Happy 3rd birthday Sophie!

In January 2006, Theo & I decided that we wanted to have another baby. So I had my IUD yanked out & we started trying to get pregnant in February. No luck that month, & we decided we should skip trying in March so the baby wouldn't be born at Christmas time. We planned to resume trying in April, but instead found out we were pregnant in April ~ oops! I had several pregnancy tests with faint lines on them, so we weren't for sure at first. I needed to stop taking my Effexor if I was pregnant (by the way DO NOT stop taking Effexor cold turkey!), so my dr drew a blood test that showed I was indeed pregnant! HOORAY! The kids were so excited to have a little sister or brother. We thought it would be cool to have a boy so that we could have 2 of each gender, but would be happy either way!

This pregnancy started out quickly to be the least fun! I was in my 30s now as opposed to my 20s like I was with my other pregnancies. I had extreme morning sickness & couldn't eat so I was very weak. I went to the dr for an ultrasound to make sure the pregnancy was right on track, she prescribed transdermal Phenergan, & took some blood to check my Progesterone levels. The Phenergan helped some so I was able to eat enough to get by on. My progesterone levels were low, so I had to do a suppository every day ~ this was very unpleasant but since it helped my stay pregnant it was definitely worth it.

Happily the 2nd trimester came along, so no more suppositories - HOORAY! My nausea did not go away completely, but it got a little better. The baby started moving & occasionally the kids could feel. A little after 20 weeks we had an ultrasound. Everything looked great & we found out we were having another girl!! We surprised the kids with gifts when they got home from school, Zoe & Kalli were excited, but Tad was a little disappointed it was not going to be a boy :(.
On to the 3rd trimester: still had some nausea, but it was bearable. Had lots of Braxton-Hicks contractions, especially at work. My friend SuAnn was opening her business Stork Vision, so I was super lucky to have a couple of ultrasounds done there to help in the training process. The whole family got to come in and watch!
Around 34 weeks I began feeling really worn down, turned out my blood pressure was getting high. We watched it for a week and it got worse, so I was put on bed rest ~PRAISE THE LORD! I was having a hard time at work so I was very happy to get to rest. As much bed rest as you can get with 3 other children & Christmas coming up! But I definitely felt better! My blood pressure did not get much better though, so Dr. H decided she needed to induce me at 38 weeks which was Friday, Dec 22. Dr. H really wanted to move it up a day, so when a space opened up, we changed it to Thursday, Dec 21. I was dilated to 3cm already, so it should be pretty easy & quick! The kids got the flu the week of the induction, so they had to miss some school & we were worried about them being able to see the baby.

The big day arrived ~ Thursday December 21. The kids stayed at Nana & Papa's house, Tad & Kalli were well so they went to school, Zoe was still running slight fever so she had to stay home. We got to the hospital around 4am so they could start my Penicillin since I am GBS+. They started my pitocin at 6am. My blood pressures were high on my back, so I had to stay on my side to get good readings. Things moved a little more slowly with this induction than with Kalli, but that is OK because the pain came on more slowly. Theo had relaxing music playing on his laptop to help me breathe. Dr. H broke my water after 8am & my contractions got a little more uncomfortable and since I was now 4cm I got my epidural. I thought I would deliver about the time I delivered Kalli which was 1015, but that time passed on by. This little girl was not going to make her entrance into this world until she was darn good and ready! A little before noon I started to feel pressure, so my nurse checked & I was complete, but Dr. H was doing another delivery. Being a L&D nurse I could hear the baby's heartbeat dropping. The nurse was in the room turning me, putting oxygen on, and checking me. She called for Dr. H to come in ASAP. Finally, after what seemed like ages, Dr. H arrived. The nurse lowered the bottom of the bed to put me in stirrups, but I guess miss Sophie was now darn good and ready to be born now, so she started coming out before Dr. H could hardly get her gloves on!

