Easter nostalgia

Some Moms do the Christmas Eve photo in front of the Christmas tree with all the kids in their Christmas pajamas. I'm not one of those Moms. In fact, despite that I really enjoy taking photos, it's rare that ask my own children to sit and take a photo all together. And getting myself in the picture is even more rare.

For whatever reason, Easter is the one time a year I hand off the camera and force beg coerce bribe my kids (and husband) into taking a yearly family photo. It rarely ends well (and by well, I mean that we are all perfectly posed and I've not issued threats or made unreasonable promises), but it always makes me laugh. At least, afterwards. Many years afterwards.

It also appears to be the one thing that Lucas hates most on the earth. Olivia, on the other hand, has always rocked the Easter photo. I'm guessing it's her favorite holiday, ever. Besides her birthday and Christmas and whatever holiday is exactly next.

Easter 2010 can be found here on my blog. It's hilarious. But for comparisons purposes, here's a quick picture.

That would be itty bitty Ella on my lap next to Olivia. Goodness

Easter 2011 was apparently not blogged about and this is probably why:

The best one we got that year features our dog's back. Again, LUCAS. He's probably mad because he's wearing the exact same sweater vest that he wore the previous year. Fashion is clearly his thing. Or not. Seeing as how he's worn the same pair of jorts for the last week.

Easter 2012 things seemed to go a big more smoothly.

That's teeny, tiny Abigail on my lap.

You know, except for Lucas. At least Olivia is rocking it out. And Aaron. Clearly they were being bribed with excessive amounts of candy. Momma had a newborn. Momma was tired.

Easter 2013 apparently did not exist because I have no photographic documentation of it. Not even looking back through all the pics from my phone. So weird.

Which brings us to this year. Easter 2014. I knew I wanted a pic of all of us. My parents, my two grandmas and all the kids. Please note Lucas' over sarcastic smile because it took several photos of him not doing pointy, happy fingers at the camera, or throwing up some sort of gang symbol or staring off into the yard in the opposite direction.

23 photos later, grandparent photo: check. I mean, one kid out of 8 isn't looking but LOOK AT ABIGAIL. The cute. I can't even handle it.

And then, I politely asked Abigail to remove herself from my Mom's lap and sit with me for a nice family photo. She also loved that idea. Or not.

Okay, Abs, please just stop before you upset your baby sister.

Well, at least Lucas is happy for once.

I hope your Easter was a scream.

Simply Remember

I feel like I've spent a lot of the last 9 years of my life trying to remember things.

Return those library books, don't forget to get a gallon of milk on the way home, so-and-so's birthday is tomorrow, send a follow up email about such-and-such, don't forget to ask so-and-so about that thing, take the trash to the curb, take a meal to this family, etc, etc.

But then there are the important things. Don't forget the way Elizabeth said the word "juice" the first 5 years of her life. Don't forget the way Lucas and Ashlee liked to trade plates when they were still chubby-faced toddlers. Or the way Ashlee hid food under her leg and would eat it all at the end of her meal. Or the way Olivia would dance to any beat from the age of 6 months on. Or the way Aaron held his pacci in the side of his mouth like a cigar when he was learning to crawl. Or how an 18 month old Ella could be pitching an epic fit one minute and belly laughing the next.

That's the thing when you add 1 or 2 babies every two or so years, you tend to be caught up in the busyness of the day to day and you forget a lot of things. Luke says the first six months of the twins' life is a complete blur to him. I say the first three months. I remember getting up one morning a few days after the twins were born. I walked into the living room and my Mom had swaddled two of Elizabeth's babies up. She was pretending to nurse them, sitting there in just her underwear. All of the sudden she seemed SO BIG. And I just started crying.

I'll never forget this though, the twins were tiny, less than a couple months old. I was getting Elizabeth ready for bed and I stripped off her shirt, pants and undies. The stench that came from her small, 2 year old body was enough to make me recoil. I looked at Luke, shocked, and asked, "When was the last time we bathed Elizabeth?" We both thought for several minutes and we could not remember. I'm sure it had been over a week.

I've always taken a lot of pictures. I guess somewhere subconsciously I knew that those pictures would be the lifeline to my memories. But with the purchase of our smartphones and the conception of my photography business, using a real camera on my own kids is something that's sort of slipped onto the back burner.

So yesterday, when Abigail was upstairs "helping" me make lunch while the other kids were happily entertained with the electronic babysitter, I could have gotten swept up in the moment of hungry kids, lunch time, my pelvis begging me to sit down, my bladder beseeching me to empty it's contents. Again. But instead, I noticed my sweet 21 month old, in a princess dress that she INSISTED on wearing, standing on top of our shoe bins, eating a banana and completely captivated by a squirrel doing only-a-squirrel-knows-what in our front yard. The light hit her face and I moved as fast as my feet could waddle me to grab the camera. My real camera.

