Farewell April!

We have made it to the end of April and what a month it was!  I hope that as May and the warmer weather approaches things will calm down!

We have been in the midst of a huge house remodel!.  We had our big  move to the new house with 3 small children.  We had a massive month of birthday's including a big birthday party for our two April babies!  We also got an accepted offer on our old house (yay!) but have had repairs to negotiate and get bids on to keep that deal together.  We've been in full on planning mode for a mission trip we are coordinating (more on that later) and oh we were doing all of this in the worst possible time of year for Peter at work! Then also throw in the fact that all of us got sick with a nasty cold bug and a lack of sleep all around and it has been one busy and stressful month!

We've had a few tense moments here and there but overall I think we have ALL handled it like champs.  I look around at my new and beautiful house and even though there are months and years of projects left to come, I am so thankful that we have been blessed with this home!  It feels too good to be true!  It has been busy and crazy but worth every second of the insanity!  Life really is good :)  And here's to what will hopefully be a little bit less of a crazy month to come!

Party!

Last weekend we were able to celebrate our two April babies and their special birthday's!  I have been planning this theme since I had baby girl a year ago and knew their birthday's were two days apart. It was almost a little too good to be true!

So Mickey and Minnie it was!  My mom made the cakes and they turned out amazing! I was so excited about them! 

                                             My precious little 3 year old all ready to party!

                                                 
                                                            And our 1 year old princess!

We gave Malachi a few options for the food and knowing the little chips lover that he is, he chose a nacho bar. Next year he may have to share some of the decision making with little sister :)

Man oh man were there a lot of gifts when you do a combination party!  We may need to do something about this :)

                                                                 Then it was cake time!

It was a really nice party for the kids!  Another year of birthday parties complete :) 

Sabrina is 1!

Oh man, I knew this day was coming but I tried to deny it for as long as I could.  But today my little princess Sabrina is now 1 years old. 

I admit that it is a day met with a bit of sadness to know that my little baby girl won't be so little for much longer.  Soon she will be walking and talking and then she will be keeping up with her big brothers who also have grown up way too fast.  So this morning, I enjoyed a few extra baby snuggles with my girl and want to capture every last second of her babyhood.

As I snuggled you this morning, I thought back to your birth-day and those first moments that I treasure so much of you snuggling into my arms.  I realized that you are the only one of our babies that I held on that first day of life.  It meant so very much to me and I am so thankful for that time that was just you and me and it felt like the rest of the world disappeared!  I will also never forget that moment when the doctor said "I think we should let daddy say what we have." and Your daddy said "It's a girl!"  Moments forever etched into my heart!

You now weigh 19 lbs 6 ounces which leaves you steadily in the 10-25%.  You still seem so tiny to me, but that just means you get to be my baby for a little bit longer and I like that idea! You are wearing mostly 12 month size clothing now!

You are still taking 1-2 bottles per day.  While we were moving we kind of started back up on more bottles. You can kind of take them or leave them so I know we will be giving up on them soon.  Otherwise you aren't even doing purees anymore - all table foods!

You have become quite the busy little girl this month.  You are pulling up on anything and everything which also means you fall quite often and get hurt.  You are also letting go of things now and standing!  That is quite exciting and I love how you get so tickled about it and giggle every time you do it!

You are still a great sleeper getting in 12-14 hours of sleep per night.  You also like a 2-3 hour nap during the day.  I love your sleep habits!

I thought for sure you would have a tooth by now. You have 6 swollen spots in your mouth so I know they are on the way but you are a very sloooow teether like Eli and it is taking forever for them to break through.

You are such a beautiful little princess inside and out!  I love your little heart and you have the sweetest little personality.  You are such a happy baby and that is a great trait to carry through life with you.  I hope you will always remain happy!

I cannot even put in to words how I feel about you.  I never knew my life was missing something or needed a precious baby girl in it. I wouldn't trade you for the world Miss Bina!  You are everything I have ever wanted and more.  A precious daughter who is a huge blessing in my life!  I hope and pray that you and I will always remain very close and know that I will always be there for you and you will always remain my baby girl!  You completed me in a way I never knew I needed and this mommy has never been happier!  Happy Birthday little ray of sunshine! We love you!

Celebrating Malachi!

