playing catch-up

I have been very behind on my blogging lately! Why? I started graduate school & got a 2nd job.
Graduate school is really hard! I am taking Biometric Methods (statistics) & Nursing Theory.
My 2nd job, which is over for this semester, is adjunct clinical faculty @ UT-Tyler. This semester, I helped with a clinical group for Competencies, which is 1st semester nursing school students. We were on a neuro floor, so I was really out of my comfort zone of mother/baby nursing. I LOVED my students though, & got a refresher on some nursing skills that I haven't used since nursing school. We met every W ednesday. I still worked my regular full-time night job on mother/baby, so some Wednesdays I had to work 20 hour days! Next semester I get to help with Family Nursing, which is Labor & Delivery, NICU, post-partum, & pediatrics, so I should feel much more at home! & the schedule is a little more flexible with my work schedule (I hope!).

Now for some catch-up blogging....Kalli's birthday! Kalli turned 8 years old on August 19th. We had her party @ the Faulkner Sprayground. She had a blast & several of her friends came. Here's some pictures.....

the first Thanksgiving

Third graders shed light on first Thanksgiving

Smarty Pants!

5/26/10 - Zoe had her 5th grade award assembly.
The awards she received are:

• Highest GPA in Language Arts in her class
• Highest GPA in Math in her class
• Highest GPA in Science in her class
• Outstanding Academic Achievement

5/28/10 - Tad had his 4th grade award assembly.
The awards he received are:

• Academic Excellence - they give this award to the two students who have the highest overall GPA in their class
• "A-B" Honor Roll

Can't leave out Kalli's award she received:
Laffy Taffy Award ~ This student is very sweet and is always laughing.

Cowboys and Pirates...Oh My!

April 13, 2010 - Kalli was in the Higgins 2nd grade Texas musical. Her class danced to "Tideo".



May 20, 2010 - Tad was in the Higgins 4th grade production Pirates the Musical.

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!

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!