A Little Peek

Baby Jonah is doing great, happy as a clam, at 21 weeks. He weighs exactly 1 pound (which does not explain the absurd amount of weight I have gained, but oh well). I was a tad bit nervous for the whole body scan today, but everything looked perfect, especially his sweet little lips (He had a 1 in 5 chance of having a cleft.). Praise the Lord! We are rejoicing at the House of Halpin and can't wait to meet this precious Baby!

Slowly Melting

We had one last day of fun in the snow before warmer temperatures did away with all of it. All three boys played and played and played, while I did scads of soaking wet, snowy laundry, hoping to keep my guys as warm and dry as possible.

It's All Down Hill

Friday morning was a sight to behold! I think the weather man said we got twelve inches of snow total. TWELVE! That is craziness! Nosy was feeling much better, so we called our cousins and arranged a super fun play date. Sledding!! The pictures and the ear to ear grins say it all!

Even More Snow Fun

Later on, it was still miraculously snowing! Jeremy got to come home from work early. We all got dressed in our many layers to head back out into the winter wonderland.

Nosy, however, took a turn for the worse with sudden super high blood sugars and ketones. He ended up feeling puny, snuggled up with me in bed, while O and Daddy headed outside. Poor Guy. He kept saying, "I want to go out in the 'now and make a 'now guy too!" (Before the night was over, we were on the phone with the hospital multiple times trying to get Nosy better, checking his sugar every 1-2 hours all night long. I hate diabetes!)

Just look at those snow flakes! Amazing! Owie kept sliding over and over until his bottom was frozen. Jeremy was determined to make the best snowman ever.

There is even more snow expected during the night! We'll see what tomorrow holds!

Snow Fun

Snow had been predicted for Thursday, lots of it. I was not holding my breath because usually it is when we are the most prepared and excited for snow that it never makes an appearance. However, as Jeremy left for work early Thursday morning, he whispered to me that there were huge, fluffy flakes falling from the sky. Hooray!

We were all so sad that Daddy still had to got to the office, but that was not going to stop us from enjoying the amazing, miraculous snow. In all my years, I have never seen such wet, sticky, enormous flakes. It was gorgeous!

Gramps had both a little free time to play with us and sleds. We all bundled up in our very odd assortment of winter weather gear (I was very unprepared!) right over our pajamies and set out.

Grampsy pulled the Boys all the way to the park on this sled. What a trooper!

Can you tell the kids loved it?!
O insisted on wearing my old ski goggles to help his eyes not get snow in them.

Ready? Set?

Away they go! Oh, they had so much fun! After this picture, I had to put my camera down and jump in to the fun!

Sweet Friend

A very dear friend, whom I have known for a long time, and come to respect and admire very much, nominated me for this cool blog award. I am humbled (especially by Cheryl's kind, encouraging words!), for sure, as my blog is really just a record of our day to day lives. Nothing spectacular. Anyway, the rules are just to post 7 random, little known facts about myself. We'll see how this goes...

1. I could honestly eat Taco Bueno twice a day, every day. Two bean burritos with lots of hot sauce. I never tire of the stuff!

2. I would rather we all were bald. I hate trying to make my hair presentable each day. It stresses me out.

3. I love nothing more than being a mommy and would easily have 12 kids. However, I hate being pregnant. I never get a "glow" and I do not treasure each fetal milestone. I know I should love every minute of carrying a little being, and I definitely appreciate the miracle of it all, but I just don't enjoy it. Any of it. (As soon as Baby makes his appearance, I am 100% better, even in the OR after a c-section.)

4. My first real kiss was from my husband. I knew all along that I only wanted to kiss one man, The One, and so I saved it for Jeremy. What a sweet moment that was!

5. I knew I wanted to be a baby nurse from the time I was three years old, when I told my Mom that when I grew up I wanted to be "the lady in the hospital that got to hold the babies." A baby nurse and a mommy, of course. When I was 14, my dream specifically became to be a NICU nurse. I never wavered in that calling. I was a NICU nurse for 9 years before fulfilling my even bigger dream of becoming a mommy.

6. I eat ice cream almost every single night before bed. I have to. I am addicted. Favorite flavors? Cookies and cream, peppermint and moose tracks.

