Aiden's Newborn Pictures!

One of the things I did when I was overdue was call and try to schedule a newborn session. I had no idea that if you wanted newborn pictures taken that you should probably book your session while you were in oh your 2nd trimester or so. Oops. #newmomfail

Well the photographer I had been dreaming about taking Aiden's pictures was booked solid until after the New Year. I decided on a whim to email her to see if she had any cancellations and thank you Jesus...she did. Let me just say I am absolutely in love with these images and the cost of these photos was worth every penny. Jackie from Cream N' Cocoa photography worked her butt off to make sure every pose was perfect.

Aiden has already changed so much since these pictures were taken. He was only a week old in these pictures! I love that our photographer captured his furrowed brow, his pouty lip (see above) and his little rolls. I will cherish these forever. 

These pictures make my heart so happy. I love my little family of 3.

Alder's Newborn Pictures

When I started scrolling through these images from my photographer, my heart melted and I was just completely overwhelmed. Looking into the faces of my TWO sweet little boys made me cry tears of joy. These pictures mean so much to me. I love my boys and I love being a family of four! Here are some of my favorite images from Alder's newborn session...

Photos by: Shannon Krusling Photography

And if you want to see how different my boys look...

 Aiden's newborn pictures are here.

2018 {A Year in Review}

2018 was a very FULL year. A year full of surprises, full of baby announcements and births, full of new roles at work, full of making plans for a new baby! This will be a hard year to top, but I know having August join our family in 2019 is already going to make for an exciting year ahead. Here's a look at our 2018 in review so I don't forget some of the amazing blessings this year held for our family.

January

We kicked off 2018 with a big snow and took both boys sledding, which they LOVED. It was Alder's first literal taste of snow and he loved it! Aiden's love of cooking truly took off and he started putting his chef outfit that we got him for Christmas to good use. Alder turned one at the end of the month and we celebrated with a lumberjack themed party.

February

Alder and Aiden started really playing together so the teacher in me decided to start creating all themed activities I could think of and my love for creating sensory bins for the boys began. We also had lots of playdates with friends and Drew and I got not one, but two date nights in. Our new favorite date activity: pedicures. That's right friends, my very manly husband loves to go get a pedicure with me and he's not ashamed to admit it. HGTV, massage chairs and a foot scrub? Yes, please.

March

March was a big month. We took Aiden to see Disney on Ice with my brother in box seats he hooked us up with from his work and seeing Aiden's face light up was a big highlight. We also found out my sister was pregnant with her first baby and then I helped host a baby shower for my sister in law who was expecting her first baby on my birthday!

April

Sadly we spent our Easter in the ER with Aiden. He had a weird virus with a high fever and hives. He was a trooper, but we missed out on our usual Easter fun on my Aunt and Uncle's farm. This month included more sickness than I would've imagined, which eventually led me to start using essential oils. I started using them and haven't looked back. I'm now on a continued journey to rid my house of chemicals and it has been truly empowering. When Aiden was well we took my Mom to see Beauty and the Beast at the Aronoff Theater and Aiden also got his first dentist visit in.

May

May was a big month for us too. Our favorite local playground got a big facelift so we went to the grand opening and spent many hours there throughout the summer months. We also got pool passes to our city pool for the first time and took the boys there many times. They both went down the water slides for the first time with their Daddy and loved it. At the end of the month, I started feeling a little off and so I took a pregnancy test, which turned out to be positive, surprise! So Drew and I wrapped our head around the news and were excited to begin planning how we would share it with our families. Finding out I was pregnant again helped push me in the direction to end my breastfeeding journey with Alder after almost 15 months. It was harder on me than him of course, but this is always a milestone for me as a Mama.

June

We celebrated my 33rd birthday in June and I got a very sweet gift, a new nephew! We shared with our families that I was pregnant, which is always fun to do. I had both boys wearing big brother shirts so Alder's new title gave away our news. We tried to surprise my sister in law and brother in law in Nashville with our news via FaceTime and they in turn, surprised us with theirs, they were pregnant and due in January as well! We took the boys strawberry picking for the first time and they both ate more strawberries than they picked, oops. And of course we chose the hottest day of the summer to do this, but still had fun. I also busted out my big girl camera and snapped some newborn pictures for my sister in law.

July

We headed to Douglas Lake in Michigan for a trip with immediate and extended family. We had a lovely time. We rented a boat to fish off of and the boys loved it even though only one fish was caught. We made a lot of good memories, but then all came home sick. Later in the month, Drew and I celebrated 9 years of marriage and Drew got a new job offer as Assistant Principal. We had a lot to celebrate in July!

August

I planned and threw a "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" themed baby shower for my sister. We had to take a few bump pictures together of course. We also made our pregnancy official on social media. We took the boys on the Thomas the train ride, which they loved of course and then found out and shared with our families that we were having another BOY!!!

