A common expression

...these smirks. I see them often. I think they get them from my husband's mischievous side, but he disagrees. At least they are cute.

A little of this...

Well, it's just fun and games around here, folks! GORGEOUS October weather, a happy little boy again (that yucky cow's milk stuff is gone from his system, finally), a huge backyard with just enough entertainment to entertain these three, and the list could go on. If all of fall was like this, I'd be a happy camper!
Jakob had his follow-up appointment last week that confirmed that my modified diet is doing the trick. He did have an ear infection that required his first antibiotic (YUK), but I'll hold out hope that it will be his last for a while. Either way, sleep is coming back to visit our house, and it can stay. Forever. Jake is so close to crawling, and I never tire of watching him scoot and look smug about it :)
Emily and Elyse are two peas in a pod! They spend their fall days trying on shoes, playing dollhouse, packing their special bags with special things, wearing jewelry, coloring, more coloring, saving their coloring papers and ooh-ing and aah-ing over them... it's quite fun. I love that they seem to enjoy the same things at the same times! Emily now says, "I'm a little ballerina" and "Elyse is a princess!" Yep. Fun times. They dance. Lots. They twirl and remind me to watch their every move. They play with Jakob, play with their food, play with Daddy... basically lead a challenging life, you know? I love them. I love the little girls they are becoming, and I'm pretty sure they will always fight, so I might as well resign myself to dealing with that for a while... :)
I'm feeling thankful. And blessed.

6 Months?

True.  He's been around for 6 months as of yesterday (don't tell... I'm late again!).  We've had an adventurous month, for sure.  He celebrated last night by sleeping through the night for the first time in 3 (?) weeks.  I can't tell you how much that gift meant to me!  Seriously, it's been a long few weeks.  It felt longer than the weeks as a newborn, mostly because he had teased me for a while, and I had grown used to the idea of getting a full night's sleep.  I'm amazed how refreshed I feel today, and I'm quite thankful he gave me a half-birthday gift.  It seems to be that he's finally feeling better, at least in my opinion.  For a while, he was experiencing quite a bit of discomfort and pain that I believe I can attribute to his milk protein allergy, and I could totally understand why sleep was so difficult.  The weeks I've gone without dairy seem to be improving his sleep and his disposition, so we'll see if the pediatrician will confirm my suspicions next week.  I hope so!!!  Alternative = colonoscopy.  Not cool.

Jakob is enjoying his food these days.  He has tried oatmeal, rice, peas, green beans, sweet potatoes, carrots, applesauce, and bananas.  Of these, he despises applesauce most!  His face is classic, though, when he tastes it.  I've never seen a kid so adamant about NOT taking another bite.  He's smart, and that makes him quite hard to trick.  His favorites are green beans and peas, although the carrots he's had make him very happy, too.   I can't believe that he's just now seeming to get into a good routine, but it really took a while!  I blame that on numerous reasons: 1) me.  2) he's my third; he has to just fit in.  3) he seems to be somewhat of a free spirit.  Like his dad.  :)  Say no more, right?  I am getting used to his unpredictability, though, as it works to our favor most days if we are out and about.  When we're trying to plan, however, ... hmm...  Once his tummy is feeling better, that's a very firm goal of mine.  He needs a little more structure!

Jake's new trick is getting up and rocking out on all fours.  I LOVE this little trick of his, but I know from this point forward, there's no going back.  He's going mobile, and he will no longer be content to roll around and coo at me.  Ah, it's time, though.  He's ready.  Jordan and I predicted that he would be crawling in October, so we'll see if he can put two and two together!  He loves to roll around and crow at the top of his lungs.  His feet are still his favorite toys, and he can put on the sweetest smile when you finally meet his gaze.  I love him.  The girls love him, too, and I love watching the interaction between the three of them!  Emily and Elyse both despise his drooling habits, so they spend most of the play time griping about his "pit sup" (as Em says).  They take turns wiping his chin and the carpet.  They also love to blame every yucky smell on his diaper.  Must be a Jakob poop!

