What.A.Day. *2 actually*

In the last 48 hours...

I have sat in 6 different waiting rooms.

Learned how to collect urine on an infant (TMI?).

Saw first hand the oddest medical contraption ever. It looked like a school wood shop project.

Eaten WAY too much fast food.

Held my daughter down 3 times while people poked her with needles.

Held back tears successfully 5 times.

Held back tears unsuccessfully 2 times.

Scraped poop out of a diaper with a tongue depressor.

Fed my daughter 21 oz of formula.

Laughed when Sho giggled while the ultrasound wand was "tickling" her belly.

Watched as my baby captured the attention of 4 different waiting room "audiences" (old men really love her).

And have ZERO answers so far.

Sho's 4 month check up was yesterday, it didn't go so well. She only weighed barely 9 lbs, so they've been running a whole battery of tests on her. So far everything is checking out fine except that her Liver Count is really high and they can't figure out why. We've been supplementing (a.k.a. force feeing) her formula to try to get her weight to go up. I'm praying things stabilize in the next couple days/weeks and we don't have to be admitted to the hospital for more testing. She is doing really well and is acting her normal happy, smiley self. I think I'm more traumatized then her. Please pray for us if you think of it.

And that's that.

Tomorrow marks the day I found out I was pregnant with Shoshannah! It's crazy how much things can change in a year!!!

Call Me Crazy...

But, last minute shopping sounds like fun!

But, someday when I have a bigger house with room to hid presents I'm going to leave all my wrapping for Christmas Eve.

But, I'm sick of Christmas music already.

But, I want to tell my kids the truth about Santa. Despite my best efforts 2 out of the 4 won't believe that he really doesn't exist. "No Mommy! He's real, I saw him on TV!!"

But, I LOVE wrapping presents! I think this is the first year I haven't volunteered to wrap any of my Mom's for her, and that's only because I didn't have an opportunity to ask.

But, for some reason I keep mis-spelling Christmas when I type.

But, I LOVE the craziness of the holiday season!

Gaius Quotes:

*While watching me put on make up* "Mommy, why are you coloring on your face?"

*Hugging a stuffed toy to his chest* "Me and Elmo are going to MOPS!!!!"

Holy Cannoli!

I can't believe how big my kids have gotten this year! Check out last year's "tree shot"!

Yikes! Where is the time going? Maybe I AM old enough to be 30.

Are These Kids Gorgeous or What?

*no I'm not too proud to fish for a compliment!* :-)

Friday Fives *Christmas Edition*

[This Year's] Favorite Christmas Songs

1. O Holy Night
2. Wham- Last Christmas
3. Santa Baby
4. It Came Upon a Midnight Clear
5. Jingle Bell Rock

Christmas Traditions

1. Make G-houses with the kiddos
2. Decorate the living room
3. Marc and the oldest kids go and pick our a tree
4. Black Friday shopping
5. Color coordinate all of the gifts under my tree (I'm soooo OCD about that)

The People I'm Most Excited to Give To

1. Marc
2. Kathryn (sister-in-law)
3. Gaius
4. Xavier
5. Leia

Favorite Christmas Themed Snacks

1. Gingerbread House (of course!)
2. Sugar Cookies
3. My mom's Oyster Stew
4. Mint and Chocolate anything!
5. Shrimp cocktail

My Very Favorite Earthly Gifts

1. Marc
2. Xavier
3. Leia
4. Gaius
5. Shoshannah (Now didn't that work out perfectly! *wink*)

I'm so blessed! I can't imagine my Christmas getting any better!

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good-night!

**Don't worry I'm sure there will be more posts between now and Christmas**

"I don't smell the stink on her!"- Gaius' comment upon sniffing Sho's head to see if she did indeed need to take a bath.

Haircut Day

Approximately 7 inches gone!

A year and a half's growth.

I'm not sure how I feel about it.

Definitely looks healthier.

At least I won't have to pry it out of Shoshannah's vice grip everyday!

It IS kind of cute

It'll grow back...eventually...if I want.

New Favorite Quote!

