i needed a good laugh today

And I got it.

I walked into the girls' playroom to see this staring back at me:

pumpkin patch

We went on our first outing as a family of five last weekend to pick out our Halloween pumpkin. We lasted about 30 minutes before we decided to head home again, but at least it was a good trial run. Since my hands were tied with holding Claire and the camera, I had to let some things go, like Meg's crazy hair or Katie's shoes being on the wrong feet (and I was the one who dressed her!). But it was a gorgeous day and I'm glad we went.

weekend away

Mark took Meg and Katie to visit their cousins in Jacksonville while I sat around at home and nursed Claire. It was a win-win for us - he got a full night's sleep without newborn interruptions and I could nap freely without interruptions from the older girls.

The girls love hanging out with their cousins!

she saws logs

It's hard to imagine something this tiny could snore so loudly. I really didn't know it was possible with babies.

But we love her anyway. A lot.



Claire's smiles are only reflexes, but they melt my heart anyway.

our grandmas

We miss our grandmas already! My mom and mother-in-law were here at different times the last couple of weeks and were so wonderful to have with us. They are such good grandmothers to my girls - I love seeing them form strong relationships with each other. I loved getting to hang out with them so much, too.




Meg has a "quiet time" every afternoon, when she has to be in her room while Katie naps. Usually she ends up taking a nap, too, but sometimes she surprises me with what she does to entertain herself. The other day I laughed out loud when she came out wearing her jeans backwards! What would make her want to do that?? It could not have been easy to put on her jeans this way!

fresh air

Yesterday one grandma left and I had my first real day alone with all 3 girls before the next grandma came to help us (we are fed/dressed/clean ONLY because of our wonderful grandmas!).

The weather was crisp and gorgeous and I ventured out on my first walk with the girls. This was Claire's first official outing that did not involve a doctor's office or lab!


In other news, I am totally turning into that mother who calls her children by the wrong name.

freedom

Our around-the-clock feeding of Claire must have worked, because Claire's blood tests came back well enough for her to be taken off the phototherapy machine. Ahhh!! Feels so good to have her untethered from that thing and to be able to carry her places more than 3 feet away.

This is pretty much what she does all day. Two previous babies' experience tells me this will not last, so I am going to enjoy this while I can.