Story of my life..

Right now with 2 young kids life has some major challenges and major rewards, I feel like I'm on a roller coaster everyday. You never know when there will be an up, down or a big loop. 

One of my challenges we are going through right now is NOT sleeping. My 2.5 year old has always been a HORRIBLE sleeper, she didn't start sleeping through the night until around 18 months and it hasn't really stuck with her. Some weeks she does great and will sleep with no problem but other weeks she's up 2-5 times a night! She's also in a toddler bed and can open hers and our bedroom door so she wakes up and comes barging into our room, so the whole just let her cry it out in her crib doesn't work anymore. 

Then my 6 month old isn't sleeping through the night either. He is such a major eater that he wakes up nurses  (completely empties out my milk) and goes right back to bed no problem. He wakes up 2-3 times a night, it wouldn't be so bad if his sister would sleep but she's not doing so well with sleeping so mama is up ALL night... Lucky me. 

We are currently living in the basement of my parents house and there is only 2 bedrooms down here, so KJ is in our room still.. Ahh.. So when Kaili'a wakes up and comes barging into our room she wakes him up.. Often. So thinking about sleeping training KJ to just cry it out a little bit to see if he will go back to bed is just not an option because if he crys he wakes up Kaili'a, then if Kaili'a crys (say if daddy tried putting her to bed and she wants mama so she throws a Major fit until I go in there) she wakes up KJ. It's just a horrible cycle right now. 

I would love hear what you've done to help your toddlers sleep and your baby's sleep. I'm ready to sleep though the night again :-) I haven't done that since mid way through my pregnancy with Kaili'a.. Once she started sleeping I was pregnant with KJ so was up from pregnancy dis comfort... 

We started a bedtime routine that really seemed to help for awhile. We start it about 20-30 mins before bed. All four of us go into Kailias room, we clean it, then she picks out two books for us to read, we say our prayers and then she gets one song. That routine turned out to be golden until recently and it still gets her to go to bed really well but the girl won't stay asleep. When she wakes up she usually is asking for water or juice or she just wants to be tucked back in. 9 out of 10 times its that easy but it still requires for me to get up out of bed and wakes me up. Then there's those times where it's a huge major fit to get her to go back to bed. 

My dad says that I should get use to it because there's not much I can do and I really hope that's not true lol. Luckily I am a SAHM so if I'm tired or slow starting its fine but no one wants a tired mommy because normally for me anyways when I'm tired I'm moody. 

Thank goodness for all of the up parts of the roller coaster days to make the downs not seem so bad. Kaili'a is talking so much it's so much fun to listen to her, she knows her primary colors and her normal shapes that she just amazes me. She's extremely independent and that helps when I am busy with her little brother. KJ is on the verge of sitting up by himself, he's a champ when it comes to eating and he's one of the happiest most chill babies I've ever seen. 

We have so much fun throughout the day that it can help me not focus on the not sleeping issue at night so much. Life can be super crazy and super busy but I wouldnt change it for anything. I love being a mom which I never thought I would. It's the most rewarding thing I have ever done, I have been able to witness sacrifices for others so much that it's humbled me.. Extremely.. Putting someone else's needs before my own helps me be able to practice delayed gratification daily :-) it's also made mine and my own mothers relationship much stronger! 

I feel like 50% of my day is spent changing diaper :-) 

First time in the saucer 

Good thing sisters only 10lbs heavier than brother because she wanted a turn too. 

Funny faces 

Thank you for reading, 

The Cancillas XOXO 

These two are my everything. 

Happy Valentine's Day :D

Just a quick post, I know I haven't been on lately I've been a busy mom and just haven't been on. I apologize. 

We had a great Valentine's Day as a family today. We woke up had a great day, got our Valentiens presents then got some family photos done. KJ is changing so much that it's about time for a new photo anyways :D (we will use any excuse to get family photos done). 

Normally Kaili'a is fighting me to get dressed, to let me do her hair and to smile while we are taking the pictures. Today she was so good, she let me curl her hair, put a clip in it and she even smiled and gave some attitude (cute attitude) in the pictures. 

So excited to share them with you. Hope u had a great Valentine's Day! 

To say Joseph didn't pack anything, we forgot KJs Valentine's Day outfit and I had to go shopping in my Mother-In-Laws closet for a shirt, the pics turned out pretty cute, if info say so myself. 

Hubby made us an amazing dinner, delicious steak and fish with asparagus and a baked potato. Then finished off strong with New York style cheese cake! It was just a really good day all around. 

Love, 

The Cancillas xoxo 

Mommy moos like a cow.

This post is all about the milk. 

With my first baby I nursed her for a full year and let me tell u, it wasn't the easiest thing. It takes a lot of commitment to go that long. Most the time u can't be away from your baby for too long, so you are always on a time crunch. I love nursing and have been extremely blessed with babies that also love to nurse. 

Last baby I was crazy because she was my first and I didn't really want anyone else to feed her so I didn't really give pumping a shot. I would try every now and then but when I couldn't get very much out I just gave up. This time around is a little different. 

