One Day at a Time

I can't believe I forgot May update.... maybe it's because nothing too exciting happened, or this year is going by way too fast. I'll just mush it all together in one post.

We played outside a lot We started tomatoes inside and the girls liked to watch them grow but soon we had to transplant them and then they died. Luckily we came across a sale of tomato starts and they were only 89 cents a plant. We bought 8 and I am happy to say they are doing great in our garden. In fact these last two months we got everything planted and so far everything is looking good (except my mint plant...it just looks sad). The girls love watching everything grow and the help us water and weed. We have corn, onions, carrots, peas, beans, squash, cucumbers, peppers, watermelon, and tomatoes. We ended up with a 80 square foot garden and I just love it.

We also got a trampoline. It works well for a large enclosed area to keep the girls while we are working outside. We really need a fence haha. They like to play in the water on it and chase each other. Kamille's favorite thing is to push Lillian down and then sit on her and bounce. Poor little girl.


This past weekend we got to attend the first reunion of the season. We drove to Lehi, Utah and stayed in a nice hotel with most of my mom's family. One day we got to go to boondocks and play on the Go Karts and bumper boats. Kamille LOVED playing with my cousins and couldn't get enough of everything. Lillian on the other had wanted mommy the whole day and she was too little to do anything but kiddie cove (a little kid play place). It was fun to see family and see how much my "little" cousin's have grown. On the drive home we got to see Devin's grandparents and spend some time with them.

The last adventure we have this month is a small camping trip with just Devin and I and our girls. We got a nice camp spot reserved at Lake Metigoshe. We can dust off the camper and put on our new generator and take her for spin. There is a nice playground close by and a swimming spot not too far. We are looking forward to s'mores and dutch oven cooking.



Family Updates: Kamille is so full of energy. She really talks a hundred miles a minute. Her birthday is in October and she has already decided she wants to do a wedding themed party. She told me the dress, the cake, who the prince is... Down to the last detail. Her next favorite topic is the "baby in mommy's tummy". She has officially named her -Sassy Pants and tells everyone we meet about her. She hugs my belly, kisses it and talks to it. She even tells me when the baby is happy or crying and also tried to convince her that she doesn't like tomatoes (Kamille HATES tomatoes). Since her induction date is Oct 3rd I told her that the baby will be able to be at her birthday. Kamille took this as we were giving her a baby for her birthday. So now she tells Lilly that she can't hold it or touch it because the baby is going to be hers. I don't know what to do with this girl sometimes.

teething is rough

she really likes milk

Lillian is almost 1.5 years old! It's getting to the time we get her in Nursery right? If only she couldn't scream for 3 hours straight if I'm not in the room, or break out in hives on her face from crying so much. Sometimes I walk next the nursery at church and she starts freaking out and pushes me through the hallway faster. She is a stinker. Her favorite thing to do is hit Kamille and then kiss her better or talk to daddy on the phone when he is at work. We sometimes call her the little "slave driver" because she demands my attention and is always telling me what to do. We love this determined little one and my heart melts every time she kisses me and tells me she loves. me.



Devin is working hard like always and loves working outside when he gets home. I always find him weeding the garden or using his new riding lawn mower. I got him a riding lawn mower a little while back but the previous owner left gas in it for a long time. So with the help of family and friends they cleaned it all out and got it running great. It used to take almost 2 days for us to push mow our lawn, now it takes him 45 min to get it done.



I am getting bigger and staying busy. I feel like I always have a to-do list. I'm 24 weeks today and the baby is doing awesome. I haven't had any complications and am coming up on my glucose test soon. I hope I pass this time around! They are really watching for high blood pressure and signs of preeclampisa this time around and I have a c-section scheduled for Oct 3 at 39 weeks. My doctor told me I most likely won't make it that far (other two were 36W 5D) but that's the plan. I just got the material for the baby blanket and I have to start going through the 10 totes of clothes in my garage. Time for sorting, washing, getting rid of a lot, and then organizing. Last time it took 3 days and it took up my whole living room and half my dining room, it's going to be fun!

