May 2015

Dinner picnic at a park with Vance and the kids. 

Lauren had the courage to ask these older boys if she could play with them. I was so proud of her.

Had best friend Ethan over. They loved reading The Book with No Pictures by B.J. Novak. They giggled through the whole book.

Preschool graduation

We were all dressed up, so we went with friends to Culver's after the preschool graduation. This was a hard two weeks for me. Vance was in India so I was going solo for two weeks. Not only did I miss him, but the relief of having a spouse brings. 

Lauren got these cool glasses and ears/hat from her church Sunbeam class. They learned about being thankful for eyes and ears. It was so cute and funny.

Spring is Here!

Spring is in full swing here in Minnesota. We have been loving the weather and staying busy. I feel more busy than ever with three little ones at home. Although I feel like I have been productive every day, most days I feel like I am treading water! Vance has been an amazing support and husband. Did you know he gets up with Kate for the first feeding every night? He said he is "happy to do it." I asked him if he's up for ALL night feedings and he turned me down. Ha ha...He has been more busy than ever at work, with a few projects, but luckily won't last forever. Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of Vance in this post. Above, dress up with Lauren again. 

These kids are getting big. They still love their bath times. Usually they bathe in our jacuzzi because it's larger. In the regular bath they barely both fit. 

I blow dried Lincoln's hair after his bath because he gets impressive volume. He wasn't too pleased about it:)

Our sweet Kate in her owl hat. We could stare at her all day.

First day at church last week. Usually we wait only 2 or 3 weeks to bring our newborns to church, but we waited two months with Kate. We've been taking turns staying home with Kate and taking the kids to church. So we finally went to church as a family for the first time since January 17th! It was strange and wonderful! Kate looked so darling. Most of the time she was swaddled in a blanket, but here is a picture of her in her darling dress.  She has changed so much since her birth. We usually can get a couple of smiles from her each day. I've heard her give one giggle once. Vance is the best at getting her to smile. I love to watch her grow. I've always felt that I can get to know my children's personality more with time, as they learn to express themselves. Kate has a sweet, calm presence, but I can't wait to get to know her more. I love this lady. We waited so long for her with the previous miscarriage and then patiently waiting for her to join our family. It has made her arrival even more sweet.

Lincoln started asking about a lemonade stand back in February or early March. I told him we should probably wait until it is at least 70 degrees to have a stand. He diligently watched the forecast daily, and on the first day that the temperature hit the 70's (I think I made him wait until it was a Saturday as well), we had a lemonade stand. He loved making the recipe for homemade lemonade. Because we live on a dead end road, Vance took the kids and the wagon of supplies to the park down the road for more customers. They had a great time! In fact, they've had another lemonade stand since!

We call these crabapple trees "popcorn" trees. My kids think they look like popcorn on trees. A few days ago, we came out of the community center, and when the wind blew, what seemed to be thousands of blossoms fell to the ground and blew in the wind. A thick layer of petals covered the ground. We loved it! Also, Lincoln and Lauren are proudly holding their vending machine treats. The kids go to the day care while I exercise and we pass the vending machines each time. Last year I made a rule that they could pick an item from the machines once a month, making it cost less for us and more special for them!

Picnic at a nearby park. 

Lincoln and Lauren are in the distance. They love this long "escalator" at Menard's. 

Both Lincoln and Lauren were invited to their friend Ethan's birthday party. I was so pleased that Lauren was invited as well. They all had such a grand time running around in the gym and enjoying his Lego themed party.

Lauren with her good friend Charlotte. Best picture I could get of these 3 year old gals.

We spent a day at the Minnesota Arboretum, not far from our home. This was in front of a sea of gorgeous tulips. I promise my kids had a great day, despite the look on their faces here:)

I sure love this boy. Sometimes you can see the remnants of his deep nasal tip hemangioma from his first year of life. It looks sooo much better now, but I can still see the small bit of fatty tissue that remains from the hemangioma after treatment. 

I love this girl!!!  Her hair is getting so long. Painting the kid's house with water in the kid's play yard.

Funny things said this week....

Lincoln randomly giving Kate a "wet willy" (Where did he learn this?!)

Telling Lauren that the dinner's jello was broccoli flavored...she broke into tears and said "Oh man!!!"

Lincoln randomly asking another preschool friend, "Have you ever been to Asia?"

Lauren: "Mom, did you go to the bathroom? I'm so proud of you!"

Surprise Breakfasts, Parks, and Kate's TWO month stats

Over the past few weeks, Lincoln has often come into our room in the morning and asked to make a surprise breakfast. This particular day we came downstairs to toast (no butter) and some fruit drink he mixed. He couldn't find the pitcher so he used a left over container and said he couldn't fit all the water in their so he just used less. So we had concentrated fruit drink and dry toast for breakfast that day. 

A few days earlier he was so excited for the breakfast he made us. Our plates each had a piece of bread soaked in maple syrup. I tried to be so kind and took a bite and but then unfortunately wasn't very hungry for the rest:) 

Lauren has had some long sleeved dresses that are so cute! But with the warmer weather, I wanted short sleeves for them so they could be enjoyed this spring and summer. I haven't used my sewing machine in probably 2-3 years. After Lauren was born, I think when I had spare time, I just stopped sewing. Brought it up from the basement, dusted the box off. Apparently, I've still got it!  I was so proud of my accomplishment I had to take a picture of one of Lauren's dresses. Now it's all ready for summer! Seems a bit silly to take a picture, but it sure boosted my confidence in my sewing skills that I had thought I had lost! More sewing projects are in the near future!  

