June & July "Photoshoots": Finley, Jude, and Evi

As usual I'm super behind on posting and haven't done a great job of taking pictures of the kids.  My computer is totally overloaded and I continue to be two steps behind in uploading and backing up pictures so that I can delete off my laptop and free up room for more pictures to be added.

Here are a few pictures of the kids over the last couple of months!  I started writing "photoshoots" in quotes because honestly I think my photography skills are getting worse instead of better.  How is that even possible?????   I'm completely frustrated with this whole thing, but haven't had the time to figure out how to improve.  Boo.  I think I need to learn how to use photoshop...

A few facts about Finley:

• She is my Mini Me.  My Goose Honk.  My Pumpkin Pie.  She helps me more than she could ever know and is getting way too big way too quick!
• She is seriously good at legos and can put together sets that are meant for twice her age by herself.
• She is reading super well and has gotten a ton better at sounding words out until they make sense.
• She recently stopped having to wear pull-ups at night!  Hooray!  Finally, one of my three is out of "diapers."
• She loves to play with Jude and Evi in her room without any parents.  She turns the music up loud (it's like she is a teenager) and has a dance party with them.
• She has recently started being really selfless which is super endearing.  For instance if Jude cries because he wants to be in Finley's seat and I tell Jude that he can't sit there, Finley will say "It's okay, Mommy.  Jude can sit here.  I don't mind sitting somewhere else."
• She is very caring and intuitive and a bit manipulative to boot.  She is a girly girl one minute and a complete tomboy the next.  She is a complete conundrum and more beautiful than any girl has the right to be. 

This may be my favorite picture of him EVER!  I am so in love with it!!!!

A few facts about Jude:

• He is my Middle Little.  My Buddy Boo.  He is my Heart!  I adore this boy so much that it flat out hurts!
• He is totally making me feel bad about this post because he has been soooooo much fun lately!  I'm not sure if his previous mood was due to being TWO, the move, school ending, my lack of focus on him during the chaos that was April and May, or some combo of all of the above, but the past couple of months have been an absolute delight!
• He is all boy in so many ways and yet is very timid when it comes to new situations... He refuses to go down slides or venture into the Chik-fil-a play area without me by his side.  For some reason I always think of boys being dare devils and while in some areas he is, he definitely isn't in others.  It's fun to learn his personality in regards to this!
• He LOVES cars and trains and has them with him at all times.
• Whenever he is poopy, I will ask him "Jude, are you poopy?" and he always says "No, poopy!  Aavee (Evi) POOPY!"  It cracks me up.  He always blames her even though it usually him.
• He loves to color and to read.  Much more than I remember Finley loving it at this age.  In fact, I'm not sure I had even tried coloring with Finley at 2!  HA!
• He refuses to go down the stairs by himself even though he is perfectly capable.  He insists on being carried.  He usually makes me carry him and Evi down at the same time and says "Carry TWO babies!!!"  The way he says it is sooooooo stinkin' cute!
• He is really talking up a storm and repeating most everything we say.  I can't believe how much more he can say than just a couple of months ago.  I love that he can communicate better, but he thinks if we can understand him that our answer should be yes!  It's so funny!  It's like he thought we would tell him "no more cake" or "no tv" because we didn't understand him before.  It's so crazy cute!

A few facts about Evi:

• She is my Itty Bitty.  My Sweetie Pie.  My Baby.  My sweet little angel who still lets me cuddle her and almost always wants to be glued to my side!  She is a complete joy!
• She started walking around 14 months, but didn't really walk full time until 14 and half.  That is still our earliest walker to date and it's amazing how much she seems to have developed into a big girl now that she can walk.
• She is 15 months, but still in some 3-6 month clothes.  She's pretty much in the dreaded 6-9 month stage that I hate so much!  It's so hard to find 6-9 month clothes and 6-12 clothes (especially pants) are still quite a bit too big.  Thankfully, I seem to be able to dress her in 6-12 month tops and 3-6 month pants.  Unfortunately, most shirts in this size range are still onesies and most onesies are just not long enough for her torso.  Such dilemmas in dressing my little doll! HA!
• Even though she is tiny, she eats non-stop!  I seriously tire every day of feeding her.  It is pretty much constant.
• She loves her blankie!  As well as her brother and sister's blankies... she is often found stealing them!
• She can't stand to get in trouble.  If you even say the word "no" to her, she usually breaks into hysterical crying.  Let's hope this continues!  HA!
• She has no idea she is a little girl.  She attempts to do whatever her siblings are doing despite my demand that she be a baby! ;)

Happy 1st Birthday, Evi!

