Last weekend Reese went to a fairy tea party. She was happy to have some girl time with some of her friends from school. The birthday party was crazy. There were balloons all over the entire house. The mom had lots of fun things planned for the girls.
They got glitter spray in their hair and tattoos on their faces and arms.
Reese said she loved the party…it was the best party ever!
Tuesday we finally got around to getting our Easter Eggs dyed. The kids were super excited about it.
Both kids were happy to help. They loved seeing the eggs change colors.
As the week went on the kids had several egg hunts throughout the house. They would take turns hiding and finding the eggs. Reese would get so frustrated with Sam because he would be so excited he would tell her where all the eggs were. But then she would turn around and do the same thing with him.
Thursday Sam had his class party and egg hunt. He was super excited to have Hayes and me come to his school to celebrate.
When the parents first arrived the kids had a special Easter snack.
And then it was time for the hunt. Sam’s teacher is just amazing!! I am timid to say this but I think she is my favorite preschool teacher so far. We loved all of Reese’s teachers but there is just something about Mrs. Marie that is extra special. She does so many amazing things with Sam’s class and they are learning SOOO much.
She bought all of the kids these cute buckets to collect eggs in. Sam and Davis were both excited to get outside.
When the kids got outside, Mrs. Marie tried to get them all to line up on the wall before running out there but the kids were too excited to be held back.
Sam ran up to me afterwards and said, “Look how many eggs I found. I found a lot! Take a picture of my eggs.”
We tried to get a picture of all the kids together…this was the best we could do. They couldn’t wait to see what was in their eggs.
Today, Reese’s class is having their egg hunt. Inside their eggs they will find money. Once they get back inside they will count their money and then get to spend it on goods and services being sold in their classroom store. I can’t wait to hear all about it and see what Reese’s decides to spend her money on.
Happy Good Friday!
"God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son."
- John 3:16
"Jesus said to her, 'I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.'"
- John 11:25-26
On St. Patrick’s Day, the kids wore their green to church. The only pictures I got of them was at lunch after church.
They kept trying to make silly faces so I told them if they would smile pretty then they could do a silly face next.
Sam has on green shorts…
Even Hayes-y Baby has on his green. His shirt says, “Mommy thinks I’m charming”. It was Sam’s, size six months, so it was a little snug but it got the job done. I rolled the long sleeves up because it was so warm that day.
They all looked so cute! I need to do a better job about getting pictures of them all together.
Reese has always been my shadow. Every where I go, she goes. When I was pregnant with Sam, several people told Lance that once the baby was born Reese would become a Daddy’s girl and be his little shadow. Well, Lance waited and waited for that and it never happened. She still wanted me to do everything for her and remained my shadow.
Now, Lance’s time has come. He has a little buddy that wants to do everything he is doing. Sam always says that he is “Daddy’s best buddy”. Last Saturday Lance got up and headed to Home Depot first thing in the morning. Sam jumped out of our bed (yes, he still comes in our room every night) and said he wanted to go too. So, off he and Lance went to get him dressed. When they came back in our room they were little twins. They both had on Tech sweatshirts and hats with their shorts and tennis shoes. It was too cute and Sam was so excited to get to go to Home Depot with his best buddy.
As Hayes gets bigger, we are pulling out new toys for him to try. The other day while I was doing laundry and putting laundry away I pulled out the door jumper for him to try. He is still a little to small and wobbly for it but he seemed to enjoy it. Once Sam decided it would be fun to spin him around, I took him out to save his life. Ha!
Wednesday I put him in the Bumbo with one of Reese and Sam’s favorite toys when they were little. He played with all the buttons and watched the flashing lights. But Sam was in the room so he was a little more entertained by his big brother.
Shortly after I wrote his four month post, Hayes finally got the rolling from belly to back down. Now he will roll all over and around the floor.
The only problem is when he gets stuck he can’t figure out how to start going back the other way. He just gets mad that he has bumped in to something. He usually starts on his activity gym and then starts rolling.
Sweet little Sam had to get tubes in his ears again. One of the tubes came out at a visit to the ENT last year and the other was still there but trying to come out. Every visit to the ENT (every 6-8 weeks at this point) brought news of fluid on his eardrums and machine tests would show he wasn’t hearing much. However, at every hearing test (where they put you in the sound proof room) he would pass with flying colors so I wasn’t too worried about hearing. In September I asked if we should go ahead with a replacement because I was terrified of going in to the winter with a newborn and a three year old with constant ear infections. They didn’t want to rush things and suggested we wait. Eventually they decided it best to replace them.
Yesterday was the big day. Unlike last time, we had to wait until 1:00 for his surgery. He couldn’t eat anything after midnight and he couldn’t drink anything after 9:00 am. He was so good about this. He only told us once that he was hungry and even then it wasn’t a complaint…it was just a fact.
