The month of September has been pretty busy for us! The girls and I went to ND for a week and had a wonderful time. It seemed to go by so fast even though we really didn't have a lot planned. Maddie loved playing with her cousins and it was fun for my family to meet Amelia!

Dalen and Maddie are best of pals!
We tried to get some pictures of my parents with the grandkids. Five kids under the age of four pretty much equals pure craziness!

Both of the girls traveled so well and it was nice to have the help of my mom both ways.


This week, Bob is on vacation so we are in Rochester, MN. His brother Tom is also her from OR and we are hanging out with his family.

We all went to the Roberta Flack concert so Sharon came over to watcht the girls. This was the first time I left Mia with a babysitter and I think it went well! She brought all kinds of activities for Maddie to do and I knew they were in good hands! We all had a great time at the show!

Mia is six weeks old now and finally got to meet Grandma Phyllis! It was so fun to see the smile on her face! She just lit up when she was holding Mia and loved every minute that we were there!

Phyllis is 88 and Amelia is her ninth grandchild. She is so sweet and loves it when her family comes to visit!

Grandma's girls!!

Life has been pretty busy with two little girls, but I wouldn't have it any other way!

Last Sunday, my mom flew in so she could travel back to ND with me and the girls. It was so nice the have the extra help and company to make the trip go by faster. We have been enjoying our time in Minot this week. It seems like we are always so busy when I come home and we haven't really done much. So far we have seen a little of the family and have done a little shopping but I find myself just enjoying time at home. We have a pretty busy weekend with my grandparents 60th wedding anniversary party. I'm looking forward to the rest of the family getting a chance to meet Amelia and Maddie playing with some of her cousins!

I haven't taken any pictures this week so I will post a few from last week. This picture is of Mia at four weeks, even though she is actually five weeks today. She has really started to fill out and put on the weight! I think that she has gotten a lot bigger this week and will be curious how much she weighs at her two month appointment?

Miss Amelia is....

- in size 1-2 diapers

- wears 3 month clothes

- still getting up twice a night to eat

- likes to use her mama as a pacifier so we had to find another kind that would work

- starting to stare at us and make eye contact

- loves to be held and cuddled

- a very sweet baby and we all adore her!

My sister Michelle came up to visit for a night and we always have a great time! She lives a few hours away so it isn't that big of a deal to make the trip. We got exciting news that she is expecting in April so we are so happy for them! She is at the stage where she doesn't feel the best and has a lot of questions. I try to help her out anyway I can and hope that she has a great pregnancy!


Maddie loves being home and playing with her cousin Dalen! They play so well together and I only wish we were closer? Tomorrow we are getting pictures made of the five grandkids together so that should be fun but a little hectic. I can't wait to see how they turn out?

The past three weeks...

The past three weeks has been the fastest three weeks of my life! I don't know exactly what I have done except trying to learn a routine with an active 3 year old and a newborn. I have been so blessed to have some extra help along the way. My mom was here for about 2 weeks and both of Bob's sisters have been up to help. I actually have only had one full day where I was on my own so we are still working on a schedule. I'm sure I will figure it out soon! Amelia's first sponge bath at home and she loved getting her hair washed!
Madelyn loves being a big sister!

Papa and his girls....

It was great that my dad came over for the weekend after she was born. Maddie adores her Papa so much and it will be fun to see the relationship develop with him and Amelia.

Sweet Sisters!!!

At Amelia's two week appointment she weighed 8 lbs. 4 oz.

She hadn't met her birth weight yet and was in the 47 % of her weight class. She's a little smaller then Maddie was but so far has been a content baby. Many nights I have to wake her up to feed her so I haven't been a sleep deprived Mama!

When I had Maddie three years ago, we had a little get together with some of the girls I worked with. Now, only one gal still works at Menards and there are an additional three little girls to add to the group! It was so much fun to get together again but a little crazy! The girls had fun playing together and it's always a blast when the "big girls" get together too!

It was fabulous to have my Mom here for almost two weeks! Even though she said that she didn't do much...she was a huge help! It was great just to have the extra set of hands and she helped around the house. I don't know what I would do if I didn't have my Mom? She is a wonderful example of what a mother should be and I hope to be as good as her with my girls!

Grammy and her girls!!!

Bob's sister Jan and her daughter Danielle came up to meet little Amelia last weekend! Danielle lives in Maine and was excited to meet her second girl cousin! She is so good to the girls and we only wish we could see her more often! It was a quick trip for them, but we had a great time together!

I can't believe that my girl is three weeks old today! She is starting to fill out a little more and is a great baby! I count my blessings every day that I get to be a Mom to two very special little girls! They are both precious miracles who's Mommy and Daddy are very proud of!