Evi Reece,

A year ago I held you in my arms and couldn't believe how tiny, perfect, and absolutely beautiful you were!  Here I am a year later and still can't believe how tiny, perfect, and beautiful you are!  I call you my sunshine so often because you really have been just an incredibly bright spot in my life over the last year.  I still feel a little spoiled to have you in my life and have to push away the "too good to be true" fears that creep in.  You really were an answer to so many prayers and I am so thankful that God brought them to fruition in you.

Throughout this past year I have found myself very protective over you... moreso than I was with either of your siblings.  There is something almost fragile about you and I am curious to see if this is really you or just my overly compensating nature.   I promise not to coddle you too much, but I also want you to always know that I am on your side and am always here for you.

I can't wait to see your personality grow this next year.  It has been such an amazing year of watching you grow and I know the year in front of us will provide even more excitement and joy.  I don't think I will ever tire of your sweet smile and cuddly arms.  Another year of them is heaven on earth!

You continued the tradition a year ago... being born on the 1st... the same as your mommy and your Grandma Pam.  I prayed so hard for you to be born on the first and am so thankful that you were!  I hope you will always trust that God cares about all the details and has every single day of your life planned with His purposes.  Thank you for being one of His greatest purposes for my life.

I love you, my sweet Evs!
Mommy

All About Evi: 4 Months Old

Dear Evi,
You continue to amaze me with how happy you are!  You smile and laugh constantly.  It takes little effort to get you to beam us your gummy full faced smile!  Those around us always marvel at your sweetness and we can't help but agree!  You are growing, but in so many ways you are still the same baby we brought home from the hospital... you are still alert, still sweet, still easy!  THANK YOU!

Here's what you are up to:

• You weighed 12 pounds on your 4 month birthday and at your doctor's appointment measured 25 inches... You're in the 10-25 percentile in weight and 75 percentile in length!  You are EXACTLY the same size Jude was at this age!  Finley was much smaller at this point, but I don't have her info in front of me!
• You are wearing 0-3 and 3-6 month clothing.  I have actually pulled out a few 6-12 month one piece outfits because you are sooooooo long that the 3-6 ones ride up a bit.  The 6-12 month outfits are big, but fit you in the length.  Really, you're just all over the place in sizes right now!
• You wear a size 2 diaper.
• You eat 6-7 times a day for 10-15 minutes each time.  You aren't sleeping through the night and are kind of all over the place with this as well.  Some nights you give me a 6-8 hour stretch and then some nights, I'm good to get 4 from you.
• You love your binkie!  And you have started to try to get it in your mouth on your own.
• You roll over constantly... in both ways.  You are pretty much mobile these days because you will just roll to wherever you want to go.  It's crazy!  Dr. K said you are advanced in this area! YAY!
• You have started to raise up like you are attempting to crawl.  Dear Evi, please remember that you are still a BABY.  There is plenty of time to learn to crawl!
• You are a blend of Finley and Jude.  As I was taking pictures of you for this post, I would take one and say "Wow, you look just like Finley!" and then click "Wow, you look just like Jude!"
• You love t.v.  Ugh.  I hate it, but it's true.
• You love to be swaddled.  And I usually need to swaddle you for naps now instead of letting you fall asleep on your boppie or in the swing.
• You really like your bouncy chair now that you can make it sing all by yourself.
• You love to lay next to Finley while she watches cartoons.  You just smile at her.
• You still take a bottle fairly well.  It usually takes you a bit to figure it out, but then you're fine.
• You are pretty bald.
• We haven't left you in the nursery yet at church or at MOPS.  I like having you with me and your feeding schedule still isn't routine yet.
• Your birthmark seemed to be getting lighter, but then is back to being fairly dark.
• Your eyes seem a bit more green these days... you still have these huge eyes that just sparkle.
• You have began to discover your feet.  You can't quite grab them yet, but you're trying.
• You have started grabbing mine and your sister's hair.
• You talk.all.the.time.  Especially when Jude and Finley aren't around.  You just coo and coo.
• I call you lots of names still, but Evi Lou is still my favorite.
• Your toes look like fingers.  They've always been long, but they seem to be getting longer!
• You like to stand up and your head control is getting better.
• You are a dream when I put you in the Ergo.  You just sleep and make my life soooo easy.
• You are just my amazing little girl!  Hard to believe a year ago I found out that I was pregnant with you and now you are four full months old!!!

