Halloween all week long......

I feel like we have been celebrating Halloween everyday for about a week now.

Tuesday, my MOPS group had a Halloween party for the kiddos; they got to do some crafts, color and have yummy snacks.

Thursday, Aaron's office had a Halloween party, so once again everyone got dressed up and had some Halloween fun!

Friday, Taylynn went to school with treat bags for all her friends and a special gift for her teacher. Then, Preston got a phone call on my cell from the Spooky Pumpkin Face from IHOP. He told him that he could come in and get a free scary face pancake, so we headed to IHOP.
Both Alayna and Preston had a great time decorating their pancake and then eating it, of course.

After breakfast we went to a local shopping mall and did some trick or treating. Alayna was really timid at first, but then she understood and would reach out for the candy. So fun watching her learn.

Saturday evening we carved our pumpkin; both Taylynn and Preston enjoyed pulling out the insides. Aaron did the yucky work, then I carved the pumpkin face.Today (Sunday), we went to Taylynn's preschool for their Trunk or Treat
Then, we came home and I made them a "spooky" bathtub. I just added some bubbles and glow sticks to the water, put our carved pumpkin on the counter top and played some kids Halloween music. They loved it!
Then I set up a popcorn bar

and we watched Hocus Pocus. It has been fun, but I am ready for Halloween to be over.....it's a lot of work!

Big golfer/little golfer

Aaron took Preston to go golf one day while he was off work taking care of Chandler and I. Taylynn went to preschool and Alayna, Chandler and I stayed home.
I think Preston had the time of his life!

Two Weeks!

I cannot believe how the time has gone by. I am holding on to October 4th hoping to fully remember the miracles of the day. But I know with my memory, the more time that goes by, the more memory I lose. Thank goodness for the blog world, I can record little moments that I will most likely one day forget.


I was just thinking today about that first moment I met Chandler. He was all wrapped up with his face next to mine and I could see his hand popping out from his swaddled blanket. I slipped my finger in and without hesitation he wrapped his fingers around mine. Little moments like that are so beautiful. I took it and I can still see it and feel like it just happened.

Now Chandler is two weeks. He had his first Doctors appointment and other than him pooping all over the Doctor and all over me, he is perfect. Here are some facts:

Weight: 9 lb, 8 ounces
Height: 21 1/4 inches
He smiles ALL THE TIME, at least compared to the other three when they were babies.
He rarely cries.
He doesn't let me sleep much at night.
He loves to be held and snuggle (I think this is why he doesn't sleep well at night).
He fits well into newborn clothes. 0-3 months are somewhat big on him.
He has stole my heart!!!!

The longer I have been a mom....or is it the older I get??? I have really learned to soak it and and take every moment and be thankful. Pausing and giving thanks really brings me back to life and helps me be present in the moment. I don't want to live life in fast forward....I want to be in slow motion. So if you notice me doing less, that's because I am holding my babies.

Week one

(Originally written on Friday, but not posted until today!)

Today concludes one week at home with Chandler. Next Monday Aaron goes back to work and I am on my own. Physically I am fine and recovering from the surgery as normal, but I am emotionally not prepared. I am so afraid with four children running around the house that I can't be the mom I want to be, but more importantly the mom God created me to be. I know that through Christ I can do all things and I know I can give him all my cares and that I don't have to spend my time worrying. I "know" it's all true, but do I believe God will provide for ME? In the end He will, even if life is rough for awhile, I know my God will come through....He always does, even with my unbelief.

Since this was our first week at home and very special to all of us I wanted to document it.

Friday:
We got home from the hospital around 2:30pm
Everyone was so excited and got to hold baby Chandler.
Nothing productive happened, but staring at the baby and smiling all day.

Saturday:
I had an appointment at the breastfeeding clinic. Aaron dropped Chandler and I off and then he took the kids to the library.

Sunday:
Our first real family outing was at church. It was good to get out and show off Chandler.
We took the kids out for pizza, we all had a great time.
Target run after pizza, we had some things we needed. Everyone was good :)

Monday:
We all took Taylynn to Preschool, then we headed back to Target to get some things we forgot.
Then Toy's R us and TJ Maxx.
We picked up Taylynn and headed home for the day.

Tuesday:
Aaron took everyone but Chandler to the Discovery Center so I could relax a bit. The quiet was nice, but after an hour I missed the noise.
I had my first mommy of four failure......I missed Chandler's doctor's appointment.Ooops!
My friend Taylor came by to meet Chandler.
We watched a really bad Halloween movie with the kids.

Wednesday:
We stayed in the house all day and relaxed.

Thursday:
I was ready to get out of the house. We took the kids to the mall for some Chick-fil-a and some shopping. We were there for four hours, but everyone behaved!

Friday:
Aaron and Preston took Taylynn to school then they went golfing (pictures to come)
Alayna, Chandler and I stayed home. While Chandler slept Alayna and I had so much fun! We played and colored and sang and dance. It was so wonderful to spend time with just her, I wish I had more of an opportunity to do that.

After Aaron picked us up after getting Taylynn, we went to lunch; I was craving some mexican food.

What a wonderful week! I love our family of six, so many adventures to come!

Home Sweet Home

Last Friday we came home from the hospital. I was nice to be home and start life as a family of six although I could have stayed at the hospital another week. I loved getting waited on and I loved the food.

My mom was home with Taylynn, Preston and Alayna. She was keeping them up from their nap so they could all greet us, it was nice to be homeWe have had a great week, but that is all in the next post!

Hospital stay

We are so blessed with family and friends that love Chandler and celebrated with us at the hospital. I made special treats for the hospital staff and all our guest, I do this as a thank you. It really means a lot to us to have friends and family come and love on Chandler.Thank you to all those who came to see us. And we know we have family and friends who live far away and couldn't come, but we know your thinking of us and we appreciate it.