Kiddo update

It's too late to upload photos tonight, but I wanted to send out an update on the Kugel girls. I was just thinking about my two little peanuts and how much fun they are.

Auna is defiantly in the "twos", but woos me over with all the good moments we have together. She talks very well and I sometimes forget how old she really is. She is starting to crack me up from time to time with the little conversations we are having, but doesn't yet understand that when I laugh I am enjoying her company and will get a bit upset with me. Which in turn gives me the giggles (because she tells me "no laughing mommy") and makes a fun moment go south pretty quickly. But still worth it for the laugh :) Sometimes when we start laughing together at nothing at all we just can't stop. It makes up for all the times she is rolling on the ground screaming after being told "no" worth it. She is adjusting pretty well to Elin, but there is some jealousy there. Elin is becoming more responsive so it is easier to include her in things and makes Auna realize she is a little person too.

Elin is great. She is a wonderful baby. She smiles whenever you talk to her. She loves Auna and just follows her voice wherever it goes. It is cute to see her picking up on what is going on around her -very observant. And pretty cute to boot I may add. She has been a great sleeper and such a joy. We are so blessed to have these two in our lives. Summer should be pretty exciting. I will upload some pictures next time I go in the basement by the vault of photos. We are a bit behind the times when it comes to mobile uploads otherwise I would post more frequently. The good old flip phone is holding up just fine for now, so I don't expect to be "connected" anytime soon. Hope everyone is enjoying summer so far!

Oh wait - here are some photos from this computer - enjoy!

@ the waterpark!

PJ party with her cousins Eric & Kaitlin

hamper ride!

goofballs

1st time down the slide together

the Rosstedt kids - less than a week before Elin arrived

Elin - 5 days old (or around there)

Elin - 6 weeks

Auna and her best bud Aidan :)

BABY ELIN ARRIVES!

April 8th @ 12:32 am Elin (EEE-Lynn) Marie arrived. She weighed 8lbs 1oz and was 19 3/4 inches long.

We had a normal day on Thursday. Auna and I went to ECFE, played with the neighbor kids in the driveway, had lunch, took a nap and then ran out to do some shopping with dad that evening. I was putting Auna to bed a bit late (10:15) and felt some light cramping. Nothing much or so I thought. I came downstairs and told Alex I thought we should pick up the house a bit more because I had a feeling some changes were going on. I had a doctor's appointment the next morning and figured we would just see how it was progressing then. By 11:15 I had to stop talking during the contractions. This was a perfect time to fill out the birth plan for the hospital and pack a bag. Alex called my parents and told them we wanted to head to the hospital that night, so they jumped in the car and started over. It takes about 40 minutes for them to get here and I thought we had plenty of time. One of my college friends happens to live down the street (what a blessing) and she had offered to come over in the night and stay with Auna. I didn't think we would need her, but Al thought we should call her to come up. She said she would be here in 2 minutes and thank goodness she was. Al and I jumped in the car (ok - well I didn't jump) and off we went. The contractions were pretty bad, but I figured I had hours of labor ahead of me. We turned the first corner and my water broke. We stopped at the light and the time was 12:22 am. Al went as fast as he could and we made it to the hospital, which is about 3 miles from our house in no time. Al ran in and told the emergency worker that we were going to have a baby in the car and that my water broke. The worker was not concerned and came out with a wheel chair. I went to sit down and had to get up to right away to work through the contraction. After the worker saw me holding onto the wheelchair he said he knew he better get me upstairs. He brought along an emergency nurse in the elevator just to be safe. Normally you are supposed to call ahead and let them know you are coming and they send down a delivery nurse, but we didn't have time to make that call. They pushed me to the closest room, got me on the bed and before Al was even up from parking the car I was pushing. Three pushes and little Elin was born at 12:32 am. NEVER in my wildest dreams did I think it could happen so fast. I thought I was headed in for some pain relief and hours of labor. With Auna I only had back labor and was there for 36 hours, so this was all new. My parents arrived shortly after Elin was born and we all hung out for a bit and they got to meet the newest Kugel. It was great.

