Kugler House Craziness

Ahhhh, the life of two kids. Less time, less sleep, and probably less sanity. Ever mainly just eats and sleeps, except at night of course. Since she started her life out of the hospital with a 10 hour car ride I knew this was probably going to happen. Fortunately we have her back on schedule and last night she was only up twice. As for Easton, he loves the hell out of his baby sister. Truly. So much that he has already tried to give her a ride in his dump truck and is constantly trying to take her outside to slide. I can't take my eyes off that one for more than a second. But he is such a kind, loving big brother and I am grateful for that. He can't get enough of holding and kissing and snuggling with "his baby". And I am glad he is nice to SOMEONE in this house, because lately his attitude has been less than satisfactory. But as I have been warned by every other parent of two kids or more on the planet, it was much anticipated. After a month and a half of his little world being rocked and now me coming home with a baby, I definitely knew it was coming. But after this journey, I welcome all of it. The tantrums, the sleepless nights, the diapers, everything.



Lee is back at work full time now and they are already in the field. When he was home with Easton while I was in the hospital, he still went to work but only for several hours a day and he would take Easton with him. We are so lucky for his incredible bosses and that they were so great about our situation. And of course, at the farm with his dad is exactly where Easton wants to be.

As for me, I'm busy being a mom of two, a wife, and am once again working hard to reclaim my "skinny bitch" status for the last time. I've been whipping up all kinds of quick, easy, and delicious low point creations. I didn't gain much weight while I was pregnant and am not far from my goal weight (like 8 or so pounds to go), but I realize now more than ever that I am just not "ok" with being overweight anymore. Not that anybody is ever "ok" with it. It's just one of those little roadblocks that gets in the way of my life, health, and happiness and so since Ever got here I have been on a mission to conquer it one last time.

Weight, food, obesity.. When I hear stories of people struggling, they all nail me right in the heart. I've been there. I know what it's like to get in to a car with a bunch of friends and have to suffer the humiliation of the seatbelt not fitting. To have to listen to consant snickers and rude jokes. To have to special order all my clothes and pay 3 times as much for them because I can't walk in to a regular store and find anything that fits. Which is probably why I've made it my personal mission to pay my new lifestyle forward in any way I possibly can. And because of that, I thought I would share a few of my latest creations with you. Because being healthy does NOT mean you are subject to a life of dry lettuce and carrot sticks!!!


Mushrooms stuffed with a Laughing Cow cheese wedge, any flavor. Top with a mixture of bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, and spray butter. Bake for about 15 minutes. Delicious and only 1 point for those of you fellow Weight Watchers!


Laughing Cow cinnamon cream cheese stuffed inside wonton wrappers, one of my most brilliant creations yet! I baked them at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. The entire plate (with strawberries and ff whipped cream) was 4 points!


And last but not least, a new favorite in our house. 3-2-1 cake! You take one angel food cake mix and combine it with any other flavor of your choice and store in a ziplock bag. When you feel like cake mix 3 tablespoons of the mix, 2 tablespoons of water, and microwave for 1 minute (3-2-1) and it is 2 points! I love to eat it warm right out of the microwave with fruit and ff whip. Seriously, food this decadent AND healthy just seems so naughty! Hope you all enjoy it as much as we do!

So yes.. my life is a heck of a lot more crazy. My house is messy. I have bags under my eyes and sometimes feel like I'm running entirely on coffee. And I couldn't be happier. Our house is full of noise and snuggles and kisses and love. And I know I am one of the luckiest women on the entire planet. Until next time.. <3

"The most incredible thing about miracles is that they happen."

Home sweet home--the reason I haven't blogged since Thursday. And yes, I have caught plenty of hell for that. I realized our blog had gotten some pretty good response after noticing we broke 10,000 hits while we were in the hospital, which truly amazed me. Then yesterday when everyone finally got to come meet Little Miss Miracle, I caught even more hell from Grandma Ruby. Apparently she has been so excited to tell everyone all about Ever and every time she tries people say "Oh I know, I read all about her on the blog!" A grandma's bragging rights are something you definitely DON'T want to mess with, sorry Grandma! Then today I went and got groceries and picked up a few outfits for Ever. When I was in Herberger's the lady at the counter recognized us from the blog and rushed right over the meet the little miracle. She heard about our blog "from somebody who knew somebody who knew us" and had been reading all about it. I was absolutely stunned. So sweet lady from Herberger's and everyone else who is reading this--I can't tell you how much it means to us. We truly are blessed to have so many wonderful people in our lives. I will do my best to continue blogging per everyone's request, but I can't promise they will be as frequent. Or as juicy. I'm not quite sure what the heck I will write about just yet but I'll think on that one. Feel free to send out topic requests if I start getting too boring! :)

So remember the day Ever was born when I mentioned Lee took pictures immediately after but we had chosen not to share them at that time? Well, we have decided that we would like to share them. Partly because I will be making this blog in to a baby book for Ever and I always want her to know how she entered the world and what she overcame in only two short weeks--and partly because I want you all to know how truly remarkable modern medicine and miracles are. So here you have it............. the very first picture taken of our daughter.

