NYC and a 10 month old

Hattie turned 10 months old in New York City last month!  She was the best little traveler and loved taking in all of the sights via the bjorn and stroller.

Love that smile!!

I put a bow on her stat after she was called "handsome" in this onesie.

During month 10 it seems that our baby girl got so much bigger.  She just seems more mature to me, and she understands more.  She eats pretty much anything we give her, but she STILL only has her 2 bottom teeth! This makes eating a little more difficult, as I'm not trying to administer the heimlich with every meal.  Rhett was late with teeth also, and he had several very scary choking episodes, so we'll just stick to ground up spoon-fed foods and table foods like brown rice, puffs and melts for now.  I have been giving her a few soft cheeses lately. Hattie loves havarti! She can't shovel it into her mouth fast enough.  Thankfully she's now on board with avocados too!

This past month Hattie's voice became a little raspy.  She's also had a constant clear running nose.  I'm not sure if this is tooth related or allergies (my vote is the teeth), but I hope she gets her sweet little voice back. Dallas likes her rasp.

Hattie is all over the place, and her favorite escape is to the stairs.  She can climb all of the way to the top, so I have to hustle if the gate is down and she's been out of sight for more than 30 seconds.  She laughs and thinks it hilarious when I catch her in the act.

I was super stressed about traveling to IL with all three kids on my own last month.  I just wasn't quite sure how we would pull it off.  Thankfully it was an awesome experience and all three kids were wonderful for the entire 10 hours!  Hattie especially surprised me with her good humor and attitude.  I expected a lot of crying and stopping, and I was so wrong.

This baby cakes loves the water!  Loves it.  She gets so excited to get in that she kicks and squeals and makes tight fists and straight limbs.  She splashes and chokes on water and the whole bit.  I love it.  She  gets mad because I won't let go of her and she tries with wiggle out of my arms.  I started putting her in a floaty seat, but she was drinking too much water in that thing.

She also makes the funniest noises.  She's doing it to be funny, too.  It does crack me up.  She will make a silly noise and then proudly look from face to face to see who thinks she's funny.  Her little personality is really coming out this month.  I just love it to pieces.  It's so fun to see who she is.

We are still just cruising over here.  No solo steps yet.  Looks like Rhett is the winner of walking the earliest at our house.  I think Hattie still has a few months to go.  Maybe by a year?  I'm in no hurry..I love carrying her around everywhere.  I do.

Here are some pictures from our adventure to NYC.  We really had the best trip ever, and we loved the city. Given the right circumstances, I definitely think I could live there.   We had the pleasure of staying at my cousin's apartment, and it was so cool to experience life as a New Yorker would.  We stayed on the Upper East Side, and it was an easy commute to anywhere in the city.  We really did it all. We took full advantage of public transportation (cabs, subway, train, city busses), and we felt like we had it all down by the end of our trip.  We ate pizza, italian, vendor hotdogs and pretzels, the best burger we have ever had (Shake Shack), and shopped for groceries at a little upper east side neighborhood grocer.

Did you know that New Yorkers LOVE love babies?!  I have never had so many people compliment a child and talk to her.  It was super sweet and surprising to me.  I loved that about the city!

First train ride for these two!

911 Memorial --Ground Zero

Rockefeller Plaza

Little Italy

Amityville train station

Napping through the city

Times Square

Leaving for our last Day in the City

Top of the Rock

1st plane ride

How most of our pics turned out ;)

Empire State Building in the background 

The Boathouse restaurant in Central Park 

View of the Park

Little Italy 

Ready for another subway or train!  

Here's what we saw..

Empire State Building
Times Square
Waldorf Astoria
Top of the Rock
Rockefeller Plaza
Radio City Music Hall
Chrysler Building
Madison Square Garden
Guggenheim Museum
The Met
NYC Library
China Town
Little Italy
Ground Zero (super emotional)
Wall Street
Statue of Liberty
Tribeca
Central park (took a nice long run in the park)
Took a train from Union Station to Long Island

It was a fun and busy month with this sweet girl.  I love that we got to take a special trip with just the three of us.  The boys were living it up with my mom in IL. They would not have been amused by all of the looking at buildings we did in NYC :).

On this trip we also spent a day in KC with friends, a day in Chicago with different friends, 5 days in IL with my family, a couple of days in MO with my dad and a day at my sister's new house in MO.  It was a busy month! Hattie had a lot of City, State and traveling firsts. She was such a joy to venture with!

