Hawaiian Day

Every Friday at Delaney's school, the kids get a break from their uniforms with "Fun Fridays," where they get to dress up according to a certain theme. This week's Fun Friday was Hawaiian day. Delaney had been looking forward to it all week. When Friday morning rolled around, not only did she get herself ready extra early, but she also helped Addison get all decked out. (Don't ask me why they decided that a floppy Easter hat is Hawaiian. Oh, well. It works!) And in a rare show of cooperation, Delaney was actually willing to let me take her picture (after just a little coersion from me, and some encouragement from Addy!)

It would even appear that Delaney has taken a cue from her sister, as she can be seen here trying out Addy's classic pose. Who can resist these tropical beauties? They sure are cute, if I do say so myself!

ZZZZZZZzzzzzz

Grady slept through the night last night! Yippee! Actually, he has been sleeping very well, going 7-7 1/2 hours between feedings for several weeks now. (According to my jealous visiting teacher, 7 hours is sleeping through the night, but then she's got a 10 month old and a 2 year old that still don't sleep through the night!) His usual routine lately has been eating for the last time around 10 or 10:30, then waking up to eat around 5 or 5:30. This morning, I had to wake him up around 8:00! Intrestingly enough, he has followed the same pattern that our other kids have followed, and proven that the Babywise claim works: according to the book, following the Babywise routine helps babies learn to sleep through the night by 9 weeks old. After five kids, I'm convinced! It has worked wonders for us, anyway. I know there are those out there who feel like the Babywise book is more like a Baby Nazi book, but I say take from it what works for you, leave out what doesn't and everyone's happy. As for me, I'm grateful to have had the guidance. For us, it has made sense, and we've had great results. Now, if only I could get myself to bed at a decent hour I'd feel fabulous!

Sweet Big Brother

Keaton has recently started taking much more interest in Grady. Not only does he finally have the patience to sit down and hold him, quite often--on his own initiative--he'll snuggle up next to Grady and talk in his sweet little "baby" voice. If I'm ever out of the room and Grady starts fussing, I'll almost inevitably come back in to find Keaton leaning over him singing him a sweet little lullaby. He makes up the words as he goes, so each song is a little different, but they almost always contain the phrase "with a knick-knack paddy-whack" somewhere in there.

Not only is good at comforting Grady, he's very good about helping me take care of him in other ways. Mason has taken it upon himself to dispose of Grady's middle of the night diapers (obviously, in my laziness, I leave them on the couch till morning). Mason is very good at doing his little "chore." However, once in a while I catch him trying to open one up. So if there's ever a pooper, Keaton is my go-to-guy. He takes the loaded ones to the diaper pail, and leaves the wet ones for Mason. If I need something that is out of reach, Keaton is the first one I ask to--I won't use the word "fetch"--well, you get the idea. And the best part is, he does it so cheerfully. He really is a good boy, and a great big brother.

"I'm 5 Now"

Keaton recently had a birthday, and as he is fond of telling EVERYONE that we meet, he is 5 now. It's hard to believe he is getting so grown up. He sure is a fun kid to be around. He is proud to play the role of providing comic relief in our family. It is a job he does well! In honor of his birthday, here are a few classic shots of our fantastic, fabulous--and most of all, funny--five year old.

Travelin' Buddies

This is the standard form of transportation for "the babies," as Mason and Grady are lovingly referred to. They seem to both really like it (maybe it's their unobstructed views?), and so far this stroller has served us well. I have to just point out, this is our third double stroller (yes, that's right: THIRD!).

I remember our very first one with fondness--and sore muscles. I'd load up all three kids in that thing (Addy & Keaton sat in the seats, and Delaney perched on the bench in the middle that was presumably for the older kid's feet, but it worked quite nicely as a third seat, thank goodness) and push about 75 pounds worth of kids all over the place. We used that thing all the time. It never seemed that heavy, either, till the one day I decided to walk a mile and a half to my parent's house, and I swear what seemed like a flat road in the car was uphill the whole way there! When the kids' combined weight totaled over 100 pounds, we moved on to a new Sit & Stand stroller. It was great, because now the older kids could walk while Mason rode, but there was always one extra seat as a backup. Except, wait a minute, all the big kids kept fighting over who got to ride! I thought they were supposed to enjoy their new freedom and independence, but instead, they all just piled on that one, too, giving me a good work out every time we headed to the park. When we traded in our minivan for the Yukon, our trusty Sit & Stand would not fit in the new trunk. I thought I would never get a side-by-side stroller (way too wide), but alas, it's the only one we found that would fit in the tiny trunk of our Yukon. It works out pretty well, and I have to say the best part is there is no room--anywhere--for any extra kids! It truly is a baby stroller, and while I sometimes miss the "good ol' days," it feels like a vacation since I only have to push around 40 pounds. Now, if I could only manage to steer my way through those narrow doorways...

Smiley Guy

I swear that Grady was born smiling. He has been the smiliest baby, always grinning at angels as he drifts off to sleep. And it's not just sleepy smiles he flashes all the time. This kid has seriously made me question why "experts" always say babies can't smile in the first weeks of life. He sure has made us wonder, with the many times he has looked us straight in the eye and smiled.

Well, now we have concrete evidence of his adorable--and deliberate--smile. Of course, now that he's almost six weeks old it won't seem so incredible to the aforementioned experts. But that's okay, because I know the truth. Because I'm the mom. The hectic, chaos-ridden, slightly sleep-deprived mom, and I deserve all the pick me ups I can get, right? Right. So that settles it: he meant every one of those smiles he's flashed at me over the last weeks. And what wonderful smiles they've been.

(As if to prove the point, Grady is laying on my lap as I type this smiling and cooing up at me. What a sweetie!)

Like Father, Like Son

I'll probably get in trouble for saying this, but Grady is a true Hummer. Enough said.

Like Mother, Like Son

Or maybe it's me he takes after...