"Girls have cooties boys have booties"~Paul

Our Week... in Pictures

Wacky Wednesday

One day last week I was helping Gaius get dressed to play out in the snow. After I had him mostly ready I realized that he had on his big sister's snow pants.

I really started laughing when I realized Leia had on Gaius'!!!

(Apparently she didn't find anything unusual about the fact that the snow pants where up to her knees and super tight!)

Nine Fun Facts About Xavier, Because He's 9 *wah!*

Loves to read

Likes to play in the snow

Likes to play Sonic

Loves shrimp

Doesn't like school

Is almost as tall as his mom

Loves Jesus

Helpful

Very Competitive

Apparently the Gingerbread House Looks Extra Inviting Lately!

We have a guest.

No one seems to know where he belongs.

But he has a collar so someone HAS to be looking for him.

He's been living in our empty chicken coop since last Tuesday.

But the snow is starting to pile up so I'm not sure how long he can do that.

My kids have named him Chub.

But I want to name him Rex Ryan.

Marc loves him because he runs to meet him whenever he comes home.

But he makes me slightly nervous, because I don't know his background.

He IS super cute though!

Our purchase offer on the big house has been accepted!

Now we just need a buyer for the Gingerbread house!

Daytime Dreamin'

A friend of mine recently turned me on to this blog.

I can't get enough of it!

I'm now up to my ears in ideas for the new house!

I never thought I was a plate collector type. Now I'm totally going to display some shabby chic ones in my new dining room!

(A plate display using crib rails! Who would've thought?!)

I'm going to start working on my mood boards for the new house.

Mostly because then I'll have something (other than cleaning) to do while I wait for our house to sell!

But also because they look like a fun why to organize all my ideas!

As always, stay tuned!!!

Look Who is 3 Months Old Today!

I'd forgotten how much things can change in 1 month with a newborn. Here's some of Shoshannah's milestones:

• Sleeps through the night!
• Takes a pacifier
• Sucks fingers
• Laughs out loud
• Ticklish
• Takes a nap exactly 2 hours after waking up in the morning.
• Reaches for toys
• Still has dark blue eyes
• New hair seems to still be dark
• Is *almost* in size 3-6 months
• A LOT happier

Who would've guessed that omitting dairy from my diet would make all the difference!

Love love, love this little girlie!

Korleen is...

feeling slightly over extended.

tired.

enjoying Shoshannah sleeping through the night!

hungry.

happy.

finally getting excited for Christmas.

trying not to sweat it.

old.

finally in style with her natural hairstyle.

NOT shoveling yet, although there's snow on the ground.

thankful for her safety today.

ready to get this house sold.

cleaning. non. stop.

in love with her new Swiffer.

day dreaming.

thankful for friends.

enjoying our MOPS group.

in need of time to actually get groceries.

up to her neck in laundry.

ready for bed.

Night, night sleep tight don't let the bed bugs bite!

I left you hanging last week, didn't I? I'm sorry.

Our friends who wanted to buy our house weren't able to secure financing. So we are still trusting in God to bring the right people to us.

Our house is going through an inspection on Monday, please pray that we won't have to put a lot of money into it for it to pass.

I'm not sure my life could get any crazier! What a roller coaster!