Jakob currently takes a morning nap, a cat nap before lunch (we're really close to eliminating this one, I think!), a longer afternoon nap, and SOMETIMES a brief nap before dinner.  It depends how early he wakes up from his afternoon nap.  It seems to work well for him, but I can tell he's ready to stretch out his feedings a bit more, and I will welcome that.  He has two bottom teeth, but I have a feeling a few more will follow shortly.  He seems to be chomping on everything in sight.  As for his disposition, he is as charming as ever.  If he's getting his way :)  The only times I see that little temper flare is if he's not ready for bed and I (heaven forbid) jump the gun a little, or if he wakes up with a messy diaper.  He will scream his head off until I go in and hug him, calm him down, and retry.  Then he's silent.  Crazy boy...  I guess I might as well ask forgiveness, right?

We love taking him out, as he's the best little companion.  He doesn't mind his car seat anymore, and he seems to love taking in new sights.  He is quick to smile and flirt :)  I'm so thankful for this little guy.  Obviously, I love him more than cheese, right???  It's hard to believe a year ago, I was anticipating that day in November (or was it December?) when we would discover he was a boy :)

Here are some of my current favorites and "dislikes" for this age:

fun's:

* I just love the way he gets excited when he's up on his knees, rocking around.
* I love being greeted by him after a nap :)
* He is SUCH a loud singer!
* He's pretty cute to feed in his little high chair.  I love his fat lips :)
* Watching him interact with Daddy and the girls makes me one happy mommy!
* I still love our first hang-out session of the day (around 6:30am).  It's so QUIET.
* Roly-poly legs and arms.
* I love that he's incredibly ticklish!

not-so-fun's:

* His "unhappy" scream.  (see how gracious I am?)
* Jakob's nails grow faster than the speed of light, and he is constantly scratching himself.
* He likes to think he should be my midnight buddy... early morning buddy... etc.  Good thing he's cute!
* He is so ready to move- I can't imagine what a little crazy boy he's going to turn into!  Didn't he get the memo to keep my life simple?
* Um... he discovered he can bite.
* Naptime interruptions = poo.  Not cool.

Jakob, you're sweet.  You're cute and cuddly, and we are so happy you are our boy!  6 more months until we introduce you to the wonderful world of cake.  You don't need to rush it though... It won't be any good without real milk anyway...  :)  We love you!

This little guy...

... Seems to be interested in crawling. Cute, huh? This little guy also seems to have a milk protein allergy. I do hope we can resolve that little issue ASAP. I have been doing a big switcharoo on my diet, and I hope Jake can feel better soon! Did I mention I am tired? Yep... Miserable boy at night means miserable amount of sleep for mama. I am so thankful, however, for a healthy little guy that is almost 18lbs chunky. A healthy and CUTE little guy. And, forgive the quality of these photos... I grabbed the closest camera!

Simplicity

If only life was always this simple. Love them!

These three...

Emily, Elyse, and Jakob at five months.  Love their unique looks!

5 months old! ... a few days late :)

I'm late.  Not shocking, I know. . .  Jakob has graduated out of that newborn baby and is turning into quite the little munchkin!  I love this age, mostly because of the interaction between him and the rest of the family.  He is quite the character.  He seems to have that third-born tendency of just "fitting in" to our schedules, but I have to remember that he needs a routine, too :)  This month has been a little bit rougher. . . He has had two colds back to back, and they seem to make it harder for him to take regular feedings and sleep as well at night.  Overall, he's handled it pretty well, but I'm excited to have non-snotty Jakob back!  He cut his first bottom tooth this week, and his second bottom front tooth is quite close.  I had wondered why in the world he was such a drooler so early (my other girls cut their first teeth at 7.5 months), so I guess that explains a lot!  The drool is NOT COOL, but hey, it's for a good cause!

I'm going to start him on cereal in the next week or two, mostly because my mommy instinct tells me I should.  Expect some pics soon :)  Jakob's current tricks: rolling all over, grabbing both feet and trying to roll (love that one!), squealing like a pig, sticking out his tongue, blowing raspberries every once in a while, making funny faces (he loves to chew on his bottom lip), giggling, standing (with help, of course), and family-watching.  He loves to watch us and the girls, and he seems amused at our antics.  I've caught him up on his knees several times, and he's getting familiar with the push-up position, so sooner or later, he's going to put two and two together!

