Happy First Birthday Lincoln Matthew

Happy First Birthday Lincoln!

Congratulations for Lincoln for taking the gold metal for biggest Grant baby at one (and he started the smallest, HA)

Height: 31.25 inches (93%)
Weight:  27 lbs (99%)
Diaper: 5
Clothes: 24 months / 2t

Mobility:  He is happy as a clam army crawling; just like Addison I do not anticipate he will ever do the traditional crawl.  He pulls up on everything but has not started to cruise much.  My best conjecture is that he will walk around 15 months like his three older siblings all did.

Eating:  While breakfast is not his favorite meal, he seems to like most foods ok.  Unfortunately I see a few very early signs of some texture aversions like Caleb.  I will enjoy the days he is easy to feed though!

Nursing/Sippy:  Since this is my last baby, I am in no hurry to stop nursing.  He can rock cows milk in a sippy but I still nurse as part of all three meals and bedtime.  I will probably drop lunch and dinner this month and just let him drop the other two when he wants.

Talking:  Poor dude has everyone saying things for him; as soon as he tries to say a word the other kids are asking him to do something else or say something else.  Again much like Addison, he is observant and calculated with many things.  With great intensity and concentration, he watches me say words and then, without making noise, he mouths the word with astounding accuracy.  He has said many "versions" of words a few times and then is uninterested in showing off his skill.  He can say bye, dada, turtle, all done, more, bub-bub, again...and a few more.  He can tell you what a sheep, dog, lizard and elephant says.

Personality:  Gentle.  The one word to describe him is gentle.  Most babies (or at least mine) go through a phase where they wack you or squeeze your face/mouth pretty hard....he wacks and squeezes things but it is always slow and gentle.  When he nurses, he rubs my arm or face so gentle.  Even when he is knocking things over he does it with a certain gentleness.  He loves laughing and analyzing too!  He reminds me a lot of Addison.

Likes:  His siblings, bananas, eating, chasing the kids in his walker, his cranial band, bath time, being tickled, green beans, to throw stuff off his tray ;( wake up early in the morning and babble, naps

Dislikes:  Being alone for playpen time, sleeping late in the morning, snuggling, not sleeping a lot


My Darling Lincoln,

You have no idea how crazy, fierce, silly, BIG you are loved.  If I could spend every moment watching your siblings LOVE on you, it would be pure delight.  While I am admittedly partial, you have some of the best sisters and brother around.  One day you may question it otherwise, but I am telling you now....there is no one more fortunate with their siblings than you.  You have a particularly sweet relationship with Caleb.  You light up at the sound of his voice and always have.  His smile is contagious and it takes a mere smirk for you to grin ear to ear at him.  From the moment you could giggle, anything he did would make you laugh until you cried.  Caleb will ALWAYS protect you.  He will ALWAYS stand up for you.  Know this.  You look at Addison with admiring eyes.  You trust her.  You know when you need something, when you are hurt, or when you need comfort.....she is going to nurture you.  She is as close to another mother as you will ever have.  Know this.  Blythe.  While she struggles with her jealousy...I catch glimmers in her eyes of sheer delight when she forgets to be jealous.  She loves to make you smile in the car.  Blythe will always be there to make you smile.  Always. Know this.

Your Daddy and I love you too of course.  We love watching how hard you think about things, how you analyze.  From very early on we commented on how you posses a certain gentleness about you.  I hope this gentleness hangs on for it is a very unique quality.  We love your huge open mouth kisses.  We love your deep old man belly cackle.  We love your voice.  We love that we are able to parent you.  I longed for you to join our family so many months before God blessed you with us.  I prayed for you; I always will.

You are resilient my dear.  This year, we moved from Papillion, Nebraska, where you were born, to Atlanta, Georgia, where you will grow up.  We spent the first 6 months of your life in such upheaval.  It was so hard on you, baby.  You are a natural sleeper but when you are selling a house and moving across the country and separated from the leader of the family (daddy) AND have three other kids......well....the sleeping gets wacky.  So many nights, for so long you cried and cried.  You did not need anything.  You were not hurt.  You were not sick.  You were just totally. completely. exhausted.  I cried with you my love.  I cried all night with you.  I wanted a magic wand to make life simple and perfect for you, but alas, no wand.  Despite my inability to summon a fairy godmother, once life stabilized you missed no time jumping on board with the schedule and became a champion sleeper.  Your resiliency also shone as we journeyed through your cranial band and torticollis treatment.  There are so many worse things that could happen to a baby, but this was still trying.  We had to adjust our life in many:  daily baths REQUIRED, cleaning the band, making sure you did not over heat when you were very young in it, remembering to remove it for an hour everyday, weekly appointments that took 3 hours of driving and so much more.  On the upside, its nearly over.....and soon a memory.  I am so thankful for technology making this possible.

Forgive me when I am not able to attend to you immediately when you need something....you are so patient.  As I told Addison, forgive me when there is simply not enough of me to go around.  I try so hard to be everything for everyone and sometimes I just fail.  Mommy is not perfect.  I will make mistakes.  Please know that I will always love you, even if my own mistakes make you wonder otherwise.  Nothing will ever change how much I love you.  Crazy.  Silly.  Fiercely.  Big.  Love.  You.

Mommy

More party pics to come but here are a few previews......

Easter 2017

Happy Resurrection Day 2017!  We had a great weekend just having fun as a family.  Good Friday was also Lincoln's Birthday and we went to a splash park.  Saturday we spent most of the day outside playing and then closed the evening at Glow In The Park at Suwanee Town Center.  There were games, bounce houses, food and a parade of lanterns community members had made.  The kids loved all the unique and creative lanterns.

