Haven 3-4 months

Could I be anymore behind on updates? I was waiting, and waiting to do a 3 month update and now she is 4 months! So of course lots of things have changed. She had her 4 month check up this week. She was close to 13 lbs. I want to say 12lbs 11oz but I'm unsure exactly. About 2 lbs bigger than Emerson at this age.  But, not huge by any means. I have no idea on the length. But, I know for certain her once pants are now capris. She has changed a lot in the last month or so. One development is the ability to grab things. It kind of hit me by surprised when I was holding her in the kitchen and a tiny fist knocked my bowl in the floor. Now, she grabs at everything. My hair is no longer safe. She has been enjoying the baby gym but is getting irritated she can't pull the toys off that are attached. Little miss is not rolling over yet. I'm not complaining, as it's nice to have a baby be non-mobile for the moment. She has no interest in being on her belly. She does like to be on her back and kick her legs like crazy. Haven has a very social personality. She loves to be in the middle of conversation and grins at everyone. She has started chuckling and finds Emerson hilarious. She even has a tickle spot. I’m sure everyone thinks they have the most adorable baby, but I’m pretty sure Haven might be.  I’m mean seriously she has the most joyous smile. 

This is a funny peak at her personality. On the left, I'm entertaining her. She wasn't impressed. On the right, Emerson did something silly. 

The scowl, and the chuckle.

Emerson at the same age.

Emerson Age 5!

So, birthday post 6 weeks late. That's kind of how my life runs now. I'm on a 6 week delay. ;)

Emerson Age: 5

Favorite Color: Golden

What do you want to be when you grow up? A firestar (from Spiderman)

Favorite Movie: Treasure Planet

Favorite Book: Ariel

What makes you happy? Daddy

What makes you sad? Timeout

Favorite food: Monkey Muffins

Favorite song: Tangled

Best Friend: Emerson from dance class is her best friend because she told her she can have a gold coin so she’s nice. And Olivia. Ha! 

Emerson is five years old! An official school age kid, not a preschooler anymore. She was so thrilled for her birthday. Her birthday request…to get her ears pierced! She was pretty adamant that she wanted them done even though it hurts. I would love to say there were no tears but overall she got past the pain pretty quickly. Five minutes later she was over the moon with her new flower earrings!

A rare mother/daughter shot with the birthday girl. 

She loves her sister! Don't worry not a black eye. Marker. :)

A little bit about Emerson right now. She is a talkative, bubbly gal. Inquisitive, and relentlessly asks why. Emerson loves to play with dolls, barbies, and her favorite thing is dressing up her stuffed animals. She is very focused in accessorizing them. Earrings, hats, and hair bows. She loves to dress herself and combine different patterns and layer. Her favorite thing to do is draw. She spends a couple hours a day creating her master pieces. Emerson has a great eye for color combination. Because of her perfectionist tendencies she gets frustrated when things aren't quite right. I remind here that drawing takes practice. She is both particular yet carefree. She loves to be around people and making new friends. If you had told me 3 years ago how much this child would be eating I wouldn't have believed it. She is a huge veggie and fruit lover. Likely the healthiest eater in our house. She's growing up fast. I can't wait to see what the future holds for her!

Haven 2 Months Old

Haven is two months old! She is changing everyday. I feel like we have turned the corner from fussy newborn to more interactive baby during her awake time. We are finally getting to see her personality and those sweet smiles. She is a social girl. Haven loves to coo and talk back and forth. Of course she throws in the most adorable smiles ever. She has a very expressive grin that'll make your day. We just started to use the baby gym from time to time. She'll enjoy a few peaceful seconds staring at the toys before her siblings pile on top of her. She has been sleeping amazingly well. She'll go to bed around 9 or 10 and sleep until 7 or 8. All. Night. Long. I can't believe it myself and I certainly wasn't expecting it. So I'm much more rested at night now than when I was pregnant. Haven has rejected the paci but does suck on her hands now and it has been her way of self soothing to go to sleep. At her check-up she weighed in at 10lbs 7oz and was 22.8 inches long. She's moved to 3-6 month sizes since she seems to have very long legs. 

When I took her in she was passed out sound asleep. I told the nurse to be prepared for a crabby baby since it was freezing outside and I had to strip her down. 

Much to our surprise she was delightful. Smiling every chance she got and winning hearts. 

"Check-up during nap time? Awesome!"

Here are a few pictures of our spunky girl. 

For reference Emerson at 2 months old. 

Here are some updated pictures of Haven. Taken sometime in January. Maybe around 6 weeks?? I have been terrible at getting pictures this time around. Sadly most have been on my iPhone and the most awesome quality. 