30 Fun Facts *because I'm 30*

1. I drink V8 every morning because it's good for me
2. Neither my feet nor my legs have grown since I was 12
3. I only use gift bags if I HAVE to. Yet I can't bring myself to throw them away when we receive them.
4. I don't drink alcohol because it tastes bad, not because I have any convictions about it.
5. I broke my arm when I was 11 and it's still very crooked today
6. I've known my husband for 20 years
7. I do my best thinking when I have my hands in dishwater
8. I've taken piano, violin, guitar, and voice lessons. But I don't consider myself very musical.
9. Sewing is my favorite art form!
10. I believed in Jesus when I was 3½, and I still remember it to this day.
11. I got married when I was 20
12. I went to public, private, and home school. Private was my favorite!
13. I learned how to take care of my house (cook, clean, laundry, etc) when I was 12 because my mom had cancer.
14. I'm naturally athletic
15. Fall is my favorite season
16. I'm afraid of mice
17. I'm not quiet or outspoken (this will mean more to you if you know my parents)
18. I don't recycle
19. I use at least one Pampered Chef tool everyday
20. I love kids, especially my own
21. I got my driver's licence when I was 16½
22. I've only hit one deer in my life. I bumped it, it made a weird noise at me and ran off, but left quite a bit of damage.
23. I played with dolls until I was probably 11 or 12. Whenever my youngest friend outgrew them.
24. I don't like to be in the spotlight
25. I have zero patience for clumsiness
26. I LOVE all kinds of shopping, except grocery.
27. I finally broke my nail bitting habit this year.
28. My toenails are always painted
29. I bit my brother's arm once, hard enough to break the skin, we told mom that a stick did it. She didn't question it, although there were obvious teeth marks.
30. I grew up in a neighborhood filled with kids that all played together everyday after school, and I loved it!

Gingerbread House Selling Adventures: Part 3

Me- "Yes you can watch a movie. I just need you to keep the house clean because it's being shown again tomorrow."

Xavier- "Ah! That's a nightmare to me! I wish selling a house wasn't so complicated!"

Amen Brother!

Gingerbread House Selling Adventures: Part 2

Philipiians 4:6- Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

The couple that wants to buy our house are friends of ours. They really love our house and want it, but are having a hard time getting financing. Please pray with me that something amazing happens this weekend, or else this deal will fall through.

Bring on the..

Gaius Says, Followed by Leia Says

"Does God have a car? Does he have an airplane? Then how does he get to church?"

"Mom, did you see the animals on the side of the road? It was either deer or kangaroos."

Gingerbread House, Adventures in Selling: Part I

We have accepted a purchase offer! As long as everything runs according to plan we're looking at moving in about 2 months!

*Now to move forward with the purchase offer on the big house*

This whole process is, sort of, blowing my mind! Can you say lightning speed?!

Please pray that all the inspections go amazingly smooth and the financing goes through for the couple that wants to buy our house!

These are What I Want My Kids to Pray for Next:

***Disclaimer***

Although, I wouldn't turn a free pair of these down. I do understand that Jesus is not my own personal Santa Claus. He's already given me more then I could ever ask for! I was just trying to make a little joke!

Wishin', & Hopin', & Prayin'...

This whole keeping the Gingerbread House perfectly picked up is exhausting!

There's absolutely no way I can make it look un-lived in, we use every square foot.

Praying it sells fast, really fast!

As I looked through papers to get ready for the Realtor I came to a conclusion.

This will always be the Gingerbread House!

In fact, I almost labeled files "The Gingerbread House".

Our realtor put up a post on her company's facebook page and called it that also.

I have a great name for the new house/blog...but you'll have to wait and see what it is!

In other house news: Leia prayed that we'd buy the yellow house for the first time today!

With two mini prayer warriors on the case it's almost a guaranteed thing, right?

*EXCITED!*

Check out these adorable hats one of my friends made for my kids! As an added bonus I finally got a halfway decent picture of my 4 kids (I'm ignoring the hair hanging in Leia's face)!

Win, Win!

Gaius Says:

"That's it Rooey [the dog]! You're grounded for 3 weeks!!!"

The Realtor is coming! The Realtor is coming! :-)

The gingerbread house is going on the market very soon (as in a few days/week).

She's been a good house!

We have just outgrown her. :-)

What do you think, am I going to have to change the name of my blog?

We are in the dreaded waiting period.

We don't really know what's going on with the house at all.

We have to wait on our mortgage broker, their realtor, my brother in law, and Coke's contract negotiations. All of which could take weeks, maybe even months (say it ain't so!). I guess, now comes my lesson in patiences. *sigh* I'm not very patient.

On a happy note! My family cracks me up!

Xavier prays everyday that we'll get the house and Leia prays that we won't. Seems counter productive, but it is their individual feelings on the matter. I'm curious to see whose prayer God answers.

Gaius has been crazy funny lately. He's talking more and more and I never know what's going to come out of his mouth next.