Miss Ever--with her large and small intestines, stomach, liver, colon, ovaries, and appendix all outside her body.


And here is her closure only two weeks later.


Is that incredible or what?! You would absolutely never even know there had been anything wrong. Her doctor told us that if I took her to a pediatrician 6 months from now that they wouldn't even be able to tell if we didn't inform them before hand. So for those of you who are facing challenges in your lives........I promise you, ANYTHING is possible. Just keep on fighting! I literally witnessed a miracle happen right before my very eyes. It makes me stop and think.. if SHE can do this in the first two weeks of her life, what are my excuses for anything I face? I have none. This little girl has set the bar mighty high. I can't wait until the day comes that my daughter tells me she can't do something. I will simply look at her and say, "You wanna bet?" Until next time.. <3

A New Room For Ever

I know many of you probably noticed that I didn't blog yesterday. I had so much going on that I just didn't get a chance. After all, I had a big day of packing and filling out papers--because today we got to leave! As I watched the city of Minneapolis get smaller and smaller in my rear view mirror this morning, I couldn't help but feel the tears stinging my eyes. Not in a bad way, I promise you. It was like I could suddenly feel all the pressure and stress of the last few months just slowly draining out of my body. There were so many times through all of this that I never let myself stop long enough to think or feel and now here it all was, in the rear view mirror--BEHIND US! It was a LONG drive home, but I didn't even mind. That just gave me plenty of time to intruduce my daughter to who will come to be some very important men in her life--George, Alan, Brad, Alabama, and Brooks & Dunn. Oh what a time we had!

Finally, we are home! My family is back together! I could hear Easton's laughter and excitement before I even got in the house. Boy have I missed those giggles! We also had even more excitement when we finally got to see Ever's new bedding. You remember, the bedding that her dad insisted on picking out for her. Yes, I know you are all just dying to see the results of THAT--I myself couldn't open her bedroom door fast enough. And boy did I sure get a surprise when I opened it!









Yes folks, my husband not only picked out her bedding all by himself but he also (with the help of our good friend Sarah) decorated her entire nursery. And it looks absolutely amazing. I have the greatest husband.. and the greatest friends. Tonight I feel so lucky.

And while I am so happy to have my family all back together, my heart is hurting for another family. On our way home I received some terrible news that a (much too young) girl from my hometown was killed in an awful accident. These tragic events in Garrison have just become far too frequent. After the past few weeks, I am sure to take the time to count my blessings every single day. After some of the things we've witnessed in these weeks (and months)--children with terrible illnesses from cancer to things I've never even heard of that don't have good odds, babies who are born weighing barely a pound, parents who have been in the NICU for months, parents losing children--what we just faced seems so minor. And now this. No parent should ever have to endure the agony of losing a child. So I ask you all tonight to say a little prayer for that family. For all of those suffering parents and children of the world. For those parents who have lost children. Hug your kids a little tighter, a little longer..and always remember to count your blessings. Until next time.. <3

"Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies."-Mother Teresa

"Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies"-Mother Teresa

This statement could not be any more true to my life. I should have realized it long ago. Of course I've always looked at myself to be a strong person. Like Ever, I found myself fighting for my life at a very young age when my family discovered at 8 months old I had spinal meningitus. Strength and determination has always been very much a part of me. And then I had babies. It was after Easton that I finally found the fight and drive to conquer my life long struggle with morbid obesity. I was doing it for myself, but I was doing it for him more than anything. I needed to be healthy FOR HIM..to pass on healthy habits to him, to make sure I'm around for him for a very long time. He brought out a strength in me I didn't even know I had.

And now here I am with Ever. I've already eliminated the word "can't" from my vocabulary long ago, but she brings a whole new meaning to the word "possible". Here is this teeny tiny little baby beating odds left and right and she doesn't even know it yet. If she can do THAT in all her 14 days then I know for certain we can do anything life throws at us. So yes, the root of my strength lies in two very small things--my children. My life, my world, my fight, my determination, my happiness, my drive..my everything.

