Maggie Jane Atchley

Maggie Jane Atchley

We finally welcomed our baby girl, Maggie Jane, on July 5th, 2014! We always knew we wanted 3 children, Lord willing.  We found out on Halloween of 2013, that we were pregnant!! We were so excited, thankful and anxious! With a new pregnancy (especially when you already have 2 boys...) come all the usual questions...

"When are you due?" July 13th

"Were you trying???" Yes

"You know what causes this....right?" Again, yes

"Oh, you're hoping for a girl this time, right?" No! 

That last question came masked as several other "well wishes" also...

"Congratulations....hope you get your girl"

"Oh, hooray! Praying it's a girl!"

"Maybe you'll get your girl this time...."

It's funny, because people just automatically assume that if you have 1 or 2 of one gender, that you naturally desire to have the other. For Chris, this was true. He was quite open our entire pregnancy about wanting a girl. Knowing that this would be our last planned pregnancy, and likely last baby, he wanted a girl. I on the other hand only knew boys. We had 2, rowdy, loud, messy, ornery, mama-loving boys. I was alllll about having a 3rd one! Plus, I come from a family of 3 girls, so I didn't know what it's like to have a family where you do Ninja turtles AND barbies, Hot Wheels AND baby dolls, cleats AND dresses. So when we found out that this baby was a girl, our dr asked me "Are you okay?" The short answer was "Yes!" The long answer was...I needed time to adjust. I wasn't ready for pink and bows, and drama etc. 

Fast forward to picking her name, decorating her nursery, her shower, getting her brothers ready for her...it all started growing on me! I couldn't wait to see her sweet, delicate, girly little face!

Maggie Jane Atchley
July 5, 2014 7 lbs even, 19.5 inches long 3:43 a.m.

The Atchley 5! These were some proud big brothers!! 

Dr. Stacie Elfrink, took such good care of my sweet girl!

Proud daddy!! I should have known by the smile on his face, that she was going to have him completely wrapped around her finger! He looooooves his baby girl!

Grandma Jana and Granddad Rusty with their 5th grandbaby, but 1st granddaughter...hence all the pink!

January 2016! A new year is here, already! It seems like Y2K was like last week....and here we are 16 years later!  I truly cannot believe that Chris and I are already approaching our 8th wedding anniversary, that we have a 6 year old (Kindergartner!!), a 4 year old in his last year of preschool, AND  an 18 month old little angel!! It's been so long so I have posted ANYTHING at all, and I want to do such a better job!! So, here goes an honest attempt at maybe a post/month on each of them.  I love reading back on these posts, if only I could remember to write them ;) 

Keller age 5, Summer 2015 ;)

Canon, age 3 Summer 2015

Maggie Jane, 1 year old! Summer 2015

Dear Keller,

Tomorrow morning, my first born, my first little love, my buddy, my side kick, my sweet, smart, sensitive little Keller starts pre-K. I have always looked forward to the day that he would go to school and learn all the new things that you learn in pre-K (I mean, I think it's come a long way since 1989 when we just napped and colored all day), but as the day has crept up on me for him to actually go, I find myself so sad! I would like to blame it on postpartum hormones (MJ is only 6 weeks old), or the fact that Canon turned 3 on Sunday, but truth be told, I think I'm just one of "those moms".  The ones who have a hard time letting go. Who fear the first time that he gets hurt and I'm not there to kiss his knee. Or the first time some punk kid teases him and he comes home with hurt feelings. Knowing that he is learning and growing so much every day and I won't be there to see every minute of it. Knowing that his teacher will spend more time with him over the next 9 months than I will. All this is just too much for an emotional mama!! So I wanted to sit down and collect my thoughts, write my sweet baby a letter to read to him sometime later about all the things I want for him as he starts his new adventure. But I can't. I can't put into words all the things I want for him. Everything I pray for him each night, and everything I'll pray over him all day tomorrow, and each day after, as he enters those doors. Prayers for safety, strength to have integrity, prayers for friendships, prayers that he will come to know God and be a witness for His kingdom to his classmates and teachers, prayers that The Holy Spirit will intercede for me on the things I don't even know how to pray for. I'm so thankful to have a happy, healthy 4 year old to send to get a great education with a teacher who lives him, in a class full of his friends. So instead of writing him some sappy, gut wrenching, letter to him, I'm writing this:

Dear Keller,
     Go get 'em. We are behind you all the way. I love you more than Leo, Mike, Don and Raph :)
Love, Mommy

Canon at 2 years!!