Sophia Noelle Nackos was born on December 21, 2006 at 12:06pm. She weighed 6#8oz. She had gorgeous dark blue eyes and a little brown hair. She was absolutely perfect! The kids got to come see her after a little bit, but poor Zoe had to wear a mask because she still had fever. At last our family was complete!

Now at age 3 & the baby of the family, Sophie runs the house. What she wants, she gets. We just can't resist that sweet smile, & crazy curls! She can be a lot to deal with at time, but it's definitely worth it! She has us all wrapped around her little finger!

Thanksgiving week 2009

The Saturday before Thanksgiving, we went to my Grandma Eaton's for lunch. We had a yummy food & a nice visit. Theo & the kids raked all the leaves into a giant pile for the kiddos to jump in ~ they had a blast!




The Tuesday before Thanksgiving, Tad & Kalli had parties at their school.
Tad had a breakfast feast in his class.



Kalli's class did a harvest play ~ it was so cute! Kalli was a pilgrim! After the play we had a yummy lunch.



On Thanksgiving, we had lunch at my Papa & Big Mama's house. The food was yummy, including Theo's green bean casserole & funeral pototoes, & lots of family came. We took our kids & my cousin's twins Valerie & Victoria for a hike in the pasture & took some fun pictures!

Halloween 2009

We had a great Halloween! First we went to the FBC fall festival where we played lots of fun games, bounced in the bounce house, & got lots of candy and goodies! Then the big kids (Zoe & Tad) had a Halloween party at the neighbors' house. Tad decided he wasn't happy with his costume though, so he ended up being a party pooper and missed out on all the fun :(! I took the little kids trick-or-treating around the neighborhood which was lots of fun and they got lots more candy!

Sophie the kitty cat

the kitty's tail

Kalli the poodle

Zoe the hippie

Tad the phantom

Kalli lost a tooth!

Kalli had been very upset because she was one of the last children in her class to lose a tooth. She had a couple of loose teeth, but they were taking a very long time to come out. Last month, she slipped in the shower, fell against Zoe's leg & drug her two front teeth down Zoe's leg before hitting the ground & VOILA! ~ lost her first tooth! Not quite the way she wanted to lose it, & luckily Zoe found her tooth on the shower floor so Kalli could put it under her pillow for the tooth fairy. A few weeks later she lost her second tooth, so now both of her top teeth are gone!

Kalli's birthday party

It's late I know!! At the end of August we had a small birthday party for Kalli. She wants to be big like her sister Zoe, so we let her choose what she wanted to do. She chose to go out to eat @ Applebee's and go to the movies.

We let her choose a few close friends to take. A couple of little girls in the neighborhood showed up! Lexi (4 years old) and her sweet grandpa, and Torry (3 years old). I must admit I was a little nervous to take a 3 & 4 year old, along with my 2 year old on this outing.

We had dinner at Applebee's before the movie. Kalli opened her presents here ~ she received Littlest Pet Shops and Barbie. The girls did get a little rowdy at times, but I was very impressed and relieved. They even ate pretty good.

Then we headed to the movies. We saw G-Force in 3-D, which the kids loved, but unfortunately put me to sleep! The kids were well behaved here also and only had to go to the bathroom once!

My famous kids!

Yesterday we took the kids to the Discovery Science Place since they were out of school. While we were there CBS 19 showed up to do a news story, and Zoe & Tad got filmed! You can see Zoe (in the pink shirt with the pink headband) playing @ the magnet table. Tad is blurry, walking in a green shirt & jeans! Every time Theo & I saw the news crew coming we ran away ~ it's not as much fun to be filmed when you are an adult!

My diagnosis

Last week, I was diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. It all started because I had excruciating right sided pain, & Dr. H did an ultrasound that showes that I have this crazy syndrome. What is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), you ask?

poly-: prefix meaning much or many
cystic: relating to, composed of, or containing cysts
ovarian: of or pertaining to the ovary.
syndrome: A set of signs and symptoms that tend to occur together and which reflect the presence of a particular disease or an increased chance of developing a particular disease.

