I need to be better about doing these posts so I can document the little things… here’s the first Ten on Tuesday for 2012… gotta start somewhere.

1. Little Bit turns 6 months old this week. How on earth did she go from this to a 17 pound baby so fast? =( I’m not going to lie, I miss the newborn stage terribly already.
   
2. We signed Owen up for T-ball again at his request. Here we go for another season with the Green Monsters.
3. To prepare for T-ball and all the other multitude of outdoor adventures we have planned for the Spring and Summer, I got Jilly some new wheels to keep up with her big brothers! =) All-terrain tires, a BIG shade to keep her protected from the sun, comfy fold flat seat… I could go on and on. Jillian will be riding in style that is for sure. This purchase also helps in my final chance to fuel my stroller addiction for the last time.

4. A new stroller isn’t the only big baby gear purchase we made for Jillian. We also got her Big Girl Britax car seat. Her infant seat only goes to 22 pounds and she’s getting heavy to carry in it. We wanted to make sure we had it on hand so when we take the plunge to accept the fact she isn’t itty bitty anymore we can move her on up.
5. I was trying to explain Lent to the boys and they decided they wanted to give something up too. I told them it has to be something you really like so it’s a sacrifice not to have it for 40 days. They willingly gave up Wii! I was shocked. Since they made such a HUGE decision to give up such a HUGE part of their lives, I said that I would let them each pick out a new Wii game after Easter.
6. By Saturday Benny said, “I’m done playing Lent. Can I play Wii now?” I told him no and that he needed to stick with it.
7. Benny also asked Mike what he was going to give up for Lent. Mike said he was going to give up yelling at the boys when they are bad and try to talk to them more calmly. Benny’s response, “But Daddy, what if we are embarrassing bad?” Yeah, that just goes to show you that we have a little devil on our hands and he knows it.
8. I was getting Benny ready for school yesterday and I gave him a big hug. I said “Benny, I can’t believe you are 4 now.” He says, “ I know. And I can’t believe I’m going to be 5. And when I’m 5 I’m leaving PHEAA and going to summer camp with my brother.” <3 <3 <3 He so loves his Big Brother.
9. Shortly after Jillian was born, I got her two glow worm toys to hang from her car seat handle. Mike named them Jack and Diane. Jilly would just stare at them in amazement. Well, about 2 weeks ago in the van I heard a “zip” and I heard a “shake”. I turn around and Little Bit was pulling on her toy and playing with it. She’s changing so much so fast.
   

   

10. And speaking of changing, she also started sitting up got her 2 bottom teeth last week. They both popped through on Thursday. No sign at all… she wasn’t fussy, cranky… nothing. I hope the rest of her teeth come in like that too.

    

    

PS – we also started cereal this week… I’ll try and post pictures of her first food soon!

We have a combined party for the boys since their birthdays are so close together. At this point in their lives, it’s pretty much just family parties so this keeps the same clan from having to travel twice. But, the one tricky part is having them agree on a “theme”. At first one wanted Mario and the other CARS. Then one wanted Sonic and the other Super Heroes. 1000% agreement between the boys happened though when they saw there was Angry Birds partyware. So, for this mama, she got to planning an Angry Birds Birthday party and designing decorations at the specific request from Owen. He wanted “Dangily Pictures” and “Signs above the table with their names on it” just like they had for their Toy Story party.

It’s no secret that the boys favorite people in the world to play with are their cousins, so we had a fun filled day for the boys. Bowling and arcade games, then dinner, presents and cake back at the house, followed by a sleep over in the family room with a movie, popcorn and juice boxes.

After they blew out the candles on their cake, we asked them what do they want do now that they are a year older. Owen said “Listen and not get in trouble” and Benny said “Not whine and cry.” Ummmm… yeah… not what we expected as a response. I was thinking… ride a bike w/o training wheels or something like that. Their responses were quite funny.

The boys had so much fun. Alex told me “he loved it” at the arcade and when Mike passed out the popcorn in the boxes they all were like “this is so awesome”! I’m glad they all had a great time and we really enjoyed celebrating the boys turning 6 & 4!

And yes… she is as happy as she looks in these pictures. It’s not a facade.

First time in her Jumperoo. She can’t bounce, but she likes the toys and the sounds and the fact she now has something to sit in that she is not lying down.

Her little toes JUST touch the floor on the lowest setting.

Outside on a warm January day. Beautiful blue eyes.