Yesterday we spent the day celebrating Malachi and all the joy he has brought to our family in these last 3 years!  Peter took the day off work and the three of us went off to have a great time together.  3 is already proving to be a fun age as Malachi understands us more and we could make a big deal about his birthday and he was actually really excited about the day!  

We started the morning off with some special Mickey Mouse Funfetti Cake Waffles and singing Happy Birthday to our big boy!  

Then it was off to the Children's museum where Malachi had the run of the place!  It was fun to go to a place  completely designed for small children so he couldn't really get in to too much trouble!  He loved the giant water tables and we had a hard time convincing him that there were other fun places in the museum to check out too!

Next stop was the grocery store to buy some yummy food.  He had quite the cart full of goodies to check out.  Note the tie that he insisted on wearing for his birthday.  He was quite the handsome little boy and got lots of compliments on how sharp he looked!

                           Then it was time to do a little construction and building with daddy!

We always joke that he is going to grow up to be a doctor and I have to say he looked the part with his little tie and stethoscope going on :)

The water room had a close tie with the music and theater room. He asked to go back and play more in both rooms.

He had the ABC board ALL to himself.   No surprise that he spotted that and had to stop and play with some letters.

Driving the school bus.  He wanted Daddy to ride but Daddy didn't fit.

The digging room.  I thought it was pretty cool and he did too!

Then it was back to the water room for some more water play.

And back to the music room where he ran around and controlled the lights and sounds.

We finally convinced him he was hungry and that it was time to go get some lunch.  He has been saying for weeks that he was having a cheeseburger and fries for his birthday so that is where we went!

                                                    I love this picture of my boys :)

The meal was complete with some singing and a sundae which he didn't touch but he thought was pretty cool!

And finally we were off to the toy store so he could pick out a small toy for his birthday.  Something that you may not know, if you sign up for the toysrus birthday club your child will get a $3 gift certificate to spend on their birthday.  Of all the toys in the store we were surprised he picked out a tool set. But there have definitely been a lot of tools being used in our house these days so it does fit!

We had a great birthday with our little big man!  The birthday celebration week isn't over just yet.  There is plenty more to come!

Malachi is 3!

Today, my oldest baby boy turns 3 years old and I find myself wondering where these last 3 years have gone. You are now a little boy and have left all signs of babyhood behind.

3 years ago today, I was restless. Wondering where my baby boy was and what was happening in his life and why the wait was dragging on.  Little did I know, that on this very day - April 16th 2010 that you were just making your entrance into this world!

Malachi, you are such a little light of life!  You live life BIG!  You are loud and happy and full of big smiles.  You have more energy than anyone I know and go 100% full force until you drop and sleep soundly at night!        I get exhausted just watching you!

You love to sing and dance! Your favorite song is "Fire to the Rain" and "When Can I See You Again" from Wreck It Ralph.  You are often found just belting out songs as loud as you can!  You also can dance better than anyone I know.  You have some serious rhythm and I cannot wait to watch this skill continue to develop in you because the rest of us can definitely NOT dance the same way you can. 

Your favorite movie right now is Wreck It Ralph.  You would choose to watch that 20 times a day if you could.  Your favorite color is yellow and some of your favorite foods are chips, toast, popcorn, french fries, cereal. Pretty much anything and everything full of carbs!  

You are way too smart for your own good!  You are starting to learn more of your letter sounds and I won't be surprised if you figure out some reading skills this year. You know 100 of the most common sight words and have a mind for memorization well beyond your years.

You still take about a 2 hour nap per day and sleep 12ish hours at night.  You have been on a pretty good 7-7 schedule for a long time now.  With all that energy you burn it doesn't surprise me at all that you sleep so well at night.

And just a brief mention, because I think this is something that will serve you well in life - you are stubborn and strong-willed and love to challenge authority.  We spend a lot of time praying and seeking guidance of how best to direct you and lead you through life.  We strive to find that right balance of directing you but not breaking the very strong little boy you are!

Malachi, we love you so much!  You are an amazing little boy and I am so thankful that you are mine!  God orchestrated some impressive details to bring you to us.  Your beauty takes my breathe away and I adore those deep brown eyes of yours!  You are so happy and you just radiate joy!  You have taught us so much already about living life to the fullest and enjoying every second!  You are going to do some amazing things with your life- I just know it!  Never doubt that we love you more than words can say!  We are so, sooo blessed to be your mommy and daddy!  Happy 3rd Birthday little man!  We love you!