I want daddy to be able to feed KJ, I want for the hubby and I to go out on a date and not worry if we have been gone for longer than a feeding. It's hard to pump though, especially when my milk has regulated to KJs needs. I don't produce any more milk than I need to, so how do I pump? I've figured out something that is working really well for me and I wanted to share in case it can help anyone else. 

Normally, KJ nurses on both sides every time he eats except at night time. He only nurses on one side which gave me an idea. When I nurse KJ at 10pm to go to bed he nurses on the left side (my left side produces the most milk, about 3oz) and he goes down. He sleeps until about 2:20-3am then wakes up to eat so I nurse him on the left side AGAIN. He falls back asleep and by that time my right side is completely full so I pump about 2oz put it in a bag in the fridge. You can add milk together as long as it's within the same 24 hours so I usually can pump 2 nights and have it be within the same 24 hours and have a full bag (about 5 oz) in 2 days. 

I'm not looking to pump like crazy because I don't need to, I'm a stay at home mom. BUT I do want to go to the gym, I want to go to the grocery store.. ALONE, I want to go out on a date with my hubby without feeling like I'm on a time crunch. I hate to be rushed. So I pump once every night and so when I need it, it's there and I'm not trying to pump right before I leave. KJ spits up A LOT so there are times I nurse him, leave he spits it all up and is hungry before I get home. So this stock pile is a peace of mind and allows me freedom and others to bond with him at the same time. 

I've calmed down a ton this time around and it's made life so much easier. So if you are a first time mom and are a bit mama bear like, it's okay, it gets better lol and if you are a veteran mom you know what I mean. 

Nursing isn't for everyone, don't let the opinions of others ever get you down. You are the parent and whatever you feel is best for u and your baby is your business so keep up the great work! 

Thanks for reading, 

The Cancillas 

Grateful.

OMG we had a great weekend! Halloween was soo much fun, Kaili'a had such a good time going to houses around the neighborhood trick-or-treating. It's funny because when we were asking her if she wanted to go trick-or-treating she kept telling us no. When this girl says no it's a very "sassy" no, but when we started getting her ready she started to get excited. It was a lot of fun, KJ again slept in his stroller the entire time so we only had one child up at the door and at least 3 adults with her every time it was pretty funny. All in all we had a blast! 

I was so grateful that Saturday was between Halloween and KJs blessing because after Halloween I needed a recovery day lol 

Sunday was amazing, we were able to have KJ blessed and Joseph was able to do the blessing. We had such an amazing support group with all the men in the circle, you could feel how strong the spirit was. 

We had a get together afterwards (which my mother made sure to tell everyone that Joseph and I weren't really wanting to do but that she talked us into doing it lol)  It was a lot of fun to have both sides of the families all in one place. It was nice to chat a little bit with everyone and really have them there with us. I am thankful we listened to my mom and decided to have the get together, my mom pretty much did ALL of the work and we just wanted to put a shout out to her for what an amazing woman she is. She has done so much for us and we can't express enough how much we appreciate her and my dad. Thank you! 

This whole day light savings thing is messing with my well being lol I feel like it's soo much later or the day seems to be longer, i dunno, I just know it's tripping me out lol 

Today has been a pretty good day, FINALLY vacuumed my room then my child decides to eat her goldfish very enthusiastically. I swear this girl gets into every little thing. I wish I had taken a picture because before nap time I walked into the living room and she's gotten ALL of her toys out and had spread them across the entire floor, she didn't have any pants on, her hair was only about 40% still in the pointy tail and there she sat all innocent looking on the couch watching her show (she's obsessed with Micky Mouse Clubhouse). It was just classic lol 

My mom and I went to a few places while daddy stayed home with Kaili'a. We went to this freaking amazing bake shop out in Layton called "The sweet tooth fairy" goodness, if u go there get their seasonal cupcakes (pumpkin pie and apple pie) you will die over how delicious they are! 

Getting ready to go to two work out classes tonight because of our "sweet" lunch we had lol have a great week! 

Thanks for reading, 

The Cancillas! 

This is life.. and I like it.

So this week has been interesting to say the least. I wanted to say something before I start my post, sometimes Facebook can be deceiving because most people only post when life is good and fun. It isn't very common for people to post pictures or even just post anything when life is tough. I mean who wants to openly admit to the entire virtual world that they had a rough day or are struggling with something? 

I just wanted to openly admit to the entire virtual world that I struggle everyday, everyday is not perfect and most days right now I don't even get out of my PJs until my oldest child goes down for her nap (at 2:30pm) and I deal with a very messy 2 year old and a new baby that spits up absolutely EVERYTHING he eats and it mostly ends up all over me. 

Some times I wonder why I even shower when less than an hour of showering my baby spits up all down my shirt lol my two year old is a Tasmanian devil and destroys every room in the house within seconds of going in it that I wonder why I bother cleaning lol 

Life is hard in general and when u add little kids to the mix, oh boy, life gets messy and interesting. 

But what would life be without all of the struggles? If we didn't have struggles we would never grow, and we would never know just how good the good parts of life really are. So thank The Lord for throwing curve balls at us to help us grow and appreciate the good times :-) 

I just wanted to share that with you all because I don't want anyone that only sees my life online to think that my family doesn't struggle or go through hard times. 