Summer fun.

Summer has been so much fun this year.  The boys have really been busy.  I didn't compile any special bucket list of summer things to do, but when I look back through my phone pics, we've had a pretty full and fun few months.

Picking blueberries with cute little pals

Juicing.. the boys love it!  I'm going to start giving it to Hattie soon, too!  Between the boys and I we had 6 full size carrots, half a lb. of spinach, 4 oranges, 3 apples and a pineapple with one juicing experiment.  They both beg for seconds every time.  

4th of July with friends.  Whip cream wars and a firetruck spray down! 

Braves game in KC, the boys..

The girls..

Many many days at the pool..two very silly boys.

My kids are big :(.

Library music shows and summer reading program.  

KAMPOUT!  

Soon the kids and I will be off to KS, the QCA, Chicago, NYC, MO and back home in August!  I'm getting so excited!!!  I just started planning our NYC activities, and we plan on doing pretty much every touristy thing there is to do there.  Eeek!  Here's to a full and exciting summer!

He is Faithful

Nearly two years ago we went through the scariest time of our lives with our sweet Rhett. It doesn't seem like it's been that long.  God saw us through the fear and and anxiousness, and He gave us a peace like neither Dallas or I had experienced before.  We were ready to conquer anything with Him by our side.  We imagined every possible scenario for Rhett's life, and we imagined complete healing as well.  We prayed, and you prayed, and churches in other cities prayed and we all agreed for healing.  We saw a drastic improvement and healing in his severely enlarged heart just a little over a month after we got the news of trouble.  Three months later, his heart had healed more.  6 months after that it seemed like nothing to worry about, and then a year later there continued to be good news from his echocardiograms..he was down to a mild-trivial level.  This morning he had his annual echo and ekg and I'm not a bit surprised to share with you that Rhett has a heart fully functioning at a NORMAL level.  With the regurgitation of any other child his age.  He was released from his annual appointments, and will go every five years to make sure there are no issues that arise from the Kawasaki business. God is so good.  He has been so very faithful to complete the work that He started in Rhett.  We knew he would be completely healed, it just feels so wonderful to have the report from the doctor as well.  Proof!  Our God still does miracles, and no one could ever convince me otherwise!

Read more about Rhett's journey with Kawasaki's Disease, enlarged heart, severe mitral valve issues and God's healing power  here, here, here, here, here and here.

Dal took him this morning and the rest of us met them there and got the good news in the parking lot.  Rhett had a lot to say about his appointment today..

"All of the good doctors were nice to me. They didn't give me any shots."

"They put glue on my tummy", me, "You mean goo?", "No, glue, and then stickers."

"They weighed how tall I was first"

"They told me to take my shirt off and I loved it."

"There were Ten-hundred toys to pick..sticky hands, balls, stickers..." 

Eating Crow

The other day my husband and I had an epiphany.  We were SUPER annoying one-child parents.  I'm pretty sure we thought we had the whole parenting situation figured out.  My sisters must have wanted to throat-punch me on more than one occasion.  I have spent the last 30 minutes sending apology emails to people who I likely offended when we just had Jude.

We had no clue what it was like raising more than one kid. How dynamics change and what you do to get by at times.  We knew what we were going for as parents, and by golly, everyone else should be on the same page as us. I don't think we ever thought of it that way or meant to be rude, it just seems that way now, looking back.   Little did we know that the addition of #2 and #3 changes everything.  Looking back, people with multiple kids probably just laughed at our antics and said things like, "just wait until they have more."  It all sort of goes back to that not so quick to judge post I wrote a while back.

Here are a few things I've learned about being a parent..

1. It's humbling
2. Most of the time things don't work out the way I plan
3. It's hard
4. Still the best job ever!

A few more things I've learned...Eat crow and humble pie and be thankful for friends and family who loved me through my annoyingness.  Surely they see I just wanted to be the best mom I could be. I still don't have a clue what I'm doing, but I've found that a lot of prayer and a lot of patience helps, a LOT!

I also love this post by Ashley Ann. I have read it over and over.  This is what I desire in friendships. I want to be the kind of friend that I desire in a friend.