Amelia Faith 8/5/10

Little Amelia is sleeping and I finally have a few minutes to update my blog. Life has been pretty busy at the Hogue house since our sweet 2nd daughter arrived. Last Wednesday, I was supposed to go to the hospital to be induced but they we too full to take another patient. I was a little disappointed and hoped for good news the next day. Since we already had a place lined up for Maddie to stay, Bob and I decided to have a date night! We went down to Canal Park for dinner and walked the lake walk in hopes to start labor on my own...no luck! I was really excited when I got a phone call around 7:30 a.m. that the hospital was ready for us! We arrived at the hospital around 8:45 and they started Pitocin right away. I knew it was going to be a long day so we walked the halls for about a half an hour. I had a wonderful nurse that suggested that I get my epidural early so I had a very comfortable labor. I progressed pretty fast and was excited that we were going to have a baby soon! My sister Michelle left work when we told her things were rolling and she made it to the hospital in the afternoon. She was really excited to be in the room with us and even more elated when Bob let her cut the cord. At 6:37 p.m. and only a few pushes later, Amelia Faith was welcomed into the world! It was love at first sight!


She was a healthy girl weighing 8.58 lbs and 21" long.

Miss Amelia wasn't to crazy about her first bath, but I love this picture of her!

On Saturday we were ready to go home and have everyone in one place. We were so happy to have CeCe to take care of Maddie while I was at the hospital and have Matt and Michelle there with us to celebrate!

And then there were four.....

It is so exciting to have two beautiful daughters and we are so thankful that they are healthy and well! Maddie is adjusting to having a sister in the house, but has her moments when she wants our attention. She likes to help and hold her and I hope as they grow up that they will be the best of friends. Mia is a pretty content baby and I have been getting good sleep at night. She wakes up about two times a night which isn't too bad. It's hard to believe that my baby is already a week old! Time goes by so fast and I just want to embrace every moment that I have with my girls. They are both little miracles that I thank God for every day!

Big Day....

I'm officially on maternity leave and can't believe that we will meet our baby girl this week. The game plan is that I will call the birthing center this afternoon and make sure that they aren't busy. I will go in for this p-gel stuff that they used when I was pregnant with Maddie and it put me into labor. The Dr. thinks if it worked once, it should work again. If nothing happens, they will induce me on Thursday morning and get things rolling. Michelle is coming up tonight to be with us during the delivery and we have a good friend keeping Maddie overnight until tomorrow afternoon. Bob's sister, CeCe will be here Thursday and will stay with us through the weekend. There is so much to look forward to and we are anxious to bring her home and be a family of four!
39 weeks


Madelyn was a pretty good size baby so it will be interesting to see how big this baby is? I'm glad that they are inducing me a little early in hopes that she wont be a huge baby. It's been pretty hot around here and I'm ready to not be pregnant anymore. Even though I have had a pretty easy pregnancy and I love to feel the baby move in my tummy, I'm ready. I love being a Mom more than anything and feel so blessed that I will have two amazing children in our life. God has really blessed me more that I deserve and I don't want to ever take it for granted! My prayer is for a smooth delivery and healthy little girl! Our lives will be forever changed in a day or two when she arrives....can't wait!!

Busy, Busy, Busy!!!

Life has been pretty crazy as we are trying to get everything done before the baby comes. Last week Bob was on vacation so my Dad came over for a few days to help with the projects. It was so great to have him here and they got a lot accomplished! They finished all of the trim work that needed to be done to Bob's work room so it could be a spare bedroom. It was a big job and a great feeling to get it done. Bob stained the wood and painted the room so it would be ready for carpet.

Matt and Michelle came up for the weekend and we put them to work right away! Bob and Matt finished putting up the moulding on Friday night so we could start moving furniture Saturday morning down to the new room. Michelle and I starting priming the room that Maddie was moving to and Matt and Shell finished painting for us. Matt also helped Bob trim out the garage and it was a full day! I don't know what I would have done not having their help? They did so much and I'm starting to get things organized now.

Bob spent Sunday putting furniture together for Maddie's room so she could sleep in her big girl bed! She did so well and stayed in her room all night! She wasn't sure if that's where she wanted to be, but loves her pretty pink room now!All snuggled up in her new bed!

I will try to get before and after pictures posted as soon as I can. We are still in the process of decorating the rooms, but they are good enough if we had to use them now.

37 weeks

38 weeks

I'm really ready to have this little lady! I go to the Dr. on Thursday and she will check her on call schedule for the next week and maybe induce me. I have enjoyed being pregnant but have had more pains with this one. She is a mover just like Maddie was and I'm having a harder time moving around with this big belly!

Tonight I got a lot of Maddie's things moved to her new room and packed up some of her 3T clothes. I have washed a few things for baby and put them into her room. Bob has to get the crib together and we should be good to go. It's crazy to think that we will have another daughter in a week or two. We are truly blessed to have another miracle in our house and now we just anxiously wait to meet her!

35 and 36 week pictures!

I can't believe that our precious little girl will be here in less then a month! The time has gone so fast and we are excited to hold her in our arms. I'm starting to get more uncomfortable and sleeping can sometime be an issue. I wake up several times a night...I guess my body is getting ready for those late night feedings when she is born! 35 weeks
36 weeks!

I also have had more Braxton Hicks contractions with this pregnancy then I did with Maddie. Maybe she will want to come earlier then planned? I wouldn't mind as long as we get most of our work done around the house. Luckily my Dad is coming this weekend to help and Matt and Michelle will come the following weekend. Bob is also on vacation and we have a lot of painting to do and Maddie's furniture to put together. I'm sure it will all work out but I like to have everything ready and I feel a little unorganized. August 10th is just around the corner!!