Wow, where do I even begin?? Where did the last 2 years go??? How is my baby already a toddler? So many questions to start this post ;) It has been so long since I have written anything, and I find myself really disappointed that I won't be able to look back at this like I had planned in my perfect dream world (that I often "live" in, but seldom comes to fruition!)  On August 17th, Canon Burk turned 2!! He is so very different than his big brother, in almost everyway, so it has been such a fun experience for me to get to learn his personality over the last year and watch him turn into a little boy! Here are some of his 2 year stats:

Height: 36.5"

Weight: 34 lbs (ya, he's a big guy!)

Hair color: still my little blondie

Eye color: Blue!! The prettiest blue eyes you've ever seen!

Teeth: all but his 2 year molars

Favorites: Mommy, Daddy and Keller (of course!), his blue blankie, Thomas the Train, Lightning McQueen, allll super heros, brushing his teeth, swimming, bath time, his cousins *wiggsy and gabin-ator*, his buddies at church *dan-ta, wane-twee, esson, ms sawwy, ms winda and ju ju*, walker, tate-tate, and of course his uncle drew bear (if you ask, "who's your favorite?" he will tell you "untle do bear!"

Sleep: still sleeping like a champ for us, 7p-7a and 1 nap in the afternoon.

He is a BIG boy! Much bigger at this age than his older brother was! People are constantly asking me, "He's only 2?!?" me:"Yes, he is just a big guy!" random stranger: "He's gonna be a linebacker!!" every. where. we. go. So I just hope he likes football ;) 

He has a great vocabulary! Again, strangers are always very impressed with all the words he knows.  I would like to take some credit for working with him, teaching him, etc...but if I'm being honest, Keller is his biggest teacher!! He says EVERYTHING that Keller says.  He wants to be just like his big brother, and it is so cute!! Some of his phrases that make us laugh the most are: 

"Not yet!" when asked if he is finished eating, ready to go somewhere, etc.

"I'm sorry bubba" ANYTIME keller is crying, whether he was at fault or not

"Ina stay hy-dre-ned!" (I need to stay hydrated) after he takes a big drink of water

"Ima do it myselp" (I want to do it myself) if i try to help him with ANYthing at all

He love songs/singing and knows lots of songs!! His favorite right now is "Chewtaback" or "Boys 'Round Here" for those of you who don't speak fluent Canon ;) 

He is so much fun to be around, and a very funny kid.  He knows when he is being "funny" and will look around to make sure everyone is looking and laughing at him.  He has such a fun personality and I am so thankful and feel very blessed that I get to be his mom! I love you Canon Burk!!

 this is how he has been sleeping lately :)

 jumping in his crib

 calling "aunt may-me" i'm sure ;)

"i'm two!!!"

Happy 60th Birthday Mimi!!

Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear mimiiiiiiiii, happy birthday to you! Today our precious Mimi (a.k.a. Chris' mom) is 60 years old!  We are thankful that God brought her into the world 60 years ago today!  We love you, hope your birthday is fantastic!!

 it's hard to read his sign....

keller is better at holding it up ;)

I've got sunshine...

It has been absolutely beautiful outside the last few days and we have been taking FULL advantage!  School is out in Duncan, so the elementary school playground behind our house is a ghost town...which is perfect for a spunky 2 year old who loves the slides, tunnels, monkey bars and merry-go-round!  We love the sunshine and chubby faced babies....and bubbles ;)

 Smiley little 9 month old...with chipmunk cheeks :)

blowing some bubbles, and playing with sticks of course

Thunder UP!!

It has been beyond awesome to have an NBA team here in good ole' OKLAHOMA!  The Thunder have NOT disappointed us!  Here is to an NBA championship coming to OKC!!

Chris, supporting the THUNDER!!