We have a lot to look forward to this summer. It's going to be great!
God be with you,
Kaylynn Jackson

This month we really didn't do anything too exciting. Basically for the first half we just waited for winter to end. Then when it started warming up, we got outside. We cleaned up our yard and started to till our garden. We started some seeds inside and have planned everything we are going to plant. The girls LOVE playing in the dirt. Last night we came in to get ready for bed and found out that Kamille was trying to bury Lillian.  The poor girl's diaper was filled and she looked like a homeless child. When we moved into our house, the front had these two bushes that have overgrown by a lot. They cover the whole front of the house. We trimmed them down the last two years, but this year we are trying to pull them completely out and plant something smaller and more aesthetic.

With the overgrown bushes!!

Working in the garden

Our basement backed up a few months ago. We had a plumber and a septic guy come take a look and pump our septic. In a week it backed up again. Everyone we talked to said they would have to wait until the ground thawed and then we would have to pay a lot of money to have a new septic and drain field put in. They suggested having our septic pumped every week (that's way too expensive). At the time I couldn't figure out WHY this was happening, why couldn't someone just come fix it and we could move on with our life! We learned to live on very little water. I washed clothes at the neighbors until we could figure out a system that worked. We bathed in very little water (basically a sponge bath). Luckily we could use our toilets just enough that it wouldn't back up. We washed dishes in the dishwasher and had the hose empty into the bucket. Then we would carry the bucket outside and water our frozen bushes. It was sooooo much work. I now know the reason why though!

We learned A LOT! More than anyone could teach us. I'm a basically an expert on septic systems and care. I now know how to glue pipes together and how to install an effluent pump. I learned that cleaning chemicals and soaps kill the necessary enzymes and bacteria needed to eat away sludge. We had to buy commercial grade bacteria/enzymes to flush down our toilets. I learned that our dishwasher uses 9 gallons of water every time we use it. A normal bath for us is about 12 gallons and laundry uses a lot more water. These past 2 months we have dropped our water bill by $50 and after all our hard work and research we have a working septic. We are still cautious and watch our basement and outside drain like a hawk. I'm happy to say we haven't had any disgusting flooding for a month. :)

Now on to the better things in life: Kamille... she is growing so fast and is getting more sassy everyday. She is definitely a threenager! She loves bossing Lillian around and drags her everywhere. She doesn't like potatoes or broccoli but will eat pretty much everything else. Her favorite thing to do is help me make cookies. She eats the cookie dough like her father. She likes to watch me cook in the kitchen and helps me tidy up the house. Vacuuming is her favorite. She likes being a sunbeam in church and calls her teacher Grandma. She always comes home and tells me about Jesus. It makes my heart happy.

Lillian is a ball of energy that doesn't like bedtimes. She seems to stay up a few hours after Kamille and just runs non stop for HOURS! She like all food and I don't know if she has a favorite food yet. She loves to be outside and is friendly to everyone. Lillian is a flirt, every man she sees she smiles and says "hi" all sweetly. We have to keep an eye on her for sure. Everywhere we go she just wants to run! It makes everyone around smile to see me chase after her. They always tell me "You sure have your hands full" Then I like to see their faces when I tell them we have a third girl on the way.

Devin graduated this month!!! He has his Associates in General Studies and the best part is his company paid for him to finish. YAY! The oil fields are starting to pick up and there is a shortage of workers. This worked in our favor because Kinder Morgan decided to give ND employees a wage increase and a nice retention bonus! We have been blessed to find such a great company and area to be in!

I am now 16.5 weeks pregnant! I can feel our little girl moving around occasionally and have been passing my early tests with flying colors. They are really watching for gestational diabetes and preelalmpsia this time. My bump is starting to show, but I just feel fat. I have more energy now and I'm not feeling nauseous as much. I spend my days cleaning the house, cooking food, and chasing after two active girls. I work on preschool work with Kamille and lately have been going on walks to the park. I am waiting on my 20 week mark and then I can start getting things ready for baby, like going through the 20 totes of baby clothes, sewing a quilt and all that fun stuff!

