Valentine's Weekend

Reid had his class Valentine's Day party on Thursday!  He had fun decorating his box and writing names on his cards for his friends.  

This girl adds sparkle to our lives!

On Saturday morning we went to the zoo with Alli and John!  This is the only picture I got, but Rhett had a great time! :)

On Sunday morning, Chris made us heart pancakes before church.

Just a little unsuccessful photo shoot before church… ;)

Chris started a new tradition this year of getting Georgia and I flowers on February 15th. :) I like this idea because the flowers are much less expensive the day after Valentine's Day.  No harm in being practical!   

Rhett is 3 months old!

Our baby boy is 3 months old!  We are able to see his personality starting to come out.  He is smiling more and showing us that sweet dimple! :) He LOVES Pat-a-cake and I almost always get a smile out of him when we sing it.  Now that he is more awake and aware, he's also very sensitive.  Loud noises (or voices) and other people holding him sometimes make him cry.  Rhett is SO snuggly.  He loves to rock and bury his face into my arm.  He can hold a rattle now and is becoming more interested in the toys on his play mat. He has started chewing on his hands a lot, which makes me wonder if he will be an early teether like his brother.  Rhett rolled from his tummy to his back one time on January 20th, but hasn't since.  There is a lot of him to roll. ;)

We've settled into a bit more of a routine this month.  I try to start Rhett's day at 7:00 and then he usually eats again around 10, 1, 4, and then Chris gives him a bottle before bed at 7:00.  Our other two never showed a preference on bottles, but Rhett made it very clear he wasn't a fan of Dr. Brown's.  We tried Tommee Tippee bottles and he has done much better.  Rhett takes 3-4 naps a day.  Usually 2 naps are in the car when we take Reid to school and pick him up.  I try to give him at least one good nap at home.  He's been taking naps in his crib, but sleeping in the pack and play in our room at night.  I just can't make myself move him yet. It's hard being the last baby. ;)  Rhett started breaking out of his swaddle, so he now sleeps with a sleep sack instead.  Nighttime sleep is still all over the place.  Some nights he will only wake up twice, other nights he will wake up 5 times.  We'll get there and until we do, I will enjoy those middle of the night snuggles.  

Rhett weighs 16 pounds, 8 ounces. He is a BIG BOY.  Cheeks, thighs, arm rolls…he has it all and I couldn't love him more.  Reid and Georgia Kate absolutely adore their baby brother.  They think everything he does is the best thing they've ever seen.  I hear a lot of squeals and "He's looking at me!  He's touching me!  He touched his toy!  He's smiling!" 

Rhett Michael, you are just the sweetest.  You bring so much happiness to our family!
We love you SO much!

For fun, here are all of our babies at 3 months old!  I think Rhett has his own look!

Sweet Rhett Smiles

A Day in the Life with THREE KIDS!

I love documenting what our days look like.  It's a lot of work and hard to remember to take pictures and write everything down throughout the day, but it's fun for me to look back on these posts. :)  My favorite days are our Mondays and Fridays when all three of my babies are home with me all day.  Here's what we were up to today!

I was up several times throughout the night with Rhett, but my day officially started at 6:30 am.  Rhett woke up and then Reid came in a couple of minutes later.  I fed Rhett while Reid played in the living room for a few minutes.  Rhett and I joined Reid in the living room and for the next hour we had our usual morning mommy & boys time.  I got Reid his breakfast and he ate it while watching part of the Texans game from a few weeks ago (his choice).  The fan entertained Rhett for a few minutes while I started a load of laundry and got my caffeine. :) Then, Reid and I played a few games before I went and got Georgia Kate out of her bed at 8:00. 

The boys didn't get the memo that the girls aren't morning people. ;)

I got Georgia started with her breakfast and Daniel Tiger and then Rhett started getting tired and fussy.  I rocked him for a few minutes and then took him to his room for a nap.  He's still sleeping in our room at night, but I'm trying to get him used to sleeping in his crib during the day when we are home.  

While Rhett was napping, the big kids played and I quickly "got ready" (washed face, brushed teeth, put in contacts), ate a Luna bar for breakfast, switched the laundry, and folded laundry.  Rhett did pretty well during his nap.  He needed me to sooth him a couple of times, but I think he's starting to like the peace and quiet of his room. :)

Rhett woke up from his nap at 9:00 and then all of us went upstairs.  I fed Rhett while the kids played. 

Around 9:45 we came downstairs and I got everyone dressed, threw in another load of laundry, and we headed out to run to Target at 10:00.  

The kids got popcorn when we were done and I totally counted that as their lunch.  We got home at 11:15 and I gave them each an applesauce pouch to make myself feel better about the popcorn lunch. :)  Rhett fell asleep in the car on the way home and stayed asleep in his carseat for 45 minutes after we got home.  

While Rhett was sleeping, I started prepping our dinner for later, switched and folded MORE laundry, and we made cookies, which Reid has been asking to do.  

Rhett woke up at 12:00 and I fed him while Reid and Georgia Kate watched a show in our bed.  Georgia Kate went down for her nap between 12:30 and 12:45.  Reid and I played another game while Rhett played on his play mat.  Rhett started getting tired about 1:30, so I rocked him and put him in his crib.  I realized that the two youngest were sleeping at the SAME TIME and Reid was working on a sticker project independently, so I decided to lay down for a quick cat nap.  It only lasted 10 minutes before Rhett started crying, but it was glorious. :) I got Rhett back to sleep and decided to work on a couple of Rodan + Fields things and wrap a gift for a baby shower.  Georgia Kate and Rhett both woke up at 2:45.  I fed Rhett and got the big kids a snack.  The weather was absolutely gorgeous, so we spent  the rest of the afternoon outside!  We went for a short walk/bike ride and then Rhett and I sat on a blanket in the yard while the other two played.  