Shoshannah is getting more and more vocal! She is super feisty! She might be my most outgoing child yet. She can hold her head up very well and rolled over once (I think it was a fluke). She's starting to get more predictable and is generally happy as long as I don't eat dairy.

I LOVED this past weekend! It reminded me of my childhood. We had a sleepover here on friday night and then the 2 eldest slept over at a friend's house on Saturday. While growing up I always had tons of friends over all the time. My parents' house was always swarming with kids. That's actually something I'm looking forward to having when we have a bigger house.

Friday Favs

I stole this from my friend shelly. Mostly because my brain is fried and I can't come up with anything clever of my own.

3 Favorite TV Shows
1. Community
2. Glee
3. Modern Family (with The Middle coming in a very close 4th)


3 Favorite Movies Of All Time
1. The Very Thought of You
2. Life with Mikey
3. My Girl

3 Favorite Songs (at the moment)
1. Animal- Neon Trees
2. Anything Owl City
3. Brightest- Copeland

3 Favorite Stores to Shop at
1. Amazon
2. American Eagle (best jeans ever!)
3. Target

3 Favorite Thing About My Husband

1. His eyelashes (long and dark! Not fair!) :-)
2. His convictions, and his willingness to stand behind them
3. His wife! :-) Ha! I'm sorry I couldn't resist. His mind, he's my walking encyclopedia!

3 Favorite Holidays
1. Thanksgiving!
2. Labor Day
3. Christmas

3 Favorite Chores
1. Folding Laundry
2. Washing Laundry
3. Sweeping my new kitchen floor

3 Least Favorite Chores
1. Cleaning the shower
2. Dusting
3. Washing dishes

3 Favorite Things to Nom
1. Gayle Benedict's Chocolate Cake
2. Cajun Seafood Pasta
3. Coke Zero

3 Favorite Childhood Activities
1. Playing backyard baseball
2. Attach and Ambush
3. Making up dance routines for various songs with my friends and "preforming" them on my parents closed pop up trailer.

3 Favorite Current Activities
1. Running
2. Sewing
3. Camping

3 Things I am thankful for:
1. My Jesus
2. My little family (referring to age not actual size)
3. 4-6 hours of uninterrupted sleep nightly, on a fairly regular basis.

"YNN weather on the 10's"

Gaius- Mom! Can you turn the weather on?

Me- Why?

Gaius- So I can see if it's snowing!

Me- Just look out the window.

Gaius- Oh! the thermometer says it's 46 degrees. *it was actually slightly colder then that*

*tear* This morning's conversation is WAY too grown up feeling for my taste. I want my lil' boy to stay little for awhile longer. Time STOP moving so fast!!!

Today's Plan:

Cleaning

Sorting

Nursing

Napping

Laundering

Folding

Eating

Enjoying

Raining

Warming

Schooling

Cooking

Nothing!

Just the way I like it!

I've been wanting to gush about the new house and all the things I love about it. But have been afraid to (still trying not to get attached).

It's definitely not new looking inside. But it does have all it's original woodwork (love), a claw foot tub (double love), 7 bedrooms (which probably won't all stay bedrooms). A semi-open staircase. Hardwood floors (that need to be refinished). The craziest half bath I've ever seen (there's a method to the madness of it, but I don't want to go into it now). Counters (I've never had any since I moved out of my parents' house). A 34 year old range that looks brand new (it has to be one of the very first glass top electric ones). Tons of cupboards! Carpet in the kitchen (what is up with people thinking it's a good idea to have carpet in that room?!?). A dining room (which I've always wanted). No electrical outlets in the whole upstairs (weird!). A brand new front porch. A sledding hill. A walk in closet in the master bedroom! A make shift coat closet. Another closet in one of the bedrooms (I *heart* closets). Enough square footage that we won't be on top of each other all the time! And a workshop in the basement. Along with lots more that I'm sure I'm forgetting.