Now it's clear as mud right! Maybe this will help

What is polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)?
Polycystic ovary syndrome (say "pah-lee-SIS-tik OH-vuh-ree SIN-drohm") is a problem in which a woman’s hormones are out of balance. It can cause problems with your periods and make it difficult to get pregnant. PCOS may also cause unwanted changes in the way you look. If it is not treated, over time it can lead to serious health problems, such as diabetes and heart disease.
Polycystic ovary syndrome (or PCOS) is common, affecting as many as 1 in 15 women. Often the symptoms begin in the teen years. Treatment can help control the symptoms and prevent long-term problems.

What are hormones, and what happens in PCOS?
Hormones are chemical messengers that trigger many different processes, including growth and energy production. Often, the job of one hormone is to signal the release of another hormone.
For reasons that are not well understood, in PCOS the hormones get out of balance. One hormone change triggers another, which changes another. This makes a vicious circle of out-of-balance hormones. For example:

• The sex hormones get out of balance. Normally, the ovaries make a tiny amount of male sex hormones (androgens). In PCOS, they start making slightly more androgens. This may cause you to stop ovulating, get acne, and grow extra facial and body hair.


• The body may have a problem using insulin, called insulin resistance. When the body doesn't use insulin well, blood sugar levels go up. Over time, this increases your chance of getting diabetes.

What are the symptoms?
Symptoms tend to be mild at first. You may have only a few symptoms or a lot of them. The most common symptoms are:

• Acne.


• Weight gain and trouble losing weight.


• Extra hair on the face and body. Often women get thicker and darker facial hair and more hair on the chest, belly, and back.


• Thinning hair on the scalp.


• Irregular periods. Often women with PCOS have fewer than nine periods a year. Some women have no periods. Others have very heavy bleeding.


• Fertility problems. Many women with PCOS have trouble getting pregnant (infertility).


• Depression.

Most women with PCOS grow many small cysts on their ovaries. That is why it is called polycystic ovary syndrome. The cysts are not harmful, but lead to hormone imbalances.

What causes PCOS?
The symptoms of PCOS are caused by changes in hormone levels. There may be one or more causes for the hormone level changes.
PCOS seems to run in families, so your chance of having it is higher if other women in your family have PCOS, irregular periods, or diabetes. PCOS can be passed down from either your mother's or father's side.

Hopefully that helps explain it better. Now I'll tell you how this syndrome is affecting me. I have many of the symptoms listed: weight gain, extra hair on my belly, thinning hair on the scalp, depression. Praise the Lord I didn't have the fertility problems!

They think I may have insulin resistance, so I am scheduled to see an endocrinologist in November. I'll keep you posted!

First day of school '09

Today was the first day of school! We go to Higgins Elementary & Main Street's 2 lanes expanded into 4, so the traffic was a little better. Sophie & I took the kids to school this morning and walked them to their classes. Sophie wanted to be like the big kids & insisted on carrying her lunch box (she starts back @ Mother's Day Out on Wednesday):

Zoe is in Mrs. Moore's 5th grade class
Tad is in Mrs. Booker's 4th grade class
Kalli is in Mrs. Chambless's 2nd grade class

The kids had a good day & really like their teachers! I think it's gonna be a great school year!

Happy 7th birthday Kalli!

