bad breath i guess?

Tonight I found out that Addelyn confided in him the other day that "Mommy needs to shower her mouth." She also asked me why my breath smelled funny tonight. Nothing like a three year old to be very very honest!

so thankful

Sometimes I focus so much on our blog about the kiddos I forget to mention what a great hubby I have. Crazy to think how life has changed so much in these five years of marriage so far. Now we have two kids, weird! He is a wonderful dad who continually surprises me with how great he is with the kids and also what a partner he is in life. He is the guy that gets up at night to swaddle Jace after I feed him (mostly because he does it better, which means better sleep!), who takes the kids outside to play while I take a nap, and who I can still have a great night out with- watching the Nadas and getting pizza at 1 am. Love it. I actually have a picture of the two of us- from my cousin's wedding four weeks after having Jace- in front of the state capital. I love my husband!

she leaves a trail....

Whenever Aunt Jiller visits, Addelyn's favorite thing to do is to go through Jill's purse. It is FULL of treasures, plus she allows it (Mom doesn't). See the lovely trail that spread through our dining room?

generations

Papa Marvin taking a nap with Jace

Nonnie Lora Kramer

Grandma Stewart and Great-Grandma Stewart at Nate's wedding (and other fam all around)

Grandma Stewart

Quinlan side- Mark, Nonnie Kathy, and Papa Tom

Great Grandma Kramer

Hoskinson side- Mark & the kids with Papa Dar, Papa Dean, plus Papa Tom too!

I don't have pictures of all of the family and generations on this post but I have captured a few since Jace was born that I'm thankful for.

first bottle

Crazy to think it is only a matter of weeks before I head back to work. I decided it was time to try out a bottle to make sure this little boy will be open to taking one! Big sister Addelyn has been WAITING for this moment. She loved giving him the bottle and has asked every day since when she can do it again! He did take it pretty well so that is good news.
By the way, check out the rolls on Jace's arms. Impressive huh? He is eating and growing well. Seven weeks old now. Times flies but Mark and I agreed tonight- he is such a good little baby boy and really has been an easy baby for us so far. I'm thankful for my kids. Pretty amazing how you can't imagine loving the second as much as the first but yet you find yourself overflowing with love for them too!

one day apart

Our good friends had a little girl the day after Jace was born. Remember the pic of the preggos from our small group? Slowly but surely, those babies are being born! Myka is a sweet little girl who came home to two fun older brothers. Boaz (Myka's oldest brother) is only two months younger than Addelyn. The top picture is of the two babes at the hospital during their stay after they were born. The bottom one is when they were a few weeks old. Aren't they sweet? It will be fun to watch them grow up together!

church

We didn't go to church for about a month after Jace was born. I was in a mode of trying to have as much home time for our family that I could before truly jumping back into the real world again. Addelyn told my mom the other day that "we don't go to church anymore." We did head back last week, no worries. Gotta love how she picks up on things.

car talk

Addelyn and I had a great conversation in the car this morning, as we talked about what it means to show someone you love them. Ever feel like you are getting deep with a three year old and then, wait, you remember- they are a three year old!?

Addelyn: (out of the blue this conversation started) "Mom, I love you. I love Dad. I love Jace. I love my friends."
Me: "Addelyn, what are ways you can show someone you love them?"
Addelyn: "Play with them."
Me: "Yep! Spending time together is a great way to show someone you love them. How else can you do that?"
Addelyn: "Um, you could share with them....you can tell them 'I love you'.....or when you get older, you can jump over fences!"

one month

This first month of Jace's life has FLOWN BY! He is already 10 lbs, 13 oz. (We had a doctor appointment yesterday because sad to say, the little buddy already has gone through his first cold). I was concerned about it moving into his lungs so we went to get it checked out. He is a good little baby. Sleeping and eating is going pretty well. Some nights are better than others. He loves to snuggle up on my chest- it is one of his favorite places to be or he likes to be in a special "football" hold that only Mark does with him. He seems to respond well to his sister- who is often hanging out only centimeters from his face. Unless she bugs him too much- then he isn't a fan.
Crazy that one month can go by and I already can't imagine what our life was like without him!

photo updates

Just some pics of Jacers from his first month of life!

Happy July 4th! Crazy that Addelyn wore this little shirt when she was six months old. I think (and hope!) it has shrunk.

Chillin' with my Dad

This boy has the WIDEST, most alert eyes
(gotta love these eyes staring at you in the dark at 3 a.m.)



Mom and Jacers taking a snooze (oh I need to do this more often)

Love this pic!

"quiet time"

Oh Quiet Time. Quiet time has replaced nap time at our house. Some days Addelyn is having a very hard time napping so we are trying "quiet time." Each day she has to spend some time in her room- either napping or playing by herself. Some days quiet time turns into trouble. Although I have a baby monitor on- and would think I can hear every move she makes- this girl is stealth. The other day it was so quiet upstairs I assumed a nap was happening. Until Addelyn came down to tell on herself (the best part- she tattles on herself!) She had her fingers covered with band aids, my headband on, and her mouth filled with cough drops. I immediately knew it was going to be trouble. She had gotten into our closet that holds toiletries/towels/etc. I went upstairs to find the messes below. She had used her bathroom stool, climbed up the shelves, and got into the medicine basket. Before you get worried, she didn't open any medicine....it was scattered all over though!

Every single Dora band aid was used. Both baby and Addelyn were covered!

The medicine mess....

Proof of the destruction (plus the cough drops in her mouth)


Oh this little girl. These are the words I would use to describe her. Creative, innovative, a visionary, inspired.....should I go on?

pool time!

One of my goals for my kids is that they would be strong swimmers. I have never been a strong swimmer myself and water still always makes me a bit nervous. I can swim enough to save my life but I'd rather not jump off diving boards! It all goes back to third grade when a mean kid dunked and held me under at the pool. So to fulfill this goal for my kids, we will be spending summers at the pool! This summer has been no exception- although since Jace has been born- it has mostly been Mark and Addelyn hitting the pool. This week was the first time for Jace and I to venture out to the pool since he has arrived. In the picture above, you can see some of our summer "pool crew!" We love to go to the pool and see our friends there. Of course, the kids weren't excited about this pic- it was right before we were all leaving.

I love these kiddos! I had to laugh at these poses as they got ready to go swimming. Addelyn was so proud to sit next to her brother for his "first swimming suit picture."

My sweet little pool goers

Take 1....

Take 2....

Take 3....

Okay, the photo shoot was officially over.

blogging for books

I'm so much better at getting things done when I have a commitment or a deadline. Don't know why, it just is part of who I am. So I'm trying something new, I think it will keep me reading new books! I signed up to do blog reviews over books I read. They send you a free book- you read and review it on your blog. You have 90 days to do it- which is not a hard time commitment! I'm kind of excited......Anyone else interested in joining me? Be on the watch, I'll be starting my first book in the next few weeks.

http://www.waterbrookmultnomah.com/bloggingforbooks/