So proud to be his mommy

So, it is officially September 1. Camden will be 1 year old in 2 weeks. Where on EARTH has the time gone? I vividly remember the night before and day he was born. Such a long process but completely worth it in the end. How amazing it was to bring a life into this world. So, a little about Camden.....

He has his momma's attitude.

He looks like his daddy.

He absolutely LOVES baseball.

He would literally play outside all day long.

He started walking early (for a boy) 2 days before he was 10 months!

He always has a mohawk.

He says so many words now "momma, dada, bye-bye, hi, nana, no sir, bruiser, ball, go, stop, no no, diaper, bath and dog" (can you tell we get onto him a lot by his choice of words he picked up on? lol)

He calls every dog either "dog dog" or "bruiser". Bruiser is his Granny's chihuahua!

He loves grilled cheese, chicken nuggets, and basically any kind of cut up fruit.

He loves to make a mess and watch momma and dada clean it up.

He has a ball at his Nana's house that he is obsessed with and that's the first thing he looks for and says when we get to her house every morning.

He is practically running now and it's so funny to watch.

He is a giggle box and laughs just to try and make you laugh.

He still fake coughs for attention and then he laughs at you when you look at him.

He loves to look at books, magazines and disperse the mail all throughout the house.

He loves to play "basketball" with a ball and mommy's laundry basket.

He is obsessed with the tv remote. I find it everywhere....in the bowls in the cabinets, in his booster seat, in my laundry basket when i'm folding laundry, in the bathroom. We go on a treasure hunt any time we want to watch TV.

He is such a 'texture' person like his mommy when it comes to food. He will not eat spaghetti...i guess he doesn't like the way it feels in his hands.

Camden brings such joy to our lives. It's hard to imagine how we ever made it through life without that little monster. We don't know what to do with ourselves when he stays overnight somewhere....it just gets too quiet around the house and we spend all of our time missing the little man. It's hard to comprehend the love that you feel for your child- that someone 2ft tall and a little over 20lbs can completely steal your heart and forever change your life.

We are really looking forward to his birthday party. We are doing a baseball theme, of course. I have just about everything bought except for food and the stuff to fill the goody bags. The menu for the party consists of hot dogs, chips and of course your ball park favorites, peanuts and cracker jacks, along with baseball cupcakes and ice cream. Everyone is dressing up in their favorite baseball team ensemble! We are going to have such a fun time at the park celebrating our little mans very first birthday- I just hope it isn't too hot!

"Every wise woman buildeth her house: but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands" Prov. 14:1

The mother's of our church all received a booklet for mother's day entitled "A Safe Haven. Construction Materials for the Christian Home" by Francie Taylor and just the introduction made me stop and think by simply asking me two simple questions:

1. Would you consider yourself to be a wise "homebuilder"?

2. Have you ever considered making a concentrated effort to slow down life in your home?

BAM. What a slap in the face. I'm not sure if I am a "wise homebuilder" and "what? slow down....who has time to slow down"?????? WHEN do I have time to slow down.

Then I realized I did make a point to SLOW DOWN about a month ago.

I do have the time...I was just filling it up with something else!

I used to be SO obsessed with keeping my house spotless. Every night it was the same routine: get off work, go pick up Camden in Lindale, drive home to Chandler, start preparing dinner, start more laundry/finish laundry, vacuum the floors, mop the floors, eat dinner, bath Camden, feed Camden, put Camden to bed, sweep and mop again (dinner somehow always found it's way to the floor) finish up the remaining laundry, shower and then it was bed time.

REPEAT.

Then I realized...where in the world in all of that time did I spend time with my family? That's when it hit me. THIS is OUR time together. I was so stuck in "this needs to be done, the floors need to be mopped, the kitchen counter is dirty, the laundry isn't finished" that I didn't stop to look at the BIG picture. My little boy is literally growing up in front of my eyes and I'm wasting my time doing mundane tasks that don't mean anything the next day because I simply just start all over as if it had never been done. I didn't sit down and relax with my husband because I was always too busy doing everything else that the only time I slowed down was when it was bed time and we were sleeping. Life is about those precious moments spent with the ones you love the most and I was missing out and I hated that.

So guess what. I still have a clean house....but I don't mop and vacuum EVERY SINGLE DAY. We still have clean laundry but I don't do it everyday, the kitchen is clean but I don't always put up my dishes right away, sometimes I let Camden stay up a little later than usual (if he's having a good day) just so we can spend those extra moments with him.

That time is now well spent on filling our house with laughter as we play on the floor with Camden, dozing off on the couch and watching "our shows" with my precious husband, and my new found favorite, sitting on the floor folding laundry with Camden simply to watch him unfold it right behind me...I can't help but laugh at him because he just giggles and thinks he's the funniest thing ever.

