bittersweet

stew and big stew(his biological dad)

 last week was bittersweet for our family.  stew's biological dad passed away on may 11th.  stew flew up to canada to celebrate his life and be with family.  it was a good trip, but stew can be the one to share about it. 

uncle allan, uncle ramon, uncle hillis, stew and uncle wayne

celebrating uncle hillis' birthday

my aunt is big time...

 last tuesday my aunt was honored at the YWCA dinner as a lifetime achievement award recipient.  i am pretty sure i botched that title up.  i was a bit nervous to make the trek with noah, but he did ok and it was worth it to be there.  way to go auntie! 

 some of my aunt's friends that were there for the evening.  

we were proud.  noah represented the men in my family;)  

summer is coming...

and we are ready!!!

caught this guy tying to change noah's diaper

it's hard!

today i set out for a little jog with my littlest guy.  as i was coming to the end of my run(who am i kidding, run is a bit overstated.) i was pushing the stroller up hill and clearly out of breath.  a woman going the opposite way screams out, "you go girl!  it's hard!"  i wanted to reach out and hug her.  fortunately i kept my hug to myself and replied with, "thanks!" a thank you for the encouragement and a thank you for the acknowledgment that yes, it's hard.  life is hard.  not sleeping through the night is hard(i am getting too old for this not sleeping jazz).  having patience while being exhausted is hard.  raising kids is hard-- i don't care how many kids you have, it's hard.  discipline is hard.  not having the day go anywhere near what you hoped for is hard.  not getting time alone to shower/use the bathroom and get dressed on a regular basis is hard.  spending days cleaning, folding laundry(why can't that laundry put itself away?!) and wiping bottoms is hard.  modeling kind behavior for your children is hard.  praying for the people that have hurt you is hard.  forgiveness is hard.  reading about moms and dads that have lost their children is hard.  not getting your way is hard.  saying sorry is hard.  life. is. hard.  and in the midst of it there are these sweet people that come along and cheer us on, screaming "you go girl! it's hard!"

may we all be those individuals that scream out to each other with empathy, "you go girl! it's hard!"

mother's day

mother's day i was greeted by my boys with a homemade project.  

and i love it! 

rocks and shells and a bottle cap(ryder was very excited he found that!) found on the beach! 

the boys were giddy to hand over their poster boards they made

asher is pointing out where he colored over ryder's drawing of a rocket.  don't worry, he went to his room for that while ryder cried.  

         

so many wonderful women(many not pictured!) to be grateful for.  these boys are well loved!

3 months of baby noah

 please note the bruise/mark on asher's face from his face plant earlier that morning at the park.  

 you are a good sport, noah!

baby noah you are so sweet!  you are crying less and less(THANK THE GOOD LORD!!!).  you have started to coo and smile a lot.  i love that we can put you down and you fall asleep after only a few minutes(most of the time).  your gas still wakes you up a lot, but you are getting that under control- way to go! the brothers still love to kiss you and your hair (what little you have)usually has spit in it from asher's drool.  you sleep in your little cosleeper most of the night, but i often find you in our bed.  i have no clue how i get you in there, but it happens at some point in the night.  you have started to sleep a bit better in the night, only feeding once on a good night.  yesterday you weighed in at 16lbs1oz.  i am thinking you will be able to hold your own with the brothers. you still barf a lot and i still wear that smell around with pride(that's what i am telling myself).  you are proving to be a sweet baby.  we are so sorry you have already put you through 3 colds.  the good news is that you are building your immune system.  summer is coming and i think you'll be a fan.  when you are screaming we walk outside and you start to calm down.  a boy after my own heart.  let the outside fun begin.  i love you sweet baby.

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each boy has had their very unique personality and look.  take a peak...

isaac at approximately 3 months

ryder at 3 months

asher at 3 months.

more mother's day fun.

last friday my MIL and beth came over to make a fun craft with the boys for me.  they loved the paint!  they were also pretty excited to give chris the poster they made of her jumping out of an airplane and jet skiing.  

saturday morning we met up with the vandergeests and mattinglys(laforges, you were missed!).  as soon as we arrived asher took a big fall off the fence pictured above.  pictures of the marks later.  after an hour of sitting still asher started to play and i could stop worrying.  can we talk about how cut noelle is?!!!