Because THIS is what I don't want to forget.

This girl, a cheek full of banana, pointing at a squirrel, telling me to "come 'ere," giggling when I say, "That's not a puppy!"

Her dimple on that one side. It's becoming less obvious the bigger she gets. I've seriously prayed it will stay forever even though she'll probably hate it as a teenager,

sticky, slimy banana finger prints all over my window sill,

her amazement at how fast that little squirrel ran away when she knocked on the window,

and how I wouldn't let her stand on the microwave, so she would stretch a tulle covered foot over there, then look at me over her shoulder and grin.

And how after she realized the squirrel wasn't coming back, she spent the rest of her time "helping" me make grilled cheeses by licking the butter when I wasn't looking. For me, it's less about not forgetting and more about remembering the little things. Savoring the details, letting go of the things that are suppose to be these big memory makers and just enjoying my kids exactly where they are. Breathing them in and trying my best to simply remember.

Abigail is one!

One year ago I sat in a hospital room, sniffing, cuddling and soaking in a brand new baby. Now, that tiny little baby, who was my first baby to be born without an induction, the seventh blessing in our growing family, is ONE.

How is that possible?

Some how that sweet little baby we've all ooohed and ahhhhhed over has grown into a curious, crawling baby that EVERYONE continually dotes over.


Isn't she lovely?

I snapped a few photos of her about a month ago. I've started a small little photography business, even though I've still got LOADS to learn. It's a nice hobby.

Anyway, our sweet baby girl has been a beautiful distraction considering our last year's events. Cuddling with her in the calm of a dark room, nursing her quietly as she falls asleep in my arms, hearing her giggle, laugh and squeal at her siblings has been soothing balm to our hearts.

And, as her little personality emerges, I'm looking forward to learning the quirks, habits and character that God has planted into our tiniest treasure.

Last night we went out to eat Mexican food for her birthday, something that's becoming an unplanned family tradition. Because what else says "Birthday" other than chips, salsa, Mexican food and mediocre cupcakes?

Our sweet girl is ALWAYS smiling.

This girl is curious. Always wondering what is going on and usually breaking out into a crawl-sprint to find out.

"What 'cha doin' there, Dad?"

At first she was so shocked that everyone was singing, to her, in unison.

Then, she decided she liked it. A lot.

Then, it was time to DIVE IN. So delicately, she tasted the icing.

Then, she was all in.

She kept looking at Luke and I as if to ask, "I'm really allowed to eat this? And make a huge mess?"

Our sweet, baby girl. Already a year old.

First birthdays bring so much bittersweetness to my heart. I'm thrilled because I know that the last year has been filled with sleepless nights, countless feedings, lots of baby wearing and diapers galore and soon, most of that will be a thing of the past. But it's also sad that we will quickly watch this young baby turn into a toddler who needs less and less of Momma and is eager to walk, explore and wean.

We made it to a full year of nursing! Something I've not been able to accomplish with any of the other children. My plan is to allow her to self-wean, though with each day she's becoming less and less interested, I'm afraid.

At one year old, Abigail is cruising on furniture, has eight teeth, can sign milk, more, eat, and all done. She loves the dog and shows no interest in wanting to walk. She says Mom, Dad and Dog and can emit the most shrill scream of delight in an older sibling who is trying to make her laugh.

She is thrilled to see Daddy come home at the end of every day and is addicted to her pacifier.

When she was about 4 months old I bought 4 little ducks on the clearance rack at Target. All of our kids have "lovies" we've bought them as we've transitioned them from our room to their own bed and bedrooms. Abigail wasn't having anything to do with any of those ducks. Instead, she adopted her old swaddle blanket as her lovey and she sleeps with it smashed over her face. She loves it and it freaks me out.

She loves to be held, likes to be in the mix with all the other kids and won't shy away from a good cuddle. She has the most delicious dimple on her right cheek and every time she smiles and it comes into view I can't keep from kissing it.

Certainly this sweet baby girl is a delight to us all. Happy first birthday Abigail Mercy. How I love you so very much!

Uncharted hairy territory

As a Mom to 7 kids, I've seen just about everything. Friends will talk about things going on with their kids and usually I can offer a suggestion because, you know, we've been there. Often, several times.

But last night was whole new territory for me as a Momma. And it's territory I'd like to never go into again.

I like to think I'm pretty cool, calm and collected even when blood and falls and bumps are concerned. Lucas busted his mouth open and ended up needing minor oral surgery the weekend before Abigail was born and while I panicked a little bit, I didn't just lose it.