So on to the post... 

Some of the things that went on this week, I am really working on sleep training KJ in small batches at night and it's really working. Kaili'a didn't sleep through the night until she was 18 months (said with rolling my eyes) so this time around I want to do it differently. KJ has been sleeping 4 hour periods at night time, and I can't believe the difference it's had on my energy and mood with getting 4 hours of sleep at a time instead of two. 

We cleaned Kailias room lol I know that doesn't sound to interesting but it was a miracle that we even got it done. We are transitioning her room from a 1 year olds to a 2 year old so we went through all of her toys and seen what toys were too little for her and that KJ can play with soon and what toys that were ruined and could be thrown away. She was really good about the whole process and didn't seemed to be bugged by getting rid of the toys she wasn't playing with. I should've taken a picture of before we cleaned her toy box and after because we got rid of about 80% of things. I moved all of her dolls to the top of her closet which made a HUGE difference. 

Right now she is so into coloring and books that she's happy as long as I don't get rid of crayons or books lol. I have been just blown away at her maturity level these past couple of months, such a huge difference between a 1 year old and a 2 year old. 

Saturday night last week the hubby and I got to go out on a date! We got a gift card for our birthdays and one was to the movie theatre so we thought it was about time to cash it in. We had such a fun time  going out ALONE and being about to enjoy each other's company as a couple and as not parents lol we are going to dinner some time this next week and we are so looking forward to being able to take our time eating and savoring the favors lol I swear some days we don't even taste our food because we are trying to keep up with the kiddos. 

Yesterday was an eventful day, Kaili'a was such a good girl and so was KJ but they both had a few moments that just made it that much better. First, KJ had his first blow out diaper which wasn't really fun but it was eventful trying to clean him and myself up without making a bigger mess. Second, Kaili'a woke up from her nap with a bundle of energy and was just running all over the living room yelling. She had had no sugar or really anything since waking up from her nap and she was a crazy person lol I just sat there and watched her for over 15 mins that I was tired by the time she was done lol. Third, my grandma (GG) verna was over and wanted to change Kjs bum because she never had before so she lays him down to change him and was taking awhile to change him that it made me nervous because anyone that has changed a little boys bum knows that you have to go fast or you could get peed in the face, as soon as I worried about it KJ pees ALL OVER GG and my grandma just stood there in shock (guess it's been awhile lol) and you would've thought she spilled a whole glass of water on her. I didn't know he could pee that much. And last but not least we went to trunk or treat for the first time. Kaili'a was so excited and absolutely loved it! KJ slept the entire time so he enjoyed himself also. 

Today was a pretty good day. KJ had a tummy ache and it was just so sad, he's not a crying baby so when he did today I knew he wasn't feeling very well, so I just cuddle and loved on him most the day and he started feeling better by the evening. 

Kaili'a was a sweetheart today, we painted her pumpkin. Well, I only helped because she wanted someone to paint with her but she did 90% of the painting and she was in heaven. I expected her to have paint everywhere but she didn't, she was such a big girl, I was sooo proud of her! 

All was going well until I walked into the family room and seen that Kaili'a had colored all over the wall!! Luckily it was crayon and daddy came to the rescue with wipes and they both scrubbed until it came off.. Surprise mom and dad... 

Just another day in the life of a parent, right? :-) Looking forward for upcoming events this weekend, Halloween and Kjs blessing! Watch for pictures :-) 

Thanks for reading, 

Family time

This last week we had so much fun with all the different family members. My sister came down and hung out with us we were able to see her two little kids and they were able to play with Kaili'a which she absolutely loved. 

Uncle bubba and Kaili'a 

Aunt Jessica and KJ 

Kaili'a and Brooklyn 

We went to go see Joseph's Family out in Orem and that was a whole lot of fun. We had a little barbecue with his sister and her husband and her little girl and that was just really pleasant to be able to just spend some quality time with their family. 

Auntie Neah, Mailia, Daddy and KJ 

It was a really good weekend to go up to Orem because there was one of Joseph's cousins that came home from an LDS mission and gave a talk in church and on one of his cousins just recently had a baby and blessed his baby the same time that the other one was giving a talk in church, so it was really nice because we got to see all of Joseph side of the family. 

We haven't been up to Orem in like the past 2 1/2 months just because in August there was so much going on with us getting ready for KJ to be born and then we had a baby shower and we had Kaili'as birthday party early because we wanted her to be able to have one last opportunity to be an only child and just kind of celebrate just her. Then KJ was born. So is really nice to go up there and see Joseph's family plus some of his extended family that came in to go to church with us last week. 

Nana and KJ 

Malia, Nana, Auntie Neah, Kaili'a 

Daddy, Kaili'a 

Family is so important to Joseph and I that we really try to do our best to show and say how much everyone means to us. We appreciate all of the help they give us and supporting us through our trials and success. 

Don't know what we would do with our families! Xoxo 

Thanks for reading, 

The Cancillas