God be with you,
Kaylynn Jackson

This month was just a mellow one. Nothing too exciting going on. We found out we are adding another girl to our family this October and I finally had my first Doctor's appointment. Everything is going well; this time around they are really going to try to reduce the risk of preeclampsia with daily baby aspirin and random 24 hour urine tests. Due to gestational diabetes with Lillian they tested me at 10 weeks (I didn't get a call with my results so that must mean I passed...right?) I have to take another sugar test later on too.  It's pretty cool now that they can take a sample of blood from your finger and test for a Y chromosome. If it's present you are having a boy and if not then it's a girl. I found a test at Sneak Peak and they mail you the kit. You then prick your finger and send the sample back. Then a few days later they send you an email. They are 99% correct and if your 20 week scan comes back as something different you get your money back. It was pretty cool.
Kamille has been working on her preschool and is still sassy as ever. Her tantrums aren't fun, but we are working through them. She loves her little sister a little too much sometimes. Funny Story: I walked into the living room and caught Kamille giving Lillian one big kick in the back. I startled her and said, "HEY what are you doing!!!?" She looked guilty and said "ooops I meant to kiss her..."
Lillian is growing so fast and her personality just shines through. She ALWAYS wants to be where Kamille is and likes to do things just to make her mad. She is getting faster and can run away now and have I mentioned the climbing??? Yeah ALL OVER THE PLACE! She climbs anything and gives me heart attacks all the time. She likes to talk on the phone but usually can't get a word passed Kamille but she sure tries. She is starting to say phrases but I think only Devin and I know what she is trying to say. The best day ever was when Kamille was sad and Lillian walked up, patted her on the head and said, "I love you" and kissed her with a wide open mouth. It made my heart melt.
Devin is sooooo close to finishing school, just a few more weeks! He works so hard for us and we love his days off. We try to throw in little adventures like trips to Canada and Bismark. He has lots of projects to work on but we are waiting for it to warm up. We are so ready for Spring and Summer!

Hope everyone had a great March,
God be with you,
Kaylynn Jackson

This month was a fun one! My little brother Jason got married to Allyse in Gilbert, AZ. We drove all the way and it was awesome. I LOVE road-tripping with my little family and I have to say, we are pretty good at it. We went through South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, (we were 1 mile from the California Border), Nevada, Utah, Idaho, Montana, and North Dakota! We stopped at all the temples along the way (except Utah...that's going to have to be a whole road-trip in itself). We went to the Zoo in Phoenix and saved money by staying in a relatives home while they were out of town. The wedding was beautiful and the weather was perfect (almost too hot for me), all in all -it was a fabulous vacation!

The rest of this month has been filled with Morning Sickness -yep! We are expecting #3!!!! The baby is due to arrive in October! I usually try to wait until the 2nd trimester to announce, but Kamille announced for us to anyone she could talk to. I've only had one ultrasound and the baby was so tiny it still had a little dinosaur tail. Now we just pray for 7 more healthy months! (PS: lots of people have asked about our KETO diet. I talked with my doctor and researched what I could and it's not advised to be on KETO while pregnant because you lose too much weight too fast and that's not good for the baby along with other things...so we will resume our diet and weight-loss journey AFTER the baby comes)

Kamille is a talking machine and is so funny. Sometimes I don't know where she comes up with things, but they make me and others laugh, so it's all good. We have been working on her preschool work and she is moving right along and is so smart. I once caught her teaching Lilly her numbers, but it was way funny because she was teaching her the wrong things. She would hold up the 3 and say "What is this Lilly?.... it's an 8 sweetheart, you have to know these things!" I just laughed and then told her it was a 3. She then replied, "That's what I said mom."


Lillian is talking a lot more. She also started a few signs like "More, Please, and Thank You" She loves the phone and likes to talk to daddy all the time. She can say Hi, Bye, Hello, Mommy, and Daddy (sometimes she will say Papa). She loves most food but her favorite is pancakes for breakfast or mac n cheese for lunch or dinner. She loves Kamille and tried to follow her everywhere. They get into everything and make my life interesting.