This tiny little book has definitely caught my attention and I am so thankful for the sweet little gift from our church. Question #2 = continuous work in progress. I still haven't quite answered the first question yet, but i'll be working on that with the help of this "gift" from God :)

There's a 'nake in the wake!

A couple weekends ago Tony and I kept my niece and nephew overnight along with our son Camden. Let me just tell you.....it was interesting. Rylan is 3, Cason is 11 months and Camden is 7 months. AM I CRAZY? Maybe a little...but we had fun!

Rylan sometimes has a "listening problem" and I'm not quite sure if she is ignoring you on purpose or if sometimes she just goes off into la la land. I'm really starting to think it's the latter because she has such an imagination that I think it just runs wild sometimes!

Cason is so laid back it's unbelievable. He just sort of sits there and minds his own business, plays well by himself and is generally a happy baby considering all he has been through in such a short lifetime- acid reflux, severe eczema flair ups, countless ear infections and a not so fun hospital stay...it really is amazing that he is SO happy all the time.

Then there's Camden. Our busy body, into everything, babbling, stubborn, active little boy. He's a happy little boy but that little attitude of his can turn on a dime- I try and say he gets it from his daddy but I know that's just not true haha. I told my sister before she left that her children would be the easy ones ;)

So we ate dinner. The boys ate in shifts (only one booster chair!) but they didn't seem to mind. We had toys strung all over the house, countless easter eggs were scattered in the living room, it looked like a tornado had hit, but they were enjoying themselves. Rylan was so excited about going down to the "wake" to catch the fish with her red cup! The "wake" (Lake) is actually our pond. I told her she probably wouldn't catch very many fish with her little red cup and told her she needed a fishing pole. That's when I was volunteered to buy her a "pishin' pole so she can catch the pish for Poppy". I told her to ask her daddy ;) (you're welcome, Daniel!) Uncle Tony spotted a baby snake in the pond (eeeeeek!) so we then had to really keep an eye on the kids and how close they were to the water and the surrounding area. Rylan then proceeded to talk about the " 'nake in the wake. " all evening. She makes me laugh....when you say it out loud it sounds like you're speaking a different language.

Saturday consisted of morning cartoons, playing outside, Rylan and Uncle Tony washing my car, me and the boys playing with a ball in the grass and laughing, laughing, laughing. We had such a great time. All the kids left around noon (including Camden) to head to my sisters for ANOTHER slumber party.

Yes, it was her turn to enjoy the luxury of 3 children. Tony and I were headed to Arlington with our friend Brynne and my parents to go to a ball game and watch the TIGERS play the Rangers (we...as in detroit, won!)

All in all it was a GREAT weekend. Personally, I can't see myself having 3 children that close in age. I'm not sure how people do it! Pretty sure I wanna stick with the magic number 2 ;)

Family

The love I feel for my little family is indescribable. I always knew I was a family person but never really knew how much "FAMILY" meant to me until I actually had one of my own. I get that "wow" factor every time I think of those two perfect men in my life.

I say "perfect" because Tony is PERFECT for ME. I believe God chose him especially for me, to be my partner, my one true love, to counteract my personality and mold us together as one. I can't get over the love that I feel for that man.....

Love is always being able to love that person, no matter their flaws.

Love is knowing that no matter how bad a day I'm having, HE is there for me when I get home.

Love is having patience in dealing with difficulty and trials that come our way.

Love is that sweet feeling and peace I get when I'm with him.

Love is being able to sit in silence and have the best conversation ever.

Love is worth the waiting for.

Love is US.

I say "perfect" about Camden because he is TRULY perfect in every possible way. I love him more than I could have ever thought possible. HE is me and Tony wrapped up in one. God couldn't have blessed us with a more amazing little boy and I make sure and thank him each and every night for that special gift.

I love the sound of him and his daddy playing.

I love that sweet "belly laughs" he gives as his daddy is tickling him.

I love the little babbling he does has he is playing with his toys, the doors, or the cabinets.

I love that he cries "ma-ma" when he is sad.

I love that no matter how bad of a day I'm having, one smile and it all washes away.

I love that when I pick him up from my Aunts, he lets out this excited laugh and crawls to me.

I love our bed time routine where he falls asleep on me each night.

I love laying on the floor and becoming a personal jungle gym.

I love that when he gets excited he starts kicking his legs and flapping his arms.

I know he has to grow up but I wish it could stay like this forever. It makes me so sad that one chapter is already coming to a close....the "toothless smile" chapter. My baby is now about to be sporting two pearly white bottom teeth. It is bittersweet and makes me cherish each and every moment with him, be it BIG or small.

