Maclyn lately

My littlest is growing like a weed. Didn't I just birth her?! Something I remember with both the boys is loving all the little outfits and wanting to take a picture of nearly every teeny thing they put on. That desire is so much stronger now that I have a baby girl. She is like a little baby doll! It is so much fun. I seriously snap a picture with my phone every time I put a new outfit on Maclyn. 

Oh the frills! This sweet seersucker pink outfit was made with love by Grandma! (my mom)

Sweet girl snuggling with her big brother Finley. Love the smile!

I try really hard to accessorize my sweet baby, but I will be honest: I am not good at it. I have been a BoyMom for so long that it is just so easy to put on a simple outfit and move on. I do put a bow or headband in her hair on occasion though, snap a picture, then 30 minutes later it is off because it is around her eyes or has fallen off.

The faces!!

All gussied up for church in her pretty lavender outfit that her Daddy bought her right after she was born, and the crochet booties courtesy of Grandma. Oh, and her pearls. 

Tummy Time!! She doesn't get much formal tummy time in because she is so fussy that I don't do much to intentionally rock the boat. Generally, if her eyes are open she is crying or on the brink. It is exhausting. I occasionally get a few minutes of sweet talking and smiles and then a switch flips.

Ms. Brittney came to see the boys and love on Maclyn! This is about the best picture we could get! 

Oh, this isn't Maclyn...but Keagan lost another tooth (and he pulled it again)!!  In case you don't see the gaping hole, it was a top one. Haha! He is so proud of his lost tooth, but it really weirds me out!

A rare moment of a happy baby talking and smiling at mommy.

My little diva. Oh she is so cute I could just eat her up!

Big brothers giving baby sister some love this past Saturday. They still love her so so much!

My no-neck baby! The boys ask me all the time when she is going to grow a neck. Love their innocence. She has chins for days!

Such a sleepy girl. She falls asleep while nursing but the second I go to move her to her bed she wakes up. Whyyyyy?!

See???  It is pitiful. This picture hurts me...on many levels. I just wish she would nap because I know she is sleepy! I hate to see my baby cry. (Don't worry, I picked her up immediately after snapping this picture...and she fell asleep for a brief period in my arms...then I laid her down, and she woke up. Vicious cycle I tell ya.)

Last week was super rough...Maclyn just would not nap and was incredibly angry and fussy. It was evident something was making her uncomfortable. After lots of tears on my part and mentally noting certain patterns, I realized she was exhibiting signs of reflux (both boys had it so I was familiar). So I called the doctor and got her started on a trial of medicine, and it has helped a lot. It hasn't made her perfect (if only!) but she doesn't scream constantly. I cried to anyone and everyone who would listen, partly for adult interaction (because even though I am off work, maternity leave can be terribly isolating) and partly to allow myself to hear what was going on in an effort to find a solution. And also just to lament. At the end of the week my doorbell rang and I had the most beautiful surprise from Stacey. It was an incredibly uplifting surprise and at just the right time. The card read simply: A sweet friendship refreshes the soul. Proverbs 27:9

My soul was refreshed. Thank you Stacey for your friendship and love. 

Finn's 1st Day

You know what happens when you have a 3rd baby? You lose time. Like, lots of time. And you also forget to do things. And you lose sleep, which makes your forgetfulness and time-loss worse. So here we are, nearing September, and I never documented Finn's first day of school of 4-year old Preschool.

Finn's first day was August 17th and boy-oh-boy was he excited! He will do 2 years of Pre-K before starting Kindergarten, with this being the first year and most of the kids in his class are in the same boat. When I made Finley's first-day sign he couldn't wait to get his picture made. I asked if Keagan could be in the picture with him and he demanded that it had to be after he got his picture by himself. 

Waiting in the carpool line! He saw Mrs. Mallory (Mal Mal) and was happy that she got him out of the van. Except we get a big laugh because he pretends to not know her when he sees her in public.

Crazy kid, he put his backpack on the front... 

After school Josh and I took Finn to McDonalds (his choice) to eat lunch and play in the playplace. Mal Mal also came with her nephews and the boys played for a while. She got some Maclyn-loving in the meantime. 

