10 months old

I can't quite come to grips with how quickly this past year has gone. Lincoln is 10 months old and just getting better by the second. He's not listening to my pleas to stay little forever, and so, I will just savor every minute of every day while we watching him grow. We are so thankful to have such a healthy, happy, smiley little guy in addition to our rambunctious little girls. It's the perfect blend of drama :)

In a nutshell: he's easy. And we have experience to prove that; as we had 2 (one especially), not so easy babies. But even when Lincoln has a rough spell, which he has had plenty, he's still easy. We can tell when something is wrong with him because he's not his usual happy, smiley, mellow little self. He gets cranky, nothing seems to please him and he can't be calmed. Thank goodness these bouts are far and few between and typically only happen when he's not feeling well or teething.

We continue to nurse, something I never really imagined I would still be doing. The funny thing is, with baby #3, I had no expectations. Like zero. People would ask us questions about nursery furniture, baby gear, how we planned to manage with 3, etc. And we didn't have any answers. It's not that we hadn't thought about it, but we knew better than to make unattainable expectations. Keep in mind, our experience with Sidney was still fresh in our minds, 5 years later! We were having a baby; all bets were off. And the same went for nursing. Instead of wondering "how am I going to nurse a baby when Regan has _____ (insert activity), we just rolled with it. In the beginning, an awesome friend reminded me "it takes a village to raise these kids", and without extended family around, our friends became our village. She picked up Regan each week and brought her to dance, giving me the ability to nurse in private. As we got into a rhythm, I became more comfortable and with the use of a cover-up, we became more mobile. And let's remember, he's easy! And so, when I needed to nurse him in the locker room during swimming lessons, or at a family room at Valleyfair, he rolled with it. And when I nursed him weekly in the car at softball games, he went with it. Heck, I had to go so far once as to face a corner of a dark restaurant and feed him! Never in a million years thought I'd be doing that. In other words, I didn't have any expectations about breastfeeding. Zero. People would ask "how long do you think you'll nurse him?". And I still don't have an answer (except to say I won't be one of those who whips up her shirt at the park to feed her toddler). But if he stops tomorrow, that's up to him.

Some other facts about our growing 10 month old:
* He naps 1-2 hours in both the AM and PM, then takes a shorter 1 hour nap around dinner time (this is both convenient and not so convenient).
* He sleeps overnight well until about 6:30/7am.
* We still use the soothie green pacifiers. His choice. We've tried others and this is his preference.
* Since getting tubes in his ears, he talks so much more. Most of his babbling happens when everyone else is quiet, and in this house, that happens around 8pm when the girls go to bed. I love to hear him talk, his most common babble goes something like "ee ya ya ya ya ya". Which I heard a girl at daycare doing so I'm pretty sure that's where he picked it up.
* He sticks his tongue out....a lot. Not sure where that is coming from, but it's darn adorable :)
* He loves balls. Loves. Loves. Loves. Playing catch (using his left hand to throw) for hours each day.
* His favorite book is Baby Boo! And he giggles and laughs throughout the book, especially when we get to the page that says "BOO!". Over and over and over we read this book.
* Still doesn't move much. He rocks back and forth when on all 4's and will left up his hand to play with toys so I know it's coming soon. Been working hard at having him bend while standing to pick up a toy. He's accustomed to having a big sister just hand him whatever he wants, so learning to do these things actually takes practice (and patience).
* wears size 12 month clothes and still in Pampers Cruisers size 3
* Eating more and more table food, preferring that over baby food at times and the other way at other times. We went out to eat last night and had to apologize for the floor beneath him....it was a disaster! Pretty sure more went on the floor than his mouth. And 2 nights ago, we had tacos at home and I gave him shredded cheese, because the softie in me knows how much he loves cheese. My mom used a vacuum to clean up the mess, we had cheese EVERYWHERE!
* Weighs roughly 23 lbs  Height ? Almost 30 inches

Happy 10 months buddy! Love you always!

6th friend party for Sid

Our adorable middle child wants to do everything her big sister can do. 

And that includes birthdays. 

In anticipation of her birthday in early September, Sidney was begging for a "friend" party. Regan started getting "friend" parties at age 6, so Sidney thought she deserved one too. And had plans to do it at Pump It Up....until her awesome parents decided that paying for a party for 15 kids at the start of kindergarten when she won't know ANY kids in her class, just wasn't a good idea. And so, we opted for a pool party with her current High-5 class friends. 