He was dedicated to the Lord this past Sunday and it was such a humbling experience for us as parents. It is up to US to guide him in the right direction. It is up to US to provide the lessons he needs to know about God and life. It is up to US to be Christ-like examples so that one day our son will come to know God when he is ready. I continuously pray that God shows our little family the way. That he continuously teaches Tony and I how to be that great example that Camden deserves. I pray that our little boy grows up in a loving, compassionate, devout Christian home. He deserves nothing less than that and I am prepared to dive head first into this next chapter of our sweet little life.

SURPRISE!!!!!!

OK, as most of you know, Tony and I have a sweet baby boy named Camden. Most of you may not realize that I didn't quite know I was pregnant until I was about 6 months along. I know you're thinking i'm crazy and saying "how in the world did you NOT know!?" Well...i'll tell you.
You see, i've never been, ahem, "regular". EVER. I was always skipping months here and there from when I first blossomed into a young lady ;) . I hardly ever had 12 periods a year...it was mostly about 6 or so. If you're a guy and you're reading this, I know you're thinking "TMI, Kim!" but it's true and it helps me stress the point that I had no idea that I was pregnant, OK!? And no, I never went to "THE" dr. I was terrified of THAT Dr and didn't really want them alllll up in my business so I just basically cast the whole situation aside (I know, not smart...but hey!) Anyways! In 2007 I had my last cycle in December and did not have another one until July of 2008 and was regular and had my last one again in December of 2008. I figured, hey this is just my "cycle" and I rolled with it. I wasn't complaining....I LOVED not having one haha!

Well, at the very end of MAY I noticed I had gained a little weight. And by little, probably 5lbs but on someone of my stature it looks like 15! I assumed I was gaining weight because I have an office job and I basically sit on my tooshy all day and I was eating out a lot. So, I quit eating fast food and started eating "healthy" and the pounds just wouldn't go away. Then I was laying in bed one night sometime during the first part of June and I felt a quiver in my belly and I thought "HMMMMM! THAT WAS DEFINITELY *NOT* RIGHT". So I told Tony, we took a test and Hellooooooooo baby Camden (of course, we didn't know HE was a "he" just yet!).

Yup. I'm not going to lie....I was scared TO DEATH to tell my parents. But then I was like...you know what, I'm 23...I'm not a 16 year old kid still in high school-I'm an adult, I have a career....What do I have to be so scared of? I know they'll disapprove at first but they'll come around. It was RIGHT. IT WAS PERFECT. IT WAS A BLESSING. A blessing to me because with having a "wacky" period for so long I figured my ovaries were fried and I would never be able to have children. An abortion was never ever ever ever EVER an option for me. I could never do that...I, personally, don't have the audacity to shoot down God's plan for ME. And I in no way am shooting down anyone that has ever had an abortion because of certain health circumstances, rape...etc because I know that's a tough call to make. Just had to make that clear before I get some UGLY responses from people :) That was just never in my "playbook".

Anyways, after the shock of the situation, my parents became excited after we decided that we were going to get married and raise this child right. Once again, I'm not saying go out and get married JUST because a child is involved. We had already discussed the thought of marriage long before we knew about little Camden. We knew that was the path we were going to take, eventually. "Our" plan didn't quite work out how we thought it was going to .... but once again, guess who's did. Yup, that's right, God's plan. It all comes down to His timing once again.


It's amazing to watch that plan grow and to have an idea as to what I think is going to happen verses what DOES happen. No, I didn't expect to be married at 23 and have a baby. Do I regret it? ABSOLUTELY NOT! I love every single minute of waking up next to the most amazing man I know and seeing a sweet smile on my baby boys face every morning when I go to get him out of his bed. I could never regret him. To regret something that God created especially just for US would be the most selfish thing I could ever possibly do.

We basically had about 3 months to plan a wedding, prepare for baby, meet my rediculous $5000 insurance deductible. But we did it. With God's grace and mercy, we did it! It was a tad bit stressful those 3 months trying to get everything on track. Obviously my Dr wasn't very happy with me and basically gave me the spill about how I should see "THE" Dr 2 times a year and should have been since I was 18...his nurse freaked and wanted me to get started on prenatal vitamins right away (which I rarely took...) I don't understand prenatal vitamins. Why in the world do we have to take them now but like 50 years ago those weren't available to everyone and people weren't really MADE to take them. Their children turned out just fine. I think it's just another ploy from the Dr's to get you to spend more money...but that's a whole other issue I prefer not to get in to.

