Happy Two Months!

Wow, has it really been two and a half months?! Hannah has been with us (outside the womb) for only 2.5 months now, but it feels like she has been here all along. We can't imagine life without her now that she has made an appearance. There is so much to say about the past two months. How much the kids love her, how Gabriel says he can't keep his eyes off her, Elizabeth continues to thank me for having her, and Josiah loves giving her hugs. Oh and then there is the Mother's Day card that Gabriel wrote how is favorite moment with me was when I had baby Hannah. She had her two month appointment last week and she is doing awesome! Hannah is 24 inches long and 13.8 lbs putting her in the 91st percentile. She is officially my biggest baby. Then the all important question, "how does she sleep?" Well, she loves sleeping with me and we do pretty good together. I sleep better when she is beside me, and we usually fall asleep with her on my chest. She will wake up a few times a night and likes to use me as a pacifier. The part that gets me is she wakes up during my REM cycle around 6 ish in the morning and stays awake until the other kids wake up. It is almost like she says, "alright guys my shifts up--it is your turn to keep mom up!" Anyway, this makes me tired for the rest of the day. We sometimes take naps together in the middle of the day because she is super sweet and loves cuddles. She screams when we aren't holding or rocking her, but we are happy to be holding her =). You learn that with infants you need to get as many snuggles as you can while they are young and can't get away. She is also talking a lot/babbling to all of us. Seriously the sweetest sound ever are her coos. She can track us with her eyes and smiles when we make eye contact. She is also holding herself up during the small amount of tummy time she gets--strong girl. Here are some photos of us around the house (and her doc check up--she has no personal space as you can see):

The roughest part about watching the four kids now is not being able to put Hannah down. It is literally a matter of life and death as the kids have tried to feed her raisins, given her hugs while covering up her nose and mouth, and have fallen on her while she is in the bouncing chair. I can't even take a shower without the door open because I have to make sure the other kids don't sneak in and try to hold her (oh, no bathroom alone for me either). Elizabeth and Josiah are the worst, but luckily I have Gabriel to help me keep them in check. He tattles on everyone to include himself (lol). 

Speaking of tattling, Josiah and Elizabeth are being monsters and getting into a lot of trouble together these days. I am breastfeeding every two hours and that puts me on the couch while they roam free to play in the bathroom soap, cut hair (Elizabeth), throw mud at each other, get water all over the bathroom, mess up their rooms, paint things, and lots of other "stuff" they shouldn't be doing. Add homeschooling Gabriel to my attention being away from them and they can be quite the gremlins. I think they are also seeking a little attention too. I just keep telling myself that Hannah wont be small long and I'll have more time with all of them when she can participate in the things we do together. Until then I'm enjoying the baby time while doing damage control with the rest of them (my poor house). My days go by in a whirlwind because they are so jam packed with "stuff." It goes something like: breakfast, clean up, homeschool, lunch, clean up, nap time for the kids/work time for me, a little play time, prep dinner, cook dinner, clean up, spend a little time with Josh and catch up on house chores/laundry, kids bed time routine, and then more work for me/calling clients when it is actually quiet...SLEEP. It is a crazy life with four, homeschooling, and maintaining a "day job," but I'm happy. I don't think I would want it any other way.

We only have about 20 days left of school and then we will do a summer reading program. Gabriel is doing great in math and has gotten all the concepts he is supposed to know. He's doing pretty well in reading as well; I'm happy listening to him sound out words so well. The only thing we need to work on is quicker recognition of words and writing. I could have pushed him a long further but we enjoy our park dates, time with friends, and lots of free time. I'm proud of him though and happy to almost be done with our first year of schooling. Actually I can't wait for a summer break--I'm pretty stoked for it! I could certainly use the break although I plan on continuing the reading process. Maybe we'll find some books he's really interested in so it won't be so "boring."

Until next time....