The Update So Far...

I know it's been a while since I last posted but things have been a little bit crazy around here. Jo Jo is now loving the first grade and she seems to have made many new friends. This is a huge step for her because she is such a shy little bug and usually it takes her a while to open up. We were a little concerned because she has a hard time connecting with one adult and this year her class has 2 teachers but they have seemed to crack her little shell and love having the chance to get to know who she is. She had her parent teacher conference yesterday and they told me that she is doing really well. Her reading level is slightly above average and she is right on track with her grade level with everything else. Needless to say we are very proud of our little bean.
Gabbi had her parent teacher conference yesterday as well. Her teachers had nothing but good things to say about her so far which is a huge change from mid terms. there were some isssues with bullies and her being one as a result but with persistant calls and action from me we finally got that straightened out and she has been able to refocus herself. Her reading level is way above her grade level but that has always been that way for her since she first learned to read. We are so very proud of her for it. She is such a great roll model for her younger siblings as well.
Ryker just had his 4th birthday last week and he absolutely loved it! He got so many gifts he didn't know what to play with first. He finally settled on his nerf guns and all heck broke loose as he declaired war on all the people at his party. by the end of the night nerf darts were scattered from here to there and it took about 15 minutes for us to round them all up but it was so very worth it.
Katy is almost here. We are going into the doctor for non stress tests twice a week now to keep the progress up to date and keep checking her so that we can make sure that she isn't getting too big with this gestational diabetes. So far so good though. we are up to taking 1000 mg of metformin in the morning and 1000 mg at night but it is keeping the sugar levels where they need to be so i won't be needing the insulin shots yet. I am at 34 weeks now almost 35.
some days it seems like i have been pregnant forever. I went into a maverick today and the cashier said to me, " You're still pregnant??" lol that didn't help at all.
Other days it seems like i just found out we were having another little one coming into our blessed family. I am at the real uncomfortable stage of the pregnancy where she is out of room but not dropped enough to give my ribs or lungs any break so it hurts to walk, sit or breathe. I am trying to look at this in a possitive light but it completely freaks me out right now. I am emotionally ready for her to come but I feel i have so much more to do before she arrives. I need to find arrangements for my other kids when i go into labor, in case i go in before we are scheduled. I need to make arrangements for them to get to and from school if they are still in and to be watched while Ricky is working. I need to fix up her bassenette, wash up the sheets and clothes pack a bag for the two of us and get a list together of the contacts i will need to get a hold of when she arrives. I need to get my house in order and write up a letter to my husband explaining where things are and what the routine is while he is not here.
for these few reasons I am glad I have a little more time to prepare.
Ricky is working now and has been for about 2 months! YAY!!! it was getting scary there for a while. He is also going to school full time to become an accountant. With the schedule he works and his work schedule he is so exhausted by the weekends that he macromeshes into the couch by Sunday evening. He keeps reminding his self that in 4 years all this will have been worth it. we will have a more steady job to fall back on or even further it will just be a long 4 years.
well this is all for now but I will try to keep up on this better.

Today feels like a grumpy day for me. I feel like I have so much goin on around me right now and I can't stop to think for one minute. I figured if I give myself a time out for a few minutes and fill out this blog it may give me time to calm down and just enjoy the things I can right now.

Ricky and I have decided on a name for our little bun in the oven. Her name will be
Katherine Marie Kunkel. The nicknames just keep coming with it. Gabbi has decided that her name for her will be Katie. Kylee has decided she will call her little peanut and Ryker says he will call her "Kafrine" . It's so adorable. I have so many in mind I will just have to wait and see what it is that will stick at that moment.

Still no luck on the job front for us right now though. We keep praying and trying to remain possitive but things are getting a little more tight around here. we have to remember to just have faith and do what we are suppose to do and eventually things will go the way we need them.

this is another short entry for now but i am exhausted and tired. I will try to find the time and energy for this but it may be a few short spirts here and there for now and then eventually a really big one after that.

New School Year

Hello Everyone!
School started for the girls last monday and there were a few changes to go along with it. They said due to budget cuts and class sizes all students who have Mrs. Sinatra will be split into different classes in the afternoon. They said that if they kept things the same the teacher would have 32 students in her class but if they split it then the morning class would only have 24 kids and the afternoon class would have 36. It didn't make sense to me but what can i do? Gabbi loves her classes and both her teachers so much. she has looked at this as an opportunity to make twice the friends for her to play with durring school recess and lunch time.
Kylee has team teachers this year. for the morning she has Mrs. Gowers. She is an older lady and she is very good with the kids. Her afternoon class is taught by a new teacher, Mrs. Mecham. It is her first year teaching and she is very excited. Kylee was very nervous her first day of school because she didn't get a lot of her friends in there so she was nervous about making new ones because she is such a shy little girl. She quickly took to the new Ethan in her class and they are the best of friends now.
Ryker is doing school at home with me. I enjoy the time with him and it is so amazing to see how much he learns and how quickly he learns it.
i will write more about the baby but right now i have to go take care of some bed time routines. sorry this one was so short. next one will definately be longer.