Camden Easton Gullo made his debut on September 15, 2009 at 7:49 PM weighing in at 7lbs 1 oz and 18 1/2 inches long. I had to endure a C-section (pelvis was too narrow for a vaginal birth and Camden could never drop), I was mostly out of it until they showed me his sweet face and I immediately perked up and was staring at the most beautiful being I have ever seen in my life. Of course after that, I was in and out of consciousness and definitely "feeling good".



Our lives have forever been changed because of our sweet little surprise. The best gift I could have ever received :)

Planting the seed :)

OK....So this is my first attempt at blogging so go easy on me. First of all, I would like to start out by saying that God has blessed me tremendously over the last couple of years and I wouldn't be where I am today without His direction.

A little background about me....I was in a 'not-so-great' relationship...an almost 5 year long relationship to be exact. I'll admit the first couple of years were great, we had some good times and shared some great memories. The last couple....not so much. It was hard....really hard because that relationship was all I knew and after awhile I lost myself in that relationship. I let him define me, who I was and what I stood for. IT WAS CRAZY! I always told myself I would never let a boyfriend come between me, my family or friends and it happened and I am not proud of it. I was lost....completely LOST.

Well....during the time of that past relationship I had left my job as curriculum director of a private school to move on to a durable medical equipment company for hospice. Let me just tell you, this job was very intimidating at first....so many different pieces of equipment to learn, the lingo, the nurses (some I "thought" were evil...haha) weren't very patient with me at first. Ohh it was pretty awful there for a bit. I literally BAWLED my last day at my other job because I REALLY did not want to leave, I loved that job, MY KIDDOS, and all the people I worked with. Little did I know, that my new job would lead me to the most handsome, caring, "perfect" man of my dreams who later became my husband ;)

So on my first day there, I noticed this cute guy loading up a trailer for the pool company next door. We made eye contact and that was that...or so I thought. It wasn't until a month or two later when our power went out in all of the warehouses on our strip on 155 that I was face to face with "HIM"....Tony. I was in the office alone, simply drinking a red bull and out of nowhere comes a knock on the door and there he was...."THE BOY NEXT DOOR". Well, we talked for a bit...he asked me out on a date but I, of course, turned him down because I was "involved" at the time. Yes...silly me that was involved in a not so happy relationship. Yup, I'm THAT girl but not THAT girl that would cheat on someone either. I call this God planting the seed of His plan for ME.

Well after the office incident, we waved, talked here and there but nothing special. I then noticed that we actually took the same route home every day...me heading to Lindale and him heading to Quitman. I hadn't really thought any more about him "that way" until one day at the Valero gas station in Lindale. I pulled in and I heard this loud blue Chevy pull in right beside me. Then a lady hops out to get the gas. I was busy pumping my gas and didn't realize that she had walked over to talk to me. She said "Hi! I work next door to you at the pool company. The guys didn't think that I would come over here and talk to you so I decided to prove them wrong. They think you are very pretty".....this lady turned out to be Tony's MOM! I was so nervous and probably blushing at the time that all I could mutter was a simple "Thank you" as I discretely tried to figure out if HE was in the truck or not. I couldn't tell because of those DANG tinted windows haha! Well, that statement kind of made me feel special-silly I know but it was a confidence booster I definitely needed, I knew now that he was STILL interested...several months later. I was out having dinner with my friend Brynne and I just started babbling on about this guy from work and I just couldn't quite figure out WHY I couldn't get him out of my head. Brynne and I talked about it for a while and shed some light on my "situation" that I am forever grateful for. If it wasn't for HER support, I'm not sure where I would be at the moment and I THANK GOD for that friendship, that honest, wholesome friendship that I have with Brynne. She helped me reevaluate things that mattered in my life. Those things that USED to define me and I thought "what in the world am I doing with my life?". I call this God watering the seed of his plan.

Well, through the help of the dinosaur "myspace" network, we got each other's phone numbers. It was silly, but it worked for us (we were both pretty shy lol). Anyways, we texted back and forth literally ALL day on a Friday and actually talked on the phone that night....for several hours. We literally connected on a level I never knew was possible. Needless to say, I ended the "relationship" and dove head first into a new one. Some people may call this crazy and think I am the most horrible person on the planet for moving on that quickly. I call this God's timing and blossoming of His plan. His timing allowed me to reevaluate the things that I "thought" were important in my life and get my life back on track with the things that ARE important...which are Him, my family and my friends and I shouldn't let anyone EVER come between me and what's important.

I could not be happier with the many blessings he has showered upon me. I tend to think everything is up to ME instead of giving it all to God and letting things play out WHEN He wants them to.

Next to come.... Our little "SURPRISE" :)