In December 2001, we were on vacation in Utah, where I took a pregnancy test & found out we were going to have another baby! We were very excited to have an addition to the family & that we had waited a little longer between these babies!
I still had 2 kids in diapers, & I absolutely refused to have 3 kids in diapers! So we got Zoe potty-trained by her 3rd birthday in March!
I swear that the summer of 2002 was the hottest summer in history! Or maybe it was just that I was giantly pregnant & due on August 25?!? My sweet friends at work had a baby shower for me & since we knew we were having another girl we had lots of cute little pink clothes!
At 37 1/2 weeks I was dilated 2cm 50% & at 38 1/2 weeks I was still 2cm, hot, & miserable, I had never been pregnant this long before (having delivered in the past @ 37 1/2 & 38 weeks) so Dr. H was so sweet to let me be induced at 39 weeks ~ Hooray!
Monday, August 19, we arrived at the hospital bright and early at 4am (Zoe & Tad had spent the night with Nana & Papa) for my induction ~ we arrived early so I could make sure to get 2 doses of Penicillin before delivery since I was Group B Strep positive. At around 6am my pitocin was started & I was still 2cm 50% ~ I wonder how long Kalli would have waited to be born if I was not induced haha! I was already hurting pretty bad by 7am! I was 4cm & had my water broken at 8am & got my epidural ~ YEA! I was completely dilated by 10am! When Dr. H arrived, they put my legs in the stirrups, & her head started delivering before the Dr could even get her gloves on so my nurse SuAnn delivered the head!
Kallista "Kalli" Jane Nackos was born 8/19/02 @ 10:15am, weighed 6 lb 13 oz & was 20 inches long. Kallista is Greek & means "most beautiful", Jane is after my dad's mom Bettye Jayne. She was a very beautiful baby with a tiny bit of light brown hair & big blue eyes! Her big sister & brother liked her too (as much as a 2 & 3 year old can)!
Now at age 7, Kalli is absolutely beautiful, smart, bubbly girl who loves to help, talk, & be right in the middle of everything! She's very dramatic with a big smile & a big heart! I love my little Kalli-Balli!

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Thanks Little People Wealth!

Utah Vacation 2009

Saturday - We got up bright and early in the morning to get our journey started! This year we got new phones with GPS capability, so this trip was gonna be easy, breezy! We got kolaches & chocolate milk on our way, and everything was going well.......until less than an hour later Sophie threw up her chocolate milk all over herself, her carseat, & more! We stopped & cleaned everything up the best we could, but the smell still lingered! We just dealt with it & kept on going! We had several tummy aches throughout the day, but thankfully no more puke! Everyone was doing so well we didn't stop in our usual town in Kansas for the night, we went ahead to Colorado to a small town called Stratton, so small in fact this town had 1 fast food place - Dairy Treat! Luckily we had found that out early enough through our trusty GPS, so we stopped to get food in a different town! We stayed @ the Best Western & it turned out to be a nice place. They even had laundering facilities, so Theo could have Sophie's smelly clothes & car seat cover - Hooray!

Sunday - Up & at 'em, ready to get to Utah! The hotel had free continental breakfast, but we skipped it beacause of our little white lie we always have to tell at hotels that we only have 2 kids so we don't have to get 2 rooms! This day we drove through the breathtaking Colorado Rockies, then into Utah! After a total of 953 stops to go to the bathroom, we actually made it to our destination in good time ~ Grandpa & Grandma's house in Payson, UT! We had a little dinner party with some family when we arrived- Theo's sister Lisa & her 4 kids, other sister Alina & her 4 kids, Theo's brother Reno & wife Star (with baby Wren who we met for the 1st time today!), & Uncle Charlie! It was good to visit with everyone & we had yummy food! Theo's brother Matthew came a little later to show off his tan (he was so tan he looked like some other ethnicity!) I was so exhausted, I excused myself early to take a nap, so I really don't know what went on after that!

Monday - We went swimming at the Payson pool with many of our cousins! It was super fun even though the big slides & lazy river were closed. We were just deciding to leave when the lifeguards whistled for everyone to get out of the pool because there was a floater - yuk!

Tuesday - It was $2 Tuesday at the dinosaur museum in Thanksgiving Point, so we decided to take the kids & meet Alina kids there. Of course, every other family in the area decided to go there also, so it was a little crowded! We still had fun though ~ they had alot of cool exhibits & hands on things for the kids to do like the erosion table & digging for dinosaur bones. Then we saw a 3D movie about dinosaurs. Grandma & grandpa filled up their pool so the kiddos got to do a little swimming.

