We LOVE Summer

We have loved this summer I can't believe it is coming to an end!  

We have loved play dates

Especially ones that involve 9 children (5 of them under 3) at Chick Fil-A with 9 million of our closest friends.  :)

We have loved the Rangers

cheering for them in t-ball, on TV and finally in person has made many of our summer nights a blast!

We have loved family fun nights

the zoo, walks in the neighborhood and backyard fun have kept us entertained! 

We have loved the beach

Sadie was the cutest baby in Galveston, Ave had a blast in Wilmington, poor Hanky missed out but he made up for it at Grandma Camp!

We have loved the Olympics

from our themed opening ceremony party to a late night party for 5 watching the closing ceremonies we LOVED every single minute! 

We have loved this summer, I am hoping we will love this school year, too! 

Fabulous Four Month Old Girl

We sure have a sweet baby girl!  She was pronounced perfect today at her 4 month old check up!  She did produce a few tears and a big pout for her shots, but really tolerated them quite well. 

Sadie Baby Jo loves her big brothers.  She always has a smile for both.  She knows she can count on Hanky for sweet kisses and a silly face.  She also knows Ave might be little rough with his games, but that he will talk to her and play with her for a very long time. 

Sadie also loves to cuddle with her Daddy and will turn on her smile whenever she can see or hear him. 

Sadie has decided she doesn't love when Daddy and the boys roar like lions, but if Daddy helps cover her ears, she can take it. 

Sadie girl is a great sleeper, a good pusher uper, but struggles a bit with the whole rolling over thing.  She would probably better at rolling over if she liked her tummy time, but she takes after her mamma and thinks napping is a much better use of tummy time than actual exercise.  

We sure love our Sadie Jo!

3 Months Old

No way is my baby girl 3 months old!!!  

It has been a wonderful 3 months! 

She is such a good baby.  People talk about it all the time.  I am so thankful for our parents help.  I think the fact that they stay with us for the first two weeks makes all the difference.  Having them help the boys transition and work their collective baby whisperer magic makes for babies that sleep 10-12 hours a night by the time they are 2 months old!  So, so great!  

Here is our sweet baby girl at one whole month old.  

Her first month was a great one!  She attended her first t-ball game, received millions of cuddles and kisses from her brothers and was starting to sleep 6-7 hours a night.  She sweetly wore every bow I put on her head and only complained when they fell in her eyes and mouth in the car.  

Month 2 was more of the same 

Baby girl did scare us half to death with our first trip to the ER.  I never thought that would be from my daughter, but luckily she just had a virus that was no biggie.  

She was the cutest patient that day for sure!  Don't worry she had a bow, we just took it off for her tests!  

She also had lots of fun to balance out her pokes and prodding.  

Sadie Baby Jo as Ave likes to call her lounged a lot... 

poolside at Daddy's work party. 

lakeside at the family reunion with Papa

and even at swim camp!  

(how do babies sleep with their head like that?) 

Month 3 is off to a great start as well! 

We love these sweet smiles, and the giggles and coos that accompany them, too! 

Miss Sadie Jo says she likes the beach and having mamma and daddy all to herself!  

We can't wait to see what else we learn about our Sadie girl this month! 

What's In A Name?

For Miss Sadie Jo quite a bit.  

Contrary to popular belief we did not get her name at Target, even though that it what Avery told his teachers.  

We chose Sadie's name very carefully.  We did chose it 2 years ago, but we loved it then and we love it now!  Sadie to be honest we just like.  I read it in a book and thought it fit great with Avery and Hank.  Luckily, Michael agreed!

Jo is very special.  

There are a lot of women in our family with Jo in their names!  

Grandma Jo

I hear she was pretty great!  Sadly, I didn't get to meet her.  But, that guy she's sharing her cake with was the Best Papa Ever!  I know she lead him to the Lord and that he loved her with his whole heart, so that's good enough for me!   

Aunt Susan Jo

She's my mom's little sister, and we kinda like her.  That might be because she does cool things like have Camp Banks where you eat ice cream for dinner and make watermelons into pirates!  But, it is also because she's a great listener and always makes you feel heard and special!  

Grandma JoAnn

Not many kids get to have a great grandmother like ours!  She is wonderful!  I love that she always makes macaroni and cheese for me.  I love that she painted Avery Jr with her nail polish on the back of the turtle she and grandad caught for the boys, and then threw it away so she wouldn't get salmonella.  I love that she loves to hold our baby girl, but lets grandad have the longer turns. 