We had to arrive at 11:00 so he played lots of games to entertain himself. After taking the pain medication they took him to the treasure box. He picked out two airplanes that turned in to robots. He played with them the full hour we were in the pre-op room.
He also watched a little Max and Ruby while we waited. He told Lance he wanted him to take him back to the operating room. But once the nurse came in and said it was time to go he changed his mind. He wanted me to carry him there. He did get down once so he could push the button to make the doors open.
He did so well. He did exactly as he was asked. I told him the night before everything that would happen and showed him pictures from the blog post I wrote from the last time so he was pretty prepared. He was a little nervous the whole time but never once fought to do anything. When they put the sleepy mask on him his little face looked like it wanted to cry. Finally he was asleep and they walked me to the post-op room. About twenty minutes later they wheeled him in. He slept for about twenty more minutes.
His head rolled off the pillow and his eyes shot open. He immediately reached out to me with wild eyes and started to stand up. I picked him up and he ripped the blood pressure cuff off of his arm. He was done! He woke up a lot easier this time than he did last time. He asked for a milk shake (which Lance had promised earlier). We told him he had to wait for the ride home to get that but that he could have some apple juice and a snack. He finished the apple juice very quickly and ate some peanut butter crackers. Finally we could leave and by the time we were to the car you would have never known he had been in surgery an hour before. He had a great afternoon and by dinner time he needed to be outside running around. He had a lot of energy that had not been released. He slept great last night and is at school now. He just amazes me!
When Sam was four and a half months old I compared his pictures to Reese as the same age. This is the collage I made below.
And here is Hayes at 4.5 months.
There is no doubt that these three are siblings. They all have similar traits but definitely each have their own looks.
Whew! Our weekend was busy! Friday started our whirlwind weekend off with a bang. It was Aunt Becky’s birthday! She turned 30 so we had a little cookout celebration at her house. I picked Reese up from school and headed straight out to my parents house. I am glad we left when we did because traffic was already bad and it took us a while to get there. My dad was already home from work so we hung out with him and my grandma for a little while. It was such a beautiful afternoon! The kids played outside for a little while. They love to look for the fish in their pond. The fish were still in hiding so they couldn’t find any. Since it was so pretty outside I wanted to get a picture of all of the kids. I got one picture of them and my camera died. I am so bad about keeping it charged.
Finally it was time to head to Aunt Becky’s house to celebrate her birthday. The kids were super excited to see her and every one else! We all had fun and were so happy to celebrate with Becca and friends and family. We changed the kids in to their pajamas for the ride home so everyone went straight to bed when we walked in the door.
Saturday morning was a little rough start but we finally got ready and headed to Reese’s soccer game. She had pictures before her game so we had to get there a little early. That was ok though because the weather was beautiful all weekend.
These pictures are actually from last weekend. Sam loves to wear Reese’s button for her game.
For some reason several of the girls just weren’t feeling it this weekend and did not want to play. That left no subs. Reese played her little heart out and had fun.
As long as she is having fun, we are happy!
This weekend we all got a little sun except for Hayes. He stayed in the stroller under the umbrella most of the time. He loves being outside and sits in the stroller quietly taking it all in.
After soccer we came home for lunch and then naps. We all needed them after our late night…everyone but Lance. He worked hard out in the yard all day. We ended up having pizza and a movie night Saturday night since we didn’t get to on Friday night.
Yesterday we headed to church and then had lunch with a guy from church afterwards. It was a quick lunch because I had a tennis match. I was supposed to be there at 2:30. I fed Hayes really quickly before I left and gave Lance instructions for a bottle to feed Hayes with later in the afternoon if I wasn’t back in time. Hayes has taken a couple of bottles no problem so I wasn’t too worried. Unfortunately he was not interested in a bottle at all yesterday. Since I was playing line five and there were only two courts available, I had to wait for at least three other lines to finish playing before I could play…and they went three sets each. I didn’t get to go on the courts until after 5:30 and then we went three sets!! It was a long day for Lance at home with all three kids…one who wouldn’t eat for him. I got home around 7:30 and Hayes had fallen asleep but within minutes of me getting home he woke up crying and I quickly fed him. He was much happier after that. I think we all slept great last night!
Reese and Sam like to help around the house…if it is their idea. For instance, if I am changing Hayes’ diaper downstairs and ask them to take the diaper to the trash, they both say no. But! If I say, “Who wants to be my helper?”, they both run to me to help. They actually will fight over who gets to take the diaper to the trash.
Since we have started feeding Hayes cereal, Reese always asks if she can feed him. Early on the cereal was too runny for her to help. It would have been all over everything by the time they were done. Once the cereal was thicker, we let her help.
I think Hayes enjoyed having his big sister feed him and I know Reese was in heaven getting to feed him. This might actually come in handy as he starts eating more. She could be feeding him while I am making dinner or doing the dishes!
Each afternoon Reese has homework. We usually try to get this done as soon as she gets home from school. This way she is still in school mode and we make sure we have time to get it completed. If we didn’t do it right away it would not get done later in the evening.