Around 4:15, I moved the big kids to the backyard to play so I could finish getting dinner prepped.  This sweet boy watched. :)

Rhett got tired again at 4:30, so I put him down for a nap and I picked up the house a little bit.  Chris got home at 4:45, which was a welcomed surprise!  This isn't the norm, but we LOVE when Daddy gets to come home early!  We ate an early dinner at 5:00 and Rhett woke up right as we were finishing up.  I fed him and then cleaned up the kitchen while the others were playing in the backyard.  Rhett got very fussy around 5:30 and I ended up rocking him for the next hour and Chris took the other two to the park for a few minutes.  At 6:30 I gave Rhett his bath. 

After Rhett's bath, we all went upstairs, put away the kids' laundry, and gave Reid and Georgia Kate their baths.  

We split boys and girls for books and then the big kids were asleep at 7:30.  

Chris gave Rhett a bottle and then we put him to bed.  I took a shower and now I'm finishing up this post while watching Fixer Upper on the DVR.  Wild and crazy Friday night!  

*not pictured: 2,000 diaper changes and trips to the potty. ;)

I truly have my dream job and it is my greatest joy to spend my days with these three little people.  I am SO thankful!  

Potty Training Round 2

Potty Training just isn't fun.  After going through it with Reid, I was not looking forward to potty training Georgia Kate.  I was planning to wait until this summer when she was almost 3 (and Rhett was older), but she has practically been begging me to go on the potty and wear big girl underwear for weeks.  I kept saying, "No, just go in your diaper!  You can go on the potty when you are bigger!"  Excellent parenting. ;)  Well, last week I decided to just go for it.  I bought her some panties, made her a sticker chart, and we got started.  And sister was amazing.    Much like sleeping in her big girl bed, it was like it was nothing new for her.  She wants me to close the door so she can do it all by herself.  She sure keeps us on our toes, but when it comes to big changes, this girl is a rockstar!  

We celebrated with a Mommy/Georgia cupcake date!  I'm so proud of her!

Tiny Dancer

Georgia Kate started dance last week!  We decided to make the switch from Little Gym to ballet and tap.  I have been looking forward to this day for so long.  There is really nothing sweeter than a room full of 2 year olds in tutus.  Georgia Kate was a little bit nervous during her first class, but still really enjoyed it.  This week she had a smile on her face the whole time!  It was so cute watching her talk to her new friends, look up at her teacher in admiration, and dance around the room.     

These pictures are from the first class…

a little bit nervous

my tiny ballerina

"I hold hands with my friends!"

She loves her "tappin shoes".

This week we went a few minutes early and I took some pictures of her in the studio…

I love my sweet ballerina so much!  

Rhett is 2 months old!

2 months already?!  It has been another wonderful month with our sweet baby boy.

We still don't really have any kind of schedule.  With the third baby it's just harder to stick to a routine because there is so much going on.  Rhett likes to eat about every 2 hours, but I am trying to stretch it out a little bit more.  He is very serious about his eating and makes the funniest little piglet grunts.  He is such a messy eater and always ends up with milk all over his face and neck!

He is still sleeping in our room, but we made the transition from the Rock and Play to the flat surface of the Pack and Play.  I try to put him down around 7:30 and most nights he wakes up 3 times and then wakes up for the day around 6 or 6:30.  He typically goes back to sleep easily after middle of the night feedings, but when he wakes up around 6, he is wide awake and doesn't want to be put back down.  The boys in our house didn't get the memo that Mommy and Georgia Kate aren't morning people! ;) We have attempted some naps in the Pack and Play, but he doesn't last very long.  He usually sleeps in the wrap, in the car if we are out, or being held in the glider.  Rhett loves loves loves to rock in the glider.  It's his favorite thing and I think he would be happy for me to hold him all day and rock him.  I wish I could.  We spent as much time as we can in that chair though. :)  He snores when he sleeps and I think it's so cute.  Rhett does NOT like being tired.  When he gets overtired, he completely melts down.  

Rhett likes laying on his Boppy Pillow, but doesn't seem to like the swing or the bouncy seat very much.  He will lay on his play mat for a few minutes, but isn't too impressed with it quite yet. :) His very favorite place in the whole house is Georgia Kate's bed.  He will lay there forever just looking around, watching the fan and kicking away.  He really started enjoying his baths this month.  They seem to relax him.  He usually does pretty well in the car.  Much better than his brother or sister did at this age.  He is undecided on whether or not he likes pacifiers.  We've tried a few different kinds and he definitely has a preference, but while he sometimes takes one to calm down, other times he spits it out with a disgusted look on his face.  Rhett really smiled for the first time on January 7th!  We were all in Georgia Kate's room and the kids were all on her bed.  The big kids were talking to him and he just started smiling!  It went on for a few minutes and it was just precious!  Reid and Georgia Kate were eating it up.  He makes us work really hard for those smiles, but we take what we can get.   Rhett has also started cooing and it's the sweetest little sound.  These milestones are just as special the third time around and I love getting to experience Rhett's "firsts" with Reid and Georgia Kate.  He is their baby too! :)

(Mumsie made Rhett's day gown.)

Rhett Michael, you are such a joy!  We are all so excited to watch you grow, but please don't do it too quickly! :)

Stats:

Weight - 14 pounds, 9 ounces (95%)

Height - 24.5 inches (98%)