She has filled in the face quiet a bit and has a sweet smile. She always smiles with eyes too.  

This was Emerson's outfit. Whenever she wears something of hers I get a sense of nostalgia. 

I think she looks a lot like Emerson in this picture. 

Here is Emerson at a little over two months. I see some similarities. How about you?

Another one of Emerson at 3 months. 

Holidays

I thought I would go back and catch up on 2013 before 2014 started flying by. Here is a picture of me and the kids on Thanksgiving. I didn't do any maternity photos this time so I figured I should document my bump with the kiddos. We thought Haven was going to arrive all weekend long.  She had other plans though.

Thankfully she didn't decide to be a Christmas baby. It was lovely waking up this 10 day old face on Christmas morning. I got this outfit on ebay. Unisex green since I didn't' know who would wear it. She looks so cute in it but sadly it's already almost too small. 

Ezra in the best Christmas picture ever. Ezra the Elf anyone?

Thankfully even with a newborn we were able to make our favorite monkey muffins. Our own Christmas morning tradition. 

A picture of all three cuddling up. She kind of shrank up in the middle of them.

Emerson couldn't keep her hands off of her. That sweet face. 

Since Haven was so little we stayed in for some girl time. AKA a cheesy christmas movie and a nap. But, we managed to get in one selfie. 

Sisters

Haven 1 Month Old

This past month has flown by. I had a hard time capturing a good one month picture of Haven. She hates being naked, so it was tough to have a non-crying picture in her diapers. I couldn't even get the giraffe set-up but I guess it'll have to work! So here is what I've learned about Haven in her first month.

1. She really doesn't like to be cold. Unfortunate for a baby born in winter.

2. As a result she hasn't been a fan of bath time. 

3. She's a loud baby. A serious set of lungs.

4. Although she can be fussy when awake she is a great sleeper.

She weighed in at 9 lb 2.5 oz (50th %) and 21.7 inches long (75th %) at her one month check-up, up over a pound in two weeks. In the last few days since she turned one month she has had a lot more pleasant awake time, and has also shown a few smiles. The other night when she woke up I said her name and she flashed the biggest grin. Adorable. All the sudden she looks fuller and less newborn like too. I forgot how fun it is to dress a little girl so of course I ooh and ahh over everything she wears. Since she is a big spitter we have plenty of opportunity for wardrobe changes. She's been the object of affection of her brother and sister. Emerson can't get enough, and Ezra loves her until she spits up and he is totally grossed out. 

Here is our picture mishap.  Hopefully she'll be sturdier next month. 

It's a girl!

It's a girl! Haven Elizabeth arrived December 14th, coming in at 6 lb 11 oz and 19.5 inches. We are thrilled to add another little girl to our family. As you can see by the delay in posting we are still adjusting to life as a family of five. I'll post a birth story when I can. 

Family shot before leaving the birth center. We remembered our camera this time!

Here is little miss on the day we brought her home. Couldn't you just eat her up?

Still pregnant

37 weeks

So, I'm still pregnant. I'm constantly getting asked if I have any baby news and that's all I can say, still pregnant. I'm officially a week past how far I went with Ezra. It's hard to get my mind around that I could possibly reach my due date. We deep cleaned the house,  got the dog groomed, put up the tree at Thanksgiving full expecting a baby at any moment. So to say we are twiddling our thumbs at this point is an understatement. I've had weeks of baby coming signs all to point to nothing happening. 

39 weeks

 You can see from my 37 week to 39 week picture that the baby is lower and I definitely feel that. I'm uncomfortable pretty much all the time. Not in the I'm pregnant and huge kind of way but literally in pain all the time. So contrary to the other two babes I'm really ready for a baby.

Just for comparison. Ezra in utero right before he was born.  This will definitely be our biggest baby yet! Now I'm on the fence whether it's a boy or girl. Which is more stubborn? If you are listening, come out little baby. Preferably before Christmas. 

Back in October we were fortunate enough to go apple picking. We went two years ago and such a great time we couldn't wait to head back. On our adventure somehow we got a rare picture of the 4 of us!

Ezra enjoyed riding them apple cart and testing out the goods. 

We were even able to bribe a friend to come down and meet us as well.

My little guy. He was happier than this looks, I swear. 

The kids and I enjoyed apple doughnuts and hot cider.

Emerson did her own thing as usual. She has no personality, can't you tell?

We got up close and personal with some friendly horses.

We ended up with a huge bushel of apples. Sadly, I didn't do anything creative with them like apple butter, or pie, but they sure were tasty to eat each day!

This pretty much sums up what we thought about apple picking.