what i love!!!!

Not that I'm biased, but isn't this THEE cutest little head ever?!

He had woken up from a nap and I brought him down, G looked at him and said, 'mom, I think his head has gotten a little bigger since his nap."

The cutest little profile shot. aaahhhh, he is so sweet.

I love the colors in this picture and how sweet little B looks.

I adore this picture and his little wrinkly forehead... when he looks up at me and is all wrinkled, it gets me every time

Soft little tootsies

This is one of my favorites. It is just so baby sweet to me.

I just love this picture. I wasn't going to put all the kids in the picture, but I wanted all their feet. But this is how it is here- no one can keep their hands off of our new little one.

What I cherish about new babies

the way they smell

the softness of their little cheeks and necks

their dark, never-ending eyes

their little cooing sounds and noises

their tiny little lips

tiny little hairs on their arms and shoulders

how dependent they are

their calm moments when they get lost in your gaze

when they are crying and calm down when you pick them up

when they stretch and their whole back arches and little chest sticks out

the peace they bring with their arrival

2 1/2 week check up

7 lbs. 10 oz.

20 1/2 inches long (is it possible to shrink 1/4 inch?)

What a GREAT day!

Happy Birthday G!

I can't believe you are 5!

WOW!

Your birthday is finally here! You have been looking forward to this for MONTHS! You even had me make a chart when there was still 45 days left so you could cross one day off every day.

When you were born, you had to spend some time in the ICU. Since then, you haven't missed a beat. You LOVE to run, climb, laugh, and go go go!

I love this picture because you could climb anything, even before you could walk.

You were so pleased with yourself!

This is a picture of you 'gliding', like buzz lightyear. you are so disappointed that you will never be able to truly fly.

Some things about you right now are;

the color red

playing with ALL toys

laughing

climbing

trying to parachute off of things

still very picky with eating

spelling words

painting

playing games

jumping on the tramp

SWIMMING!

some funny things you have said lately;

i'm going to hydrate ben's buns (instead of vibrate-when he was in the bouncer-

going to the statue of liverty (instead of liberty)

a girl in my class has diapitas (instead of diabetes)

You are one of the happiest and fun loving kids I know! You add so much to our family. You are so tender hearted and always think of others. You always make sure j and K and B are taken care of. The cutest thing you said today was, 'My birthday wouldn't be a birthday without B being born.' we love you so much G! thanks for adding so much to our family!

cant get enough

What we've been enjoying lately....

Sleepy little faces

Bright eyes looking around

Big sleepy yawns

Peaceful dreams...

Sweet little faces

We have really been enjoying our sweet new little one.

He is so perfect. The kids love him so much!

He is such a sweet addition to our family.

Our sweet little one

The anticipated arrival of our new little one finally came Thursday night!

The kids have been asking for MONTHS now how much longer and their wait was finally over!

7 lbs. and SO sweet. we really can't get enough of him

I LOVE all of these pictures of the kids taking their turns holding their new brother.

They each have the HUGEST grins!

K was probably the most excited of all the kids. He would say to me multiple times a day, 'mom, I am so excited for our baby to come!'

He is really going to be a great big brother.

G just loves him SO much!

Before he was born, and as I was leaving for the hospital, he patted my stomach and said, 'I can't wait for you to come here. I love you.' He is so sweet.

When he saw him for the first time he said,

'Is this the smallest baby in the whole world?'

AND the other day when we were getting ready for dinner, he carried the high chair to the table and put it by his spot and said, 'i want the baby to sit by me'

AND each time he goes to hold him, he puts his hands together and spreads his elbows apart, and 'gets into position.' It is so funny!

He also keeps asking if he can crawl or walk yet...

He can't wait to show him a thing or two.

I also love this picture because of everyone's hands. This is how it is ALL day long. They can't keep their hands off of him. From the second he is awake until he goes down for his nap, the kids take turns holding him. We just rotate through them each multiple times.

I thought this was cute, our friend watched our kids ALL day and NIGHT while we were waiting. She had the kids make these cute flowers for us. They were so excited to give them to me. I just love them!

Headed home from the hospital after a long first day of life. He is so sweet!

There is nothing like a new baby. They are so perfect, sweet and loving! We love having him in our home. I want to freeze every second because they just grow and change so much. He is truly surrounded by love. Welcome home little one!

Should I be worried?

First off, I have to start by saying I LOVE THIS GIRL!

The other day, after we had had dinner-

thank you Domino's Pizza-

J went upstairs and was up there for a while.

She came down about 10 minutes later looking like this......

I look at her and say, "J, did you get into my make-up?"

Without missing a second and with a dead-pan look that any poker player would be jealous of, she quickly replies,

"NO mom, it's just pizza on my face.'

No feelings of remorse and regret, just a bald face lie. If she can lie so well and 3, I think I'm in for it. We had a little chat about always telling the truth, even when we are scared or nervous about getting in trouble. But really, how can I get mad at a face as cute as hers?

As a side note, she proudly wore her make up all night long.

Our 4th, well, actually 3rd......

We celebrated the 4th on the 3rd and we had a great day.

Of course, we ended the night with fireworks, the kids loved the sparklers, except for G. He said he remembered getting burned by one. I don't really remember this, but he as adamant and wouldn't touch them.

All the kids lined up and ready for the spectacular showcase.

okay, this wasn't one of ours, but we had 3 other people lighting off HUGE fireworks around us, it was GREAT!

We started the morning off with a parade that one of my cute friends does every year. The kids decorated their bikes and then rode up the street. Afterward there were popsicles and a flag ceremony. It was a great start to our day.

What 4th would be complete without a little water.

We had to get out our pool and water balloons.

The kids were ecstatic!

The kids were battling with their fountains, which they quickly decided were fireworks.

We ended the night with homemade raspberry ice cream and flag cake.

Oh, so delicious!

A great day to remember all those who have sacrificed so much for us. I am honored by those who have fought and are fighting to preserve our freedoms and ensure our country's safety.

raspberries

I LOVE RASPBERRIES!

This pregnancy has only heightened my love for these little delicious berries of goodness.

We found a place near our house that lets the kids pick them. Last week, when it wasn't a HEAT wave, we went. We picked 3 lbs of raspberries and got a pint of blueberries for a mere $9.00.

They were SO delicious!

Needless to say, they are gone and we need to go back for more.

The kids LOVED picking these!

Dont worry my little delicious friends, we will be back..

knoebels

We visited this great amusement park. No admission, no parking fee, just pay for what you want to ride on.

G was SO excited that he hit the height requirements for the roller coasters. This was his first roller coaster ride, he has been waiting for 2 years!

He had to get a picture-and of course, giving himself bunny ears.

C said he asked if he could keep his hands in the air the whole time, which he did until they hit the down hill and then he grabbed on and screamed. He is a brave little one!

A ride on the mini roller coaster.

This was J after she fell off a bench and landed face first in the gravel.

The kids were so excited for the bumper cars- they kept asking where they were.

cooking out

One night, we went to a local state park and cooked out. The kids were so excited, they thought they were camping.

G loved this chair and wanted a pic of himself in it.

doesn't get much better than marshmallows and smores

After eating, we went looking for salamanders. I think the kids forgot what we were looking for and just enjoyed hiking up through the river.

I kept thinking J was going to fall in the river. She lacks on coordination and it was getting a little deep, luckily she made it through okay.

I love being in the outdoors!