But last night? I borderline lost it.

All was going well. Abigail wasn't really wanting much for dinner, which is odd, but she's also cutting two teeth so I figured that's what was wrong. I'd give her a bite, she'd spit it out and play with it. So, her clothes were a mess.

After dinner I stripped her down to her diaper and let her crawl around for a little while. After about 10 minutes Olivia pointed to Abigail's foot at almost the exact same time that I was looking down. I thought she'd cut it and it was bleeding.

I quickly scooped her up and took a closer look. It wasn't blood. Instead, a group of hair and lint had gotten wrapped around two of her toes and the circulation was being cut off. Her toes were so swollen, red and they'd developed blisters.

I quickly got some tweezers and got the hair off. But it was deep in her skin. Not to mention that once I noticed it and began messing with it she was screaming at the top of her lungs and the other 6 kids were gathered around, worried about their baby sister.

Apparently, "hair tourniquets" are not something that I'd ever heard of but they exist. Google them, but with caution my friends.

This is a pic of her foot about 10 minutes after I got the hair free. It's probably so blurry because I was shaking like a leaf.

My friend Lindy who used to be an ER nurse said that these weren't that uncommon and she'd seen a few in the ER. She checked it over just to be sure but said that we'd be fine just taking her to the Peds in the morning.

I took this picture about 45 minutes after I'd freed the hairs.

This morning we visited our peds and he said that he is going to treat it like a 2nd degree burn (because it's really blistered on bottom and still very swollen and red) and he gave her an antibiotic. Here's a pic I took at the doctor's office this morning.

The pediatrician said that he had read about them in residency and seen a lot of pictures but he'd never actually seen a case in person in his 11 years of pediatric medicine. He said that in residency they told him that if a baby was fussy and there wasn't a determinable cause to take off the baby's socks and check their feet.

Who'd have known?? In 8 years and 7 kids worth of parenting I've never even HEARD of this. So I wanted to post it for all you Mommas out there with little babes as well. Crazy!

I knew that our family was a constant opportunity for growth and education but I'll be happy to never experience this again.

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Have YOU ever heard of this? What's the weirdest thing you've ever had happen to your kids?

Abigail at 5 months

Oh how time flies.

Even in the midst of sorrow, God gives me so much to be joyful about. Our sweet Abigail Mercy is five months old.

Surely someone has a magic elixir that can slow down time, right? No? Humf.

Here's Abigail at 1 month, 3 months and 4 months (I missed the 2 month mark, remember?)

At five months old Abigail is just the most pleasant, joyful baby.


Her bright eyes captivate me and her fuzzy head has hints of red hair. She is perfectly fine with her older siblings doting all over her, being in her face and making the most screeching noises imaginable. In fact, I think she kind of likes the attention because she usually looks at them with her big indigo colored eyes and laughs. Or makes a funny face.


She's beginning to like her lovey that we so originally named "Quack Quack." Quack Quack goes with us everywhere and Abigail enjoys her (him?) so much.


Of course, I'm not sure if her affections are genuine or driven out of her need to chew on something, anything, as she cuts her second tooth.

Yep, this girl already has 1.5 teeth coming in. She's pretty proud, I think. When Quack Quack isn't around, her fingers work just fine as a chew toy.


I was sure that she'd be an average sized baby, hovering in the 50th percentiles. Instead, she surprised me and was in the 80th percentiles, just like her sister Ella. She's already in 6 - 9 month clothes and size 3 diapers. I just love her sweet little leg rolls.


And her drool? It's nearly as sweet as honey fresh from the comb. Nearly.


She's sleeping okay at night, usually waking up 2 times and she still likes to be swaddled. She can roll from her tummy to her back and her back to her tummy.

This past week she perfected the art of sucking her toes.

She's tried bananas, but didn't really care much for them. She still loves to ride in the Moby wrap and now will actually tolerate (and sometimes even fall asleep!) in her car seat.

She's just simply a wonderful, joyful, happy baby and I'm so thankful for the treasure that she is to our family.

Happy 5 months sweet Abigail!


Want a comparison? Here's Ella at 5 months! Boy they look more alike than I thought.

Abigail at 4 months

I'm several days late but I wanted to get Abigail's 4th month on the books. Especially considering I missed her 2nd month altogether!

When she turned 4 months old, we were out of town, busy visiting friends and family. It was a whirlwind vacation trip. (Can you really call that much work vacation? I think not.)

We saw precious friends and family and Abigail did some pretty amazing things while we were gone. Like learning to love this:





We have our first, official thumb sucker. Out of seven kids, you'd have thought we'd have already had one. Luke has managed to ward off any thumb sucking thus far. But now that he has 6 other distractions Abigail has big plans to thwart his no-thumb-sucking record.