Hello everyone. I know that my last post was last night and it was short. I was tired and it was late so i didn't get to write very much on that one. I hope to write more on this one today.



As you all know we are expecting baby number 4. She was a little unexpected gift to us this year but we are all getting use to the idea and becoming quite excited about this little bundle of joy. When we first found out everyone was taking bets on what the baby was going to be. I had more votes for boy than for girl but I had a feeling based upon symptoms and such that it was going to be another girl. lol To my husbands surprise I was right. lol

When the tech was scanning my belly a few weeks ago to check her progress and growth she was able to see right away that she was a girl no hiding that one. we aree also able to see her precious little profile as well. I will work on getting pics on here too soon as i figure it out. lol

Ricky quietly whispered "oh crap" when she said she's a girl! which made me giggle a little bit because I know he was hoping for a little boy for Ryker and himself to even out the household. but he has since then grown to love the idea of having another little girl to join our family.

When we picked up the kids from a dear friend of mine we got them into the car and the first thing they all said to me is "mommy what are we having???" I turned to buckle Ryker in his car seat and told them you guys are going to have a new baby sister! Right away the girls started yelping in excitement and taking dibs on who was going to make her more girly. My son instantly had this defeated look on his little face and moaned out "ohhhhhh! Why mom? Cant we make her a brother for me??" I almost felt a little sorry for the tike. lol but as i turned back in my seat Ricky looked him in the eye and told him "don't worry son. you and I will do a lot of camping and fishing together without the girls. and when they become teenagers we will move out. " then my son smiled and said YAY!!! It was so funny

Since that day the kids have made some pretty small but significant changes in their behavior. Gabbi is taking on a more serious roll of big sister. Helping out Ryker with potty training reminders and helping Kylee to master riding her big girl bike. She is also starting to read more stories to them at bed time.

Ryker has become more tidy with his room and has become even more compassionate when ever he hears a baby crying. He even runs over to his sisters or us if we get hurt and makes sure we are okay. He offers to kiss away boo boos and he tries to protect us now from monster spiders and bugs of all sorts.

Kylee has made the most significant change that we've noticed so far. She now plays with baby dolls. she is wearing skirts and likes her hair in particular ways now. She even carries a purse around sometimes and fills a small diaper bag for her babies. Now anyone who knows our little Joey knows that she is quite the little tom boy so the fact that she is requesting dolls and accessories is a big deal for her. she even requested that we get her some "girl shoes with heals" that about shocked us down. for the longest time we have been trying to get her to wear those church shoes with dresses but with no luck. she has always prefered to wear her bumble bee tennis shoes with her outfits.

The kids have been quite helpful with name suggestions too. so as a family we have decided we would all have a part in giving that name to her. Our final names are finally down to 3.
1. Paisley Marie
2. Brooklyn Marie
3. Katherine Marie

its hard to pick from those because we love them all!!!

School is starting soon again and I don't know who is more excited, the girls or the parents! Gabbi will be going into the 4th grade. I can't believe my little girl is growing up so fast! she is way excited though because this year for her teacher she is going to get her 2nd cousin, Mrs. Jenifer Sinatra. She is the most sought after teacher from all the students and we just happened to luck out. She is a little nervous about forgetting the curriculum she learned last year.
Kylee is going to be going into the 1st grade. Its going to be all day not half. I am struggling with that right now, but she is so very excited because she has a great pair of teachers, ms Larson and Ms. Gowers. they are the most kind and gentile teachers for that grade which is a giant relief because her kindergarten teacher was a tirant! She is also excited about being able to eat lunch at school like the big kids. Our little bean is growing up so fast.
Ryker will be doing preschool at home this year. We bought him a work book and I will be teaching him each day. he is pretty excited about it though. he loves his mommy time and he loves to learn.
Ricky is still looking for work. He was laid off from the union elevator trade for 7 months. it was hard. He looked everywhere for jobs and put in resume's all over and finally got a call back from the trade. He worked for a few months on a promise that he was to have a more steady job for at least a few years and then a few weeks ago they said they had to let him go again. so we are back to looking for jobs. We are being optomistic though. He just had an interview with a company yesterday and says it went well we should know by begining of next week what they decide.
this is all for now as my kids are getting restless and want to go food shopping.

hello to all!

I will try to keep this as updated as i can. I know i have said this before but i am just re-learning how this whole blog thing works and I am thinking I am going to really be loving this. It's going to be a whole lot easier for me to keep friends and family up to date on the whats what of my little family.

First and formost our little family will be expanding from 3 kids to 4. Our new little bundle of joy is going to be another little girl. that makes 3 girls to my one little son. poor guy is surrounded!!
She will be joining our little family in December. Her eviction date is set for December 19 but hopefully she comes out before then.

well this one is short and sweet but i will be posting more later. right now it's getting pretty late and we all have an early morning coming up.
good night everyone we love you all.