New videos of Kins

Here is a video of Kinsler "crawling" and one from our dinner last night. The second will melt your heart. (Feel free to giggle because we did.)

 

The perfect baby doll…

Today Edy came over for a few hours to play. Edy is going to be a big sister in a few short months and I think she’s going to be a great help! Let me show you why I think this…

She knows how to use the snot sucker and wipe noses.

She’s good at being the boss. (Which everyone knows is a requirement as the first born.)

She’s fun to hang out with and

knows how to use the baby as a baby doll.

Miss Edy, we had fun today. Come back to play anytime!

July, July, July

This past week two friends came over to play with me and Kinsler. Heather and Annie came by to have lunch and play. (Forgot to grab the camera and get some pictures. :( ) and also Jennifer and Jazzy came to play. Jasmin is sooo pretty! Too bad she's almost two and will have her eyes on older boys than Kins. haha.

Also, a BIG thank you to Chrissy who decided Miss. Bella needed a Jenny jump-up instead of a Johnny. :)

Last but not least, Kinsler really enjoys bath time. His favorite part is getting a couple swigs of water from the sprayer when we rinse his hair.

That's just a little sample of our life this month.

Branson

Chris and I had the luxury of spending the night in Branson last Friday night while his parents kept Kinsler for us. It was our first time away from him together. (I have taken Kinsler to Jonesboro to visit his Poppy and Nana over Spring Break, so Chris has been away from him before.) I was super nervous to be away from him, but the hardest part was leaving. After we left the house and started our little adventure I was able to concentrate on the exciting things we had planned to do.
First, we just had to make it to Branson. Let me just preface by saying neither of us have been to Branson in YEARS! So, we knew the general way we wanted to go and struck out. Of course we have a handy dandy GPS in our car and of course our ever ready iPhone's ready to rescue us should we get lost. We apparently set out for the scenic trip by following our car's GPS to Rogers and through the back woods of AR and MO and then back into AR before actually arriving in Branson. At one point our GPS wanted us to turn down a dirt road that was next to a farm with some very trashy cars with some not so nice things printed on them about our current president. Needless to say we decided that was a little too sketchy for us and looked for an alternate route. This is where we ended up crossing the state line several times. What's a road trip without a little adventure!?

We made it to Branson just in the nick of time to see The Dixie Stampede by 5:30. We both LOVED the show! I think next time Chris will smuggle in plastic silverware, I on the other hand dug right in and didn't mind being a little messy. After the show, Chris surprised me with Imax tickets to see Eclipse. Needless to say I loved this as well. So by the time we actually made it to our hotel it was almost midnight. No time to worry about Kinsler before falling asleep. The next morning we got up and walked the stores at the Landing before checking out of our hotel and hitting the Tanger outlet mall. After shopping we headed home via the correct route we intended on taking to Branson and made it home in a little over 2 hours.

All in all we had a wonderful time enjoying each others company and yes, even a small break from our lovely son. I will leave you with a few pictures I found on my camera of Kinsler.

From this...

to this in a matter of seconds.

Berenstain Bears

In an attempt to get Kinsler to bed I decided to try reading to him. Chris hounded is mom for weeks to dig up his old Berenstain Bears books because they were his absolute favorite especially the one titled No Girls Allowed. So, I went to the book shelf and selected one of the books and began reading. Well, he didn't just magically fall asleep to the sound of my amazing reading voice, like I had planned/hoped, but it did calm him down enough that after two books I was able to rock him to sleep.

I think he really enjoyed looking at the bright colors on the page and listening to me. I hope he loves books as much as Chris and I do. Maybe one day he will share our love of Harry Potter and just maybe the Twilight Saga. Who knows!?

This isn't the best quality because Chris was trying to be sneaky.

Such a blessing

Over the past few days I have just been hit with overwhelming motherly love. I think it just finally hit me what a mother's love really is, something I didn't understand until a day or two ago. Having to be away from him this month while Chris gets Kinsler's undivided love and attention every morning is killing me! I am so jealous! Tonight when I tried to feed him his oatmeal he only had eyes for Chris. I have to say my feelings were a little hurt and excited over the bond they are forming. It's all I can do to pay attention in class and not text Chris every minute to see what they're doing and to see if Kinsler is doing anything new or cute. I can't get enough of Kinsler's excitement and smiles when I come home to him after class. It is quite possibly the best feeling in the world.

The joy he brings us is astounding. Everything from his smiles, laugh, and yes even his cry is such a wonderful blessing that I am thankful to be a part of.

God has blessed me and Chris with (definitely a personal bias here) the most perfect, beautiful, and loving son. I can't wait to see how he develops and grows. We pray everyday that we are being Christ's example to him and that we continue to do so as he grows.

Time to hit the pool!

Kinsler has now been to the pool two times and loved every minute of it! He is now rolling from his back to his belly as well. This new trick is causing Chris and I to stress come bed time. He is such a flopper he is getting himself wedged in the corner of his crib on his belly and unable to roll back over so he wakes up crying in the middle of the night.

Today we went to the doctor for his 4 month check up. Yes, you read correctly he is now FOUR months old! Time flies when you’re caring for a baby! Haha. He weighed 14.1 pounds and was 25 1/4 inched long.

Also, this month I am in summer graduate school in the mornings so Chris has been watching Kinsler. This is proving to be a little stressful for both of them because they are having to adjust to one another. Kinsler is having to adjust to the way dad does everything and Chris is adjusting to the constant needs Kinsler has. If you think about it say a prayer for both of them.

Well that’s an update on the Collins family. I will post pictures and a video of Kinsler swimming. Enjoy!

I forgot to mention his Nana and Poppy (Aunt Em and Uncle Alex too) came to visit and bought him an exersaucer. Which he loves because he is soooo nosy!

*Video would not load. I’ll try again later so check back!