Meme JOy 

I know it's a bit of a stretch, but I am comfortable with it.  Our Meme is an amazing woman.  She's not even really our Meme, she belongs to Steven and JD, Aunt Susan Jo's boys.  But, she took in 2 girls with no grandmothers and treats us like we are hers.  She is a remarkable woman for many reasons.  She has had more sadness than anyone should have to deal with, but you would never know it from her great smile and positive outlook.  I love that when she says "Lord willing" she means it, because she's been there when His will wasn't what she would choose.  I am so thankful how she loves me, and my family!  But, I didn't steal her whole name, we didn't want to do that to Steven and JD, so we'll just claim part of it for Sadie Jo.  

We love that Sadie Jo has such special legacy to her name.  We can't wait to see how she honors these and all the wonderful women in our family she will be able to learn from!  

 

We love all our children's names, find out about the boys' names here and here. 

T-Ball Top Ten

If you happened to run into my favorite 4 year old boy anytime in late May or June you were greeted with something like, "hi my name's Avery, I'm 4.  I have t-ball _____(fill in next game or practice day), it's for real.  Do you want to come watch me?"  

He L-O-V-E-D every single minute.  

Here are 10 of my favorite things about t-ball.

1-Daddy coached. 

Daddy didn't really want to coach he wanted to assist, you know Michael he's not a front and center kind of guy.  Plus we had 3 week old when the season started and he's still "building a business."  :) that one never gets old.  But Michael did it, because Avery LOVES t-ball, and I LOVED watching them together.  Michael was a great encouraging, fun loving, patient coach!

2-The home runs!

This was YMCA t-ball.  Everybody got to bat every time and get on base.  And the last batter go to run all the way around, so when Avery got to bat last he hit a HOME RUN!  

3-The high 5 line.

 I love little people all lined up to be good sports.  I think it totally stinks that the high 5 line goes away when you get older.  Such a great thing!  

4-The cheering section! 

I love that every player had sweet friends and family to cheer them on at each game.  The kids loved all the encouragement.  

5-The t-ball herd slide!!

I love that every little boy on our team would run up then drop and slide the last foot to get the ball.  Avery wore a hole in his pants by 2 weeks into the season.  So hilarious to watch them all go for the ball!  

6-Time with Hank. 

This kid is funny!  When you get him alone you learn this.  We bonded walking to and from the elementary school and watching Daddy and Avery.  

7-He LOVED it! 

I know I've said it many times, but he LOVED it.  Every single minute.  He was always watching and ready.  He even served as the bat boy for his fellow players.  He LOVED it!!

8-The fans! 

 Honey and Granny

 Grandma and Grandad

 Meme, Papa and LouLou

 Pop

9-The signs!

Aunt Linde and Uncle Jeff were SUPER fans!  They sweated their brains out at almost all of the games.  True love, trust me if you saw one you saw them all.  But not only did they come and cheer, play with Hank and bring donuts and snacks, they brought a SIGN!  Avery was so very proud, you have no idea!  

Katie and David made signs, too, but I forgot to take pictures of them.  

10-The league!  I have to say YMCA was perfect.  I loved the nice little speech the kids said every week about being good players, team mates and sports.  I loved that no was cut throat.  I loved that no one yelled at the umps, yes I have seen that at t-ball games.  I loved that when it was miserably hot and everyone had a turn we quit a few minutes early.  This was a great first t-ball experience.  I can't wait for more!  I am savoring it!

Hanky Pokey

Luckily, Hanky Panky did not end up in the Pokey today...

This is his loot, there are SIX pairs of little girl shoes in there  We didn't pay for them, nor did I realize they were in the basket of my snap 'n go...

Luckily, my main 2 year old man Hank is pretty stinking cute.  He had already worked this magic on the sales lady at Janie and Jack. 

So, when we came marching back in to the store about an hour after we'd been browsing she greeted us with a huge smile and a "Hi Hank, how are you?"  In fact he was so stinking cute she was profusely thanking me for returning the 6 pairs of shoes we STOLE. 

Lesson learned, watch your little ones extra close if there are little shoes in their path!  Also, don't think just because you only have 2 of your 3 kids with you it's okay to let your guard down.  