We told our kids about the house but I'm not supposed to get them excited about it yet. It's kind of too late for Xavier. He's busting at the seams just imagining having his own room. Leia, on the other hand, is resistant to the whole idea of moving. She's not the biggest fan of change, she'll come around. Gaius and Shoshannah are fine with whatever. :-D

So there you have it! That's me reigned in! :-) I hope to one day be able to show you pictures. Keep praying!

Wow! This blog layout is looking very Christmas-y. But I like it!

We made a purchase offer on the house today!!!

Please pray that they accept it and our house sells in a snap! Or that we can accept it if God closes the doors on this.

Oy! Sorting and packing 7 years worth of stuff is a little scary to think about.

Gaius Says:

"Mommy, mommy!

Listen, listen!

Knock, knock, who's there.

Me, me who. Me funny!"

I keep wanting to blog, but then get bored halfway through and give up.

How is it that I'm super busy, but have nothing interesting to report? Such is the life of a mom sometimes I guess.

**************************************************

The last 2 days this is where I've stuck Xavier so that I can finish Leia's schoolwork with her.

I know! He looks completely upset with his predicament, huh? He's a killer Baby Rocker!

************************************************

This sweet little angel and his buddy Paulie have taken to peeling the fresh wallpaper off the boys' bedroom walls during nap time.

It makes me want to do this:

************************************************************

The End

Week: 8

See what I mean? This girl is growing up SO stinkin' fast!

The look daddy got when he was making crazy noises at Sho to get her to smile.

I can't get enough of this girl!

Wordless Wednesday

trying not to be SO! STINKIN'! EXCITED!

We're looking at a house! It's huge and the location is perfect, as well as the price! I feel like this house has been brought to us by God. Which is completely amazing!

A woman at our church came to me, out of the blue, a couple weeks ago and asked if we were looking for a larger house. We really weren't. But she told me about her mother-in-law's house. So I took the information to Marc, not really expecting that he would even consider it. A few days past and he didn't say a word about it, so I figured he didn't feel we should look into it. Then 2 days later he was talking to my parents about it all excited like. We found out the location and did a drive by! It's sort of perfect (well at least from the outside). It definitely has colonial vibes which I LOVE. It has tons of space, and a good sized yard. We're going to go and look at the inside on either Friday or Saturday, and I'm trying SO hard not to get my hopes up.

Get this: it has enough rooms so that none of my kids would have to share!!! Xavier's prayer may be getting answered!

I've been praying fervently that God would make whether or not we should buy it abundantly clear and work out every little detail. Because we don't know how to sell a house or really even buy one. The Gingerbread House kind of just fell into our laps 7 years ago in a completely unconventional way. But that's another story for an another day.

If you would, please pray for us as we decide what to do. And, of course, stay tuned!

P.S. We haven't told our kids about how seriously we're looking at it yet. But Xavier is on to us, because he's "not deaf and blind mom!" Ha! I love that kid!

Week: 7

Sho is changing again. *sad, sad, sad* She looks so big lately. And she can throw a toddler size fit! But, man! is she still cute! She's been sleeping really well (probably just jinxed it) only up once a night!!! Smiling more and more, and going more and more bald. *Dear Hair, PULEASE come back in black*

And Away We Go...

I'm going back on The South Beach Diet tomorrow. If you want to check out my progress you can go here to see. I wish I could start running again. But I think it would be wise to give my body a little more time. So it's walking for at least a few more weeks.

I took all 4 kids for a 2 mile walk today. Shoshannah cried for the first half and then finally went to sleep. I think we're going to start doing it on a regular basis again. She'll just have to deal.

Marc fed Sho her first bottle today. I guess she took it like a champ! I didn't know how it would go considering her usual reaction to a pacifier coming her way. This is great news! I think a date night is in the near future!

I've taken a more laid back approach to schooling this week. Shockingly enough we haven't fallen behind at all.

And that's life at the Gingerbread House at the moment.

The Taddle Deposit

Gaius- "Mom! Xavy is being mean at me"

Xavier- "How am I being mean at you?"