Vance and I went on a date this week. I wrote our phone numbers down for Liz, our neighbor and babysitter. When I came home, I had found that Lincoln wrote "P.S. 911". Just in case she forgot... 

Checking out the new park in town. The bridge that crosses the lake should be finished soon.

He told me this is his "scared, about to fall" face.

Lauren's silly face for the camera. She chose a super happy smile.

Meanwhile, Kate enjoyed the day snoozing in the sun.

A lovely bouquet of flowers. It is fun to have things like this in my day. It gives purpose to the never ending laundry, crumbs all over the kitchen floor, the whining, tantrums, sleep deprivation, and more recently all the messes from toilet training Lauren. It is going so-so. Sometimes the amount of messes and bodily fluids I have to deal with, between all three kids, drives me crazy!

Kate is continuing to thrive. Here are her two month stats.  She is now 4 pounds heavier than at birth. She seems SO big to us! We love her new squishy cheeks, creases on her ankles and wrists, and dimples on her knuckles.  We are still adding calories to breast milk throughout the day, and it is obviously working to help her grow. She received 5 vaccinations today, and a finger poke to check her iron levels. She has been more fussy than ever this afternoon. This calls for lots of cuddle time and maybe a little Tylenol.

She still seems to be an easy going little girl. If I hold her on my shoulder, she always turns her head toward my face. She tolerates tummy time well for a few minutes, and has been a quite the snorter. If she's alert, well fed, etc, she loves to play on the floor and look around.  Still hoping she can sleep for longer than  2 1/2 or 3 hours at night, but it seems still a little early to expect it:) We'll have to be patient. We are so blessed to have her as a part of our family. 

Easter 2016

My dad with Kate. Dad is truly my hero. He has been my cheerleader and greatest example, along with my mom!! 

Vance and Lincoln built a new dresser for Lincoln's room. 

After church Easter egg and basket hunt. Now on to enjoying the fruits of their labors!!!

Lately

For some reason, with each of our kids, we have a picture of helping our newborns do sit ups. We think they love it (not sure what they think!) 

Lauren moved into a queen sized bed a few months ago. Lincoln always has begged to sleep with his sister, because it is such a cool bed. So... we let them share every Saturday night. When I checked on them, they were so warm. Too many blankets and winter pajamas. It was sweet how they were turned towards each other. The best part was the PEZ dispenser in the middle! Lauren has been carrying around this dispenser for days and carefully deciding when she would eat one of her candies. I love her so much. I love all my kids so much. I really think I'd do anything for my children. 

Lincoln has been very interested in baking the past year. He asks to make all sorts of goodies. He loves to follow recipes, and be the one to read off all the ingredients. This past week he decided to make his own recipe. Without any help, this was what he came up with. My favorite parts of his recipe were the words he used such as "smidgeon" and "dash". 

This was how his creation turned out! He wanted to put them in muffin tins and add sprinkles on top. We were brave and even tried them:)

My friend Deanna offered to watch Kate one morning. I took her up on her offer and while Lincoln was at preschool, Lauren and I went on a date to Perkins. She chose the Rainbow Pancakes. Lauren has been my quieter child, so I love my one on one time with her. In fact, here are some things to remember about her at this age.

All about Lauren:

Her favorite show is My Little Pony

She loves to kick soccer balls around in the yard

Her favorite color is purple

The purple pom poms in her room look like teeth to her

Loves to pretend she is the mom

Has always been a fantastic sleeper

She is independent and pretty tough!

Her middle name is after my mother, Kristen

She loves to show me something she does and ask, "Is that amazing, Mom?"

Once a week, she asks me to make sure I don't drive into the river (she fell in a lake last summer and I still wonder if she's afraid of water)

Lauren loves to sing songs

She loves to dress up in princess clothes

She has always been a good listener

When we have Family Home Evening each Monday, and it is her turn to conduct the nigh, she always says we are having our treat first (It's always last)

We are so proud of this little girl's cheeks! You can really squish them now. She's got visible creases in her ankles and wrists. 

Lauren asked me the other day to dress up with her. She handed me a couple necklaces, a scarf and a hat. Prior to dressing up, she often says to Lincoln, "Let's get married!" Maybe with the fancy dress and veil, she feels like a bride.

After church today, I asked Lincoln what he learned. He asked for a piece of paper. On this sticky note, he drew two paths. One was for the harder way, which made us happier, and the other was easier but he said bad guys go that way and you wouldn't be happy. Later he drew another path "C" that was a hill but had flowers on top. He told me how you had to work hard to get to the top, but something beautiful was there. Anyway, I was impressed how well he was listening! He was so enthusiastic in his 15 minute explanation. It was neat to see his understanding that some choices in life aren't always the easiest, but bring us the greatest joy. 

One cold, snowy/rainy day we needed to get out! So we went to the Mall Play Area. Lincoln asked me to take this picture of him. Looks like some gang sign, had to laugh. It has been a difficult balance between trying to get out and do fun things with my two older kids, but also keep Kate home and away from too many people for a little bit longer. I think we all are getting a little stir crazy. But with the weather finally warming and her being 6 weeks old, I think we can be a little more daring:)

My birthday card from two months ago.

Some notes just need to be documented forever. This one is from Lincoln.

The transition to three children has been pretty good. It might be easier because Kate sleeps so much of the time. Because she was early, the sleepy newborn stage has lasted much longer. She still gets up 3-4 times each night, but we are getting used to it. I have been able to exercise and it has felt soooo good. I started running this week. It requires alternating running and walking, but it really has been something I have wanted to do for so long. Exercise really does something wonderful for my mental health!