Love,

Mommy

Sidenote... At Evi's four month appointment, Dr. K mentioned that he thinks Evi's birthmark is a spider hemangioma.  I have been paranoid from the beginning about her birthmark because I read that it could be indicative of a genetic disorder and even though I have had 5 doctors tell me that hers isn't, they have all used different terms to describe her birthmark... I think they all fall under the same umbrella of birthmarks, but it has been difficult not to know exactly what it is.  I've heard a lot of "It may be this..." "It may be that..."  "If it is this, it'll go away..."  "If it is that, it's permanent..."  I think "flaws" make us beautiful so I'm completely fine if it is permanent, but I went into Evi's appointment praying for some clarity on the situation.  I was so ecstatic when Dr. K told me that he thinks it is a spider hemangioma that will fade sometime between 9 and 12 months AND that if it isn't gone by the time she's a year, he will send us to an ENT in town that studied under one of the pioneers in laser dye therapy... something I have read a ton about over the last few months.  I was soooo excited to have a gameplan and to know that there is someone in our own area that could help treat it!  Oh, my beautiful girl!  I am so thankful for that sweet birthmark that makes you YOU and am even more grateful that it is completely harmless.

All About Evi: 3 Months

As usual I am so late in posting this!  I am so good at taking the picture on her "birthday" each month, but can't ever seem to get her post done on time!  Maybe next month?

Dear Evi,
You are truly my sunshine, little girl!  The clouds are definitely a bit gray in my life right now, but you make me smile again and again.  You are turning into the happiest of all of our babies so far.  You smile, coo, and laugh without any enticing and I know God gave you to me for this season just as an added reminder of His love and faithfulness.

Here's what you've been up to this month:

• You weigh 11 pounds 3 ounces and are now almost the same size as your brother (he was 11 pounds exactly) was at this age.  We didn't buy a scale for Finley until she was 4 months so I'm not sure how much she weighed at 3 months, but you are definitely bigger than she was since she was 11 pounds 7 ounces at 5 months.
• You are wearing 0-3 and just a few 3-6  month clothing.  I was very sad to pack away your newborn stuff, but also excited to put you in something NEW!  You are in size 1 diaper.
• I think you are starting to look a lot like Finley, but you and Jude resemble each other as well.  You can tell that the two of you are related even if you don't look just like each other.
• You love your binky more and more, but also like to suck on your hand if you can get it into your mouth.
• You can now pull and bat at the toys on your bouncy chair.
• You like the swing a lot these days.  You love the mobile.
• You are also enjoying the activity gym that I FINALLY pulled out for you.  You totally know that you can get the star to sing if you kick the bar.
• You love tummy time and will scoot your legs and act as if you are trying to crawl.  I'm not ready for that yet so you can take your sweet time, okay?
• You can stick your tongue out if we stick ours out.
• You like to make bubbles with your mouth.
• Your neck is super strong now and I call you turtle girl because of how high you push it out and up when you're on your tummy.
• You are able to roll over from your tummy to your back.
• Your birthmark is still on your cheek.  I really thought it was fading for awhile, but it seems darker now so I'm not so sure.  I continue to be anxious about it because I so don't want you to be self concious about it... you are sooooo beautiful!  I just want you to always know that!
• You can stand up.
• Your completely bald through one strip on the back of your head.
• You are enjoying the car just fine now.  For awhile, you were a little cranky about red lights, but you don't seem to mind them much these days.
• You are always moving.  ALWAYS.
• You don't mind bathtime at all.  You are much easier to bathe in the infant bathtub now that your neck is strong and you can hold your head up.
• We left you for the first time this month.  Miss Allison watched you while Daddy and Mommy went to dinner for their anniversary.  We weren't gone long and it was nice for us to get away!
• You don't like being a pirate when your headband flower is over an eye.  The downfall of looking girly.
• You seem to like books which I hope will only continue and grow!
• You are still nursing and have recently moved to 3.5 hours between feeds.  You eat for around 12 minutes each feeding.  I usually feed you 7 times a day.
• Even though you are our happiest baby, you are our WORST sleeper.  You are still waking up at least once a night.  You always give me a 5 hour shift, but sometimes 6 or 7.  At this age, that actually is sleeping through the night so I can't complain, but your brother and sister were consistently sleeping 7-8 hours a night by this point.
• You LOVE your brother and sister.  I know I probably will say this every month, but I just love it so! Jude always comes running to your side when you fuss.  You just smile at him until he pokes you in the eye with the binky... coordination isn't his strong suit yet.  Finley always wants you right next to her and you are happy to oblige her!
• You can do praying hands and it is sooooo stinking cute!
• Your eyes are still really dark.  They are a blue gray color.
• You.love.the.ergo.  Best investment I made.  It is fabulous!  I love how you fit in it and love how comfy it is for me to wear.  I almost always put you in it when we are out and about.... it has been a lifesaver!
• We've taken you swimming a few times and you are okay with it.  It's not your favorite thing, but with my waterproof sling, you usually fall asleep and don't put up a fuss.
• You still sleep swaddled, but usually take naps in your swing or on the playmat so you don't necessarily have to be swaddled to sleep.  I love unswaddling you and seeing your baby stretch!
• You really are an easy baby and such a sweet one at that!  I still can't believe you are mine!

I love you soooooo much!
Mommy

All About Evi: 2 Months

Dear Evi,
It's hard to believe that it is already time to report your 2 month statistics... And I'm even 3 weeks late in doing so!  I wanted to wait to see how long you were at our doctor's appointment and it was pushed due to the Fourth of July.  Truth is that you seem older than 2 months.  You are so well-adjusted, so alert, so aware, so acclimated to this world already that you seem twice your age and while I wish I would've had a little more of the sleepy newborn stage, I'm loving how easy you are and how you do seem to just fit into our little life so well!

Here is what you are up to these days:

• You weighed 10 pounds exactly (10-25%) on your two month birthday and are 22.5 inches long (50%)!  Your brother was a pound lighter than you at one month and your sister was about a half pound lighter.  You were all the same length though.
• You are wearing newborn and 0-3 month clothing and size 1 diaper.
• Your soft spot is still very small... I'm so glad you were born with one so small as I can only imagine the loving and non-intentional abuse it might have suffered from your siblings trying to kiss you!
• You're sleeping pretty well this month... you have started consistently giving me at least a five hour stretch.  I usually feed you around 10:30 each night and then you wake up sometime around 4 and then sleep until around 7.  Most mornings you will go back to sleep after your 7 a.m. feeding and sleep until your next feeding at 10.
• You are eating 8 times a day for around 12 minutes each time.  You are consistently gaining an ounce a day which is on the high end so I'm relieved that my supply is keeping you growing, growing, growing!
• You still have your birthmark on your cheek... Dr. K is no longer sure if it will disappear or be able to be lasered.  As much as I hope that it will fade, it in no way changes how beautiful you are and when I go to kiss you, I ALWAYS kiss you right on your birthmark!  I just can't help it! I hope that if it is permanent that it will be defining feature for you and something you embrace!
• You have big, dark blue eyes and you love to go "bug-eyed" all the time.
• You started smiling around 6 weeks and haven't stopped since!  You smile all the time and it lights up your face!  
• You are also cooing and almost laughing and it is darling!!!!
• You love your binky and are getting better at keeping it in your mouth.
• You love, love, love the ergo (or any sling for that matter)... as soon as I put you against my chest, you are fast asleep.  
• You still enjoy the bouncy chair and swing.
• You don't mind tummy time.  I admit that I need to allow you more tummy time, but the floor is a dangerous place to be with a 16 month old walking around!
• You love being swaddled for naps, but are fine without it during the day.
• You aren't exactly "enjoying" baths, but you don't mind them either.
• You are taking a bottle just fine now.  We are trying to continue giving you one bottle each week.
• With the use of the ergo, you are quite the shopper now.  You don't mind going to Target or the mall or really anywhere as long as you are strapped to me.  You don't do as well if I leave you in the carseat.
• Your sister continues to be your biggest fan... she just loves to hold you on the boppy and is always asking if we can keep you and if you can go with us wherever we are going.  It's so cute that she doesn't realize yet that there isn't another option!  I'm so glad that she WANTS you with us!
• Your brother also has fallen for you!  He will find your headband and bring it to you and LOVES to give you your binky.  I swoop in before he can poke your eye out with it, but it's so sweet to see him want to take care of you!
• I absolutely love the newborn stretch you give me when I unswaddle you in the morning.  It is becoming less and less now that you aren't such a curled up ball so I'm trying to take it all in before it is gone!
• You aren't on any sort of routine other than eating every 3 hours.  You are so alert that I haven't really gotten into the Baby Whisperer's EASY schedule yet.  I know I should probably start that soon, but it really hasn't been an issue yet.
• You have lost quite a bit of hair this month.  I'm anxious for it to grow back in and see what it is like!
• Every night before I swaddle you, I let you fall asleep on my chest.  It is the best feeling in the world.
• You still have a lot of nicknames, but Daddy wasn't too happy about me calling you Evi Lou all the time so I've been trying to call you Evi Reece more.  I do love your middle name, but Evi Lou or Evi Lou Lou still rolls off my tongue most often.  I also call you Everooni, Evs, Evester, Sweetie Peetie, Everoosi, and about a million other silly things!
• You've changed so much in the last four weeks!  I can hardly wait to see what another four holds!

Sweet girl, I am so in love with you!  You have no idea how happy you make me!  I'm so glad you are MINE!

Love,
Mommy

All About Evi: One Month

My dearest Evi,

While I have spent the last month getting to know you and figuring out your preferences, on a deeper level it seems as if I've always known you... as if you've always been a part of my life and now we have finally been able to meet... finally been able to be a part of each other's lives.  I know that sounds crazy, but you just seem so familiar to me... so a part of me.

I am loving the amount of time I get to feed you.  The amount of time I get to hold you.  I have no doubts that I am going to spoil you.  No doubts that you are going to be the typical youngest child even though I know I must be careful with this.  For now I'm enjoying the fact that you are too young to spoil and that I don't have to think about it quite yet...

Here's what you are up to....