Devin is so close to finishing his last class! Then after that we have plans to work on our house a little bit more. The biggest is our BASEMENT! I am so excited to get rid of the camouflage and hunting orange theme! I will take lots of pictures and maybe even some videos. It's going to be a whole gut project, but I am way excited. We also are thinking of turning off all our Netflix and TV for the summer so we can spend more time outside. We want to plant a garden and work on our yard. We love BBQing and also walking to the park a few blocks away. We also have bikes and a bike trailer. We just want to have more family time. Lots of fun road-trips and camping trips planned this year (can you tell I'm excited for it to warm up?) Hopefully you have some family summer plans this summer too!

God be with you,
Kaylynn Jackson

PS: I got a new nephew this month too!!! My brother Justin and his wife Brookelynn welcomed Dean Armond Lloyd on the 22nd!!! He's too cute and has tons of hair. I can't wait to meet him and snuggle him.

We are off to another year. I like doing monthly updates on our travels and life because at the end of the year, I print off each month and put them in a binder. Someday, we can look back at all the fun we had and how much we have grown and changed.



December I posted our family letter so I'll just add that is was a very fast month and it was so fun watching the girls with the Christmas tree and presents. Kamille LOVED watching movies about Santa Claus and kept telling me that he was her friend. She would tell every one Merry Christmas and ask about all the presents. Christmas day was so cute waking them up so they could spend the morning with Devin before he had to head to work. Lillian's favorite thing was wrapping paper, she didn't really care for the gifts much.

January we got to celebrate Lillian's 1st birthday. Devin and I started the KETO diet on the first (you can see that journey HERE) and so I was worried about making cake. Luckily I found a recipe using almond flour and sugar alternatives that tasted not too shabby.  Kamille loves birthday parties and she now has to wait until July to celebrate Devin's.
On January 14th Devin's grandpa Galloway passed away. I've only known him for 4 years and only knew that he loved his great grandchildren. Kamille wasn't afraid of him and he always wanted to talk to her and play with her. I wish I could have gotten to know him better when he was living. It's strange how much you can learn about someone after they pass. Devin's family found boxes and boxes of journals. He wrote EVERYDAY just a small paragraph and ended with it was a great day on most entries. I could turn back to Devin's birth-date 27 years ago and find him writing about it. It was a great reminder to keep a journal and as soon as we returned home, Devin and I took ours out and started writing.


Kamille is growing so fast! She has almost outgrown 3T and after we started her on a preschool kit she got for Christmas, it seems like overnight she decided she wasn't a little girl anymore. She knows what she likes and she isn't afraid to let us know. I'm lucky to be able to stay at home and watch her grow. She makes us laugh and says the funniest things. The other day I asked her to do something and she didn't do it. I made a sad face and started to fake cry (I know...it's called manipulation) she comes over and holds my head up with her little hands. Then she looks into my eyes and says, "Mom, life is hard sometimes....but I need you to be happy right now." She was so serious and I just fell over laughing. I don't know where she gets things sometimes.

Lillian never stops going. She likes to run, climb and do EVERYTHING that Kamille is doing. I can't help but smile when I see them laughing and running around. She can hold her own when it comes to her sister. If Kamille grabs something, Lillian isn't afraid to take it back and then run away of course. She is a daddy's girl all the way. She always wants to talk to him on the phone or snuggle with him. She is learning a few words like UP and BALL. I can't believe my little baby is one now and just moving right into 18 month clothing.

Devin just started work today after being off for just over a week. We are so grateful for his job with Kinder Morgan. Devin works so hard to provide for us and when he gets home from a 10-12 hour day he works on his online class. Only one more until his associates. He always had time for his girls and I love watching him interact with them.

I am enjoying being home. My days are filled with taking care of my girls, cleaning, cooking, laundry, small graphic projects for friends or family and then if I have time, scrap-booking and sewing. I love being in the Young Women program in church! It's been awesome getting to know the girls and I hope that I am a good example to them. I've been called to go on Trek as a photographer this year and that's going to be a neat experience.

This year we have many trips, reunions, and hopefully good changes coming our way.
God be with you,
Kaylynn Jackson