The Rollins Ruckus: October 2009

Saturday, October 31, 2009

Costume Cutie

Reid's First Halloween

(2008)

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Reid's Second Halloween

(2009)

It's always fun to look back at your house after several years to see what all has changed, and it's especially fun to look back at pictures of your old house if you move because it brings back all the special memories that were made in that house. Since it was all nice and clean (thanks to my Aunt Johnna), I decided to take a few pictures of our house so we would have them to look back on one day.

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Our Master Bedroom

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The Master Bathroom

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Small Hallway

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Breakfast Area

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Living Room

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The Nursery

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This dresser was made by the mayor of Ruston, Louisiana for me when I was born. We had it painted and decided to use it in Reid's nursery.

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My Office

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Jeb's "Man Room" - It's not decorated yet because he is still deciding how HE wants it decorated!

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I'll add pictures of the kitchen, playroom, and dining room soon!

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Baby Update

I haven't talked about the pregnancy in a while so here's a little baby update. We went to our second prenatal appoinment at Dr. Ryan's on October 6th. The baby's heart rate was 156, my blood pressure was 114/72, and I had either lost a pound or gained 4 pounds (I'm going with the gained 4 pounds, I think the nurse wrote my weight down wrong!). We discussed VBAC versus repeat c-section again, and I'm still leaning towards repeat c-section. The ultrasound to find out the sex of the baby is scheduled for November 2nd and we couldn't be happier. Everything is going great with the pregnancy, Reid is talking more and beginning to say more difficult words, I'm enjoying working part-time, and Jeb is in the midst of a major career change. Life for the Rollins is good! My belly is definitely starting to grow - much sooner than it did when I was pregnant with Reid! Most people couldn't tell I was pregnant with Reid until I was about 6 months along, and now at 4 months I feel like I've really got a belly, especially after I eat. The morning sickness is gone for the most part, although I did have a little nausea a few mornings this week and I did throw up one time. I'm not getting as car sick as I was and I'm a lot more hungry! I've had to really work hard with making healthy food choices because I've been craving junk food during this pregnancy. Salty dog snow cones, sour skittles, velveeta cheese dip, french fries, and chocolate malts have been my down fall. I've also been having these horrible caffeine cravings and had to take a few sips of a Coke or Dr. Pepper, which is not like me. I didn't drink a drop of caffeine when I was pregnant with Reid! As for baby names, what's currently going around is Rushton Jeb Rollins for a boy and call him Rush, and LilliAnn McKenzie Rollins for a girl. The ultrasound is just 6 days away so stay tuned to find out if we'll be shopping for pink or blue!

A Big Change

There is going to be a BIG CHANGE in our family!

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Jeb will no longer be a police office and will begin working for my dad's oil company in a few weeks. We're really excited about this change because Jeb will be home in the evenings and on weekends, but it's also a little sad because Jeb is an AMAZING officer and really enjoyed his job with the Shawnee Police Department. This was a really difficult decision, but we ultimately decided that this would be best for our family, especially since we will be having a new baby soon. These new hours will enable us to have a more "normal" family routine and get to spend more time together.

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Jeb, David Gonzales (one of Jeb's best friends from college that played football with him at ECU), and Aaron Laster - all three were hired at the same time; April 17, 2007

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Getting sworn in as a police officer

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Pinning Jeb on the day of his swearing in

Because of his ability to make friends with anyone, Jeb made a fantastic police officer. I always knew he would be great at this job, but I never knew just how good he was at it until I rode with him at work one evening. With every call we went on Jeb was able to diffuse the tension instead of causing the situation to escalate, and usually when he would leave the call he would have the people smiling or laughing.

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Me, acting like I'm talking on the radio in Jeb's cop car when I rode with him at work on our 2 year anniversary.