Gaius- "I don't know yet"

***Hm, I'm not sure you can bank taddling for future use. If so, let's get it all out of the way now!****

Week: 6

Sunday Snipets

• Shoshannah has a new fondness for the baby swing, and I have a new fondness with showering while she's swinging!
• I gave my kids a 4 day weekend because well, I wanted to.
• I'm utterly boring lately
• Something exciting might be happening...But, I can't really go into detail about it yet.
• I LOVE my little family
• I can hardly stay awake past 10pm
• Sho apparently feels the need to welcome daddy home every morning (3am).
• My new kitchen floor is in desperate need of a washing, but I'm waiting for my Swiffer Wet Jet$7 off coupon to come in the mail.
• I seriously think I have the cutest children in the world! They make my day, almost, everyday! (My husband is pretty special too!)

The Request Line is Now Open

When Gaius hears me singing Shoshannah a lullaby we always have to finish it out with "He's My Rock, My Sword, My Shield" and "The Butterfly Song". Unfortunately those songs just aren't as fun when you have to slow them down to a calming tempo. :-)

I figured out 2 things yesterday.

1. I love Dr. Harvey Karp

2. I need to cut myself some slack

Today was the absolute best day I've had! I have no idea why I stopped swaddling Shoshannah, but we are fully on board with going back to it! She apparently adores the "baby straight jacket", and I adore her not crying ALL day!

School is probably going to start taking all day now. I just can't keep living with Shoshannah screaming the whole time I'm trying to work with Xavier and Leia on school. So I'm not going to beat myself up if we're not done by lunch. Once I can get Sho on a consistent schedule then we'll try speeding things up. That's all I can do, and I'm GOING to be okay with that.

And now it's time to head to bed before I turn into a pumpkin. G'night!

Happy ALMOST Birthday to my very own Old Fogey!

Xavier- "Dad, you're going to be old tomorrow"

Marc- "Are you ready to put me in a nursing home?"

Xavier- "You're not THAT old"

Me- "How old do you need to be for that?"

Xavier- "Fift...."

Marc- "BE CAREFUL!"

Xavier-"70"

1 Month

8 pounds 15 oz.

Thinning beautiful black hair

Perfect little Cabbage Patch doll outie belly button

Completely adorable!

Love her!

Wordless Wednesday

Week: 4

I can't believe it's been almost a month already. Time is flying, as usual. At times it feels like we've always been a family of six and then other times it feels so new.

Last week was....difficult.

Shoshannah would not sleep or be happy at all during the day unless I (and only me) was holding her. Thank goodness Marc was still on leave or my poor house/other children/self confidence would have really gone to shambles. So far this week has been better already. I figured out a little trick for her that is frowned upon now days (belly sleeping *gasp*), but we're in survival mode right now. I NEED to be able to do a few things, like eat and shower, without a baby in my arms.

I'm anxious for Thursday to see how big Sho is getting. She has started out-growing a couple things and can almost fill out 0-3 months stuff now. She also will smile when daddy kisses her with his beard or makes funny noises at her! I can't wait for when she really starts responding to people around her (2 more weeks?).

The other kids are still learning about having a newborn around. They can't help themselves but to touch or kiss her if she is within their general vicinity. There was also a rather scary moment yesterday when Gaius decided he was going to pick her up by himself. It ended with me coming to the rescue and tears being shed by all. No one was hurt and a lesson was learned (I hope).

I'm going caffeine free. Which was absolute torture this morning!!! Also, Diet Coke just isn't the same without caffeine. I'm looking forward to going back on South Beach and fitting back into my favorite jeans. I have all my maternity stuff in a pile ready to be photographed and listed on ebay...now I just need the motivation.

And that is all.

The Name Game: The Finale

Hannah is not a nickname for Shoshannah.

I mean come on! If you're going to exert the energy to pronounce Hannah you might as well say the whole name! ****Whew! Okay I just had to get that off my chest****

Remember my list of criteria for naming our child? Let's see how Shoshannah adds up?

1. Blends with my other kids' names

Check

2. Fits with our last name

Check

3. Not in the top 100 baby names in the US

Check Check

4. Not too "out there"

Check (or at least in my book)

5. Pretty/ Strong (pretty for a girl, strong for a boy)

Check

6. Works for a child or adult

Check

7. Starts with a different letter than my other kids

Check

8. Has a nice meaning ( I guess that omits Jezebel) :-)

Check

9. No common nicknames

Hm...yes and no.

