The past year

 Holy Moly! I haven't blogged in forever. I always intend to write, but then life gets in the way and it gets put on the back burner. Maybe it's also because I've written papers for the last 3 years and when I have free time, the last thing I want to do is write. But anyways, here is life in the Waterson household over the past year...

Me:

Last August I officially completed my Masters in Special Education at Georgetown College. This allows me to teach any age (birth - 12th grade). But of course I love the little ones so for now i'll stick with my first graders. Completing another Masters program (my first masters was in early childhood education) also gave me my Rank I!! Woohoo! Here are some pics of my graduation...

This past year I also completed KTIP which makes me an official certified teacher (if you want to be a teacher, don't take the long route like I did). 

I was also pregnant for almost the entire school year. I had an easy and great pregnancy. I was able to continue running up until I was 34 weeks, and then it got uncomfortable so I had to stop. I'm just thankful I was able to run for that long!

Tony:

He is still working at WorkOne and really likes his job. It's so funny to see him go from working with all men at 84 Lumber to working with mostly women now. He always has a story to tell! 

He has started doing some home improvement projects (and trust me, there are plenty) and I'm sure I'll be sharing some of those...we are currently waiting for the money tree to grow a little so we can do more. 

He has accepted the fact that he will be the only male in our household forever and even got to take Hannah to their first ever daddy-daughter dance at Hannah's school. Look how cute they are:

He continues to stay busy with the Masons and with fishing...

Hannah:

It has been such an exciting year for Hannah. She started Kindergarten this year! That first day was very difficult for the both of us, but we made it through and she ended up loving school!

She also participated in Girl Scouts and soccer this year and really had fun doing both.

She has been a wonderful big sister to both Gracie and Emma. She plays with them and reads to them. She's always willing to help me out whenever I need it. She has really helped make the transition from 2 to 3 kids easier. She has really grown up a lot this past year and she makes me so proud. She is very smart...she's learned how to read and loves books! She is my rule follower and for the most part takes responsibility for things. She is always wanting to organize things and learn new things. She is my little mini-me and I see so much of myself in her. 

Grace:

Grace is getting bigger and more independent every day. We've been potty training like crazy and honestly, the child could care less about it. We can go a week with no accidents and then all of a sudden she can have 3 accidents in one day...hopefully she gains full bladder control and cares soon! She is one of the happiest little girls ever. If she's upset, she doesn't stay that way for long. I guess she got all her fussing and crying out when she was a baby. She's just such a happy-go-lucky girl who makes us laugh all the time. 

After several sinus infections and constantly going to the doctor, we had her allergy tested back in February. All I can say is she is one tough cookie...it broke my heart to have this done to her:

We found out she is allergic to everything! (Ok, maybe not everything). She is allergic to trees, grass, mold, dust, cats, and some foods. The treatment plan? Remove allergens in the house,  Allegra 2 times a day, and Nasonex once a day. It seems pretty seasonal though. I actually haven't given her any medication during summer and she's done great. 

She has taken on the role of middle child well. We've had a few challenging moments but she idolizes her big sister and very much loves her little sister (she loves petting her hair). She is such a fun little girl with a beautiful, mischievous smile!

Emma:

Emma Jo is the newest member of the family! She was born on May 31st at 10:27am weighing in at 6.9lbs and 19 inches long with a full head of brown/red/blond hair (totally depends on the lighting). 

She is the best sleeper! Right away she was going long stretches at night (well, long for a newborn...3-4 hrs) and recently she's been sleeping 8-9 hrs straight. Woohoo! She has been smiling more and more lately which is always so much fun!

She is a fairly fussy baby. Since I'm nursing, I have been eliminating dairy from my diet to see if it makes a difference...and at first we thought there was a difference, and now we aren't so sure. She definitely has some reflux (you can hear it and see it) and is extremely gassy. We go for her 2 month check up on Thursday, so I'm hoping the docs can help us out. Fingers crossed!

Emma has been a joy to have in our family! Hard to believe she will be our last baby (makes me a little sad). She definitely keeps us busy and it's so fun to watch her grow every day!

I promise to try and post more often...I know I've said it before, but I'm really going to try this time!