Happy Birthday Miles!!

So I thought by waiting a couple of days after his birthday, I wouldn't be sappy writing this. I was wrong! I'm crying right now. You can't tell, because you can't see me, but I am. Why am I crying? Oh, only because I do this over every single birthday. Well, maybe not once they turn 5. Not 100% sure about that. I've only had one turn 5 at this point, and I probably cried then and when he turned 6, but currently, it's my baby babies that are making me cry! Ha! Did you follow?

Yes, our sweet little Miles turned 2 on Friday! Happy Birthday Miles! We had a little shindig planned with a few friends, but then I up and caught a stomach bug on Wednesday, so we cancelled the party because I didn't think anyone would be thrilled to catch the stomach bug. So our little shindig turned into a tiny, little shindig, and we celebrated just the 6 of us---which I guess isn't exactly tiny.

Anyway, at least Miles, newly turned 2, probably didn't know the difference! We had our traditional birthday morning wake up pics. . .

 and balloons--and the boys wanted Miles to have a special birthday breakfast, so Daddy ran with Miles and Charlie to pick out some yummy donuts! Miles practiced trying to show you how old he is. . .

And after breakfast, the older boys were off to school! They didn't want to go--they wanted to stay home and celebrate with Miles, but I assured them we would celebrate later! So, once they were gone, Miles and Mommy played outside--his very favorite thing to do! We played with chalk, and the Cozy Coupe, swung and picked up acorns--all perfect things to do on your birthday! And once the boys were back, including Daddy, we opened presents. . . (and Miles, your older brothers were so excited to pick out your presents for you--and you were so excited to receive them too)

 and for the grand finale, we ordered pizza---a fave of Miles, who still calls it "tata" and sung Happy Birthday again, to our sweet Milesy Smilesy, with cupcakes!

Oh little Miles, just like I said here, you are amazing! You capture every bit of the meaning of your name, the reason we named you, Miles, which means, heart of compassion. You truly love others and you show it. I'm floored by how you show your baby brother love--kissing him and smiling at him all the time, begging us to go get baby Way when you think he is done napping (not always when he's done though). You are always concerned about him--where he is, if he's okay--just making sure he's taken care of. You adore your bigger brothers, and though they are often wrapped in their own little world, you are making your presence known! Thank you for showing all of us how to be appreciative with your "peas and tank you's" and for showing us all love by your unsolicited hugs and kisses--that melt my heart. You are a treasure, Miles! We thank the Lord continually for you. You are such a blessing and a true gift to us! We love you with all of our hearts! 

Happy 2nd Birthday to you!!!!

mission accomplished!

Sometimes, my camera, that I absolutely love, just isn't handy when I need it. I'm talking about when my husband frantically knocks on the front door, and I stop the process of putting Way down for a nap to answer the door, and he says excitedly, "You gotta come see this!" So, I run back and put Way in his crib, grab my phone (because I know he's been working on teaching Luke to ride his bike) and run out the door to see what's going on!

Sure enough, there's my oldest, riding his bike! Ooooh hooray! If you only knew how badly I've been wanting him to learn! This has been on my list of things I wanted Luke to accomplish for over a year now. Yes, my list. Luke hasn't had much of a desire to learn. The kids in our old neighborhood were older and he never played with them. The 1 or 2 kids his age, were girls and were into other things, and just not interested in riding bikes either. So basically, he never saw his own friends riding bikes---and never was motivated to do so. I, however, remember how long it took me to learn. I was even older and it bothered me--and I didn't want it to bother him. So, I'll be the first to admit, that when all of Luke's friends learned how to ride a bike at the age of  4 or 5 or 6, I felt the pressure for him---not Luke---and certainly not from his friends---just me!

But now, thanks to his Daddy taking him out this week to practice, Luke has done it! On the cusp of turning 7, he's learned how to ride his bike! Now, it's just "practice makes perfect" time!

Thank goodness for my phone--a quick grab--for some milestone pics!

summer wrap up (photo dump)

As Summer is slipping away, and we are SO excited to welcome Fall, lets remember some of the fun times we had in our super crazy summer 2012!!!

This summer we enjoyed wagon rides. . .

and trips to the zoo!

We ate up some yummy Gus' fried chicken a time or 2 or 3 or. . .

We had a blast at the Botanical Gardens (and even walked/scootered there), so much so that some people were tuckered out. . .

and per Mommy's request, we downed some Jerry's sno-cones. . . 

and taught Miles how to beg for said sno-cones. . .

We played on our new playset. . .

 and kept cool with water guns and spray bottles. . .

and then once little Way came, Miles made sure he didn't miss any phone calls. . .

and we took Way out for his first famous donut (okay, he didn't eat any, but we did)!

We also got a visit from our dear friends from far away--whom we miss SO much!

Sooo, what a fun summer it was! Lots of memories were made! We sure soaked up the sun, and now we can't wait for cool weather (though Lukey just added that he can't wait for next summer)!

one month old!

This past Friday, it had been one month since we welcomed sweet Way Timothy into this world! We had lots of special visitors, and though we didn't get a pic with everyone who visited, we appreciate all of you!

It's been such a fast month, much faster than all of first months with newborns. Maybe it just gets faster and faster when there are other kiddos to take care of too. Or maybe, it's because I've finally, finally been able to appreciate the newborn stage! And is that because now, I truly understand how fast our littles grow up? I think so. Whatever it is, I am so thankful the Lord has blessed me with the ability to really soak in this last newborn stage we will have. I sure do love it, but I really love our new little man!

One month ago, we were told by Way's pediatric cardiologist that he had 2 different holes in his heart. I still don't know all the details of the anatomy of the heart, so I won't begin to explain much further. But, Way's doctor told us that one of the holes would probably close on its own, while the other hole would require surgery when Way is 3-4 months old. Before Way was born, I had been seeing a high risk dr. because they found fluid around Way's heart (and after further evaluation, diagnosed our little man with Down syndrome),  but the fluid had disappeared and we had been told there appears to be nothing wrong with his heart. So, this new news, came as a shock. But, we were encouraged that Way would be bigger and it would give the doctor more room to work. Plus, if the hole was causing too much stress, he could have the surgery immediately. So, because we could wait until he was 3 months, meant he was okay for now.

And then, a week after Way was born, we saw his cardiologist again, and after another echo, he said he was pleased to tell us that the smaller hole had already closed, and the bigger one was significantly smaller and didn't look like Way would need surgery!! Praise the Lord!! On top of that good news, Way passed his hearing screening! And, Way is back up to his birth weight! And his suckling reflexes are awesome! And, and, and!! Way continues to amaze us. He's such an angel baby!

So, a month has gone by and what a sweet first month of life we have had with Way! Sure, things are crazy around our house--with less sleep, school starting, and lots of transition--but we love our new addition and feel so thankful to our family and friends who are supporting and loving on us and little Way!!

sunflowers--part 2

As I mentioned in a recent post, we were able to get to the sunflower patch after Way was born! I thought this was going to be the first year since we started this tradition to miss, but turns out, the sunflowers were still in full bloom after Way was born. So off we went, with a 10 day old! Maybe not the best pics ever, but some of my favorite, since I have my 4 littles all together--no matter what was going on!

And sweet Miles, it's not that we didn't want an individual photo of you, but it's that you most certainly did not want to stand still for us! :) We love you too---very glad Lukey was able to wrangle you in for a pic!