7. I have a very far-fetched dream of one day becoming a children's photographer. If only I had the time...and the talent. I think it would be amazingly rewarding to capture the inner beauty of children on film for their parents to treasure forever.

So how's that for completely random? If only you knew just how long it took me to come up with 7 things about myself!

I now nominate Chrys & Mike's World. What a Mommy this lady is to her three amazing boys! I am privileged to know her and to learn from her. She inspires me to be more purposeful in the day to day, sometimes mundane, raising of boys. I am so thankful for her friendship and her example.

Bunked

We have been praying for a solution to our bedroom situation once Jonah arrived. We had two choices: put the older Boys together or change our play room into a nursery. There were so many pros and cons to each arrangement. High on my priority list was to preserve sleep! We were sure that the Boys wouldn't sleep a wink if we put them in the same room. They both have so many sleep issues and I have to wake Nosy up sometimes several times a night for his diabetes.

One night, when Jeremy was at a meeting, I decided to just try putting them together. I pulled out Owie's trundle bed and set it up for Noah. They thought I was giving them the best gift ever. It was so sweet to listen to their little sleepy time conversations on the baby monitor. They talked for awhile and then fell asleep for the rest of the night. The rest is history! They have roomed together ever since. And although they stay up a little later than before, the nights go much more smoothly than I ever expected. O even sleeps through Nosy's middle of the night blood sugar checks.

The next step: shopping for the perfect bunk beds...which we quickly located at The Dump.

Many helpers make happy work!

All assembled and looking so handsome...the beds and the guys!

Sleep tight, Sweet Brothers!

God Kisses

The other day, my Mom and I were talking to the Boys about "kisses from God," very special gifts from God that make them unique and wonderful. We listed some wonderful, positive things about each Boy: Owen's gorgeous curls, Nosy's infectious laugh, Owie's soft heart, the mole inside Noah's left ear.

Then we moved on to harder "kisses" to understand, things that, in this life anyway, may be viewed more as hardships than blessings from God. Owen's prematurity and cleft lip. Noah's diabetes. We explained how God created each Boy to be perfect in His image and He has a special reason for "kissing" my Boys in these ways, that He will use these things (and already has!) for the good of His kingdom. How grateful we can be that God chose us to be used by Him!

I am sure this whole conversation floated right over the tops of their precious little heads, but it was good practice for me since I know there will be tough questions (especially about the diabetes) in my future.

Afterwards, Nosy bounced off to play, while O just sat in his chair thinking for awhile. He was obviously mulling things over.

"Mommy, kisses from God are wonderful. They make me special. Do you know what my very favorite kiss from God is? My new baby Jonah!"

DMA Revisited

It's been awhile since we've participated in First Tuesdays at the DMA. This month, we made it a priority to be there with some great friends.

We had more fun in the craft room than ever before. It was Superhero Month, and we crafted superhero gadgets. There was such a plethora of fantastic craft supplies, and since we had absolutely no agenda, we cut and glued and decorated to our hearts' content. I have never seen O get so creative!

Hard at work

Noah is mastering the art of handling scissors.

We read a lot at home, but every time we come to the DMA, Owie hops up in my lap to read a good story.

Oliver and Truett loved the crayon rubbing table!

Another crafting station. O was so intense!

Great friends are such a blessing!

As always, the boxes were a huge hit with all these Boys.

Oliver is growing up to be such a big boy.

Truey sketching.

Nosy winding down. We made it home just in time for long naps.

We can't wait for next month!

Big Brother Room

Welcome to Owen and Noah's new bedroom!

We will gradually add the perfect bunk beds (Craigslist maybe?) and wall decor. The Boys LOVE their new bedding and this Mommy hopes that love equals long nights of sleep! Sweet dreams, Big Boys!

Older Teaching the Younger

O loves to pass on his love for learning to Nosy. He has such an encouraging spirit!

"Good job, Nosy! You did it!"

Who Needs a Sticker Chart?

O earned a plethora of stickers in school today. He decorated his shirt with them. After examining his shirt, he exclaimed, "I've got a whole party on my shirt!"