Park Sunshine!

The Greatest Park of All

Because of the two giant slides, the kids have named this park The Greatest Park of All. Whenever they say it, they use a deep voice and lift their hands up to be dramatic.

Fallen Soldier Boots

Fort Campbell had a special boot display for Military Survivor Appreciation Week. Each boot represents a fallen Soldier from the war since September 11th, 2001. There are more than 7,000 boots and each one has the name and photo of each service member who passed away. It was very moving and reminded me of when we visited Arlington Cemetery. 

The kids were really impressed with all the boots. They spent time counting them, walking up and down the rows, and looking at the pictures of the Soldiers. 

Amelia and Alex had a lot of questions, but I didn't quite know how to explain what they were seeing. I just told them that all the people in the pictures were daddy's friends and help keep them safe.

Amelia asked me which boot was daddy's. That question hit me hard. Seeing displays like this really puts things into perspective. It's a sad reminder of all the loss that is all around us in the military community. Almost everyone I know, knows someone who has died or been injured in the war.

Just feeling so thankful for Andrew and our family.

Third Times A Charm? (Andrew, 9 Weeks)

The transition to three children has been going a lot smoother than I had envisioned. So far, I would describe Andrew as mellow and easy going. I'll just go ahead and say that Andrew has been the easiest baby to care for of our three children :0) 

Amelia was our firstborn, so we had no idea what we were doing and we stressed out about everything. We had little confidence in our parenting skills.  When we had Alex, he had colic and Amelia was only 16 months old. They were both completely dependent on us. That transition was tough too. We were so overwhelmed with two babies!

With Andrew's birth, I feel things are much different. Things feel so much more calm and under control. Amelia and Alex are more independent and don't need constant supervision. In fact, they are very helpful with helping me care for their little brother. They play with Andrew, help me with diapers, and even help me put him down for naps. When Andrew cries, Amelia is the first to run over and try to make him feel better.    

I feel like I have more time to devote to just Andrew. I feel more confident in my abilities. I'm older and have more experience. Most importantly, I have a different mindset.When Amelia and Alex were babies, I was in survival mode. 

Andrew will most likely be our last baby, so I'm cherishing every moment with him and have much more patience. Knowing that every little milestone will be my last experience with a child makes me appreciate everything about him. It makes everything extra special.  

Andrew is already sleeping in 4-6 hour periods at night. Many times, he'll only wake up once at night! He took to breastfeeding very well. He has a great latch, eats regularly, and I've had no pain at all. His cries are very soft and easily soothed. He smiles all the time and has already started giggling!  

The only real issue we've had with Andrew has been his baby acne. At times, it seems to bother him a lot.  He is constantly scratching at his face and sometimes it gets red and raw.  It's heartbreaking! We are hoping he grows out of it soon.

Andrew is very resilient. Many times, I have to wake him up to take his siblings to and from preschool. Andrew also comes with me to my hospital volunteer work. In fact, I took him to an FRG meeting when he was just two weeks old and he went to his first fundraiser at three weeks old. He is such a good kid!

Little Bro and Big Sis

Amelia just adores Andrew. She constantly gives him hugs, kisses, and cuddles. When he's fussy, Amelia does her best to comfort him. The first thing she does to soothe him is remind him that she loves him. She is also the best at getting Andrew to smile. I love their special bond!

Amelia always asks if Andrew can play with her. I try to explain that he can't do much, but it doesn't matter to her.

Amelia tells Andrew about what she's building, shows him each piece, and keeps him involved with what she's playing with.

Andrew woke up crying in his crib. Amelia told me she would take care of him. She gathered all his favorite toys and lovies, climbed into his crib, and talked to him.  He immediately stopped crying.  

Kentucky Bale Trail

We spent the morning driving around the small towns in our area. The country scenery was breathtaking and starting to show the first signs of Fall. The leaves are starting to change color and have started falling from the trees. The kids and I just love seeing the farms, silos, barns, tractors, and animals. It's hard to believe these little towns and farms are only about a 20 minute drive from where we live. 

Each year, small towns in Kentucky participate in something called the Kentucky Bale Trail, so we were on the lookout for decorated hay bales. The kids enjoyed pointing them out as were were driving. We stopped to check a few of them out. The bales were super cool and I was impressed with the creativity.  

Of course, Amelia and I thought HAY-lo Kitty was the best one. Alex liked the HAY-ngry Bird the best. Once again, Andrew slept though the whole adventure!

After our country drive, we went to the park for a picnic lunch, walk, and playtime.  It was a good day.

Alex was terrified of this 20 foot tall farmer hay bale. He ran to Jimmy and stayed in his arms until it was out of sight.  Poor guy!

HAY-lo Kitty

The HAY-ngry Bird was Alex's favorite

Dumb-BALE

Billy Dunlop Park

We can't wait to come back when the leaves change.

The kids gathered dozens of crab apples from the park and threw them off the bridge.

Go Seahawks! (Andrew, 2 Months)

Randoms

Amelia is always climbing into Andrew's crib to take care of him

Trying on his Halloween costume

Long hair and pouty lips... love her

We takes walk laps around our cul de sac while the kids play outside