One of the biggest differences I now notice in having a boy is the way he is constantly in motion! Slapping, hitting, thrashing around...  it's so different :)  I know it's only the beginning, right?  Here are my current fun's and not-so-fun's for this age.  Nothing really new, but it's good for me to make these notes!

fun's:

* bathtime!  He has so much fun- he just hangs out and kicks away!
* He still loves to be held.  If I'm not somewhere I can put him down to sleep, he will crash on me (when his sisters aren't poking him) fairly easily.
* He loves hanging out with Daddy!  I think they have a special male bond that we just can't relate to!  p.s.  I swear, Jordan's extended paternity leave seems to have made that bond a bit stronger :)  I love it!
* I love getting him up in the morning.  He's quite happy to see me :)
* He's been pulling 10 hour stretches (finally!) - at least he was before the sickies hit :(
* His knee rolls.  'nuf said.

 (sporting his new goofy face) 

not-so-fun's:

* the inconvenience of cereal. I know he needs it, but I'm somewhat dreading this transition to "prepared mommy" whenever we go somewhere :)
* Did I mention I'm tired of cloth diapering? I feel like I'm already doing a countdown to when this guy is potty trained!!!  I've been cloth diapering for over 3.5 years with no significant breaks.  It's time :)
* Spit-up and drool.  Still yucky!
* Seeing him grow is so fun, yet so sad.  I always knew I was a baby person, but it's hard to see that baby growing.  I will have to make sure I enjoy ALL OF THIS.  All of it.

Jakob Henry, you're sweet.  Stay sweet, please :)  ... and chubby. 

August Highlights!

Yes, we've now resorted to monthly "highlights."  I'm so lame!  I can't even find the energy to review previous posts to see if I am repeating myself, so here is what I have to share... even if I've shared it before!

Jakob:

Jakob reminds me of a little puppy these days: drools, gnaws on everything, poops everywhere... melt-your-heart looks from this little guy have me whipped.  He is precious.  He's messy, but I'm loving life with him!  Let's see... He is cutting his first bottom tooth, and he seems to be handling it quite well!  He is still drooling buckets, but now I understand why :)  Jake started grabbing his feet the other day (one of my favorite baby antics!) and he is often seen rolling around the room, feet in hand.  His new trick this month was rolling back to tummy, and he gets such a kick out of himself when he does it.  He loves to sleep on his side, index finger in his mouth.  He's waking up so happy from his naps, and I love to hear him crowing first thing in the morning!  He still has one feeding between 7pm and 7am, and I'm feeling like he will drop it anytime.  I will probably be saying that every month...  :)  TO THIS DAY, Jakob falls asleep during most of his feedings.  Seriously.  Yes, he's almost 5 months old!

At his four month check up, he weighed 15lbs 9oz (42%) and was about 26" long.  He's quite an average guy!  His favorite babysitter is Elyse these days.  He follows her around with his eyes whenever she is close, just waiting to giggle with her.  I know I'm biased, but she is very good with him.  She's always gentle and seems content to just sit and talk to him.  I'm very thankful for such a big helper!  Emily on the other hand...

Emily:

What can I say about Emily?  She's definitely Miss Feisty these days.  I am vexed by her ability to tune out EVERYTHING AROUND HER when she wants to.  Seriously, I'm vexed.  I'm also entertained, as I almost always wish I could do the same thing :)  Potty training is going "fairly" well.  She is proficient at #1 when the conditions are right (no distractions, toys, distractions, or toys).  SO, she's got a ways to go.  She does very well at home, but has a hard time out of the house (distractions and toys).  #2... well, I guess it will happen eventually.  I am learning to love her just the way God made her, even if it means she will take a bit longer to do this on her own :)  I do love hearing her say, "I did big peeps!!!"  I assume she's talking about pee since she won't do the other...

(she was quite proud of her recent fall down the outside steps...)