Easter Sunday we visited another church and all sat in the service together....that was interesting...and comical.  The rest of the day we spent on a family egg hunt around the yard, creating sidewalk art and we closed out the evening with an intense water gun fight.  There is no shortage of fun around here.

Sometimes you have to put two photos together to get a semi acceptable one.....when there is four I guess there is a lot of room for error :)

Sometimes you have to put two photos together to get a semi acceptable one.....when there is four I guess there is a lot of room for error :)

Addison, 7

Caleb, 5

Blythe, 2

Lincoln, 1 (just two days before, sniff, sniff)

Addison Joy is Seven

Wow.  It has been a long time since I have posted.  I am pretty sure blogging is not a "thing" anymore, but I hope to continue to post from time to time so my kids can read this one day.

Happy 7th Birthday Addison!

Likes:  Reading, being at home, babies, family, sharing a room with her brother, shopkins, her american girl doll (felicity), science, art, pizza, lasagna, chicken salad, fruit, compliments, riding bikes, beanie boos

Dislikes:  Cucumbers, waking up early, being pestered, rushing, getting into trouble, the wind, not sleeping "enough"

When She Grows Up....she wants to be a doctor.  She has said this since she was two and never changed.  Lately she has been saying she wants to be a surgeon specifically :)

School:  Addison is thriving in school; her new school here in Atlanta is a perfect fit for her.  She is challenged through her gifted programming and targeted reading and writing assignments.  Her intense drive for excellence and timely completion of her homework is most impressive.  Summer fever is creeping up and she is ready for a brain break :)

Extracurricular:  Since we moved to the Atlanta area in September, we decided to take our time getting involved in activities.  Caleb and Addison started back at Awana in late January and I cannot believe how quickly they jumped back in and caught up after missing half the year.  Addison has already completed her second year sparks book and is reviewing all the verses again.  Her memory is astounding.  We are on a waiting list to begin piano lessons again, but I fear most of her progress has been lost after being away for almost a year.  She and Caleb are on the same soccer team this spring and while she says she wants to go back to dancing in the fall, she does have quite the knack for it.  Since we moved mid season, we opted to hold off on dance and resume in the Fall if she wanted to return.  We spend most of our time as a family playing games, enjoying the outdoors, and listening to music :)

Coming up:  Having lived in a colder climate for so long, we have not been able to easily reinforce swimming skills.  Beginning in mid May, Addison and Caleb will be on swim team.  The "practices" (aka lessons in the case of our kids) will be 45 minutes, 4 times a week for about 6 weeks.  I am hopeful they will build confidence and the skills necessary for swimming solo.



My Little Joy,

You have no idea how amazing and special you are to me.  Kindness and compassion flow from everything you do.  When Lincoln got his shots several months ago, you teared up and expressed how much it hurt you to see your baby brother in pain.  Whenever anyone is sick/hurt you are always, always there to write them a note, give them an ice pack, bring them some water and offer smiles.

I admire your drive for excellence in all you do.  You consistently give everything your best, even when you do not like it.  Your memory is absolutely astounding and I love watching you use it for things like memorizing scripture and your writing.

Big sistering comes natural for you.  You love on your siblings, lead them, help them and simply enjoy them.  I often take notes from you and stop what I am doing to come cackle with you and the littles.

This year was a big year for you and you really matured tremendously through it.  We added a family member just after your 6th birthday.  You went to Disney World with your Mia and Papa and Caleb as an extra special treat.  We spent a majority of the summer in some kind of crazy between people helping as as we welcomed Lincoln to the family, your annual trip to Mias, a trip BACK to Mississippi so we could find a house in Atlanta, moving to temporary quarters.......etc.  It was NUTS.  This year we moved from Nebraska to Atlanta.  We spent 6-9 very unpleasant weeks in temporary quarters, what you and Caleb and Blythe called "the hotel".  You guys tried so hard to make it pleasant but neighbors below complaining of every step we took made it hard.  We moved into a new home.  We had to start making new friends.  You had to start at a new school this year.  Baby, that was so hard.  I know how challenging it was to be the new kid in class.  I am so sorry for any moment you felt scared or unsure or nervous.  It hurt my heart so deeply to see you struggle those first few weeks.  BUT.  And this is a big BUT.....it was hard for a couple of weeks and you did not like it...BUT....YOU kept your smile.  YOU kept your kindness.  YOU stuck with it.  And YOU, my dear did not just succeed...you shone like a bright beautiful star.

Lastly, I want you to know I am not the only person who notices your kindness and notices how truly special you are.  Just last weekend during your birthday party, a mom had been watching you.  She saw you give away many of your pinata goodies to your empty handed friends and serve cake to everyone at your own party FIRST and meticulously ensure that EVERY party guest felt included (even your 2 year old sister).  She looked over at me....mentioned her observations and said "Kelly, you know Addison is amazing right?  Like really.  She is awesome."  I smiled and said "Thank you.  I sure am glad God gifted us with her".

Forgive me when I lose my temper and raise my voice.  Forgive me when, some days, I just am not enough for you.  Forgive me when I cannot be at your school activities.  Forgive me when there is simply not enough of me to go around.  I am far from a perfect mother.  But my darling, I strive every day and pray every day that I can be a better mother than I was the day before for if we are standing still, we are moving backwards.  So I chose to strive forward.  I am thankful for a forgiving and patient oldest child because GIRL...I am figuring this all out on YOU.  Mommy often messes up but despite my shortcomings I hope you feel so crazy deeply loved and cherished.

Addison.  Addison Joy....you are the gift I could have never dreamed of in my best dreams.  You are amazing.  Simply.  Amazing.

Love,
Mommy