Look at those L O N G eyelashes.

I took a picture of Benny is a “camera/picture taking” onesie so I had to with her too. And this picture is proof that chubbers does in deed have a neck.

Looking out the window.

Getting stronger holding up her head every day.

She likes this new viewpoint of life.

Happy Baby Jillian.

Still can’t believe these two yahoo’s are her big brohters.

Everything goes in her mouth. She is a drool monster.

Checking out starfall.com with Owen.

Butterfly kisses from Daddy.

First pair of boots. They actually stay on her feet.

Daddy and his girl. She has him wrapped around her finger already.

THOR baby!

Smiling Jillian playing with blocks.

Big smiles because I love my mommy and her camera!

To My Owen –
I looked at you the other day and I had to pinch myself and take a double take. How on earth did my first born baby boy grow to be so big so fast? How can you be turning 6 already? The child that stands before me is a full fledge little boy, or as you call yourself, a “medium size kid”. All remnants of toddler are gone. That makes me sad, but it also makes me excited. From the time Daddy and I found out we were having a baby boy, we dreamed and talked about the days when we would do this or that with you and what your future would hold. Now that time has come.

We were able to get a head start on some of those things this past year… we congratulated you as you graduated from preschool. We sent you off on your first day of Kindergarten. Daddy was able to take you to the golfing range and on your first real roller coaster ride. And we were able to see you play in your first t-ball season. Daddy was an awesome coach and I know you enjoyed and were proud to have him on the field with you.

We had always talked about if and when you’d be a big brother, and then it happened when Benny came into our family. But you weren’t satisfied with just Benny. You longed for another sibling, mainly a sister. Daddy and I were unsure for a while, but part of the reason we decided to add a third baby to our family was because of you. Your heart felt desire for a sister or brother touched us deeply. This year, God answered your prayers and blessed us with another baby and he granted your wish for a sister. Even though I always wanted a daughter, I think Jillian is more God’s gift to you than anyone else because the bond you two have is unreal. Words cannot describe the unspoken connection you have with her. You and Benny are buddies and I’m so thankful you have each other to be pals and do “boy things” together, but Jillian is different. I hope you two are always each other’s guardian angels.

Looking back on the anticipation of your arrival 6 years ago, we wondered what kind of child you would be. What kind of personality would you develop? You have turned out to be everything I hoped for and more. To this day you still have the sweetest kindest soul. You have a genuine heart and a quirky sense of humor. When you love something, you love it to your core and you are passionate about it, whether it is your family, your cousin Alex, Wii, your DS, or following the rules to board game. You take pride in your little successes at school and you amaze us with your intelligence. You take difficult times with stride and do your best to overcome adversity with a youthful grace and humble conscious. You are turning into a pretty amazing kid, Owen. We couldn’t be more proud.

The one thing I have learned to appreciate this past year is the little things you do. I am over joyed when you laugh, because when you do, watching you smile and hearing your chuckle is the only thing that matters. I love that you still like to give us hugs, and it makes me so happy when you want to jump up on the chair for a cuddle. I snicker when you want to go put a huge dent in the Chinese buffet and my heart swells inside when I see you and Benny break out into a giggle explosion.

It’s also nice to see you act your age. You still like to build with blocks, ride your bike, play board games, draw pictures, watch cartoons, run around the back yard and play Wii & DS games that are for kids your age. You are in no hurry to grow up and are soaking in each milestone at the appropriate time. Keep on this pace buddy; don’t be in a hurry to grow up. Enjoy being a kid as long as you can. We have plenty of time to do the “big boy” things.

I still can’t believe you are 6. The time has gone so fast, but I wouldn’t change a thing. Being your mom is so wonderful and having an awesome kid like you makes my job easy… well most of the time. =) It’s time to close the “baby/toddler” chapter in your journey of life and crack open the next chapter of “little boy-hood”. This should be interesting. It will be fun to see this story unfold.

Happy 6th Birthday, O. We look forward to the next year and checking more items off our list of “Things I want to do with Owen when he gets older.”

All my love and huge squeeze hugs,
Mommy
(Daddy, Benny, Jillian & Maxie too!)

They say time flies when you’re having fun. Well I must be having a blast because I can’t believe Jillian is 5 months old already. She’s getting so big. I looked at this months picture compared to the last and she’s really lost all the newborn/infant in her. She’s starting to become a little person. She’s becoming more interactive, more expressive, and more aware of her self and her surroundings. She’s not that “fresh out of the oven” bundle of joy that just sleeps and eats.