Kiddie land is open!!

kiddie land is our local "amusement park".  it sits right off the highway, but is only open during the summer.  so allllll winter long, everytime we drive by..."momma, can we go to tiddie wand?" and then i have to explain to him that it's only open during summertime...you get the picture.  well lately when we drive by keller asks, "is it summertime?" well, kiddie land officially opened today! so i told keller this morning that we were going and he said "momma, it's SUMMERTIME!!!" :) lol, he is pretty excited.  we went this afternoon and met up with his best buddy sam! they promptly rode the airplanes 3 times in a row (4 for sam!) and then the train, back to the planes...then a storm blew in and they had to close :(  but, i'm sure we'll be back ;)

happy little boy on the train :)

official 9 month stats!

i did a post on his almost 9 month update....so now that he 17th has come and gone, we have official stats :)  he is still our very healthy baby boy! 21 lbs 1oz, 29 in. long.  he did great at his well check, passed with flying colors :)  we still aren't crawling, so she wants to see that change before his 12 month check up...surely he will decide to start moving by then :)  here are a few pics from his 9 month shoot!

 9 months old with my monster

 i'm such a big boy!!

 my sweet little blue-eyed baby :)

giggling at daddy

I'm baaaackkkkk!

Okay, so things have been cu-raazyy around here! I swear I am going to get back into blogging here, I have already missed documenting so much of Canon's first year and I am going to do a better job! I have tried to do some catching up though with 5 new posts!!! Enjoy!

Cousins, Cousins, Cousins!

They say your cousins are your first best friends....

just hitting a tree with their candy canes...totally normal ;)

golfing buddies

super heroes...fighting crime!

and of course the littles...so fat, and of course cute :)

Canon's Baby Dedication

"I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of Him.  So now I give him to the Lord.  For his whole life he will be given over the Lord."

                                                                                     1 Samuel 1:27-28

Our family at Canon's baby dedication, on Mother's Day 2012.

Canon update...almost 9 months

Canon Burk is almost 9 months old...whoa! I know it sounds like a broken record, because I say it everytime I do a post updating one of them, but I just can't believe how quickly they are growing.  Especially this time of year, with all the kids graduating from high school I am reminded that in no time at all, it will be one of my boys graduating.  I am trying to enjoy this days as best I can amongst all the crazy/hectic-ness that is a day in the life of the Atchley's :)  Okay back to Canon...He is soooo much different than his big brother that it has been almost like being a first time mom again!  Everything that I had learned with Keller and all the "experience" I had was basically useless in the first few months of his life.  He is a much more serious baby and is also physically much bigger than Keller was at this age so he is his very own person in every way.  Here is an update on what he's up to at (almost) 9 months:

• on a 4 hour eating schedule 7:15, 11:00, 3:15, 6:30
• sleeps 6:30p-7:15a
• not yet crawling, but rolls everywhere!
• 2 teeth, bottom front teeth...but working on more
• LOTS of hair! already had 1 haircut, but already needs another
• saying "ma", "ba", "da", "ga" etc, but doesn't know who "mommy & daddy" are yet
• likes to jabber and will yell at us (or strangers in WalMart) if he wants your attention
• sitting up independently, very well
• starting to "wave"
• sometimes will "clap" and do "arms up"
• loves watching "your baby can read" video
• loves being sung to
• likes facing outward when being held...only snuggly when he isn't feeling well
• very strong!!
• eating solids 3 x's each day, breakfast, lunch and dinner.  he eats everything and hasn't turned anything down yet.  
• tried a few "table foods": waffles, bananas, peas, carrots, roll
• looooves cheerios
• really loves aunt mannie, she sings him "canon, canon who's my sweetest man-on" and "mr. canman, bring me a dream, doom, doom, doom, doom, make him the cutest, that i've ever seen"
• very happy and smiley when he is feeling well, but so heartbreakingly sad when he isn't feeling well :(

i honestly don't remember what our lives were like before our "little guy" came along.  he is a perfect complement to our family and i am bursting with love just looking at these pictures of him...love you so much sweet canon!

smiley little guy :)

where did those blue eyes come from??