Life with three is a BLAST!  I have many blogs planned in my head, hopefully I'll get them to you soon.

Mother's Day and Father's Day

Way back in May Avery's class had a "Pastries with Parents" party!  Michael and I had a great time watching him sing a few song with his friends and we received some wonderful handmade creations.  

You can see Michael's tie in this picture! 

My favorite gifts were the questionnaires Avery answered about us.  Did you know my favorite food is broccoli and that Michael weighs 6 whole pounds?   I know I will always keep those and remind him of who he thought we were at age 4!

Michael tried to be super noble this year and say that we didn't need to do anything for Father's Day that moms do all the hard work.  While sometimes I try to feel sorry for myself and wholeheartedly agree, this picture is proof that it's just not true.  Michael is such a great dad to our kids!  I LOVE that he is their absolute favorite person in the whole world and that this designation is well deserved because of sweet moments like these.  Not just any dad will sit down in the story corner and read to our little buddies and their friends while the other parents chit chat. 

Please note Avery's arm around his best buddy Levi.  Levi is definitely a close second behind daddy, I am not sure how we will get through the summer not seeing him 3 days a week.  

I am unbelievably thankful for these 3 little people and their wonderful daddy!  I love that we get to raise our children together.  I can't imagine doing it alone and wouldn't want to do it with anyone else. 

Happy (late) Father's Day Michael, you are the best!  We love you!

The Room

Aunt Linde had unique challenges with the room this time.  We decided to reuse Avery's giraffe room.  We always imagined the giraffe print would be gender neutral, so now Linde was tasked with remaking Avery's room in to Sadie Jo's room.  She also did it with almost no help from me.  Linde is amazing at asking questions even after she knows the sex of the baby to help her complete the room, but I unintentionally was a worthless sister.  Every time she would ask me questions I would give her a detailed opinion about the boy room and then say it doesn't matter you know it's a boy when she asked for input on the girl room.  Linde also knows me well enough to know I like things equal so Sadie's room had to feel like Sadie Jo's room, not Avery's left over nursery.  Finally, she did all the work at her house or after Sadie was born to make sure that Avery or Hank didn't accidentally uncover the secret.  And she did all this while she was sick, miserable newly pregnant.  But, as always she did NOT disappoint.  It's awesome!!!  

Poor Linde, when the shock wore off I apologized for not helping with her questions at all.  Then I sheepishly asked if she would put Sadie Jo, instead of just Sadie on the wall.  Of course she agreed and had it perfectly ready and installed by Saturday after Sadie Jo was born.  She also searched far and wide to find the fabulous bedding.  We picked out the fabric early in my pregnancy and it was discontinued by the time Linde actually needed it.  Thank goodness she is very resourceful! 

Linde knows I love all things monogrammed and dark purple!  The valance and the dressers proudly sport both!

I love the pug bookends.  We had a pug growing up and poor Cleo is still a special part of our family even if she is now a dog and not our baby.  Mary Lou my parent's pug is almost as great of an aunt as Linde.  :)

I am sorry these pictures are terrible.  I have some more that a real photographer took, I will get them up soon.  But know Sadie girl's room is amazing!

Michael Had a Birthday, Too!

Michael will probably never have a good birthday celebration again, but I am pretty sure he doesn't mind sharing his birthday week with a sweet baby girl!  I thought we did a pretty good celebrating this year considering we were in the hospital with a 2 day old.  

He started out his day with presents and cuddles, Michael LOVES to have sweet babies sleep on his chest!  

We had a great day visiting with the boys and friends. 

He got to go home and play with Avery and Hank at the park and see his mamma and granny, too. 

The evening wasn't too shabby either.  Some tiny, but delicious bundt cakes arrived as well as a brand new cooler with some adult beverages, too!  Michael was good enough to get himself a yummy birthday dinner and bring some for the rest of us, too.  We had mini party with Papa, LouLou, Sadie Jo and the cast of American Idol.   

Our girl proudly sported her Aggie hat all day in honor of daddy's birthday!  Thank goodness my friend Brooke brought bows the night before, when I bought the hat for Wee to wear on daddy's birthday I was still under the assumption that Wee was a he, thanks Brooke!