Once I got her to buy into the idea of a pool party, and forget about going to Pump It Up, she jumped right on board. We couldn't have asked for better weather...90 and humid. PERFECT pool weather!

We got a fun idea to let the kids decorate their own cupcakes instead of doing a cake. And it was like a craft idea with a snack and cake all rolled into one!

Unfortunately, 2 of her good friends weren't able to make it as they fell ill on the weekend of the party :( Darn summer illnesses! But these guys had so much fun and everyone played so nicely together. It really was a great afternoon. 

Sid picked out a Frozen pinata and each kiddo took a whack at it before big brother Tyler knocked it down and we ended up just dumping it out.

The little kids were so polite and nice as they shared their loot of candy, making sure everyone got the same amount. 

And what's a birthday party without your 3 bestest friends: 

Madilyn, Sidney and Natalie

They're like the 3 musketeers these girls.
Sidney handed out 2 little BFF necklaces and they all wore them proudly after the party had ended and the other guests had left. 

So glad we are able to keep seeing each other as the girls each head to different schools this fall, they'll join up weekly for dance class. 

And they are so. stinkin'. excited. 

Happy Birthday party weekend sweet Sidney!

Timber

Evidently he's stronger than we thought! 

(he's watching the scoreboard light up and can't seem to get close enough!)

The Little Mermaid

This past winter, the girls and I came across these Mermaid tails online. And they just HAD to have them! They arrived at Christmas and had to wait all winter long before trying them out. In all reality, it was good to wait, because Regan perfected her 'dolphin kick' in the meantime. 

She has spent the summer in this tail; she loves it! And it's so fun to watch her swim around, looking just like a mermaid! I'll have to catch a video of her, too bad I don't have an underwater case for my camera :) 

Happy 6th Birthday (party) Sidney

In an effort to double a birthday party with a pool party, we started celebrating Sidney's birthday a few weeks early each year. So last weekend, we bought Lalaloopsy everything and had a whooping fun party for this soon-to-be 6 year old! 

She adored this sweet cake and I have to say, I was quite impressed myself. We took an idea from Pinterest and talked to a baker who whipped up this fun creation, complete with some Lalaloopsy dolls, carefully placed by Sidney herself :) 

 It was a cloudy day but the kiddos didn't seem to mind swimming without sunshine. Ashley got off the hook of having to go into the water too. With Regan around, there was no way that Harlow was going to drown. Regan doesn't let her out of her sight for even one second! 

Sid had a great time swimming, coming out for a snack, swimming, coming out to open presents, swimming, coming out for dinner, and swimming some more before begging to cut into that adorable cake. 

We neglected to get a traditional birthday party family photo, so this one of me and the birthday girl will have to do. I promise to try getting one on her actual birthday. For now, we'll savor every second we have with our 5 year old, because she's growing up just too darn fast! 

Great MN get together!

As per tradition, we headed over to the MN State Fair on day #2 of the fair. The sun stayed hidden behind the clouds, and we were very thankful for that. The curls in Sidney's hair was proof of the humidity, and the sun would have done us all in. But with the clouds as protection, we were able to have a delightful time. 

Sid won 2 free tickets from a drawing at the public library and if it wasn't for her, we would have forgotten those 2 tickets hanging on the fridge back at home. Thankfully we were only blocks from home when she said "did we bring my tickets?". Opps. Good catch sweet girl. 

Once we were inside, we ate to our hearts content and let the girls try out some new activities (new to them anyway). We decided to skip the 3 hours at the kidway and only did a few rides there. So this year, it was Ye Old Mill and the Tubo Jumper instead. 

Our daredevil Regan requested this ride at the Midway. She's nuts and we told her she could go, but would be riding alone because neither Ryan nor I were willing to go on with her! 

She went. Alone. No problems. Although admitted while standing in line that she was feeling a wee bit nervous. 

Awww, a selfie at the State Fair

He wasn't so sure about those piggy ears, or that big giant pig but he loved seeing the horses and lambs and really got excited when he heard a loud "BAAAAA"!

On a much needed rest break, Sidney got Lincoln cracking up as she played a quick game of Peek A BOO! 

He's so easy to please that baby of ours. 

And then it was time for round 2 of the Giant Slide, and it was 

Biggest kid...

