I Fell in LOVE All Over Again...

We have been busy, busy, busy gushing over our new little addition!! EJ decided to surprise us 3 weeks early on Halloween night!

Now, our lil' man is already 3 weeks old and I want to STOP time!! One of my good friends and I had a discussion the other day about the difference between the arrival of first and second children...or in my case third. The first time around we both felt we focused too hard on milestones and when our baby(ies) would reach the next step in life. First time mommies are constantly worrying about these milestones and whether or not they are doing the right things. Is my baby eating enough? Is my baby developing on the right track? Why isn't he/she rolling over? All of these things seemed to get in the way the first time around. I remember reading baby books and hoping to perfect the twins eating/sleeping/playing patterns....by the way... this isn't possible!! Yeah, those books helped a little bit, but really every mom just has to find what works for them.

This time around is SO different. I just want to soak in every single second with my baby!! My pregnancy was so different than with LJ and LK. I was constantly on the go and really didn't have time to think about the fact that a child was growing inside of me. I definitely didn't feel as close to my baby throughout the pregnancy as I did with the twins. Then I met him....and I FELL IN LOVE ALL OVER AGAIN!! It is amazing that you can instantly love something as much as the children that you've been loving for over 3 years. The moment I laid eyes on him he fit into our family perfectly; he was meant to be ours! I almost hope he takes his time reaching milestones because that means I can cherish his "babyness" longer. We are fairly certain this will be the last child for us...so it is all a little bittersweet.

LJ and LK are doing so great with EJ. They have shown no signs of jealousy whatsoever. They constantly want to give him kisses on the head. LJ says to me at least 5 times a day "Mommy, I love him; he is my best brother". It melts my heart. LJ also says "he's smelly"...I think he likes the baby smell...but I'm not sure. LK really wishes he could just play with her already! She is always talking about how he sleeps and eats, sleeps and eats, sleeps and eats. Having 2 sisters, part of me is just the slightest bit sad that LK will not have a sister...but either way I would have been sad for one of them. Luckily, she has a girl cousin that is only 1 year older.

So, we are adjusting to our family of FIVE in our tiny little house...and I couldn't be HAPPIER!!! I am so very grateful for all that we have been blessed with...it is NEVER taken for granted!

Fall...what's that?

Those of us that live in MI are feeling slighted by mother nature (and the economy)...we really didn't get much of a summer and then had to bust out the winter coats in early OCTOBER! Luckily, we managed to fit a few fall festivities in here and there between the cold spurts. Above is a picture of the sun burning frost off our fence. When I first glanced out the window I thought the fence was on fire! I'll be posting about our fall outings in the next few posts.

One of my students helps his family run a local petting farm and we stopped by in September. LJ was on cloud nine since he got to sit in all the tractors...even the combine!!! Unfortunately, they were not John Deere tractors...but he was still SO EXCITED! The kids held baby chicks and bunnies. They also fed the goats and petted baby pigs and baby goats. They also had their first horse ride...so brave!

Stay tuned for more fall festivities...

SIDE NOTE: As most of the readers know, we will be adding to the family in a month or so. I am trying to decide what to do with the blog since I will no longer be JUST the momof twinz....either re-name or start a whole new one...that is the question?

An Accomplishment

As I glanced through the mail yesterday I knew exactly what I would find inside the white CMU envelope!! I am not sure I have ever been so proud of myself...I mean my Bachelor's was a piece of cake compared to this thing! This time around I wouldn't settle for anything but my best effort; which is most likely how I atttained the 3.97 g.p.a.!!! If only I would have applied myself like that the first time around...oh wait...I was having far too much fun!!! It's amazing what a piece of paper can symbolize...

Three Years Ago Today....

...I met my two beautiful babies for the first time! I will never forget the very first moment I looked into their eyes (of course they were screaming their heads off...but it was still great)! So much worry and anticipation had went into their birth after being hospitalized 26 weeks into my pregnancy. Day by day our hopes went up that they would be born healthy, and what a surprise it was when they didn't need one single day in the NICU!!

As I woke my kiddos up this morning singing Happy Birthday to each one I had to hold back tears. It is truly amazing how fast they grow up...and I know that sounds so cliche...but it sure is the truth!! This morning as LJ was going potty I said "can you believe that you're 3 years old today?!!" and he replied "can I drive your car now, Mommy?". He wasn't very happy to hear that he has another 13 yrs. to go! Once again, I had to return to work on their birthday and was missing them the entire day. On our way home today we stopped for some birthday slurpees and LnL spent the evening riding their new birthday gifts (2 battery-powered four wheelers).

We celebrated with family and friends last Sunday and the kids had a blast! They had been looking forward to their cakes for the past two weeks so they were super excited to see them. LK had Disney Princesses and LJ had a golf theme on his cake. Everyone had fun making candy necklaces, decorating tiaras and visors, and just enjoying the day! LK was hilarious while we sang her Happy Birthday ( will post video later in week) and LJ was SO funny when we brought out his big gift!

Here is a slideshow of my precious ones in the last year! Too catch up from birth check out last year's slideshow.

The cottage on the lake...

We enjoyed a wonderful weekend on beautiful Lake Huron a week ago. The weather was not the greatest, but we made due. Most importantly, we made some great memories. We rented a 3 bedroom, 2 bath cottage and participants included my mom, dad, sisters, and 5 kids. Hubby and my bro-in-law squeezed out of work for a day to join us as well.

Luckily, the place also came with a hot tub...which the kids put to good use the first day and a half of bad weather. We spent each night around a campfire eating s'mores followed by some hot games of Yahtzee!! Our first full day it was rainy and cold... we ended up fishing in the rain at a local catch and release pond. Our second full day was gorgeous...we enjoyed the sun, the beach, and the lake for the entire day! I was nervous about the beach and the lake...but everything turned out to be perfect for the kids! The sand was perfect for castles and the lake was so clear; the clearest I have ever seen Lake Huron.

Just to name a few of the memorable events from this trip...fishing in the rain, glow necklace exploding all over Z-man, hunting for petoskey stones (we found a bunch!), sandcastles, running out of marshmallows on the last night and attempting to roast mini-marshmallows, playing Yahtzee on the Time books (circa 1970), playing Battleship, Elly "bathing" on the beach, the kids playing ladder ball, wonderful meals with the family, and sand-sand-sand EVERYWHERE.

Below is one of my favorite pics' from our vacay'. If you know my nephew, Z-man, at all you will not be surprised by this photo. He is one wild and crazy kid! Hopefully, our summer lake vacations will become a yearly tradition!