Today Ever is doing absolutely everything on her own. No more scheduled feedings, no more tubes, no more bottles, no more constant monitoring. When she is hungry I nurse her. She is up to full feeds and full capacity in her belly. I just met with the lady who is drawing up her discharge information. She has already made an appointment BACK HOME with her pediatrician for next week. Yes, leaving is a definite reality now. Two more days or so and I will be on my way home with our little statistic-crushing miracle. I could just cry. Cry with relief, cry with happiness, cry with triumph. We did it. We beat this. And in record time. So for those of you facing challenges in your life.. always remember to have faith in the small things. With God ALL things are possible. Until next time.. <3

"Out of difficulties grow miracles."

What is a miracle? They are everywhere. Some of them would be what we call more "ordinary", some of them extraordinary. When a raindrop falls from the sky, when a flower blooms in spring time, when a baby is born, when you wake up every morning.. Do you normally think of rain as a miracle, or the fact that every day we wake up for that matter? Probably not. But when you think about it.. It really is, isn't it? Or the fact that flowers start as a small seed and become something beautiful. It's funny when you think about it, how life is just a bunch of little miracles--and not so little miracles.

Our daughter, Miss Ever Lucy Kugler, is a miracle. She is stronger for all her 13 days than she could possibly ever know. Last night I was so excited because I got to give her the biggest bottle she'd gotten to date. She sucked it down like a champ, as always. This morning marked the day that we would have a new doctor rounding, which I was nervous about. We have grown to love Dr. Mulrooney so much and we were spoiled right away by learning he'd be with Ever for the majority of her first two weeks of life, which was pure luck on our part. He assured me last night that I would love our new doctor. Dr. Perdue was his classmate in med school and he told me that they have very much the same style when it comes to their practice. He also informed me that he would be going to nights and that he still had every intention of stopping in on his night rounds to check on Ever. I repeat--we love him.
And he was right, I knew immediately upon meeting Dr. Perdue this morning that she was going to be a good fit for us and if we had to have a different doctor rounding I'm definitely glad it was her. She looked Ever over and informed me that I would be starting nursing immediately at her next feed--YES!


I'm posting a picture of this big milestone because though the "other milestone" is bigger, I don't believe the world needs to see a picture of THAT. :)



Nursing went perfectly, as I had hoped. Our nurse was coming around behind the curtain to "help me get situated" and Ever was already well in to her meal. The nurse just chuckled and said, "Is there ANYTHING this baby can't do? Maybe you should take her to try her hand at the SAT's while you're at it!" That's our little champ, going above and beyond what anybody expected to be possible.

And with that Dr. Perdue came back bearing yet more good news. Tomorrow she will be taken COMPLETELY OFF her TPN. They will keep us long enough to make sure she is getting the proper nutrition she needs and then it sounds like we will get to go home THURSDAY OR FRIDAY!!!! Oh yeah, AND we will be taking the Minneapolis Children's Hopsital record for fastest recovered gastroschisis baby with us!!!!!!!!!!! Prior to this the hospital's all time record was just under 5 weeks. Yes, our daughter is indeed a miracle. And I can't WAIT to bring her home! Until next time.. <3

"You had me wrapped around your finger since the day you were born."

Happy Sunday from Minneapolis! Here I am hanging out with my little lady and Dad and Easton have headed home. I won't lie, it still wasn't easy letting them go even knowing that we will likely be less than a week behind them. I got that feeling back that I had last Saturday when Lee left--the one where I was afraid to open my mouth to speak to anyone because I knew very well that when air hit the back of my throat it would trigger tears. Fortunately that feeling didn't last nearly as long as it did last time. Our favorite nurse is on today so that alone made me feel better.

When I got here I found the Little Miss decked out in her first camo outfit that Don and Loretta brought for her. Of course Dad loved this. When I was pregnant I kept making jokes that I was going to be in big trouble if I had a girl since I already have the most accessorized boy on the planet. Well, something tells me this is going to be even harder for her dad than it is for me. When he left last weekend he asked me if he could choose her bedding for her new room. I asked him what he had in mind and he said he really wanted it to be a surprise, he just wanted the ok to do it on his own. Now moms, I know what you're thinking--that you would never in a million years trust your husband to choose your new daughter's nursery decor without any input from you. HOWEVER, how could I tell him no? Here is this man with this brand new daughter--the daughter he has wanted since even before marriage and the excitement in his eyes over picking out her new bedding was just something I couldn't bring myself to extinguish. And after all, it is only bedding. Even if it ends up to be something I'm not crazy about, it is totally worth it to see my husband so happy. But I won't lie, I am terrified for the day that she asks him for his credit card because I know damn well his powers against that face are going to be entirely useless. He may have to get a second job just to support his inability to tell his daughter no.. :)