September

The fall brought the start of school for Drew, his first school year as an Assistant principal and our baby started preschool. Everyday he asks if he is going to church or school. He is clearly an extrovert! I attended another baby shower for my sister with my aunts and cousins and we did our traditional onesie making party, which is always so fun to do! I also took my dear friend Bekah to see Lauren Daigle in concert and it was amazing.

October

October was full of lots of fall festivals and the anticipation of Halloween. We made a countdown chain because Aiden and Alder were both so excited about the upcoming holiday. After deciding on our family costumes (Peter Pan themed), Aiden decided he wanted to be a spooky bat, so his very kind and creative Dad made him his own bat wings out of a black umbrella. We had a fun Halloween and Alder was very into it this year just like his brother. He said Trick or treat to everyone and held out his little fingers for candy like a pro. Aiden turned 4 on Halloween and we celebrated with a Dinosaur themed birthday party.

November

We had some beautiful fall days in November to play in leaf piles with friends and collect buckeyes. Alder got his very first hair cut and did surprisingly well even though he was also recovering from Hand, foot and mouth disease. We got family pictures taken and spent some time together cooking (and tasting) in the kitchen. At the end of the month we headed to Nashville to celebrate a joint Thanksgiving and Christmas with Drew's family. We visited the zoo, Alder saw his first movie in the theater (The Grinch) and all the cousins got Grinch Build-A-Bears together.

December

December brought with it lots of holiday fun. We took the boys on the Polar express train ride, made our own homemade hot chocolate, visited the Festival of Lights at the zoo, had a fun pizza night and went to Christmas in downtown Mason with the Brittinghams, had breakfast with Santa and did lots of advent activities to celebrate the season. I went on an underground tour of Cincinnati with my coworkers and had a fun girl's night in. Drew and I's traditional Christmas date looked a little different this year, but we still got one in and we ended the year by purchasing a new car to fit our growing family!

2018 was a great year for our family and we are excited for what this new year will bring.

Alder Jacob {One Month}

My littlest buddy is now one month (plus 10 days) old and what a sweet month it has been. I have loved getting to know Alder these last few weeks. Here's what I know about him so far...

He has my BLUE eyes and I think they're here to stay! I can't begin to tell you how happy this makes me. I love my brown eyed boys, but knowing he gets these eyes from me just makes me happy.

He likes to hold on to my fingers or my hair while he eats. I think it's the sweetest thing ever.

He is in a word from our doctor, "vigorous." I prefer mighty or determined. The kid knows what he wants and fights for it. Even though I'd say his overall demeanor is very chill and sweet, when he wants to eat, he wants to eat now and he will put his whole body into telling you so. 

He loves being sung to. His favorite and the song that most effectively soothes him is "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." It has to be because he heard it so many times in the womb from Drew and I singing it to Aiden. I have now trained Aiden to sing this song to Alder when he cries to help all of our sanity and honestly, I think it helps.

He loves being close to me. His favorite position to be in is on my chest with his legs froggied out. He is also very content when I wear him in my Wildbird sling. That thing is a game changer.

He is alert and curious like his brother. At our newborn photo session the kid would not go to sleep for the longest time for our photographer. He followed her camera lens any time she moved it. He was too curious for sleep. Aiden did the same thing at his newborn session. #brothers

He loves the sound of his Daddy's voice. I'd say he is most smiley when Drew talks to him.

A few stats about Alder at one month: 

Weight: 10 pounds 12 ounces (85th percentile, WHATTTT?!)

Height: 23 inches

Size clothes: I have officially put away all of his newborn clothes and have bumped him up to size 1 diapers. I swear he just fit into his dinosaur footed jammies last week. Now he cant even bend his knees in this outfit. Believe me, I tried to squeeze him into them one last time. I'm in denial because he is changing way too quickly.

Sleeping: This kid cluster feeds like crazy every single evening from dinner to bedtime, which means he gives me a solid 5 hours of sleep before wanting to eat again.

Random stuff only parents want to know:

Nicknames: Alder J, Little Buddy, Little Pig-pig (due to his nightly feeding habits)

Likes: Smiling (it's his favorite), Being sung to (Twinkle, Twinkle), eating all day everyday...I swear he's a feeding machine. being carried in the ring sling, being snuggled close to Mama (and his feeding source, haha), the sound of Daddy's voice, "Pat-pats" from his big brother, staring at mobiles.

Dislikes: Having to wait for food especially in the evening hours, being sat on by his big brother (sharing Mama's lap is hard work)

Here are a few of my favorite pictures of Alder from our first month together...

We love our little buddy so much and can't wait to see what month 2 brings!

See Aiden at ONE MONTH here.