Man, I Love These Two . . .

 And then just a quick picture tutorial of what it means to be a little brother of two big sisters . . . sometimes, they try their new Christmas robes on you . . . and you look freakishly adorable :-)

 Especially when you're helping to change laundry in your new robe . . .

Warning:  I am quite capable of bursting into spontaneous tears just looking at Isaac right now.  Despite the fact that I believe a baby brother, so close in age to him, will be one of the greatest blessings in his life, I can't help but melt down a little into a puddle of, "My poor baby's whole world is gonna be turned upside down in the next week or so, and he has no idea what happening and I don't know how to prepare him for it."  Having him be so much younger than his sisters were when they were first introduced to a younger sibling has been a big difference -- he's still a baby in so many ways.  Must stop thinking about it now, or I will start crying again.  :-)

Zoo Day

Greg's work had their annual party, and this year it was held at Hogle Zoo. From 4:30-9:00 the zoo was open to all Kennecott employees and family, complete with face painting, open concession stands for free food, and unlimited carousel and train rides.  Unfortunately, we never got near the rides, 'cause we stayed so busy and it was REALLY crowded.  But, the kids loved it.  The highlight was the dinosaurs and the dinosaur digging pit.  And the zebra face painting -- the girls LOVED that.

Checkin' out the giraffes -- you can see my baby bump (which was a tad exaggerated in this pose, but isn't entirely inaccurate.)

Isaac eating sand.  Yum.

My cute boys.

Annie in the sand, rocking her brand new Rio Tinto/Kennecott hat.

Ellie VERY enthusiastic about seeing snakes -- there was pretty much an interpretive dance of joy.

Isaac checking out turtles.

Isaac chillin' out in the misters -- 'cause it was FREAKING hot.

Greg (with his new visor) and Isaac with sand and ice cream on his face.

Man, I love this kid!

The kids as Rio Tinto employees.

The girls showing off their zebra faces -- they LOVED them.

At the end of the night, it was late, they were all getting cranky, and when they found out we'd JUST missed the last train, Ellie went into full on freak out mode and screamed the entire walk to the car.  Good times.  :-)  Overall though, it was so awesome -- I'm hoping we get to do it again next year!

Does it fit?

Daddy came home from his business trip with a new backpack.  

Ellie wanted to wear it around the house, but it was a tad big . . .

So big in fact . . .

(Side note: check out her curls!  This kid is getting curlier hair by the day!)

"Why Daddy . . . ?"

So, on Sunday Greg left for California for a business trip.  (He's back today . . . I hadn't mentioned it on the blog while he was actually gone and we were all home alone and all that.)

Upon arriving at the airport, Greg remembered something he forgot.  'Cause seriously, the smartest people I know can be the flakiest (I'm looking at you, Talina!)  :-)  So, I got our children into the van and drove to the airport -- it was actually nice to have somewhere to go and get out, if even just for a drive, since we were all sick and wouldn't be going to Church -- or anywhere else for that matter.  We got there, handed off Greg's stuff, he gave kisses goodbye to all of us again, and we headed back home.  Annie was quiet for a minute.  Thoughtful.  As we were driving away, she suddenly looked up and made eye contact with me in the rear view children's mirror, "So . . . ?" she asked with a hint of confusion, "Why is Daddy going to Disneyland without us?"

Guess we hadn't adequately explained Dad's California business trip :-)

Sunday night, Greg called to say goodnight to the kids.  As Ellie was talking, she was telling him about her day when she suddenly asked Greg, "Why Daddy go on a mission?"  Since the last person we took to the airport was my little brother off to Argentina, this was another time I realized I had not really explained well enough to the girls what Dad was actually doing while he was gone for four days.  :-)

Things I Love

Dear Kohls,

I love you times infinity.  Saving $129 on an $8.29 purchase made my day.  And two dollars of that Star had to pay me back, since she bought a $30 sweater that cost two bucks.  I'm also very excited about my new $70 running shoes I got for $17.

Love,
Shopaholic Hilary

---

Dear Pretty New Treadmill,

This really feels like the start of something beautiful.  Right next to my bed, your presence is going to be a constant reminder to get my butt in gear.  Plus, my iPod looks so pretty up on your console.

Love,
Soon-to-be-uber-fit Hilary

 ---

Dear Mechanically Inclined Husband,

Thanks for putting together aforementioned treadmill while I checked facebook and updated my blog.

Your most admiring wife,
Smitten Hilary

--

Dear Two Youngest Children,

Thanks for almost being over all your various illnesses.  Although, for feeling better, you're still awfully grumpy.  But your ever-present moodiness today has made me especially grateful for the hours that come after 8PM.  I have a greater appreciation for night time.  Thanks for being in bed and asleep (although, I guess I really owe your Dad on that one) by the time I got back from shopping with your Aunts and Grandma.  Let's get back to sleeping all night and not being tiny terrors during the day.  It'll be good for all involved.