Then I read this post and it made me cry.  I've made great strides at appreciating the little moments of the day to day, but this hits the nail on the head for me, and this is my prayer for my home.  Don't let me miss out on the mundane, Lord! Help me to de-clutter my life, prioritize better and not get so busy that my kids end up playing second fiddle.  Amen.

I'm so very thankful for these moments of clarity in my life.  That Dallas and I can sit back and realize how silly we were at times.  That neither of us are too stubborn in our ways to think we still have it all figured out, or that we ever did.

As long as all of these little squishy faces think we have it figured out, we'll be just fine;).

Mid-summer shenanigans

Summer is in full swing and hotter than heck!  We are enjoying it in and soaking up all of it's steamy goodness.. 

Pool baby

Checking out the stars with the Hay girls.  Fun night of dad's talking politics and Back To The Future, moms chatting and sipping drinks and kids running through the sprinkler, playing tag and star-gazing.  Neighbor friends are the BEST! 

 So thankful for him and proud of him always! He is working on a men's devotional right now that I'm so impressed with. He is always striving to be a better Christian, husband and dad, and I really couldn't ask for more.  

Bowling (trying to do something other than swim all day every day) 

This guy lost his first tooth the first few weeks of summer.

This kid seriously can't get enough baseball.  He begs to work on skills nearly everyday.  AND he has such a good daddy to say yes every time and teach him all he needs to know.  Such a blessing for me to see this.  

4 hours in the car with three kids will make any man crazy;). Rhett thinks his eyes are crossed.  

Had a sweet visit with old neighbors on our trip to KC.  Miss them dearly.

Of course we visited the farmstead.

The boys had a fever for more cowbell.

And they rode a horse or two.  

AND...the whole reason we drove to KC..the Braves were in town!!  It was a great game, tons of fans and the Bravos won!  Such a fun trip.  

A few more updates complete in our house this summer.  New entry fixtures and kitchen backsplash. I've had so much fun adding my own personal touches to this house. The more I do, the more I get attached to it.  Up next..getting rid of my tuscan kitchen walls.  

July holds a lot of firsts for us.  We are so excited to enjoy the rest of this summer, spend time with family and travel a bit more.  It's turning out to be a great one!  We are having fun creating memories for our kiddos.  We've pledged to spend more time just enjoying simple things and our time together.  To remove distractions and activities that are unnecessary from our lives and really spend time with our kids.  To put our phones down and just enjoy.  So far so good!  

9 months

This growing girl is just so stinking cute.  I just love to hear her babble and laugh and make her silly little faces.  Her personality is coming out in full force and I do believe she's going to give her brother's a run for their money!

She is loving to clap for herself these days.  She'll do something spectacular and we say, "YAY Hattie!" and she immediately stops whatever she is doing and starts clapping for herself.  We now have a crawler (6/11)!  She spent about a week getting up on her knees and a few days rocking back and forth, and then it happened.  Arms and legs in sync, and away she went.  The same day she crawled for the first time she also pulled herself up onto a pouf in the living room.  She was raised up on her knees and talking away the entire time.  She now crawls all over the joint and pulls up on everything.  The boys have really enjoyed watching her accomplish these milestones.  Jude especially will come running to wherever I am with some declaration of something Hattie has done.  It's sweet to see them appreciate her in this way.  They are proud of their girl.

We also have a major water baby in the house.  Oh my goodness.  I thought my boys loved the pool, but this girl takes the cake!  She just can't.get.enough.  She kicks and splashes and squeals and tries to lunge out of my arms the entire time we are in the pool.  It's fun and a little exhausting.  Especially while I'm attempting to keep Rhett alive in the water at the same time.  Hattie seems to have similar skin issues as Rhett.  She has broken out all over her body in rashes.  I haven't decided if it's the sunscreen, the sun or the heat at this point.  We shall see.  It looks miserable when it happens.  We can't have a child allergic to the sun in this house;).

Hattie has become quite the good eater.  She opens wide and appreciates every bite of her food.  I do think she has a bit of a texture issue though.  She doesn't appreciate my homemade meals as much as I had hoped, so we've mostly served up organic plum and earth's best baby foods.  They are quite convenient too, I might add.

Hattie thinks that sign language is hilarious.  She will smile and giggle when I sign things to her.  I'm hoping she'll start picking up the basics soon.  Right now we are working on 'all done, more, please and thank you'.

At the beginning of the month she was still waking up at least twice a night.  Once around midnight and again around 4:30. This changed about half way through eight months, and now she's down to once a night or not at all!!