10. No weird initials

Check

11. Easy to pronounce (spelled phonetically)

Kind of, WE pronounce it phonetically. But some don't

12. No weird spellings

Check

In case you wanted to know the story of Sho's name. Here it is:

Marc wanted to name her Shoshannah and I wanted to name her either Esme or Charis (pronounced KAR-is). But because of stupid pop culture and Twilight I decided that I couldn't saddle my child with the name Esme. So the Thursday before Sho's birth we decided it was either going to be Shoshannah Charis or Charis Shoshannah. However, on our way to the hospital Marc brought up that he really wanted to name her Shoshannah Korleen. So for about a hour or so after Sho was born we couldn't decide which middle name. I finally made the final decision to give her my name since I think it'll be the last chance i have to pass my name on. And that's how Shoshannah Korleen came to be! Oh and if she happened to be a boy her name would've been Zion Thomas. Although the boy's name was MY choice I'm still really glad she ended up being a girl! :-)

The End.

Sunday Snipets

When I look at Sho-sho my heart literally aches. She is so darn cute!

• Things are finally starting to mellow out around here! Just in time for Shoshannah's first growth spurt.
• Marc is starting his final week of vacation, and I'm feeling confident that I'll be able to pick up where he leaves off!
• I had Sushi for the first time since being pregnant, it was AMAZING! Also Leia found out she likes sushi too!
• Netflix Instant Play is my new favorite nursing buddy. No late night infomercials for this Mama!
• Things are getting awfully Autumn-ey around here! I guess it time to pack away the shorts and tanks and pull out the jeans and sweaters. *sigh* It was a good summer.

"The Project"

I'm trying to figure out how to get all 4 of my children into a frame. Let me tell you! IT IS NOT EASY! I'm not sure if my kids are extra wiggly or what. So far this is what I've gotten.

Attempt 1:

Attempt 2:

As you can see I'm still working on it. :-)

Picture Overload

Such sweet baby cuteness

My niece with 2 of her biggest fans!

I'm a Bad Blogger.

Once again here I am apologizing for neglecting my bloggy friends.

Life has been a little crazy with a demanding, nursing, non-sleeping newborn. I've been able to keep up with facebook (sort of) only because of my Blackberry. I'm still learning what works for Shoshannah.

Our kitchen looks AMAZING! Not only did my family do the floor they painted my cabinets! It looks like a totally different space!

Our other kids seem to be adjusting well to having a baby and starting school back up!

Marc still has 2 more weeks off, which is surreal!

...And that's all I have time for.

"Just because he does things differently than me doesn't mean it's wrong. Just because he does things differently than me doesn't mean it's wrong."

It's hard to sit back and let someone do all your normal chores for you...I'm working on it. :-)

BTW: He IS doing an AMAZING job! Love you Marc!

Wordless Wednesday...almost

Shoshannah was *thrilled* to have her face squished by her brother's. At least Gaius looks happy!

1 Week

First few shots of our baby girl!

Xavier wanted to compare her with this stuffed toy he got for her. It's head is bigger than Shoshannah's!

This is my favorite picture of her!

Ready to come home from the hospital. (BTW these little socks are AMAZING, they stay on!)

I love my new little baby daughter! And my big baby daughter is completely adorable with her! All Shoshannah's days are spent being passed from family member to family member. Gaius likes to hold her for 30 second intervals throughout the day while the older 2 are content to hold her for as long as she's content. Sho is my first baby that will settle with just the sound of my voice. In fact she was screaming and screaming upon arriving in the O.R. but when they finally brought her over to me and I spoke she quieted right down. It makes me feel a little bit powerful and a lot bit

loved!

I'd also like to thank anyone who prayed or thought of me last Monday. I could honestly feel it! I went in and was perfectly calm the whole time, which completely surprised me. The recovery hasn't been too awful, except for some water retention.