Brinkley is 9 months old!

Ms. Brinks, you are 9 months old! Only 3 more months to the big number 1! You still seem like such a little baby even though you change each minute. This has been a crazy busy month with a lot of advancements. 

-Weight:16# (you are slowing WAY down, similar to your sister) 

- You are a pro at crawling and managing to get ANYWHERE you want to be. You are also pulling yourself up, walking along furniture, and climbing into and out of things. (It will only be so long before you take a dive out of your high hair like Hadley)

- You get compared to Hadley A LOT! sorry, just part of being a little sister. 

- You are starting to wave

- You are starting to mimick sounds, some by your sister, but the most obvious is the dog barking 

- You are not fond of dogs unless someone is holding you high away from them 

- You took your first long road trip to Wisconsin for the Struska side Thanksgiving

- You met a ton of your cousins, which you didn't particularly like. (You are a but stuck-up but you also aren't used to so many new faces, in your face)

- You've gone to the church nursery 3 times and have been kicked out 3 times, we are still working on that one

- You manage to eat anything and everything you can get your hands on. If you weren't so active you would for sure be a chunky monkey. 

- You stayed the night away from mom and dad for the first time with Uncle Caleb and Aunt Stacia. ( mom had to work and dad was in WI.)

- You are loving interacting with your sister more and more (she may not reciprocate those feelings)

 

Terrible Two's Hadley

                       2 Years Old

Ms. Hadley, you are two! And while nothing really has changed with your attitude yet, I'm sure it will. You are such a sweet, active, independent little girl! You bring laughter and exhaustion to every day. 

You run and jump and climb on EVERYTHING you possibly can. You give hugs and kisses to everyone in the house and say, "wuv you" with the cutest little voice. 

You are almost completely potty trained which is fantastic but we have a little work to do. You went on your first family vacation to Disney World and absolutely LOVED it. You loved the beach and the waves and all the fun characters. We weren't sure how you would do but you did great and gave them all hugs and got your picture taken with several. 

You are loving living with Grandma and Pa  and having the extra attention and playmates, it

is fantastic and you can't get enough. You bawl your eyes out when we have to run errands and Grandma doesn't go with us.   

Brinkley's 8 months

                 8 months

Ms. Brinks, you are 8 months old. 2/3 of the way to the big ONE! This has been such a busy month with tons of changes and new experiences. But don't worry, I'm not going to announce that you are going to be a big sister like we did with Hadley at 8 months! You get to be the baby for quite awhile longer! 

What you've been up to...

-weight:15# 14oz

-Height: 25.5"

- Crawling everywhere like a pro, so the house is starting to be baby proofed. 

- Sleeping about 12 hours at night! (Which is fantastic)

- still eating about every 3-4 hours during the day and eating anything you can get your hands on... Even your toes. 

- pulling your self up and walking rapid furniture and trying to catch up to your sister. 

-still sporting 2 little bottom teeth that are adorable when you smile, which you do a lot if you are getting your way (aka in moms arms)

-you like your paci at bedtime

- you still hate your car seat which should be interesting on our 18 hour car ride coming up.

- you got to go on your first vacation to the beach and Disney World

- you got to celebrate your sisters 2nd birthday. 

How she feels about being being 8 months old. 

- you celebrated your first Halloween and went trick treating as a cute little zebra. 

We love you baby girl and can't wait to celebrate more Holidays coming up and see how you've changed. 

7 Month Old Brinkley

Brinks you are 7 months old today! I'm not sure today is the best time to write about you... We are on a short road trip and you are NOT being a good travel buddy! :) I love my kids to death but there is definitely a reason God made them so cute! We've had a fun filled month with a lot of changes as usual. A few Brinkley facts:

-Weight 15.2#

-Height 25.5in

-Clothes- 3-6months, 6-9months and a few 6-12 month things (although most of those are too big, but I put you in them anyway to match your sister. Sizes vary so much by brand. 

- you officially have 2 bottom teeth. That are adorable as long as your fingers steer clear. 

-sleeping about 10 hours a night. We moved you into your own room which has helped a lot with waking up during the night. If you can't see mom you usually go back to sleep quick on your own, if mom is near by its a different story. 

- you are able to sit by yourself and even go from hands and knees to a sitting position (as of this week)

- you LOVE food!!! Anything and everything you can get your hands on. 

-you are pretty much crawling... You don't quite have the hand knee coordination down but you manage and you are all over the place. 

-you love your big sister and want to hang with her. 

-you got to visit fiends in Houston this month. Daddy flew us down and Grandma flew us home but I managed to get you, your sister, 2 car seats, 4 suitcases/bags, and a stroller all to and from the rental alone. What an adventure. You were an angel during both flights. 

-you got to "run" your first 5k

-we found out you are going to have another little boy cousin. 

It's been a busy month with lots of adventures. Mommy has been off of work for about a month and you and mommy have LOVED every minute of it! You are definitely a momma's girl!!! We love you sweet girl and can't wait to see what this next month holds. 

Brinkster Minkster is 6 months old.