We wrapped up our day with family cuddle/bonding time!  I am so thankful that Michael's mom stayed with the boys at the house so that Michael could stay with Sadie and me.  Even though I gave Michael major grief about referring to my hospital stay as a vacation, in a lot of ways it was.  It is certainly a treat to get to have a couple hours for 3 nights in a row to spend with my birthday boy and his birthday girl! (although based on the crustiness in this picture it isn't all vacation)

I am so thankful for my prince, he is a wonderful husband and father!  I think it is really fun that his 3rd child was born 2 days before his 32 birthday.  I have a feeling his 32nd year is going to be a great one, we are certainly starting off in a very blessed place!

Sadie Jo's Birthday

Was a great day!  

(Sorry it has taken me forever to get back to blogging, but I am going to try to get caught up.)

We had so much fun on the day of Sadie's arrival.  I was glad to make it to her scheduled arrival, I got very nervous Sunday night she was going to spoil my plans.  But thanks to lots of water and hot baths, we kept the contractions to 8-10 minutes apart and I got to stick to my plan!  Good girl Sadie Jo.  I did have Michael take my picture before we left.  Here I am 39 weeks pregnant, just FYI this was my longest pregnancy.

Michael and I checked in and waited for the staff to get our room ready.  We got a quick hug from Grandma, Grandad, Meme and Pop on our way back to the L&D room.  

The nurses were great as always.  I loved when we were answering all our questions and Michael thought the nurse had mistakenly confirmed that our baby was a boy when she asked about if we wanted a circumcision.  I told her yes and that I had sweet ease and a pacifier ready, while he was nervous that the secret was out.  He finally asked if she knew something we didn't and she laughed and let him know they ask everyone, just in case!  Joke on us! 

We had sweet visitors to keep us distracted while we waited.

 Michael needed distracting, he was nervous even though he wasn't the one having surgery.  :)

There were also many more sweet friends and family in the waiting room, but somehow I didn't get any pictures of them.  We were also thankful for Honey and Granny staying with Hank at home while we got settled so he could have a nap.  Then they picked up Avery from school and came to join the party in the waiting room.

At a little before 3 we rolled back to meet our newest family member.  I remained 1000% convinced we were having a boy and was a little distraught about the name situation.  I had finally played "the Papa card" when we were discussing if we should call our baby boy Wilson or Mack.  I had sort of convinced Michael to cave when we discussed it while I was waiting for the nurse to come back after I got my hospital gown on, but we still weren't settled, nothing like a last minute decision.  

I should make a sidebar that I LOVE my OB.  She makes me feel like we would be best friends!  She also sees Linde and my mom.  So, she knows and loves that Linde knows our baby's gender when we don't.  She loves that Linde does the nurseries for us, she voted that Sadie was a girl because Linde had already done 3 boy nurseries and wouldn't be excited about a 4th (our boys and Jeff's sister's son.)  So she filled in everyone in the OR about our surprise to everyone but Aunt Linde.  I informed everyone that I just knew we were having a boy and most of them agreed we probably were.  The CRNA voted girl said she hoped the baby was a girl because she liked Sadie better than Wilson, I remember thinking it was awkward she didn't like the name of my soon to be born son, but oh well.  Just before we began a nurse said "do we have a bow hat just in case?"  I of course responded, don't bother you don't need it.  

We had so much fun when our 3rd healthy baby was born.  I love that our doctor was surprised right along with us.  She proudly announced "IT'S A GIRL!"  The whole room cheered, I just kept saying I couldn't believe it.  I love that she carried our baby girl around the curtain and said "look see, she's a girl, no penis!"  Of course more than anything we were so thankful for a healthy baby, and it was so fun to be so WRONG, and boy (pun intended) did it solve our name drama.

I know I have gone on and on about our doctor, but she really is so fun.  She even wanted to go with Michael to tell our families the big news.  So, they went together and revealed that Sadie Jo was here safely!  I watched the video and there was a lot of cheering!  Apparently Avery did reveal that he wanted a brother, but came around quickly.  

By the time Avery and all Miss Sadie Jo's other adoring fans were watching her get her bath Avery was telling everyone, including strangers, "that's my girl, Sadie Jo!"

Sadie Jo's birthday was a great, great day!  We are so very thankful for those that came to celebrate with us and those that prayed for a healthy delivery and baby and celebrated with us via text and e-mail.  For the 3rd time, Michael and I found ourselves blown away by the love and support we receive from our family, church family and friends.  We are truly blessed and thankful to know that Sadie Jo has so many wonderful people in her life, literally from the minute she was born!