She's still been wearing 6 month clothing, and much of it fits just right.  9 months is too big on her, but I have a feeling we will run into a fit issue come cooler weather.  She's so long and skinny-legged.  She'll probably be a leggings girl for this reason..fine by me! She's still in a size 3 diaper.  She weighted 17lbs at her 9 months check up and was in the 25th% for weight and 75th for height.

We took a family trip this past week and this girl did amazing on the way to KC.  The way back was a different story.  Poor baby.  I'm still not sure how I plan to make it to IL on my own with all three kids next month.  We did switch out her carseat this week to the big Britax (rear-facing).  I thought it would be more comfortable for traveling and a little less hot.  She got so hot in that carrier!  Now that it's situated in the car, it's staying there.

Itsy bitsy teenie weenie

Yay Hattie!  

A few days before turning 9 months.  

This is how we roll.  At the pool many a days a week.  

My favorite little pincher fingers.  One of my favorite milestones.

Very 1st Braves game!  She loved it.  

Such a happy baby girl.

1st Father's Day!  

The months just get better and better.  It's hard to believe in just 3 months my girl will be a year old.  Sigh.  

Martin Boy Update

Oh these little boys.  Do you ever feel like you are missing out on all of the goodness of your children? Because of busy schedules, to do lists, things to decorate, projects, the computer, etc..man do I.  Some days I feel so bad about the amount of time I actually poured into my children.  I'm so thankful for these little wake up calls.  That I can recognize the problem quickly and change my actions and priorities.  I have such a short amount of time with my kids.  So short.  I can worry about all of the other stuff later..seriously.

Look how big.

Jude is in VBS right now and has really done well.  He hasn't had any separation anxiety and is excited to go every day.  We are working on reading, writing and math this summer.  Nothing too serious, but enough to keep him prepared for first grade.  Today he wrote letters to grandma and grandpa.  They are adorable.  Yesterday he read books to Rhett and Hattie.  He's really getting good at reading.  We are also doing the summer reading program at the library, and he's having fun picking his own readers out. We are also working on reading and memorizing scriptures. We did this once before and kid's got a great memory!  I really need to stick with this.  Jude lost his first tooth last week!  Grandpa was in town to see it!  He was so excited.  I'm still not sure if the tooth was actually ready to come out or if it was wiggled just enough to make it loose;). We have one more baseball tournament next weekend and then this season is done.  It's been a great one! Jude continues to be a sweetheart.  Every once in a while he'll just say, "I love you, momma", out of the blue.  He's always thinking of others and constantly making sure he hasn't hurt someone's feelings.  I love that he's sensitive, but it makes it hard for him to understand when other's aren't the same way.

Rhett isn't in any camps this summer, but I do have him signed up for swim lessons next month.  I haven't been able to work with him myself as much as I'd like too.  It's too much with Hattie in the pool too.  He's done really well getting accustomed to swimming again, and he can swim!  I was amazed last summer when he was swimming at 2-1/2, but this kid is determined.  When he puts his mind to something, it's going to happen!  I really just want him to be a stronger swimmer and to work on some safety tactics with him.  Hopefully his instructor can accomplish that.  This boy loves to watch shows.  I'm having to limit his show time during the day.  We are having specific times for tv, time for reading, time for free play inside and play outside.  It's working well and the boys are getting used to this routine.  It keeps them doing something, using their imaginations and not watching too much boob tube.  Rhett makes this really funny slurping noise.  I don't know why, but it's funny.  I've caught it on tape a few times and I laugh every time he does it.

Both of my parents came to visit last weekend and that's all Rhett has been talking about.  The day my mom was coming I had him watching a moving in the office while I cleaned, and every 15-20 minutes he would come bolting out of the office screaming, "Grandma? Are you here?"  It was super cute, and only about 6 hours early.  After my dad left Rhett cried and talked about him often.  In the car I'd hear him talking to himself saying, "I love my Grandpa."  So sweet.  My dad took the boys on a magic carpet ride in the living room, and it was hilarious.  I'm certain Rhett thought this was going to be a real ride.  He frantically gathered up as many toys as he could hold to take with him and ran to the rug before it took off.  Fun times:).  I love how much my parents play with my kids.  It's all about the kids.

Here's to soaking up these boys this summer in their 3rd and 6th year.