Little Miss Brinkley you have reached the half year mark! I know I say this every time, but I can't believe how fast it's gone and how quickly you are growing. You've definitely added some spunk to this family. You are one of the most smiley babies I've seen and one of the pickiest! When you are happy you are all smiles, but if you aren't getting your way, you are a fuss bucket. You know what you want and that's usually all that works. 

-weight 14.75#

- wearing basically 3-6 month and 6 month clothes. 

-you are sleeping through the night from about 9pm-6am eating and then going back to sleep until 9am. It's fabulous! 

-your favorite thing is to be held and bounced and walked all at the same time and preferably by mom. 

-mom is your person of choice, ALWAYS. 

-you pooped out your first tooth this month in the bottom right. 

-you've mastered the roll and scoot to get to things you want but have only managed to get up on all fours not actually crawl yet. 

-when you are happy you are constantly babbling. 

-you started eating food this month and you couldn't be happier, you absolutely LOVE anything with flavor in your mouth! 

-you do like your paci for night time, but that's about it.

-you've learned to sit up, for short periods  

-you've learned to tolerate your carseat....sometimes. 

- you love your big sister. Especially when she sneaks you food. 

- you got to make your first move... Into Grandma and Grandpa's house while we wait for our house to sell and find a new one up in Denver. 

 

We love you more and more each day sweet girl and can't wait to watch you grow and change more! You are definitely loving your new found independence. 

Struggles

The Bible can be difficult to understand at times and even seems to contradict itself if you don't read closely and while I am not able to completely understand every aspect I do try my best. 

A few weeks ago I was praying for something simple. I don't even remember the exact thing just that it was minor. When this thing didn't go my way I started to question God and my relationship. I thought about several times my "small" requests had not been answered and wondered if I was even saved. Now that might seem silly, well actually yes it was VERY silly, but yet that thought still went through my head. I went back to when I was saved and started questioning everything. I even prayed to be saved again. After my moment or two of self pity and "not getting my way with every prayer request" I started to think of the big things in life I have prayed for: a husband,  children, lots of thing concerning my kids like their safety and well being, safety on many trips and the list goes on. As I thought of these things I was reminded how each of them had been answered. I pray 'almost' nightly for my girls and that they will wake up in the morning and be okay. And up until now, they have! That's a LOT of answered prayers. I began to feel silly for questioning God and instead have tired to remember to thank Him for all the blessings and answered prayers in my life. Although I still struggle daily. 

Moving to another city has definitely brought up more fears and requests and after a minor (well, minor to me. My husband may disagree) meltdown yesterday I decide to give it all over to Jesus. (Which I should have done from the start....will I ever learn??) I prayed and prayed and did my best to just hand the burden over..... Always easier said than done. But once I did, I truly felt relieved. Now I didn't get everything I wanted answered today but I did get a few hints at things that may be headed in the right direction. God knew I needed a little pick me up.... More than the free ice cream I was given at Culvers last night. (Chocolate ice cream with peaches..... Does that seen odd to anyone else???) Anyway, lesson learned (and probably bit for the last time) Trust God. His choices, His timing and His ice cream toppings??? Thanks for reading my ramblings!!! 

A sweet baby face to make ready my blog worth it. 

My waist keeps shrinking!!!!

Since I started Plexus I have lost many inches and even more pounds! This is the easiest most successful way to drop weight without all the work. This is a lazy man's dream come true! Here is the breakdown on my inches lost...

Measurements

April 22, 2013

Arm 13.5

Bust 41.5

Waist 38.5

Hips 44

Thigh 25

August 19, 2013

Arm 12

Bust 38.5

Waist 31

Hips 40.5

Thigh 23

I am down 22lbs and only 8lbs away for my first major goal of 150. 

Not only has Plexus helped my health immensely it has also helped my wallet. I do not pay for any of my products and I earn money weekly and monthly. Any questions welcomed abilovesplexus@gmail.com

abistruska.myplexusproducts.com

Brinkley is 5 months old!

Little miss Brinks, you are 5 months old. Time just won't slow down! You are such a smiley, stubborn, know what you want little girl. As long as we do things how you like you are as sweet as pie! Your favorite thing is to be held, while we are bouncing you, patting your butt, and walking....all at the same time. This definitely makes getting things done around the house a challenge. Unless we get lucky and can catch both girls taking a nap at the same time. 

Month number 5 was a busy month with lots of new adventures. You went on your first camping trip and did wonderful. You also got to go to the condo for the first time. (Last year at the condo we had just found out about you and shared the awesome news with the family) 

5 month stats:

- Weight 14#

- You are sleeping ALL NIGHT LONG! From 9-6 (usually) 

- You still just eat breastmilk with the occasional taste of what is on mom's fork. 

-You are starting to really enjoy playing with toys. 

- You roll and scoot all over the place. I'm sure you will be crawling in no time. 

-You love watching your big sister run around and be crazy and you enjoy watching the dog play as well. 

- You love the water (just like Hadley) in the bath tub, the pool, or the hot tub!

- You were able to play with your cousins at the condo. 

- The pediatrician said you are teething, but no teeth have popped through yet. 

- You found your tongue and are always sticking it out playing with it. 

You are such a sweet girl with your own personality! We Love you like crazy and look forward to month number 6!!!