She still takes a pacci but her thumb is, by far, her favorite. And, don't tell Luke, but I think it's pretty darn cute.





Abigail got to meet her great-Granny. It's such a privilege for me to see our children with my grandparents. I believe they've left an amazing legacy. They have 15 great-grandchildren. Pretty impressive, huh?

14 of the 15 great grandchildren

Abigail got to meet all of her cousins and she enjoyed being passed around and held by almost everyone.

Of course, her favorite people there were her siblings. Even if it was by force.






Abigail began rolling from her tummy to her back this month and she's just so proud of herself when she does.

She'll nap just about anywhere and still loves being held. And now, she'll even tolerate being held by Luke.







She has started blowing bubbles and she's perfected her frown. Sometimes she does both at the same time.





She's got the most striking eyes and I just cannot keep my lips off of her sweet, chubby cheeks.







She is simply the most delightful baby I've ever seen. Ella was so content at this age and I think Abigail is giving her a run for her money.

I tried moving her to a room with Olivia but between my anxiety and Abigail refusing to sleep without me in the room, I gave up and put the portable crib back beside our bed. She still sleeps swaddled and last night she slept from 11:00pm - 6:50am! Wooo hoooo! But I'm not holding my breath that she will do that again.

We're doing a modified vaccine schedule and yesterday she had shots at her 4 month check up. She's in the 81st percentile for weight and the 77th percentile for height. She's wearing size 3 - 6 month clothes but not for much longer!

She smiles at everyone and rarely meets a stranger. Oh how I love this sweet little girl and I wish, so much, that I could just freeze time and have her stay this age forever!

Thank you Lord for 4 sweet months with our precious Abigail Mercy!





A special thanks to my friend Paige for many of these sweet photos!

Abigail at 3 months old

Well, somehow I totally missed posting about Abigail at 2 months old. I remembered about a week later and then forgot again just as quickly.

Here's Abigail at 1 month if you'd like some perspective.

But what I truly cannot believe is that my baby is already 3 months old. Okay, actually I can. Because y'all, it's been a long 3 months.

Yet at the same time, I'm finding it harder and harder to remember what I did with my time before I was babywearing, nursing, changing, swaddling and snuggling a baby. And I'm having a hard time remembering what it was like to drive somewhere without a baby screaming in the back seat. Yep, she still hates her carseat.

Sorry, that face is just too cute!

At 3 months old, my sweet Abigail Mercy loves, loves to be held. She spends the majority of her day wrapped onto my chest in the Moby wrap or in the arms of Elizabeth - my biggest helper. I'm not sure how I would be managing without my Moby or my oldest daughter.

Unlike Ella at 3 months, Abigail could take or leave being in the mix of the other kids. Don't get me wrong, she enjoys the attention. But as I re-read that post about Ella at 3 months old, I remember her being so break-neck to see everyone and be in the middle of everything. Abigail is not quite the same way. She's perfectly content to sit in the swing and watch from a far (not that she's in the swing often, mind you!) or look at everyone else from her spot, wrapped tightly on my chest.

Her eyes are so blue they're almost indigo. Does that make sense? They're deep and rich and I could just stare at them for hours. Ahem, you know, if I didn't have 6 other people who need my attention.

She's free with her smiles and offers them to complete strangers on the regular, which tickles both me and the sweet ladies in the store who are forever stopping us to oogle over my nearly-auburn haired baby.

She's still got the sweetest little dimple that appears on the right side of her mouth when she smiles. I adore it. Can you see it in the photo above? I just want to pinch it. Gently, of course. ;)

She sleeps pretty well, certainly better than most of our others at this age. Her first stretch of night time sleep varies between 5 - 6 hours, usually starting about 10pm. Then she goes 2 - 3 hours between feedings. Certainly I cannot complain! Now if I would only go to bed at a decent time and enjoy that long stretch of sleep!

I've had to give up dairy since she seems to not sleep as well when I'm eating and drinking dairy products. She's also much more fussy. Good thing my awesome husband found some coconut milk ice cream. It's yummy and I hardly miss dairy at all - except for cheese.

She's snuggly and cuddly and really dislikes being laid down flat on her back for any length of time longer than 5 minutes. I'm not sure how that will work for her ability to roll over! She is easy going, loves her pacifier and sucks on her hands when a pacci cannot be shoved into her mouth quickly enough. She tolerates all the kisses, hugs, pats and the constant invasion of her personal space quite well.

And, I happen to think she's quite possibly the sweetest, most beautiful 3 month old I know! We continue to stand in awe of God's merciful love for us that He would give us another treasure such as Abigail. Happy 3 months sweet baby girl!