Happy 1 month

   ~ Dear Emersyn Kate ~

I can't believe you're 1 month old already!  You are a sweet, cuddly little peanut.  I was running on adrenaline the 1st two weeks, but have been pretty tired the past 2 weeks.  Your Daddy stayed home from work the 1st week after you were born and then Nana Sally came and stayed for 16 days.  She was amazing!  We survived our 1st week at home, just you, me, and the boys, and actually did pretty well.  

You are about 7 lbs 10 oz or so and 21".  You still wear newborn clothes and diapers.  You are sleeping about 4 hour stretches at night, sometimes less.  You're usually only fussy when you're hungry.  You eat about 7-8 times per day.  You're nursing pretty good, you're pretty pokey and tend to fall asleep easily and sometimes it takes 1-2 hours to get a good feeding in.   I just started pumping and you had your first bottle from that a couple of days ago.  You only snapped out of the newborn sleepiness a few days ago, so you're awake a little longer now.   Morning time is usually your most awake time and your fussiest time.  You're still sleeping in the rock and play next to my bed.  You are quite a noisy sleeper, sometimes I wonder if there's a chipmunk or piglet next to me.  Your hair is strawberry blonde and you have deep, pretty navy eyes.  You are definitely looking like your Daddy.  You have long skinny legs and long skinny feet and toes.  Your umbilical cord just fell off a couple of days ago.You really like your paci.  

We can't kiss you enough!!  Both of your brothers love holding you, kissing you, and helping to get diapers and wipes.  Beckett is especially obsessed with your eyes, ears, nose, and likes to poke at you, if given the chance.
Long wing span.  Nana Sally made you this beautiful blanket.  I absolutely love it and can't wait to see all your monthly pictures on it.

Posing for pictures is so exhausting!!  That's my bear from when I was a little girl.  We can't wait to see what your personality will be like - so far, you remind us a little of Hudson.  

We're still figuring out what to call you - Emersyn, Emersyn Kate, Emme, Emme Kate, Emma, Emma Kate, Kate, or Katie.  We'll see what sticks.  

You are our sweet, precious surprise baby - absolutely perfect addition to our family!  We're so thankful for you and love you so much!  I've been praying Philippians 4:8 over you since I was pregnant  "Whatever is true, whatever is noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things."

We love you so much!
Love, Mommy & Daddy

Fishing

Our church has a pond and lets people fish from it.  We decided to take Hudson fishing one evening.  Before Brian even got the bait on the hook, Hudson fell in.  He was practicing casting and slipped and fell in the muddy water.  

We had a hard time pulling him out we were laughing so hard.  

He was a muddy mess!

I can't remember what this picture was about

Finally, after about 30 minutes, Hudson caught a fish!  He was really proud of that little fish and REALLY wanted to take him home and eat him, but we talked him into setting it free again.  

Summer fun!

Quick Indiana trip

A couple of weeks ago, we made a quick trip up to Indiana to celebrate our 2 niece's and nephew's birthdays.  They had the party at the local park.  We had a lot of fun celebrating all of them.

My boys, my Dad, and my Grandpa

All of the grand kids on my side

My mom and all the grand kids

First Day of Preschool

Yesterday was Hudson' first day for preschool at our church.  He was super excited and ready for drop off.  He walked right in, sat in his seat and said, "Bye, Mom."  Que the tears - from me, not him.  When I picked him up, he said he had a great day.  He answered a rule question correctly and got to pick a toy out of the treasure chest.  He chose sunglasses.  

He is such a little sweetie with a tender heart, and has so much love and compassion.  On the way to school we prayed that he'd have a great day and learn lots and he added, "God, some kids may need to go to time out.  Amen."

3 years 9 months -I'm bummed this one is a little blurry  

So full of personality!

My attempt to get a picture of my boys

One last attempt - I couldn't quite get the picture I was going for, but that's okay.

Past couple of year:

2014

2 years 9 months

2013

21 months

Visiting Friends

A few weeks ago, our good friends came back from Michigan for a quick visit.  We've missed them these past 18 months, but they seem to be really happy there.  We had a great time hanging out. 

Chillin' in Patrick and Virginia's backyard 

Patrick found some big sheets of cardboard and all the guys ran the kids around the yard on them.

Redneck fun

I love all the kid's faces in this picture, especially Beckett's.  They had a blast!

We miss our friends again.

Quick Update

Well, we moved last Wednesday, so things have been crazy busy here!  Our internet is finally back up, but still no tv.  I haven't missed anything since we've been busy unpacking and working on the new house.  

We were incredibly blessed that our house sold immediately after it was on the market, and we and had multiple offers, so it couldn't have been any easier.  We LOVED the location, but really wanted something bigger.  We had the best neighbors and really enjoyed our two years there.  

These pictures were taken a couple of days before we moved.  I let the boys play with shaving cream and the hose.  

"Boys.  Nouns with dirt on them." 

Beckett enjoyed tasting the cream.  I can't get him to eat too many veggies, but he'll gladly eat shaving cream.

Hudson wanted every inch of his body covered.  I love this picture of him, it really shows off just how happy he is.  

We're going to miss that backyard.  

Bluegrass Fair 2015

Yesterday we went to the Bluegrass Fair.  It was a lot of fun.  It was kid's day, so we went with a group and got in for $7 total and spent $3 on 3 corn dogs.  We had a blast for only spending $10.  It was the only day in the past 30 days that didn't rain and was in the upper 70's, so it really couldn't have been any better.  

Such a sweet time with friends

Hudson, Mollie, Isaac, and I rode the Ferris Wheel together

Hudson and me riding a spinning ride- nearly did me in, I felt kind of nauseous, got a bad headache, and was sick the rest of the day

Hudson was such a big boy and rode a lot of rides by himself

Jen took him on a roller coaster and he had a blast!  Poor Mollie looks a little scared

The four littles waiting their turn

The Skateboard Ride- also spun and made me a little sick --When did I get old?!

Such a fun time.  We could have stayed a lot longer, but Beckett was done after nearly 3 hours, he hung in there pretty well.  He passed out the minute we got in the van.

This fair is so different than the Cass County Fair in Indiana that I grew up going to.  There weren't any livestock or  Merchant buildings or Pioneer Days.  It was simple, but fun.