracker), and "woof". He reaches and says "eh, eh, eh, eh" when we wants something or someone.

He absolutely loves the book, "Brown, bear, brown, bear". He will find that book out of a stack and hand it to us to read to him.

He has this silly, high pitched laugh that is reserved only for when he sees a dog. 

He can point to his nose, ears, and mouth (sometimes) and understands way more than I give him credit for. 

6 month appointment

waiting to meet cousin Wyatt

9 month appointment

first time at an indoor pool was scary.

He took a couple of steps around Christmas, but started walking to people around 13 months and now at nearly 15 months has it mastered.

I was/am not prepared for life with child. There are so many unexpected things that pop up. Some obvious, some silly, and some emotional. Amongst all the normal day to day routines, here are some things that have occurred recently that I didn't I expect:

1. Losing a household item such as keys, makeup remover, makeup brush, etc. and finding myself thinking, "hm, I wonder if Lincoln got a hold of this and if so, where would he put it..." I search the bathtub, all bottom drawers in our house, and small unknown pockets of space in the bottom of the highchair. I find the lost item. It's a new one for me.

2. A Saturday where Grandpa and Grandma Kline took Lincoln for the afternoon and evening. Nic's dad voiced to us that he had no idea what they would do with a toddler that can't yet ride on motorcycles, tractors, hit a ball, or climb a tree. While grandpa wasn't sure what to do, Lincoln knew just what to do, what to play with, how to eat, and run around outside. However, for us, the day left Nic and I paralyzed. A whole day without our little and we, surprisingly, were lost. We missed him. Of course, whenever I am away at work or run an errand while Nic stays home with him, I miss him. But, but this was different, it was a sadness and an emptiness that was uncomfortable. Nic and I were together without him. We talked about doing this and that and kept repeating the phrase, "but we could just do that with Lincoln, he would like that." Lincoln showed grandpa and grandma what to do and left us high and dry.

3. I boarded a plane with just Lincoln a few weeks ago. As a family we had a rough morning, getting 2 of 3 ready for a flight and a 10 day trip. Lincoln was not in the best mood and neither was I. I about lost it on the way to the airport. This is crazy, I thought, no way is this going to be good. The 3 of us waited together at the airport for my delayed flight and then came the moment of separation. Unexpectedly hard for me. I fought back tears the whole trip, the friendly and patience security guard noticing my juggling act, the kindness of fellow passengers, the nervous and rude passengers that were irritated getting stuck sitting in the back with the kids. All of it made me fight back these unknown tears. Lincoln did amazing for the most part, I was mess. Seeing Nic's text to my family letting them know I was on my way and "the bigger my family gets, the more I have to miss when they leave" made me lose it. That trip I physically felt the prayers, I felt earthly and heavenly love. I knew I was not alone. A flood of unexpected emotion.  

I know there are many more stories to come, probably most of which I won't have the words to describe them.

We are beyond blessed to have this toddler around.

here we go again

We found out last November that we are expecting our 2nd child. This is how we feel. :)

Due date is July 12th, and we can't wait to meet this new member of our family. On Feb. 13th, we had our sonogram to find out if baby #2 is a boy or girl. Nic told me in the waiting room that he wanted to wait to find out over a home cooked dinner the following day, Valentines Day.

Our unborn child is a...

We can't wait to meet you and introduce you to your older brother, Lincoln. We pray you two grow to have an amazing relationship, centered on your Creator.

lincoln turns one!

we celebrated lincoln turning one last december!

we are thankful for so much. this little soul is a sponge and it is a blessing to watch him grow up. motherhood is anything but easy, but it is a joy to have a front row seat to meeting, knowing, and loving this little boy. 

this little just gets more and more active. he is an explorer. here are shots of 10 month old lincoln.

and, 11 month old lincoln. loves loves loves to clap.  

and finally, our 1 year old. 

lincoln working on his balance, thinking about walking...

One wobbly step left.

one twisted step right.

and, boom, hits the ground.

life with lincoln keeps getting better and better.