Introducing Bumblebee

I picked up some costumes on clearance after Halloween and Levi has embraced this Bumblebee costume. Apparently Bumblebee is a character on Transformers...

Anyways, the other day I said, "Levi, pick up your toys." and he responded, "I'm not Levi. I'm Bumblebee!" So I said, "Bumblebee, pick up Levi's toys." ;-)
And here he is in his costume, wearing his Uncle Brandon's shoes.....best $3.00 I ever spent!

Ruffle Bum

Ava is grow, grow, growing and continues to be quite the little socialite....she LOVES when you talk to her and is quick to reward your attention with a HUGE smile and her sweet little coos. Her favorite pastime of lying on the play mat has been upgraded to both grabbing and batting at the hanging animals and rolling over from her tummy to her back.

A woman from my Community Bible Study group that we go to on Wednesdays gave me the sweetest little outfit for Ava...complete with a ruffle bum...and I couldn't wait to put it on her today to show the lady what a perfect outfit she picked out!

Ruffle bums are one of the many adorable ways that girls clothes differ from boys! And while my tween and teenage Ava will not be allowed to wear any ruffles or words drawing attention to her derriere, I just think these little ruffles are super cute!

"Task At Hands"

Funny story. We have really been working with the boys on following directions, focusing, staying focused, not losing focus, keeping focus, finishing what they are asked to do...you get the idea. I hear this is harder for boys.


We started using the phrase task at hand, as in: "Mason, getting dressed is the task at hand." "Levi, brushing your teeth is the task at hand." "What is the task at hand, boys?"


So, yesterday while eating breakfast (the task at hand), Levi holds up his hands and says, "These are my "task-at-hands"!" His little voice blended these three words together...sounds like casket-hands with a T.


Tim tried to correct him, saying your hands work at the task at hand...but all I cared about was that he was using those sweet little 'taskathands' to eat all of his yogurt & granola!


He is pretty proud of his 'taskathands'....they may not always be working on the true task at hand...but it's progress, right??

12 weeks

Our baby girl is 12 weeks today! Wow! I swear it goes faster with each baby...



There is no memory of what life was like before Ava. She just fits with our family! Ava is an absolute delight! An easygoing, sweet, smiley, playful baby girl that has added oodles and oodles of pink joy to our lives.


Ava loves to be talked to. She engages you with her big toothless grin, smiling eyes, and dimples. She loves to coo and 'talk' to me right after nursing. These soft sounds are quite possibly the sweetest on earth! She has been called 'the most expressive baby I have ever met'.


Her big brothers love to love on her. Levi calls her 'Little Lady' and 'Precious Sweetheart'. Mason must give her a kiss and a hug every morning. He is so very concerned about her: where she is when she is napping, if she will be coming with us when we leave the house, where she will sit in the grocery cart. They do not like to hear her cry and scold me if I let her cry too long (you know, like if I am taking 5 seconds to go to the bathroom when she wakes up from her nap).


Tim is pretty sure he will never be able to say no to her. And I, well, I am quite humbled that I get to be this little girl's mommy.


Happy 3 months to our baby girl!

:: no words ::

I don't know how to put words to what I have been feeling the past several days...the grief and emotion I have felt from afar for a family I don't even know is very real.

This is how I feel.

This is where you can read of a man's love and loss.

Don't let this reminder of the fragility of life be wasted. Hold your loved ones a little tighter.

Pray for Chad as he trudges forward into his new reality these next days, weeks, and months.

:: captured ::

At times, the days seem to just go by in a rhythmic fashion: wake up, nurse, breakfast, nurse, play, nurse, lunch, nurse, naps, nurse, dinner, nurse, bed, nurse, repeat. I am reminded not to wish these days away. I am reminded that these precious children are growing and changing each and every day. I am reminded that I will miss these faces just like I miss the faces of my newborn boys, my crawling boys, my toddling boys. And it hurts; it makes it hard to breathe.

Winter in Ohio does this. Long days indoors does this. But in the midst of these days, weeks, months, I try to slow down the rhythm of routine and capture specific moments. I hold these captured moments so close to my heart: the faces of my boys at play, the smiles of my sweet baby girl, the wink of my hubby. I watch my boys' laughing silliness and freeze it. I watch as they kiss and cuddle their baby sister and I freeze it. I watch my husband melt when he holds his baby girl. I watch him tenderly teach and train our boys.

Moments. Captured.

Treasured.

a turning of the page

Around the time everyone else is winding down from the holidays, we are ramping up for birthday season! This year was particularly exciting because our firstborn son turned 5--a huge milestone!! It was a bit hard to swallow for me...and it kind of caught me by surprise! I was so busy with new baby transitioning and Christmas that it sideswiped me. The fact that he is growing up and becoming more independent is my greatest joy, but the fact that I am 'losing' that little boy, that little face, that transformed me into a momma is, well, tearfully overwhelming!

Mason had his first 'kids' birthday party at the firestation. It was a lot of fun -- Tim dressed up and gave a big tour to the wide-eyed kids. Levi turned 3 on January 24th. We celebrated at El Campesino and then back to our house for cake and ice cream.

And here is our growing girl at 10 weeks:

More soon. Oh so hard to blog with 3 kids!!!