Keller update...2 1/2 years old

2 1/2 years old?!?! Where did this time go?? I feel like I was just starting this blog because I was preparing for my sweet baby's birth!  Boy oh boy does time really start flying by as they get older :(  but alas, I was warned that this would happen.  he is SO smart, and can speak very well for such a little man.  I am always having strangers tell me how well-spoken he is.  it makes me very proud :)  he is even somewhat bilingual, he knows all his colors in spanish.  Here is an update on our "big guy" as he now refers to himself :)  

likes:

• singing...his favorites are "Jesus loves me", "Jesus loves the little children", "Holy, Holy, Holy", "Amazing Grace", "Old McDonald", "Crazy Girl", "Take a backroad" the list goes on and on
• dancing...he loves dancing, jumping, moving of any sort
• trucks, big rigs, tractors, motorcycles, trains, buses....anything with wheels
• mickey mouse clubhouse
• daddy, he tells him every night "You're the best daddy"
• canon, or "broshur"  he always wants to know where he is and make sure he's "okay".  he brings him toys, cheerios, etc.  he loves his brother very very much
• aunt mannie and uncle drew bear, he ALWAYS asks where they are, when they are coming to see him and everything we do he says "mannie and drew bear will be there?" 
• riggsy...his older cousin who lives in stillwater.  he thinks riggs hung the moon and wants to do whatEVER riggs is doing.  i imagine this won't be changing anytime soon :)
• sports of ALL kinds, but specifically loves golf right now.  he just got a left-handed set of clubs (from granddad rusty) and wants to go to the golf course everyday.  he is working on his swing and i see him as the next phil mickelson :)
• "grandma's" new house...specifically the bear "tave" and the castle room
• bathtime

dislikes:

• getting his picture taken
• bugs/spiders
• goats
• getting his finger nails/toe nails clipped
• cold water

as usual, the list of dislikes is short, he is such a happy guy and we are having so much fun with him. i seriously can't believe that he is on his way to 3 years old, everyday i thank God for giving me the blessing of raising this young man.  love you Keller!!

my sweet guy, in a bow tie :)

Chris Atchley State Farm

On January 1st, 2012 Chris Atchley State Farm officially opened it's doors!

Like a good neighbor.... :)

This was a GREAT day for our family!  This has been Chris' dream since he started with State Farm in October 2007.  He worked very hard to realize this dream and I am VERY proud of him!!  Since it took me so long to get this up, I can say that after 4 months of agency, Chris is a fantastic agent! He really takes care of his policy holders and is truly a "good neighbor".  This has been a great ride so far and I am so excited to see where the rest of his 1st year of agency takes us!  Call him and let him quote you! :)

Christmas 2011!

Christmas 2011 was so good to our family! We got to see lots of family, and had to miss some from afar! We were spoiled with waaaayyyy too many gifts and waaaayyyy too much food :)

smiley little chunk in his new outfit from aunt mannie and uncle drew bear

2011 Christmas tree

Riggs got a new truck for Christmas!!

racing down to see what santa brought

all my guys :)

Canon at 4 months!

Canon turned 4 months old on December 17th! I can hardly believe how quickly he is growing now that he is sleeping better at night ;) he FINALLY slept through the night back on November 5th (almost 3 months old) which was a big change from his brother (who slept through the night at 6.5 weeks old and never looked back). he has been so much more fun for mommy now that i am also getting to sleep :) here are some 4 months highlights:

• 26.5" long
• 15 lbs 11 oz
• getting more and more smiley everyday!
• he LOVES his big brother, and smiles really big anytime that keller is crying, it is so funny to me!
• on a 3 1/2 hour schedule... up at 7a, 10:30, 2p, 5:30, 9p down for the night.
• sitting up in his bumbo seat and his exersaucer
• eyes are still blue blue blue
• hair has fallen out, but is starting to grow back in, very light!
• wearing size 3-6 month clothes
• wearing size 3 diapers

here are some pictures of my sweet little man...enjoy :)

4 months old! 1/3 of the way to 1 year!

gaining on his monster

trying rice cereal for the first time!

he likes it! :) sweet little crooked smile :)

2 years old!!

last friday, we celebrated keller turning 2 years old!! i really can't believe my first baby is already 2 years old, the time really is going by wayyyy to quickly. i did an update on him a couple months ago, so i feel like doing an update now is going to be pretty redundant, but i will do one anyway...because i like to read them when i look back :)

at 2 years, keller loves:

• mommy and daddy...all day long i hear "where'd daddy go? where'd daddy go?"
• his brother "hi canon...lub-you!"
• doing ANYTHING outside "go outside??"
• bath time, playing with his pelican and bath toys, the "loopa" and soap
• sweeping
• raking
• coloring
• fire trucks, fire "ations", fire fighters, lights, sirens...the whole bit
• trash trucks
• trucks of any kind really
• mickey mouse and the gang...especially "plutato", mickey's dog ;)
• dogs, cats (key-nanas), horses, moo cows, any animal
• playing on the tunnels at the park behind our house
• ALL sports, baseball, basketball, football, and golf are his very favorites
• the osu cowboys
• the st louis cardinals "cardinals, cardinals"
• his cousin "riggsy", he thinks anything he does is awesome and wants to be just like him
• aunt mannie and uncle drew bear, he "calls" them at least 5 times a day from his "phone"
• all his family..."where grandma go?" "where granddad go?" "where 'buedo go?" "where mimi go?" we do alot of talking about missouri, texas, and alaska :)
• he loves singing, and knows loooooots of songs: Jesus loves me, victory in Jesus, holy holy holy, happy birthday, pop goes the weasel, crazy girl, barefoot bluejean night, take a back road, old mcdonald, b-i-n-g-o, and so many more
• he will eat anything, i love how easy it is to feed the kid...i know that isn't always the case
• "school", especially his teacher, miss linda
• his best friend harper (he just this week moved to kansas city) :(
• his other buddies: sam, lennox, talon, a.j., hudson, abbigail, brandt...i'm sure i am forgetting some...

at 2 years, keller does NOT like:

• the doctor ;)
• anytime daddy is gone for more than 1 day
• leaving a good party
• really loud noises
• being stuck inside

the list is short, he is such a happy guy. he doesn't really give us too much grief, even at the "terrible 2" age. he is a great communicator and can say almost anything he wants us to know. it is so crazy to me that i have conversations with him all day long when last year at this time he was still such a "baby" i truly have so much love in my heart for this little boy and can't wait to see what God has in store for his life. happy 2 year old birthday keller, love mommy :)

team atchley, on keller's 2nd birthday...can't believe he is 2!

chris would kill me if he knew i put this up :)

waking up on his 2nd birthday...pete jammies!!

playing with his bubbles, his shirt says "i'm 2!"

birthday king at "school" (mother's day out)

1st night out :)

saturday night, chris and i got to take our first "night out" since canon was born! we generally have a standing weekly datenight, but with chris being out of town every other week (internship can NOT be over fast enough), and a brand new baby, we have had a few weeks of no date night! :( needless to say, it was soooooooooo nice to get to go out, just adults! we do love our boys so very much, but it's nice to have a dinner where we can just sit and talk and enjoy each other without handing someone a sippy cup, or rocking a car seat, etc :) luckily for us, we have a rockstar babysitter that i feel completely comfortable leaving the boys with. keller LOVES her, and talks about her all the time. and i know canon will feel the same way when he is a little older :) we love kbv! in a few weeks, chris will be finished traveling all over the globe and we can get back to our regular date nights :) until then, family dinners it is!

thanks kennedy, you're the best!

Canon at 1 month!

Canon is already 1 month old! (on 09/17) in some ways it went by so fast, and in others (waking to feed him at night) it went by slower ;) we went and weighed him on Friday, the day before he turned 1 month old. he was 6.11 when he was born, and had gained back up to 7.4 at his 2 week checkup. the lactation consultant told me to expect him to gain between 1/2 oz-1 oz each day, so I was guessing he'd weigh between 7.13-8.5...well he weighed 9.8!! I was so happy to see that on the scale because he is definitely a different kind of nurser than Keller was! I hate to "compare" him to Keller, but that is all I know as far as newborns go, so that is what I find myself doing with somethings. Keller would usually nurse for 30-45 minutes, well Canon will nurse 20 total minutes if I'm reallllly lucky. This had me worried about how much he was getting. Now, knowing that he is gaining plenty of weight I feel much better! He is a good baby, and a good sleeper. He sleeps pretty well for all his naps, and is waking just once during the night. The only "problem" is that his 1 time to wake is very random and sporadic each night. Sometimes it is at 1:30, sometimes 3:00. So it is hard to know what to expect and it is hard to feel confident about him getting the hang of sleeping through the night anytime soon...but I am really hoping and praying that he will figure it out in the next several weeks! He has been such a wonderful addition to our family and I already can't imagine us without him! He is the sweetest baby! Here are a few "1 month pictures"

Mimi (Chris' mom) came to visit on his 1 month birthday!

9 lbs. 8 oz. of 1 month old sweetness :)

Sizing up with my monster....