Wednesday - Miss Sophie had a little tummy virus today, so we just hung out at home.

Thursday - We packed up & headed to Goblin Valley State Park. We took cousins Alexis & Athena with us. I got to drive the van with the 5 girls (drama mama!) since everyone else had to drive the campers. They kids got to hike, explore, & climb on the rocks & trails, it was way cool! This was the kids favorite adventure of the vacation! That night the kids roasted marshmallows & hot dogs on the campfire. We took both the campers with us so we could camp overnight. The camping facilities were really nice with little gazebos with picnic tables & restrooms! Since I am not a very outdoorsy/camping kinda gal, I was a little uncomfortable without A/C, but I was very grateful for the restrooms & RV to sleep in!

Friday - This morning the kids did some climbing & exploring in the mountains around the campsite. They also decorated hats with Grandma. Then we headed over to the goblins for one last hike. After we left the park, we headed to Moab to visit Uncle Brian, Aunt Alina, & cousins. She has 4 boys which is great for Tad who has been stuck with all girls the whole time! They took us to a beach on the Colorado River not far from where they live. The kids did a little swimming, but the water was very cold. So they spent most of their time digging in the sand. Then one last night of sleeping in the hot camper (I am so spoiled to my A/C!).

Saturday - In the morning all the kids went to play at this really wonderful park down the road where they have great playgrounds & even musical instruments! That afternoon we headed back to grandpa & grandma's house.

Sunday - Church with Grandma & Grandpa, then a nice relaxing day at the house! The kids made box animals with Grandma.

Monday - We went to Salt Lake City to Uncle Reno (Aunt Star was out of town) & cousin Wren's house to visit with them and Uncle Milo, Aunt Mary, & cousin Stella (who we met for the 1st time!) We went to a little park around the corner to play & chat for a little bit before Milo & Mary had to go back home to Seattle. We spent the afternoon at Reno's watching movies, eating yummy grilled hamburgers, & spoiling baby Wren! That evening we headed back to Payson.

Tuesday - For lunch we met a friend of Theo's named Tara for lunch & had a nice visit. That night Theo & I had a date night at the movies where we saw The Proposal.

Wednesday - We had planned on another overnight camping trip, but ended up deciding on a day trip instead. Reno & Wren joined us for the fun. We went to Maple Bench up in Spanish Fork canyon. We had a great day - there was a lake where the kids waded in the water & we took a walk around it. We then had yummy sloppy-joes at the campsite & roasted marshmallows on the campfire. The potty amenities left a lot to be desired & when the outhouse door was open, the smell wafted over to our campsite -- so I am really glad that I have a nurse's bladder & had no problem not using the outhouse for the 5-6 hours we were there!

Thursday - We planned a surprise birthday party for Kalli's birthday - we took the kids, Alexis, & Athena to Jumpin' Jacks in Springville. The kids had a blast, & Sophie wanted to be as big as the big kids & go down the big slide all by herself! We then had cupcakes & a few presents back at the house. We spent to evening at Aunt Lisa's where we had yummy dinner & haircuts - Kalli & Zoe got cute cuts for school & Sophie, who didn't want to be left out of the fun, had her 1st haircut (just a trim).

Friday - Grandpa & grandma flooded the yard to water it, so the kids splashed & played in the water & even put some plastic down for a slip 'n slide! That night we started packing to leave the next morning.

Saturday - Began our first day of our journey back home. We were sad to leave! We had an uneventful drive (we gave Sophie some dramamine this time) until we were almost out of Colorado where we just barely missed a really bad storm! We stayed at the Best Western in Hays, KS.

Sunday - Slept in a little later this morning. We had to give Kalli the dramamine today, but didn't give Sophie any until it was too late, but luckily we made it outside of the van this time! We made it home to sleep in our own beds that night - hooray!