Potlatch Winter Festival

Papa's auto parts store is located on the parade route and across from the lighted city park where the firework show is.  It has become an annual tradition for his employees and our family and friends to celebrate  at his store where we can enjoy the parade and fireworks from inside a warm building.  The party seems to get bigger every year.  Maylee had a blast with all her little cousins!  This was also the first "family gathering" for Kaleah...she was the star that everyone couldn't wait to see.

The upstairs of the store party with a big window to watch the parade and fireworks...

Meeting Great-Grandma Doris (or, as Maylee calls her "Big Ammie") for the first time...

 Meeting Great-Great Uncle Lloyd...

 Meeting Great-Great Uncle Butch and third cousin Marcus...

 

Parade Time

Maylee and Cousin Lily

 Ethan, Maylee, Lily, and Kole

 

 Aunt Connie helped pass out goodies because she walked in the parade for Gritman Medical Center

Fireworks

 Twin cousins Charlie and Tessa are beside Maylee...

Playing with Cousins at the Party

More Time with Cousin Natalie the next day...

Cousins Emma and Sarah holding Kaleah...

Christmas Tree Hunting 2012

Snow has been delayed this year so we were able to drive on a road that is normally one that we snowmobile on and gated at the bottom.  Maylee dressed herself for the occasion...she was ready for "tree hunting."  Kaleah and I waited in the truck while Kevin and Maylee tracked down the perfect tree.  Then they returned to the truck for the saw and our approval.

Our Girls Look the Same!

I knew from our 24 week ultrasound that our second baby would look like Maylee based on the profile.  At that time, we didn't know if the baby was a boy or a girl because we kept the results sealed in an envelope.  After Kaleah was born and we started taking pictures of her, I kept having these thoughts of I have seen this picture before.  When we got home, I started comparing Maylee's newborn pictures to Kaleah's and we were shocked!

Maylee (less than a day old)

Kaleah (less than a day old)

 Maylee (five days old)

Kaleah (six days old)

 Maylee (6 weeks old)

Kaleah (3 weeks old)

Big Sister Maylee!

Maylee loves her sister!  We are constantly telling her to back-up because she wants to be in her face giving loves all the time.  She is fascinated by everything Kaleah does (eating, getting a new diaper, getting dressed, burping, etc.)  When Kaleah is asleep, Maylee loves to give her hugs.  When Kaleah is crying, she usually pats her and says, "It's okay Honey"...followed with..."Mom, I think she wants more milk."  If Kaleah is crying in the car, Maylee says, "Kaleah is crying because she doesn't like this song"...and when Kaleah stops crying in the car..."Mom, Kaleah likes this song!"

Maylee loves helping.  If Maylee notices we are changing a diaper, then she runs to get her stool. One of her favorite jobs in putting the powder on Kaleah, which means powder sprinkled from her bellybutton to her knees...my thought it powder doesn't stain.  We are working on only "two shakes in her potty spot."   She also likes helping watch her when we need to step away for a second.  She usually sings a song or talks to her.  Kaleah seems to like listening to Maylee's voice and likes laying down while Maylee reads her books.  One time, Kaleah was fussy so Maylee put the "blinky" (pacifier) in Kaleah's mouth and then positioned Kaleah's arm/hand over it to help prevent Kaleah from spitting it out...smart girl.  Maylee likes holding her but it usually lasts for about 16.4 seconds before she says, "She's too heavy."

Everywhere we go, Maylee tells everyone that she has a little sister named Kaleah.  Even in church while up front for children's sermon, she interrupted to announce to the congregation, "I have a little sister. Her name is Kaleah." One day at home, Maylee was watching Kaleah in the baby lamb chair and Kaleah put her finger up on her head.  Maylee said, "Mom, she is thinking about me!"  I also had a great mom-moment, when Maylee came in my room to give Kaleah and I kisses and hugs goodnight and then said, "I like that baby."

Here she wanted Kaleah to lay on her pillow with her and then she helped Kaleah keep her pacifier in.

I took the opportunity to continue getting ready for the day and greatly appreciated Maylee's help!

Maylee is also doing some of the same things we do for Kaleah with her baby dolls.

She always liked her dolls but now she plays with them daily and now one of them is also named Kaleah.

She is never the mom to the babies, always the big sister. 

Here she is driving her babies to the doctor and the purple bag is her "diaper bag"...

Now, she is driving the four little babies to "Crazy Aunt Connie's house"...

(She hums while using her hands for a sterling wheel, 

then she says "Erch, we're here" when she is done driving somewhere.")

1st Week at Home

Maylee went home with Ammie and Papa after visiting us in the hospital on Monday.  We were discharged on Tuesday, so that evening it was just three of us.  Our friend was taking care of Cinder and Maylee was still with grandparents so our house was really quiet without a 3-year-old and a dog.  Ammie brought Maylee back home on Wednesday.  The first thing Kevin said when he picked Maylee up was, "Wow! She is heavy compared to her sister!"  Maylee just seems so grown up and big next to Kaleah.

Home at last...

 Sleeping in her bed for the first time...

Meeting Cinder...

2 Days Old

3 Days Old

4 Days Old
1st Check-up

She was 7lbs 7oz at birth and almost gained it all back...her doctor was impressed!

She really doesn't like getting undressed.

Thanksgiving 2012

Kaleah's 1st Thanksgiving

and

Our 1st Thanksgiving as a Family of Four

(Kaleah was 3 days old)

Our tired little turkey...

Maylee watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade...

 Kaleah watching Dad instead...

 Maylee loves watching Kaleah when we change diapers...

she often asks what color the poop was. :-)

Kaleah's Name

Kevin picked Maylee's name because he worked with someone with the same name in Arizona and always liked her name.  He wasn't sure how she spelled it, but told me "there was a g and an h in it."  I am guessing it was Mayleigh, but as a primary teacher I told him we are not spelling it with silent letters.  

For our second daughter, we had a list of three girl names we liked and were in the process of trying to pick just one.  One night, Kevin had gone to bed while I stayed up searching baby names.  I decided to check out Hawaiian girl names because after we had already named Maylee, we learned her name is Hawaiian (spelled differently though). I thought that maybe there is another Hawaiian name we would like.  I liked Malia ("Mah-lee-uh") and Talia and suggested them to Kevin earlier, but he said "No."  So as I'm reading down the list of Hawaiian names, I find Kalia.  I wrote it on a piece of paper along with the other three girl names and put it in the iPad case.  The next morning, Kevin was flying to Boise for a p.e. conference and I knew he would get take the iPad.

Later that day, he sent me a text saying he liked Kalia the most.  I was shocked and assumed he would say no to that name.  So the next job was trying to figure out if we should spell it the Hawaiian way or a different way so people are more likely to say it correctly.  At the hospital we had both ways written on the board until we made our decision.  We thought people might say "Kuh-lie-uh" or "Kal-ee-uh" if we went with the Kalia spelling.  Thus, we spelled the Leah part the more common way.

Her middle name is Alise.  Kevin suggested Annalise (which I thought was too many syllables paired with Kaleah) and my great-grandmother's name was Alice so we decided on Alise.