We have been home for a couple weeks now and are kind of settling in. Trying to get Elin fed and keep up with Auna is a challenge. They usually start crying at the same time and it seems like pure chaos. But I guess that's how it goes. For example, we went to the park yesterday and Elin was screaming for something to eat. I was getting ready to feed her and all of a sudden Auna starts screaming. A bug had bit her in the back of the neck. What are the chances? I was glad I was at the park alone since I had to let Elin scream a bit longer, but everyone survived and the rest of the trip went well.

Looking at baby pictures it appears young Elin resembles her mama more than Auna did. So maybe we will have a little Al and a little Jill. She is very alert and mostly a quiet baby, but when she wants to eat she can really make some noise. Auna is adjusting pretty well to "baby sister" as she calls her. She helps get diapers, holds the bottle, holds her and does her hair. I think as Elin becomes more interactive Auna will warm up even more. Today when Elin was crying, I was holding Auna and we were finishing a conversation we were having. We had just finished and Auna said, "Get the baby now mama". So, I think she understands that the baby needs time too.

We are so blessed to have two healthy and happy girls.

Big Sister

I know she looks excited, but really she will be later. Auna's new baby sister is due to arrive early April. We are sure she will love sharing mommy - haha. It should be a fun ride. Everything is going well so far with the pregnancy. Auna and I took a nasty ride down the stairs the same day we had the ultrasound, but the only thing that came from the fall is a still sore tailbone for me. Better me than the girls.

Auna update:

Auna is a very determined little lady. She is always busy getting into something and figuring things out that amaze me. She is talking a ton and starting to sing a bit as well. She still loves her babies and takes very good care of them. She "shhhes" them, feeds and burps them. Books, puzzles, cars, little people, play dough, coloring are just a few of the activities that keep us busy throughout the day. Alex built her a cardboard house in the basement that is pretty amazing. She likes to go in and out of it and pop her head out of one of the many windows and say, "hi" like she hasn't seen you all day. Her and Addie are becoming quite the pair. She likes to help feed her, share her water with her (which can be messy at times), sit on her, pet and hug her, give her treats (this could include the remains of a meal or a plate to clean off), and ride her. Addie has found that as annoying as this kid can be, nine times out of ten hanging near by ends in some sort of snack. I think it is a win-win for the two. Addie even pulled her a bit in the sled the other weekend. I'm not sure she knew what she was doing, but it was pretty hilarious. The tantrums are few but when she throws one, watch out. Both Al and I are unsure how to handle this bundle of energy when it comes to that, but are working through it. I think I have some reading to do on the subject. But for my love of reading - haha - I may need to look for a video.

She is such a blessing and a wonder to watch her grow each day. Life will never be the same.

We wish you all the best in the new year and we will try to keep you posted - I know, I'm pretty funny right - an update every two months. Well hopefully I'll get one more in before #2 gets here.

Take care - the Kugels

Christmas

We spent Christmas morning at home and then headed over to my brother's house for the family get together. We had a great time and the kids had fun with their gifts (Alex included). There was a small nerf gun war with bullets flying and then some down time for ring spinning. Not a dull moment this year.

ring spinning - never gets old

Scott, Janet, Derek, Ashley, Gavin (7), Alex, Jill & Auna (20 months)

Viks game

My dad was able to score more tickets for us and off we went to the Vikings game outdoors against the Bears. It was a great time. They had a very nice tribute to the 50 top Vikings at half time AND we saw Bret Farve's last game. Thanks Dad!

Hollidazzle parade

The Kugels in Iowa waiting to see Santa

Keeping busy on a snowy day and grandma and papa's house

Gophers Game

We went to the last Gophers game of the season and it was a blast! Our good friends came up from Iowa and Red Wing for the weekend. We tailgated and then headed to the field. It was chilly, but we managed to keep warm :)

We bet Dan some $$ to only wear this mesh jersey for the 3rd quarter. It turned out to be pretty cold - but man was it funny!

Dan & Julie

Parker & Jill