The Luckiest No Matter What!

Dear Preston, When I laid you down last night for bed, I wept openly. Your daddy held my hand and we both looked over your crib to watch you sleep. Your tear-stained hair was pretty cute. It is incredibly surreal that I am writing you a letter for your first birthday. Time is so interesting because it felt so slow as I waited those three years to become a mom. It felt like time was inching by, barely moving. Then, when I was pregnant with your big brothers Nolan and Judah, time was also just as slow. During all my worrying and anxiety that had to have been the longest pregnancy in the history of all the world. And now here we are, my baby bear, about to celebrate you having been outside in the world for one whole year. How did this happen?! How?!   I have to backtrack a little to let you know that I was absolutely certain you were going to be a boy. You can ask anyone. I feel very much like having all boys, having all Taurus boys, was something I was put on th...

I often feel we are within seconds from a trip to the emergency room on a daily basis. Just in the last several weeks, Carter got his head stuck in a fence at Epcot, Judah tripped over a basket of cars and got a gash on his head as he hit the corner of a door, Nolan bit it on his bike, and Preston, oh dear Preston... because he keeps trying to do things so early, he's falling over constantly.  Thankfully, although bumps and bruises are in high supply over here, we've been able to stay clear of major injuries and major dangers. That is, however, until a couple of weeks ago when I had my biggest scare as a mom.  It was a Friday and we were sitting down for a late dinner as a family. Everyone had had a full day of school and work and we were all happy and excited to be together and connect. As we were sitting down, I began feeding a hungry Preston tiny pieces of naan and Babybel cheese. He was inhaling them, which is typical; he sure does love food. He began to choke a li...

I'm not sure if other parents feel this way, but 9 months has been a huge month for all of my boys. Some firsts always seem to occur here- for Nolan it was pulling himself up to stand, for Judah it was mastering crawling, for Carter it was FINALLY doing some regular sleeping and FINALLY enjoying eating solid foods, and for Preston it is waving, clapping, and standing on his own. I'm wanting to insert the 'face screaming in fear' emoji for all of this. Interestingly enough, also at 9 months, each of my boys went through a stage where they hated baths. Thankfully, so far, Preston's only lasted like a day or two- seriously, this kid is a fish. Thank GOODNESS we selected Huron as his middle name; I feel it suits him. Also at 9 months, each of my boys began to be HORRIBLE to change. Flopping, scooting, flipping, for each and every diaper change. Preston is here too. There must be something about this age where babies are really starting to come into their own- r...

Preston continues to add a lot of joy and sunshine into our lives.  He is, in general, a happy, laid-back baby who LOVES to move and learn. Even though Preston has a super chill personality, I am noticing that he, like his brothers, does not want to be still... ever.  These past couple of months, we've watched him be so bound and determined to figure out how to move himself around.  He is an expert roller now and although he can sit for short periods of time, he has no interest in practicing such a skill when he can work on how to crawl instead.  He has not mastered how to officially crawl during his fifth and sixth month, but can get on his knees, wobble back and forth, and face plant in a forward direction.  He repeats this and is able to move from one place to another.  None of my other children have done this, but it sure works for him.  It will be any minute now.  When we try to sit him on our lap, he wants to fling himself around.  Wh...

I always seem to want to start posts like this, of updates, with something about time and how much it flies.  Preston, thankfully, is getting bigger every day, stronger every day, and somehow cuter every day.  I was just telling Josh the other day how much I am enjoying him.  Babies are amazing and that stage goes by like the quickest blink.  Because Preston is not a twin, because Carter and Preston are three years apart instead of two, and because Preston is my last baby, I am taking time to appreciate the busyness that comes from having an infant around and I truly am enjoying it.   What We've Learned About Preston: These past two months have been fun to be a part of- there's rolling over, a strong head in tummy time, laughs that sound like heaven, him smiling with his whole face anytime he sees his brothers or someone else familiar, baby coos that let us all know, in the midst of our busy lives with three other young kids, that he's here too, and...