As for her humor these days, well, she's got lots of it.  Her new response when we question her is, "me me thinks so!"  I assume that means, "I think so..."  She also uses "me me say."  She will pretend to talk on the phone and loves to throw that phrase out!  My second favorite phrase of hers is "I GOT IT!!!  I GOT IT!!!  --- I CAN'T!!!"  Seriously, at the top of her lungs and very desperate with each phrase.  I can still laugh at her most times :)  When she finds something funny, she says the word "laughing" as she laughs (you know, so we can put two and two together...).  She still calls her feet "feeties" thankfully (I hope she never outgrows that one...).  She has officially learned the "WHY?" question, and now she catches herself with the response "Yes, Mommy..."  She knows that's how I want her to respond, and she always has a little twinkle in her eye while saying it.  She calls all shorts, skirts, etc... "panties" and loves to yell it.

Emily loves to sing, and she can be heard singing to anything or anyone quite often.  Her favorite song is still "Holy God" (or "The Gospel Song"), and she loves to yell the title like she's cussing.  *sigh*  Another favorite is "Twinkle Twinkle" but I won't even attempt to break down her version...  Her other favorite pastime is destroying her crayons, drawing with pens (when I'm not looking) and placing stickers on her tummy.  She responds "Yes Sir!" to everyone and consistently amazes me with her humor and her funny little voice. Jordan and I both say we are going to miss her little chatter so much someday!

Elyse:

Elyse is just a string bean... so tall and skinny!  She is looking four years old to me :)  She is already talking about her birthday and all of the pink things she wants to partake of... Oh, yes, we are totally in a pink obsession!!! AGH!  I tried and tried and tried and tried to avoid this, but I'm doomed.  My daughter is in. love. with. pink.  I'm trying to be a good sport, can you tell?  Her imaginary friends are Percy, Van, and Twinkle Star.  Yep :)  She calls her comforter her "sweaty blanket" because we always warn her that sleeping with ALL HER BLANKETS on will make her sweat :)   I just have to share some of her other funnies:

* "Mommy, I just knew my shorts were on backwards because I was really sweaty."
* Upon spotting Jakob's eyes: "Mom, those blue things are moving all around!"
* I made a comment about being old, and she said, "You're not old!  You're new!"  (I love you, Elyse!)
* I told her she could stay up during naptime if she could behave.  She responded cheerfully, "Yes, I can be a cave!"
* One morning over breakfast, I explained to Elyse how Daddy and I fell in love, and later on she said, "When I was little, I used to fall down in love."
* "Maybe when Jakob gets bigger, he can have dollies!"  (Hmm...)

AND, my all time favorite: she thought Jakob's ear lobes were called "Egg nogs" - seriously.  SO CUTE!  When we corrected her, she just laughed her head off...  She is enjoying challenges these days- puzzles, paints, and learning legos :)  She is keeping me on my toes, but it's so fun.

 (a fun day trip to the Children's Museum... Jake obviously enjoyed it)

Life with these three is quite busy.  Jordan and I are always amazed by how much energy this stage of life requires, and it's constantly reminding me of my inadequacy.  I'm so thankful God makes this possible.  I am definitely not able to do it on my own!  Most days, we crash with that "good tired" feeling, but there are days when we literally feel like we did about 10% of what we wanted.  Perspective, right?  I love watching these three grow and change.  It's a beautiful thing...

Happy birthday

My love is my age as of today. Welcome to 31. He is more to me than words can express, and every day we have together is priceless. I love his smile, his patience, his free spirit, his eyes, his perseverance, his love for Christ, and so much more. I love celebrating the day God gave him to me, and I love celebrating his life. Happy birthday, J!

(Jakob is posing with daddy's gift :)

Four Months

Jakob, I can't believe you are four months old.  I have loved these four months with you!  I am amazed at how this little guy has grown over the last month, and it's fun for me to recall what three months looked like versus four.  I think the biggest change has been his attention span.  He LOVES tummy-time now and especially enjoys when I put toys down in front of him.  He smiles, puts on a concentrated look, and even tries to start scootching.  It's so fun and sobering at the same time!  I love his interaction at this age, too. He loves to use his expressive eyes to tell me stories in his crowing voice.  I know he just loves to hear himself talk!  The girls especially love it, as I think they thought he would be a bump on a log forever.  I have a feeling this is just the beginning of some serious sibling fun.