In the first week of school I really struggled with the drop-offs and pick-ups of both boys as well as Maclyn's feeding and (non)nap schedule. I was completely and utterly worn out by the end of the week. I feel like I am finally starting to get the knack of it all as we start the third week.

Finn has really enjoyed snuggling while we wait to pick up Keagan on the afternoons that he doesn't go to Mal Mal's house.

My friend Dana (momma of EJ and Ethan who are Keagan's and Finn's friends) had her 3rd baby right before school started for the boys. She was also surprised by the gender, and had a baby girl as well!! So now our families mirror each other even more 2 boys and a girl, all the same ages! One morning after drop-offs, Dana and I met for breakfast and let the baby girls "meet" for the first time. I told Dana that I was nervous about meeting little Eleanor Sue because she would make Maclyn look huge and it would hurt my heart that my fresh newborn was no more. The girls are about 4 weeks apart, and just as I expected Maclyn looked huge next to baby Ellie. They were probably the best they will ever be at a playdate, sleeping through the whole thing. It was nice to talk to another new momma of 3, and to "compare notes" about breastfeeding, having older boys, and the inconsistent newborn phase.

my babies x3

I am exhausted. I am overwhelmed. I get nothing done during the day and I don't get a full night of sleep anymore. I run constantly but I go nowhere. Life as a mother of 3 is a lot. But life as a mother of 3 is so fulfilling. Watching my three babies together makes every ounce of sleeplessness and concealer under my eyes worth it. The boys love-love-love their sister. And when she is awake and content she loves to watch them.

A couple weeks back I decided to take some pictures of all three of my babies. Let me first say that Pinterest makes all these cute sibling pics seem doable. But when you are dealing with 6 and 4 year olds and a newborn, you have to pick the poses that are most important because you will run out of time. The baby will not fall/stay asleep and the rambunctious boys will not "hold the pose" correctly and would rather go play. The potential for screaming at your two older kids is likely if you don't play your cards right. And then, hope your camera settings are right before you start shooting. And plan for rapid-fire shooting because you just won't get enough time! And if you are an amateur photographer and you really want to capture good pics of your kids together, let technical perfection go. It just ain't gonna happen.

In short: I don't know how photographers do it. It was super stressful and these are my children. And while the lighting isn't perfect and there are shadows, my heart absolutely sings with these pictures. I captured what I wanted: my three gorgeous children together.

Who doesn't love monogrammed bloomers?!!

My Kindergartner

Here’s to you
You were pink or blue
And everything I wanted
Here’s to you
Never sleeping through
From midnight till the morning
Had to crawl before you walked
Before you ran
Before I knew it
You were trying to free your fingers from my hand
‘Cause you could it on your own now somehow

Slow down
Won’t you stay here a minute more
I know you want to walk through the door
But it’s all too fast
Let’s make it last a little while
I pointed to the sky and now you wanna fly
I am your biggest fan
I hope you know I am
But do you think you can somehow
Slow down

Here’s to you
Every missing tooth
Every bedtime story
Here’s to Barbie cars, light saber wars
Sleeping in on Sunday
Had to crawl
Before you walked
Before you ran
Before I knew it
You were teaching me
The only thing love can
Hold hands through it
When it’s scary, you’ve got me

Slow down
Won’t you stay here a minute more
I know you want to walk through the door
But it’s all too fast
Let’s make it last a little while
I pointed to the sky and now you wanna fly
I am your biggest fan
I hope you know I am
But do you think you can somehow
Slow down

Please don’t roll your eyes at me
I know I’m embarrassing
But someday you’ll understand
You’ll hold a little hand
Ask them if they can

I am your biggest fan
I hope you know I am
But do you think you can
Somehow
Slow down
Slow down
 

That song. The tears. If the lyrics weren't enough, watch the video (at least listen to the song). And sob. And think about your own babies. This song has been on the Christian radio station for a while, and since I have been pregnant this song has moved me to tears every single time I hear it. So as I sent my oldest baby off to Kindergarten Friday, the lyrics to this song came up in my mind and then I ugly cried.

In case you cannot read it, my 6 year old wants to be a Paleontologist when he grows up. Love it.