Followed by middle kid....

And lastly grumpy kid....

Just kidding, although he looks grumpy, he was not at all upset. 

I stood up at the end and his legs were kicking away in excitement! 

Thanks Grandma Sheri and Grandpa Arnie for a fun filled MN State Fair day!

10 years and many more to come

This past week, we celebrated 10 years. 

TEN! 

Who would have imagined in 10 years we: bought a house, traveled to Europe seeing 4 countries in 10 days in a trip of a lifetime, had a beautiful baby girl, traveled twice to DC and once to TN, had a second beautiful baby girl, traveled twice more to DC, sold a house, bought another, traveled twice to CA and had an adorable baby boy! 

Oh we looked so young in 2004. 

And so excited for what the future held for us. 

My sweetie did some research and discovered that the traditional gift for a 10 year anniversary is tin/aluminum. So he did some more research and found a beautiful bouquet of flowers, you guessed it, made from tin. They are adorable. And I think I am most in love with how much effort he put into my gift. He could have taken the easy route and ran up the street for some flowers, or over to the jewelry counter. But instead, he thought about tradition weeks in advance and had them ready to go for me as I was in my jammies, the morning of our anniversary.
Thanks love! 

And thanks to Leigha for babysitting, we were able to sneak away for a quick date last weekend to a new brewery downtown for some yummy food and beer (well, Ryan claims the beer is good. This breastfeeding mama is still waiting). It was here that we chatted about the last 10 years, and laid out plans for the next 10 years, including our hopes, dreams and vacation destinations. 

Happy Anniversary! 

Oh and just to note so we can look back: on our actual anniversary, I took the kids to the Mall of America for rides, fed Lincoln in the corner of an eatery while the girls snacked on funnel cake, and then later met up with Ryan at Regan's softball practice. The joys of 10 years of marriage! 

A day at the lake

This past weekend, we finally got down to see Maddi and Zevlen's new place near the lake. It's taken us a year, but that year was filled with a destination wedding on their part and a newborn baby on our part. So I'm cutting all of us some slack :) 

But with a place by the lake, comes a lot of "toys" for that lake. 

I recall spending most of my childhood sitting at either end of our boat; hours, days, weeks were spent in those locations. And so when Regan perched herself at the front, I couldn't help but think back and see myself sitting there 20 -some years ago. 

It down poured on us for about 30 seconds, from a cloud that seemed to take us all by surprise! I glanced at the other side of the lake, recognizing the wave of rain coming closer. Without pausing, I grabbed my phone to check the radar and suddenly, we were getting wet. I didn't even have time to say anything to anyone! Trying to take cover and wondering if we needed to hurry off the lake, we realized it was just one cloud and once it passed, the sun came out and we were back to having fun! I'm pretty sure the smiles were plastered on their faces all day. They loved every. single. minute. 

Well, maybe not every single minute. There was that moment when Ryan and Sidney were on the jet ski and ended up in the lake instead. 

More on that later....

Real men wear pink. At least that's how the saying goes :)

Lincoln loved being on the boat. As for the pink life-jacket?  I don't think it was the color that bothered him as much as the uber-restricting feeling he had.

Poor kid. Bad enough I had to dig out the girls' old life-jacket (let's be real. I'm practical in all aspects of the word and I wasn't about to spend unnecessary on a life-jacket he would get to wear twice this summer), but then the thing is so big and bulky, yet tight at the same time. He was miserable and uncomfortable. 

But for the most part, he stood, watching the wake behind the boat, just excited. 

Sweet Sidney had been talking about going to Maddi (and Zev's) house since last year Labor Day. Poor girl is too young to be on the jet ski we rent. But she got wind that Maddi had one and was thrilled to learn she could go for a spin. 

 Her first ride was a complete success. She was giddy and smiley and happy. Then it was Regan's turn before she got another ride. 

It was then that Ryan learned how to tip a jet ski. 

We watched from the boat as he and Sidney slowly started leaning towards the water (keep in mind, the jet ski was not moving at this point). Zev says "you're gonna tip!", but it was too late. As much as Ryan tried to right the two of them, it wasn't going to be enough and into the murky water they landed! Sid flipped out, but not for long. It was a quick meltdown of screams and panic and a lot of "you're alright!"'s from myself and Ryan. She swam to the ski and as quickly as she was in the water, she climbed out. 