I’ve finally found a knick name that sticks for her… Mike’s not a fan but I can’t help it. It’s my term of endearment for girl… Jilly is my “Little Bit”. She’s my little bitty baby. My little bit of sunshine. My little bit of happiness. My little bit of peace. I think it fits her well.

Here are some “little bits” of Jillian’s past month that I don’t want to forget.

– She had not one but two ear infections.
– Added another state to her list of travels with our trip to the Baltimore Aquarium in Maryland.
– Now faces out in the Bjorn.
– Started to play in the exersaucer at school and her jumperoo at home.
– Moved up to the next size in diapers.
– She’s starting to mouth everything… hands, toys, blankets, etc. and is a total drool monster.
– Found her feet.
– Laughed out loud when we were playing with friends at school.
– She’ll take her binkie out of her mouth, look at it, and then put it back in.
– Roll to her side from her back and once she rolled from her belly to her back.
– She’s taking more at a feeding. It’s still usually 4oz during the day, but in the morning and night it can be upwards of 6oz.
– Was able to go outside and play with her brothers b/c we had several unusually warm days in January.
– Had her first trip to Muncy.
– Rang in the New Year watching the ball drop.

It’s hard to believe 1/2 of her first year will be over in a few weeks. She’s my last, so I’m really trying my hardest to not be sad and soak it all in for it’s a happy time. A blessed time that we get to go through this all again.

And here are a few “out takes” from when I took her pictures… all she wanted to do was sit up and try to eat her feet so I got out the glow worm to get her attention. When I was done I gave it to her and she held onto it like a baby doll. LOVE. LOVE. LOVE.

My Dearest Benjamin….

Three was quite the year for you. It was a year of good-byes and moving onward and upward to bigger and better things. You grew from a toddler to a BIG BOY and you make sure to remind me you aren’t a baby every time I call you my “baby love”. You’ve gone from calling me “Mom mom” to “Mommy/Mom”. You finally said good-bye to diapers, moved into a new big boy room with Owen and the main event – you became a big brother. I was worried you would not adjust to being the middle child and having a new baby around, but I think you realize that you are the special one in that you are both a big AND little brother. You love your sister, or as you call her, “your cupcake” and that makes me so happy.

As a three year old we said good-bye to some household favorites as your interests have changed. It’s no longer Thomas the Train and make-believe “housekeeping”. The new big boy Ben is into Wii, Super Heroes, Nerf Guns and app games, mostly Angry Birds.

You still very much dislike veggies and fruits. I wonder if you will ever eat them. I think your whole diet consists of chicken, hot dogs, pasta, cheese, yogurt, milk, bananas and crackers. Oh, and you have my love for snacking and my sweet tooth… you can never pass up chips, a cookie or M&Ms! =)

Shortly after your third birthday we said good-bye to the easy going days and you finally decided to give Mommy and Daddy a run for our money! =) We welcomed and embraced the very spirited child that you had become. You are very passionate about your beliefs, right or wrong, and you are learning the ropes of life and the difference between good choices, bad choices and consequences vs. rewards. You are going through your preschool rite of passage. Fortunately, you are a smart cookie who grasps the concept of these boundaries and I’m hoping the four year old Ben can be his own Super Hero to conquer his inner “rebel against the rules”.

My favorite part of the past year though was being able to communicate with you on a level I didn’t know was possible. You are SO GOOD at expressing your feelings, telling us stories, using your imagination and making us laugh with your witty comments. You are our child with his own agenda. His own way of thinking about things. His own way of seeing the world. Even though you want to be just like Owen, you two are not cut from the same cloth. You have your own unique personality that is like no other. You are our comedian, our funny guy. Mr. Amusing is what you are. You know a way to make me smile every day. With you, there is never a dull moment.

Four years ago God blessed us with you… our second bundle of joy. It was one of the most amazing and emotional days of my life. I thank God every day for you. You bring me back to reality when I’m stressed, you make me laugh, you make me shake my head, and you are my child that reminds me to not take life so seriously at times. You are my dose of happy – my everlasting smiley face sticker that is over my heart.

Happy birthday little man! May your year as a 4 year old bring you even bigger and better things and fill your life and ours with warm fuzzies, silly moments and wonderful memories.

I love you more than you will ever know,
Mommy
(Daddy, Owen, Jillian & Maxie to!)