• You weigh around 8 pounds 6 ounces and are a half pound bigger than your sister and almost a full pound bigger than your brother at this age.  This is crazy to us because when you were born you seemed far smaller than either of them did!
• You are in newborn diapers after spending the first two weeks in preemie diapers... the only one of my kids to be in preemie diapers.
• You are wearing all newborn clothes.
• You are still very alert.  You have never been the super sleepy newborn that as typical.  You do have days where you sleep the whole day, but for the most part you have always been pretty awake.
• You do sleep though.... you came home sleeping through the night, but during your third week of life, you went on a major growth spurt and woke up every two hours to eat.  Thankfully, that only lasted about a week and then you settled into your current routine-- waking up once between 10:30 and 5 to eat.  I love the four to five hour stretches, but sometimes you will cluster feed after that long stretch so I end up not getting much sleep afterwards.  As for naps, you prefer to take them in the sling attached to me... partially because with two other kids running around I don't have the time to really help you get to sleep anywhere else and partially because you like being near me and I like having you near me as well.... like I said, you are spoiled!
• You are an amazing eater!  You ate every two hours for the first three weeks of life, but after your growth spurt I knew that you should be able to go longer so we switched to every 3 hours instead.  In the beginning you'd eat for about 30 minutes, but you are much more efficient now and only nurse for 15 minutes or so.  My milk supply is still going strong and I think because you are eating more often and still eating in the middle of the night that we are good for awhile.  I'm trying not to get too excited, but I think you might be the first of my children to actually make it past the 4-5 month mark!!!!!
• When you were born, you had THE smallest head... we all commented on just how small it was, but most of your weight gain seems to be going to your head so you are now in the normal range.  
• You are not a big fan of shopping.  We are going to have to work on this.  I know we aren't getting out as often as I did with the other two so maybe you just aren't used to it, but you always seem to get super fussy when we are at Target.... not cool, sweetie, not cool.
• If you are crying it is ALWAYS because you spit out your binkie (which you do every 5 seconds or so) or because you are hungry.  You are super easy to soothe and are thankfully not a big crier.
• You aren't picky about diaper changes... you don't mind being wet or dirty.  You poop all the time and are quite the squirter.  You make tons of messes.  I'm getting better at being prepared for them, but sometimes you still catch me off guard.
• You did roll over from your stomach to your back this month though I think it might have been a fluke.
• You can't bear weight on your legs... you still like them curled up and won't extend them when we hold you up.
• You get the hiccups a lot.
• Your belly button fell off at two weeks... thank.goodness.
• You have started liking baths more.  You hated them in the beginning, but now you tolerate them.
• Your eyes are navy.  They are focusing better, but you are pretty bug eyed most of the time.  I think it's adorable.
• Your dilated blood vessel is still on your cheek.  It gets much more pronounced when you cry or are hot.  I am finally starting to calm down about it... I was very concerned in the beginning that it might be a sign of a genetic disorder, but after talking with my OB, I am now feeling much better about it and am accepting that it isn't anything to be concerned about.
• You've had a couple of mini smiles and I have been begging you to smile since day 1.  I have this weird paranoia that you don't like me so I just really NEED you to smile at me.  soon. very soon. okay?
• You currently seem to have your daddy's coloring.  I'm jealous.
• Your hair on the back of your head is blonde and a good inch long.  The hair on top of your head is shorter and darker.
• You have long toes... they are not mine.  
• You have a stork's mark on the back of your neck and above your right eye.
• You still favor your daddy, but definitely resemble Finley as well.  There's something about the shape of your head and your chin that remind me of her.  I think your eyes and mouth might be similar as well.
• You are very expressive.  You have all kind of fun facial expressions and though I've made it my mission to capture each and every one on camera, I don't think I've been very successful.
• You like your bouncy chair and your swing.  
• You get lonely.  I am wondering if this will be a 3rd child thing since you will rarely be without others, but you do seem to enjoy being around us all the time.  
• You sleep in the cradle by our bed, but usually after you eat in the middle of the night stay in bed with us.  This is bad.  I know.  I can't help it.  
• You are pretty tough.  You've endured a couple of minor injuries due to your brother and sister!  They are actually very sweet with you and love you to death, but being 3 and 15 months, they are still figuring out self-control!
• You don't mind tummy time.  You actually seem to like it even though most babies hate it!
• You make a lot of grunting noises in the middle of the night.  You sister sounded like a goat and your brother sounded like a monkey.  You don't seem to have an animal sound... just grunts.
• You love being swaddled and since early on, I swaddle you in a swaddle blanket and then put a swaddle pod blanket on top of that.  This works well because you can kind of get your arms out of your swaddle blanket which makes you MAD so the swaddle pod keeps you more secure.
• You face has broken out a little bit, but not too bad... 
• You took your first bottle a few days after your one month birthday and weren't too excited about it.  Finley and Jude took right to the bottle, but we had to work to get you to take it.  
• You have lots of nicknames-- Evs, Evi Lou, Evi Lou Lou, Sugar Muffin, etc.
• You really are a sweet, sweet baby!  You are an answer to every prayer I prayed!  I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!

Love,

Mommy