A little earlier I got to give Ever her first bath. And of course she HATED it, which she proudly let the entire 3rd floor know. No question those lungs of hers definitely work. I gave her a bottle afterward and I still can't get over how just a couple days ago she was only able to eat less than a nipple full of milk and now she is up to a half a bottle. Dr. Mulrooney just rounded and it sounds like we're going to start working on breast feeding hopefully tomorrow. We are now at about 3/4 capacity in her belly which is AMAZING and we don't want to throw that progress off. So we'll get her up there and then work on the nursing. Good thing, pumping is a pain in the ass. It will be nice to not have to do it so often. Kudos to all you full time working/pumping mothers out there. I'm NOT a fan of it. I was lucky enough that though I nursed the full year I rarely had to pump with Easton, which is a good thing since the stubborn little guy decided at 3 months that bottles just weren't his thing and refused to ever take one again. Holding a sippy cup just right for a 4 month old to be able to drink is all kinds of fun, let me tell you. They also had to send a bunch of my milk home with Lee, which I'm sure you guys are all delighted that I'm sharing with you. The nurses were telling me the other day that since we live so far away they can't make us take any of the milk home like a lot of the other mothers here, but that they've been needing a second freezer for some time now and since I'm producing so much that will likely be the push they need to get it. Awesome, glad my ridiculous milk supply could score you guys a new freezer. I'm pretty sure at this point I could feed the entire NICU, but hey--at least we know Ever won't starve, right?
Until next time.. <3

Your daily dose of the Kuglers

No new pictures today and not much news to report either. It's funny how if I don't blog at least every 24 hours I start to catch hell from our loyal followers. When I came here I decided blogging was going to be the best way to keep everyone informed without having to make a million phone calls, but over time this blog has more or less become my journal. I never dreamed it would get so much response or so many followers, but I can't say enough how grateful we are to have you all along for the ride. I am starting to get a little nervous about the days ahead, though, because my news is getting less juicy by the day. Especially now that we're in what we hope to be the "home stretch" of it all, I don't know how I will be able to keep you all entertained. :)

Today Lee got up early and came over to spend the morning and part of the afternoon with Ever while I stayed back at the RMcD house to spend my last day with Easton and catch up on laundry. He has already done SO MUCH through all of this, the least I could do is send him home with clean laundry. I was going to try and keep them here as long as I possibly could, but now that we've learned we will likely be following not far behind them it seems ok to "let them go tomorrow". Easton has done so well being here, but I still feel bad having his schedule so thrown off by living out of a suitcase. Lord knows even I am sick of living out of a suitcase. We are the type of parents who when he was born we altered our lives to accomodate his schedule and not the other way around. We've tried to follow that as closely as we can. If we want to go out to an event that will keep him up way past his bed time we either get a sitter or leave early enough so his bed time is still close to the same as always. Of course there are always exceptions but keeping him on a pretty decent schedule makes for a happy boy and that makes for happy parents, so its a win all the way around.

After spending the morning enjoying the beautiful weather on the playground and lots of quality time in the awesome castle (which Lee just informed me somebody paid $30,000 for and then donated so it's new to the house-how awesome is that?!), we had lunch and then headed up to our room for some Mickey and a nap. We really love where we are staying but the only problem right now is it is HOT (not that I'm complaining, it's BEAUTIFUL outside!). I don't think anybody was expecting 82 degrees in Minneapolis in the middle of March, certainly not us. So of course we packed mainly jeans, long sleeved t shirts, and sweatshirts. Our room is on the 3rd floor so we've kept the shades drawn so it stays dark in there just to help keep the heat down a little bit. I'm not sure it's helping and I'm thinking if this keeps up much longer they'll end up turning the air on. When we're in the room I just let Easton run around with no pants on because the poor kid is like a little human furnace. I also have nothing but warm things for Ever--thick, heavy blankets, an insulated car seat cover, fuzzy outfits.. Hmmm, perhaps I will have to go shopping to buy her something to wear home. How unfurtunate that I have to go shopping for teeny, tiny cute PINK things, right? Haha! Although this is quite a change from my world of dirt and tractors, I don't even know where to start with GIRL stuff!

As for our little fighter, she just keeps pushing right along. She apparently has the same mind set I do--fight through it and look back later. At this point we have had absolutely nothing but continued progress with no bumps in the road, knock on wood. As I mentioned before we are expecting to be up to full feeds within the next couple days. After that we will need to "hang around" for a day or two to make sure all is functioning properly with no issues and then its HOME BOUND for us. And I can not WAIT! Until next time.. <3