Finn really wanted a picture with Keagan before we left the house. And he wanted to hold the sign, too. Keagan didn't really want to share the holding-of-the-sign duty, but with a little encouragement finally relented. And I reminded Finley that his first day was coming up and he would get a sign of his own! Little brother struggled all day long with Keagan going to Kindergarten. He moped around like a lost puppy dog. It was pitiful and made me sad to know he was missing his big brother.

The beginning of the school journey at Benton Elementary and the obligatory picture in front of the sign! We saw our friends Amber and Scott bringing Nick to school and so had the boys stand together for a picture. These two boys are big buddies and now classmates, both in Ms. Denise's class! Amber and I are so super thankful the boys are together.

While Josh and I were dropping off Keagan, Mallory was hanging in the car with Finley and Maclyn. So thankful that she was able to help because that allowed us to give all of our attention to Keagan, which is rare these days. While we were in the school, she texted me a picture of Maclyn posing, flexing her muscles. And the text read: "Be Strong, Mom!"

After drop-off, Amber and I decided to do a first-day of Kindergarten for Mommy picture...and we were both sad. Next year, I imagine that these frowns will turn upside down at back-to-school time!!

As strong as I was at drop-off and even getting home, I truly did lose it once things settled down and I started to process that my baby, my first born, was in Kindergarten. It just seems like yesterday we were struggling to even get pregnant, then when he was here and tiny in the NICU, and then all the fun baby milestones. It was just yesterday, wasn't it? That is when those lyrics popped into my head...cue ugly sobs.

The longest day ever (because I actually was looking at the clock all day, counting down to when I could pick him up) was made so much better when our friend Paula texted this picture of the boys to me and Amber. She said they were having a great day! And this picture and text made my heart so happy. (And when I asked Keagan about his day that afternoon he really only told me about how awesome the food was and how he loved the cafeteria!!!)

Time to pick up my boy!! He was so excited to see me but even more excited to return on Monday! I am so thankful that he had such a great day. It makes my heart happy to know he loved it, even if I struggled letting go. After school I took him to get ice cream at DQ, and hoped to hear all about his day. But, in true boy fashion, he really told me very little.

Oh Keagan, please slow down.

nursery fit for a baby GIRL

When I decided to not find out the gender of the baby (I say "I" because Josh was not initially thrilled with the idea...we are both planners, and not knowing didn't allow for much planning) I initially thought I would do a gender neutral nursery. So I had the room painted a creamy white and started going for a rustic theme. One day I was perusing the internet and came across both boy-specific and girl-specific bedding that I loved, and immediately knew that I couldn't do gender neutral. With that decision made I then decided I would just order whichever bedding I needed after the baby was born. Well. That lasted a whopping couple of weeks because I then noticed that nearly all the bedding items I liked were back-ordered until July!!! No bueno. I may not have known the gender of the baby, but when I get something stuck in my mind it does not go away. So I ordered both the boy and girl bedding, knowing it would not be here until baby came and I would just return what I didn't need.

Wouldn't you know, I got some of the girl stuff first and before baby. I texted my mom that this was a problem because I now wanted a girl! I needed the boy stuff to come soon so I could then want a boy, because I was sure I was having another little boy! (My mind changed daily on the gender I hoped to have) Then Maclyn was born! So I got to keep the girlie girl stuff and proceeded to cancel orders and send back the 2 "boy" items I did receive. And though I never thought I would do Pink anywhere, I am suddenly in love with the color and the nursery is finished and complete with splashes of PINK!

Baby bed with gold polka-dot tulle bed skirt (what I fell in love with):

Views from different corners of the room (I still have to put pictures in the frames...but I have to get the pictures first!):

Bible verse I painted for Maclyn before she was born (it didn't have the flowers until after she arrived...remember, I was sure I was having a boy!). I painted a verse for both boys as well so this is something near and dear to my heart.

The curtains! I love the ruffle bottom. I actually bought these before baby, with the thought that they could be used for a boy too...

This was a simple and fun nursery to decorate. I didn't want to do a true theme with this baby, but instead wanted crisp and clean and easy. I feel peaceful when I am in there, and I hope that is how Maclyn feels when she does start using her room.