The first thing she usually does is write in her journal. She can write about what ever she wants. She writes her 3-4 sentences and then draws a picture to match her story. Some days she writes about what we have done over the weekend or the day before. Some times she makes stories up. This is her favorite homework assignment.
She also brings home a book from her class library that she has to read. Some days she just doesn’t want to read and it is a struggle to do this part of the homework. She also has a calendar of small things to choose from. These range from writing your name as neatly as possible five times to observing different things in the environment to counting to 100 by 5’s. We usually choose two items to do each afternoon.
Most of the time she is very good to sit down and get started on her homework. She knows that it is part of her day so she gets it done. Some days I look at her and can’t believe we are already at this stage with her. Slow down time, slow down!
This past weekend was a fun one. For weeks Reese has been asking if she could have a friend sleep over. She finally found a friend that said yes. Most friends were scared to sleep over at someone else’s house…much like Reese. Her friend Ashley said yes but I kept warning Reese that when she got here she might change her mind. I didn’t want Reese to be disappointed if it didn’t happen. Ashley came over just in time for pizza and a movie night. We watched The Lorax but the girls played much more than they watched. They were so silly but played great together!
While they were playing Ashley told Reese that she didn’t want to spend the night so we told her parents to come over around 9:00 to get her. Shortly after we made that call she decided she did want to spend the night so we called her parents again. Around 9:00 I was trying to put Hayes to bed and the girls told Lance they were ready for bed. Reese is always so tired on Friday nights so we usually stick with our school night bed time. Lance got them set up and then I went in to read them a story and turn out the lights. I headed to my room and was so surprised that Ashley was staying. About twenty minutes later I was downstairs doing some cleaning up and I hear crying and feet on the steps. Ashley was coming downstairs and said, “I don’t want to go to sleep but Reese said she is ready to go to sleep. I want to go home.” Reese was devastated. She was crying in her bed. We got Ashley sent home and then I had a talk with Reese. I told her that maybe she could try to spend the night at Ashley’s house next time and she shook her head no. I told her if she wasn’t willing to try then she couldn’t be mad that Ashley wanted to go home. I think she understood.
Saturday morning we woke up and started getting ready for our day. Right before we were about to leave we saw that it was snowing. It was just flurries that weren’t sticking but the kids were so excited and wanted to get out in it. They played outside while we got everything ready to go.
The kids and I headed to a gymnastics birthday party while Lance headed out to help some friends who just moved.Reese had a blast at the party and Sam had fun doing his own thing. After the party was over, the kids and I headed to meet up with Lance and we spent the rest of the day with our friends in their new house.
Sunday was a normal day. That night we decided to try out some rice cereal for Hayes. He loved it. He acted like we had been keeping it from him his whole life. He has done great with it ever since. Such a big boy.
Today Hayes had his four month well check.
Here are his stats:
*16 pounds, 14 ounces (78%)
*25 3/4” long (77%)
*head circumference: 16 1/4” (37%)
I thought for sure he would weigh more than he did. I was fully expecting to go in and see that he was off the charts. Good to know he is pretty average.
He got one shot and was not happy about that. With the nurse and doctor he was so smiley and happy but once he got the shot he cried and cried. It was almost as if he looked at the nurse and said, “What did I ever do to you? I gave you smiles and flirted with you and you go and poke me with that mean needle!”. It was just pitiful. He didn’t stop crying until we were on our way home. I think it really hurt his feelings. The rest of today he was been his sweet, smiley self and taken some great naps.
Sam always says, “Hayes is my best buddy”.
Reese tells Hayes he is her best brother.
They really are so sweet with him. I just love it!
How is it March already?? Hayes-y Baby is four month old today. And he is growing like a weed! We don’t have his check up until next week so I don’t know exactly how much yet.
He is sooo sweet! He is still super smiley and snuggly.
He is a rolling over machine. He can roll from his back to belly like a pro now. However, it is starting to interfere with his sleeping. Once he has rolled back to his back and I think that is what is frustrating him. He can’t figure out how to make that happen again.
He is also teething. His sweet little cheeks are red, he squeals out in pain occasionally, and isn’t eating as much. He loves chewing on Sophie the Giraffe.
We still have no schedule.
He is wearing size nine month clothes some now…he can still squeeze in to some six months but the nine months fit better.
He is also still in size three diapers. I think he will be in those for a little while…or at least I hope so.
![collage[4]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz3_fObs8O3YcApVQNmO51SzI9h7aeieBANUbPjzRN4-e8I8ITtPWKx8PeyE03OBEz4CYlY2t8X6YLLhfcJvkS9XuGwlMgjchkAUrSYhDjsQuOXf0MYPc1UkQzmsEluHkrLX0DyeNyLr8/s1600-h/collage%25255B4%25255D%25255B3%25255D.jpg "collage[4]")
