Newborn pictures

These pictures may be a tad late getting on here but I promise they were worth the wait! We were able to get newborn pictures done right away after leaving the NICU. It took a bit of time before I was able to meet up again with our photographer to pick out our final selection but I am so, so happy with the pictures we got.

I warned our photographer before coming that we may have limited options as our kids may not be cooperative. She assured me that we would be fine and would definitely find a way to get some good ones. Our experience started off with a bang. Literally. While we were getting Jayden ready for our first picture, we heard a loud bang. We looked over to find our son had fallen and next to him was a knocked over tripod and camera. Our photographer handled it all well and the camera was not broken but that was definitely a hard moment for our family. Despite the rough start, we enjoyed the rest of our time there. The kids ended up loving having their pictures taken!

And Jayden was definitely the star of the show. He slept through the entire session, 2 diaper sessions, and several cloth wrap switches.

We are so thankful for these pictures and a screenshot of our children at this age.

2 Month Update on Baby Jayden

 This little guy just hit the 2 month mark yesterday. It's been a wild ride for sure but we are so in love with him. Jayden is proving to be one of the calmest, most patient babies ever. He has no problem waiting on me as I am constantly interrupted to care for his siblings. He makes life so fun and is so hard to not hold all day long. The chores can wait, right?

 We are so thankful for God giving us this little boy, who just may be forever treated like the baby. And I think he is already aware of how "babied" he will be.

 Sleeping continues to be one of his top daily priorities. He is a great sleeper and still spends most of his time snoozing away. He does make sure to still get up every 2-3 hours for eating. I'm hopeful this will be the baby that sleeps full nights early on (may be wishful thinking considering how long it took the other 2 to start sleeping all night).

During the day, while baby Jayden sleeps, we continue with our normal routine working on school activities, completing art projects, running around the house, and solving mysteries only a 2 year old and 4 year old could dream up.

 We are so anxious for spring to come and get back to spreading our wings outside again.

Until then, we will settle for fires in our fireplace, board games, and staring at this sweet 2 month old.

Thank you for picking us as your family Jayden. We are so grateful and blessed because of you. You are more loved than you could possibly imagine.

Date Night with Our Children

Once a year, our town's YMCA puts on a special dinner and dance for fathers and daughters. This was the first year Payton was old enough to attend and she was so excited for her special date with her daddy. She meticulously planned her outfit and took most of the day getting ready and thinking about what all she would do that night. I helped her get dressed in her room and we had daddy knock on the door to "pick her up." 

Her daddy surprised her with a rose and she was so excited for this small gift. We waved at them as they left and it hit me hard that these years are going so quickly. It won't be long before we are preparing for school dances, dates, and outings with friends. I wish I could slow time down. Or keep my kids from growing. But, I can't. For now I just thank God for this time with our kids and the chance to be their #1 priority for a bit.

On the flip side, I am looking forward to seeing all the great things my children choose to do in life. It's one of life's great blessings being able to watch your own children grow.

With Payton and her daddy gone and my mother-in-law visiting for the weekend, I decided to take Riley on a date with me and my mother-in-law would watch Jayden.

We had a blast together. While Payton and daddy danced the night away, we chose to get drive-thru and eat at the park. To make this plan work, we had to eat in our vehicle as it was too cold to get out. Riley didn't mind. After eating, we walked down to see and feed the ducks. Then Riley decided we needed some dessert so we went on another quick trip for ice cream. He thought it was the greatest night. And he's right, it was a beautiful night.

Jayden slept the entire time grandma had him. She was okay with that. He chose to wake up when mom came home, which worked out really well.

We woke up this morning to snow on the ground and are spending the day lounging and baking for the week. Both Payton and Riley keep telling stories about their dates last night and plan to have more date nights soon. 

We couldn't agree more.

Have a great Sunday!