Unfortunately, that left Ryan stranded in the water. Contemplating how he was going to climb back on without tipping them a second time. 

Thank goodness for cameras :) 

Sid was never so excited to get into the shower that night, fearing she smelled like a fish!  

After we packed away the jet skis, Zevlen was nice enough to give the girls the longest tube ride in the history of tubes! They laughed and giggled and thought they were 'all that' as he gave them a pretty smooth ride. A couple of times out of the wake and a few bumpy/fast moments just made them laugh even harder. 

Zev got to show off some of his skills too. With Maddi at the wheel and the rest of us watching his crazy antics, he spun in circles and gave us a good show. 

And that time in the back of the boat?, watching the wake, or crazy Zev, it was definitely a day our girls will remember for a very long time! 

Thanks guys!! 

End of an era

Three days/week, Sidney has spent the last 4 1/2 years at her "home away from home" while we were at work. She was about this age when she started her journey with New Horizon. And throughout that journey, she met some amazing friends and was cared for by some loving caregivers. 

Today, we said 'goodbye', one final time. 

And it broke my heart a little. 

I cannot tell you how much she loves these classmates. Many of them, having known her since infancy. These kiddos grew up together. 

They shared more than crayons and books.

They also shared boyfriends and laughter. 

Smiles and tears. 

And as we walked out this afternoon, after saying our final goodbyes, I'm caught with tears flowing down my cheeks knowing my baby is growing up. 

It's the end of an era. 

Next stop: Kindergarten

Sid says...

This middle child of ours. She just keeps getting funnier.

Evidentially no one told her that a donkey wasn't invited into the National Anthem....

Regan will be singing the National Anthem with her new choir at an upcoming Twins game (more on that another time), and as a result, has been listening to various rendentions to sing along. Tonight, Sidney busts out "ohh say can you see, by the donkey's light". Really. She sang that all day! I couldn't keep it together :) I have a video recording of another one of her bits, but it's best to just listen to that one and I'll have to save it for another post. Aren't you excited!? 

Love you Sid

When Lincoln gets a lemon

He eats it :)

And then makes a crazy silly, super sour, what was that kind of face.

And then takes over the handling of the lemon and sucks on it throughout dinner.

Watching Lincoln grow and learn

Watching your child learn and grow is the most amazing experience. And Lincoln evidently likes to do things in groups, because this weekend, when he was finally feeling better, he learned to clap his hands, wave bye-bye, give high 5's and shake his head no. He also can sign "more" but it looks a bit like his waving so I want to be sure he's got it down before I say he's doing it. (Note: Sidney did it like this too).

 

There's just something about each developmental phase that strikes me. Makes me smile. I love each phase of childhood and am doing my best not to dwell on the fact that he, or the older two, are getting older. Instead, I'm going to relish in all of the exciting times.

It's just as much fun to watching Lincoln shake his head "no" as it is to see Regan or Sidney realize what he just did and gasp "MOM!, did you see that!!" with amazement and wonder.

 

This parenting stuff has it's rewards. And they're pretty darn great. 

a trip to the zoo

 Ryan's new gig is pretty sweet and I think they are #1 in putting family first and actually meaning it. There are companies (and bosses) that say "we put family first" and then there is his company who actually demonstrates it. Yesterday, they closed up shop at 10am and the whole place (plus families) were invited to a picnic and day at the MN Zoo. How cool is that! 

Sid was in her prime before we even entered as she tried 'milking' this statue....

We explored for hours on end, and enjoyed nearly every inch of the zoo (we skipped out a couple of exhibits at the end without the girls knowing it as our feet were tired and bellies were hungry and it was time for this family to exit the zoo!).

Lincoln enjoyed all the animals from his stroller or his seat on my hip. We talked about all the animal sounds and got up close and personal at the farm site, where he giggled and laughed as the sheep crawled into my lap. 

While in the bear cave, we were able to watch the bears "play" and then stroll into the water for a swim. They got right up in our faces and all 3 kids were in awe! 

 News to us, there are now camel rides at the zoo (we generally go to the Como Zoo and it had been 2 years since we've been to the MN Zoo). So we obliged to their request and paid the fee, letting them stroll around for a mere 2 minutes on the back of a camel. Oh but they were excited. 

I couldn't help but snatch a picture on top of the big pig's back. We had a wonderful family day and so happy that Ryan has such a great employer!