I am desperately sad that he seems to be losing a lot of hair.  I think the worst is over, but I dreaded those weeks of finding a slew of hair all over his sheet EVERY DAY! :(  He's back to "growing" hair again, which is nice :)  Poor little guy.  Elyse still insists when his hair gets longer, he can wear bows, too.  Hmm...
 

I am in love with his sweet personality.  At this stage of the game (and I know it can change at any moment?), he is extraordinarily content.  He loves to watch, chill, play, and pretty much do whatever we like during his playtime.  He doesn't seem to mind his sisters, but I do still love the wide-eyed look of terror when they get too close :)  I know, it's still evil...  His sleeping habits have improved drastically since we went on vacation at the beginning of the month.  He thought he was a newborn.  Mommy didn't find it funny.  SO, he is currently sleeping from about 6:30pm or 7pm to 6:30 or 7am with one feeding (usually around 3am).  As much as I dislike being awake at that hour, I have enjoyed the longer stretch before he wakes!  I dropped the 10pm feeding a few weeks ago, as it didn't seem to make a difference in his long stretch at night anymore.  I LOVE my mornings with him.  He usually wakes up a little bit before the girls, and I get to enjoy that 30 - 60 minutes with my little guy in peace and quiet (no offense, little ladies).

Okay, I am starting so see some boy-like behavior (no offense, little buddy.. it just took a few months).  I can totally see him light up when I pull him to his feet, or "play" with him more.  I don't remember the girls really caring if I tried to get them to stand.  I just know I should enjoy his lack of mobility, right, moms with boys?  Jakob just loves to roll around from tummy to back these days, so we did hit quite a hurdle with him not being able to fall back asleep on his back.  I believe we have passed that stage (thankfully!), and I now find him sleeping on his back and on his side quite often.  Nothing cuter than sleeping babies... Here are some of my current "observations":

fun's:

* I LOVE LOVE LOVE hearing him wake up happy!  He loves to crow and coo if he's had a good nap.
* I am enjoying that he's awake a little bit longer (about an hour) in between feedings.  SO NICE!
* Along with that longer wake-time comes longer between feedings.
* I love to see his crooked little grin..
* I love the way he loves his daddy!
* Seeing him interact with the girls is pretty nifty, too.
* He still has that baby stretch that he does (you know: the legs curled up, arms in the air stretch?).
* I adore his eyes.  They're so big.
* He's packing on a little weight, and I love seeing some chubby legs!
* I get to enjoy looking at his chubby legs when I let him stand up.. so fun!
* Giggles, giggles, giggles.  LOVE every one.

not-so-fun's:

* He's still not a super predictable baby.  My fault, I'm sure, but he still loves to keep me guessing about what he needs at least 2 days a week.
* He makes me appreciate naps.   :)
* I am NOT looking forward to starting solids in a few months.  Not cool.
* If he's not quite ready to go down for a nap, he will LET ME KNOW.  Sometimes I'll go pick him up to calm him down, and five minutes later, he'll go down without a peep.  Is that the first sign of a third-born spoiled child? :)   I think both of us need to stop doing that :)
* He seems to be sensitive to my spicy food intake, and I really despise spit up.
* Watching him achieve milestones reminds me of how fast this is going.

(we blamed Jake for our bad snacks the other night... so mean!)

I am determining all the time to enjoy this little guy.  It's not hard, but I still need the reminders that other things just aren't as important.  You might not want to verify this with my husband, but some cobwebs can wait :)

 (I love his expression... and Em's!)

Jakob, happy four months, buddy!  You are so loved :)

Training

Well, they don't call it "training" for nothing, right? Emily is SURELY going to do better tomorrow than she did today at this potty thing. Right? Right. A good night's sleep will do the trick. Right? Right. We've had one success so far, and it was enough to make my heart happy after a day of failures. I can't wait for some more successes. There will be more successes. Right? Right. Here we go! See you on the other side! Right? :)