Conversations

Sam: I didn't like him.
Katie: Why not?
Sam: Because he kept bugging me and his breath smelled like lemon.
Katie: Oh. What does Mommy's breath smell like?
Sam: Flowers.
Katie: Oh! Thanks! What does Daddy's breath smell like?
Sam: Tomatoes.
Katie: Cool. Wait, do tomatoes smell good or bad?
Sam: Bad.
Zach: What does Charlotte's breath smell like?
Sam: Flowers, too.
Zach: What does Sam's breath smell like?
Ben: Garbage.
Zach: What does Ben's breath smell like?
Sam: Food from yesterday that didn't get put in the fridge.

Ben: The dragon skull of America... from the 1820s!

Ben: Hello Miss Lu!
Sam: No, Miss Lu is her secret identity! She's Super Baby!

Ben: Mom, you're funny.
Katie: I'm funny?
Ben: Ya. Kinda. Not a lot.

While making a "potion" in the backyard:
Ben: Yes! Yes! Ha, ha! I'm an evil genius!

After Zach said that he wouldn't make sweet popcorn for us:
Sam: I think if I fight him so much he'll change his mind!
Then Sam ran and started pretend punching and kicking Zach and he said he would make the sweet popcorn. I think we've taught him a valuable lesson.

While watching the show Mythbusters:
Sam: Now we know how to make a bomb!
Katie: Why would we want to make a bomb?
Sam: To defend our house maybe?

After I made a joke that the boys laughed at:
Zach: Mommy's funny, huh?
Sam: Ya, but that's her only funny joke.

While eating a golden delicious apple:
Ben: The name is right; these are delicious!

While I was saying the good night prayer Sam leaned over and whispered this to me:
Sam: Mom, don't make it too long.

5 Months

- Charlotte is sitting up like a champion!
- She broke her first tooth last week and another is on the way
- As a result of the teething thing, she's been a bit grumpy
- She can roll over from her back to front and front to back
- She likes to grab for things
- She likes to eat paper a lot
- She really likes to watch TV (I try not to let her, but when it is on she is pretty darn transfixed, very unlike her brothers at this age)
- She loves to smile
- She is starting to laugh more
- She likes to "fly" up in the air
- Charlotte loves to ride around in her baby carrier
- She loves Ben and Sam, but gets a little nervous with their rough play, unless Zach or I is holding her
- She likes to be entertained
- This is what she contributed while I was trying to type all this

g fhk hu , "w hgbt7 y7 m ,n

The Journey to Five

Ben and Sam have had a birthday - Shout Hurray! More on that later. For the moment, I wanted give a little picture history. I meant these to go from oldest to newest, but it didn't turn out that way. I still like it.

Ben, Sam and Baby Charlotte - February 2011

Ben and Sam - March 2010

Ben and Sam - July 2009

Sam and Ben - Early 2009

Ben and Sam - July 2008

Ben and Sam - June 2007

Ben and Sam - April 2007

Ben and Sam - Christmas 2006

Ben and Sam - 3-months-old

Ben, Sam, and Katie - one-month-old

Ben and Sam - one-month-old

Ben and Sam - less than 1-day-old

Ben and Sam - now

It's been quite a wonderful adventure.

Birthday Photo Shoot

Some photos I took of the boys around their 5th birthday. Ben is in purple, Sam is i blue.

4 Months

- Charlotte likes to scream. She's not angry, she's just screaming.
- She likes to hold onto my hair.
- She weighs 16 lbs 14 oz and is 25 inches long (two weeks ago at the last Dr's appointment)
- She's in the 90 percentile for length and head
- She in the the 99% for weight! That's the size of the average 8-month-old.
- She likes to babble
- She can grab things around her quite well
- She can almost sit up by herself
- She can roll over from her tummy to her back when she wants to, but mostly she just screams.
- She doesn't like to be left alone. At all.
- She likes to give kisses, aka suck on our cheeks and chins
- She likes to suck on her hands
- She loves to suck on her feet
- She is super happy and smiley when she wakes up. Unless she has been woken up. Then much less so.
- Her eyelashes are starting to get darker
- Her hair is growing in and it's looking pretty blonde up top, but brown in the back
- She is most wonderful and lovely little, baby girl ever. Ever.

The Blessing of Charlotte

On June 5th we blessed our darling little Charlotte. It was wonderful. Lots of family. Lots of love. Here are some pics.


The Fam


Katie's Family


Zach's Family

Thanks for coming, Family! We loved having you! Charlotte was especially grateful for all the extra love.

Brotherly Love

Sam and Charlotte (March)

Benjamin and Samuel love their little sister. Charlotte is like the new center of their universe and they are rapidly orbiting planets that often need to come in really, really close to kiss her toes. It is excessively sweet to see my big babies love this new baby so, so much. The first thing they ask in the morning is if "beautiful face" is awake yet. And whenever she wakes up from her naps it's like she's been sleeping for an hundred years! Once one has seen her eyes bat open for a moment they come running to her, often loudly proclaiming the goods news to the other. If I'm going out and taking Charlotte with me, there is almost always a little battle because they don't want her to leave. They sit and read her stories, get her pacifiers, explain the convoluted plots of their pretend games, and always, always give her kisses. Hundreds and hundreds of kisses. They have declared that they will love Charlotte and I "infinity." It is magnificent.

Yet, it can be difficult to deal with such unbridled love from two such passionate little creatures when you are trying to care for an even littler creature. They run around and play their little games, stop suddenly and need to give Charlotte kisses and love RIGHT NOW! No matter if she is sleeping, nursing, crying, or having a diaper changed. And if they want to give a kiss on, say her tummy, and she is wearing a onesie or a jumper they'll try and unbutton her to have access to the intended location. If I intervene they protest that it must be done. We had to implement a no kisses during nap time rule because Charlotte was hardly sleeping during the day because she kept being woken up by this brotherly love. Sam is pretty good about it, but Ben is just perfecting his "silent kisses."

It's a crazy, stupendous adventure this motherhood gig.


Benjamin and Charlotte (March)