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Jeb in his bicycle patrol uniform

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Stand back or I'll spray! (and yes, Jeb did have to get pepper sprayed and tazered before becoming an officer)

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It was such a blessing that Jeb had the opportunity to work as a police officer. I feel like we both learned so much from his experiences and it really opened our eyes to parts of the world that we never knew existed. Being in law enforcement makes you realize the sacrifice that these officers make to keep the community safe. In this profession you hardly ever hear any positives or receive any praise for all the hard work. Most days are full of negativity, dealing with unimaginable situations with troubled and lost people, so I want to take this opportunity to say thank you to all the people working in law enforcement. Thank you for all your hard work and dedication in striving to make our communities safe and in trying to promote what is right and just. And to my wonderful husband Jeb, thank you for risking your life in order to serve and protect others. I really appreciate all you have done for our family. I'm so grateful for a husband with such a giving and uplifting spirit and love you more and more each day.

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"Everyone calls you amazing. I just call you mine."

Monday, October 26, 2009

A Letter to My Birthday Boy: 1 Year Old

I can't believe my little baby was 18 months old yesterday! It seems like yesterday we were speeding to the hospital to have a baby who was ready to see the world a little bit earlier than planned. His arrival into this world was very fitting as our life has been just that since his birth - choatic, not always as planned, exciting, memorable, and blessed! My mother has the amazing ability to know a person's character and personality as soon as she meets them and after a few days with Reid she "labeled" him as "high-maintenance with persistent personality" and "an angel straight from heaven." As it turns out, my mother was exactly right! Reid has enriched our lives and given me more joy in 18 months than I could have ever imagined. So to my precious little baby boy I want to say thank you for the following: -all the sleepless nights of bonding and cuddling close to you -saying mama as your first word -all your delicious little kisses -getting to hear you say moon and star in your sweet little voice every night -eating popsicles in the bath tub with me -laughing when I get your belly -for being "mama's baby" -for teaching me to go with the flow -giving me bites of your food when you're eating -entertaining us with your basketball shows -for bringing us so much joy and happiness .......... Things you LOVE: -balls of all kinds and sizes -basketball -baths -popsicles -Goldfish snacks -strawberry smoothies -blueberries -playing choo choo with mommy -Tec the Tractor show -Barney -Dr. Pepper (thanks to Papa) -our dog Jackson -singing and dancing -Laffy taffy and Starbursts -giving and throwing kisses -reading thr foreign language Baby Einstein book with Papa -reading One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish -outside! -ducks -your bottle and Goat's milk -going down the slide -scrambled eggs and sausage -chicken & dumplings -mommy and daddy's bed -brushing your teeth -brushing your own hair .......... Things you don't really like: -mommy or daddy brushing your hair -putting lotion on -yogurt -sitting still when we go out to eat -your crib -washing your hair -changing your diaper .......... Reid, It's been quite the adventure so far and I can't wait to make many more memories. I pray you'll always trust the Lord with all your heart and remember to go to him with all your questions and troubles. I love you more each and every day.

-- Kell, Posted from my iPhone

Monday, October 5, 2009

Biker Babe?

Last month, Jeb and I went to Fayetteville, Arkansas to the Bikers, Blues, and Bar-B-Que festival with a few of our friends for a little weekend get-a-way. We went with Chase and Stacey Yott, Shane Powell, Tracey Traylor, Chase and Lacey Powell, and Josh and Lacee Rollins. It was about a 3 hour drive to Fayetteville and the girls drove the cars and followed the guys on their motorcycles on the way down. Of course we had to make a few stops and take the long way on the way so it ended up taking us about 5 hours to get there. The scenery was absolutely gorgeous and we had perfect weather the entire trip. It was really cool to see all the thousands of motorcycles parked along Dickson Street near the college campus. There was great music, tons of motorcycle vendors, and yummy food! I rode on the back of Jeb's motorcycle while we went slow through town. I made him be very careful since I was 12 weeks pregnant and riding on the back of his green and white Heritage Softail Springer Harley Davidson! Definitely not something I would recommend. Luckily, the morning sickness was starting to get a little better.

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