Love,
Your loving, but-having-kids-scream-at-her-all-day-is-starting-to-get-old, Mommy

--

Dear Oldest Child,

You've been pretty well awesome.  Work a little harder on that whole not-smacking-your-obnoxious-little-sister-thing, and you'll pretty much be the most amazing four year old on planet Earth.

Love,
Don't-know-what-I'd-do-without-you Mom

A Horse for Four?

Greg was giving horse back rides to Annie, Ellie and their friends Seth & Aniston . . . 

I don't think four kids quite fit . . .

Then some Isaac-y goodness . . .

Being tickled by Dad

 Playing with his penguin friend

Sitting on the couch

 Getting kisses from his sister, Ellie

Loving tummy time . . . which he's just starting to get into

 

 

Cute Kid

I've spent the last few days scanning in pictures from a few of Greg's parent's photo albums.  Many of these were pictures I hadn't seen before, which was really exciting for me.  I actually didn't even know about the existence of these photo albums until a few months ago . . . whereas I've been making Greg go through piles of my photo albums since before we were married.  It was fun to turn the tables (kinda) and make Greg go through piles of his own photo albums now.  :-)

This first picture of Greg (in the yellow hard hat), and his older brother James, was a real find because it was the first time I looked at a picture of Greg or I as a child and thought, "Hey!  That's where Ellie comes from!" 

 Greg and James sleeping.  So sweet!

(And this one really shows off where my girls get their hair color from.)

 Greg dyeing Easter eggs

 This kid wore a LOT of overalls (I'd say at least half of the pictures were of him in overalls).  Like even more than my Mom dressed my baby brother Cody in -- and I didn't think that was possible.

 And a few more of Greg and James sleeping -- how cute are they!?

To Swaddle or Not to Swaddle: There is No Question (for us)

All of my babies have had to be swaddled to sleep. Oh, how I wish it were another way. There was never a chance for them to find their own hands and fingers to self-soothe, as they were tied up tight in large receiving blankets any time they needed to sleep. I dislike the feeling of them swaddled when I hold them -- there's no cuddling, no tiny baby curled up against my chest, just a large stiff burrito of a baby unable to even wiggle.

But, alas, there was no sleep if every one of my babies weren't tightly swaddled. REALLY, REALLY tightly swaddled. In fact, anytime I swaddled them, they'd sleep an hour or so at night, then wake up screaming and half escaped from their blanket. Greg, on the other hand, is a master swaddler. Like, he should teach classes or give seminars or tutor nursery nurses or something. His swaddle is legendary. It's so tight that when he'd swaddle Annie, our first baby, his Mom could scarcely watch, so convinced he was torturing her tiny granddaughter in a blanket-y death grip. Greg was good to start with -- but when it became obvious our children would only sleep tightly swaddled for MONTHS AND MONTHS of their lives, it became necessary for him to be able to swaddle the baby so tight that even a strong five month old would be unable to break loose for hours on end. (I would often whisper reminders to him when he was swaddling newborn Isaac, "Um, hon, he's not going to be able to break out, he's a week old . . . that's probably tight enough." )

I TRIED to not have to swaddle Isaac. Oh, how I tried. For weeks I resisted. "Look," I'd tell Greg, "he's sleeping! Not even swaddled! Like a regular baby!" But after a few weeks it became obvious that swaddling Isaac (at night, at least -- we rarely swaddle him during the day) was the only way to achieve a four hour or better block of sleep at night. I wonder sometimes how long we'll need to. I'd love to be done by winter, as I vastly prefer sleeping babies in 'sleep sacks' during the colder months -- I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Just as a final 'testament' to Greg's swaddling ability -- here is Ellie at over five months old, being supported in the standing position by nothing but the tight swaddle she was encased in . . .

Home Away From Home

Ellie came up to me this morning and asked, "Where Daddy?"
Greg's funky work schedule lately makes his routine less predictable for the girls, but since I'd told her the night before he had to work the next day, I tried to gently jog her memory by asking, "Where do you think he is?"
After a long pause and some serious thinking, Ellie asked, "Home E-po?"
I laughed and explained that Dad was at work, not Home Depot. But it was a good guess.

Story Time

Greg reads to the girls every night, usually while I'm feeding the baby. Recently though, Isaac's gotten really interested when I read to the girls during the day, so tonight Greg did books with all three kids. Everyone enjoyed it, although Ellie typically loses interest in the group's book about 3 minutes in, and bounces around with a book of her own while Greg continues to read to Annie (and now Isaac). It was all so cute, I had to get some pictures . . .

6 Years

Six years . . . three kids . . . still the best decision I ever made.

Happy Anniversary, Hon!