Same Ol' Same Ol'

There hasn't been too much attention given to Evan on this blog as of late, but really there's nothing really new with the guy.

Introducing... Elizabeth Hannah!

My niece Elizabeth Hannah Ezell was born this morning. Praise the Lord that the delivery went extraordinarily well. Abby had a two hour labor and no drugs (she's pretty much a birthing SUPA-STAR!)

If you want to see pictures of my beautiful niece hop over to Abby's blog.

www.forjoy.blogspot.com

Asher - 2 Months

Asher is already two months old! As I've already said, he's been smiling and we can't get enough of it. He loves company and quickly notices when he's alone. A couple of weeks ago his long stretch of sleep at night began getting longer and longer. On Sunday night he slept almost 9 hours, but then he went back to about 7 and seems to be stabilizing there. Hat on and a tight swaddle is his favorite way to go to sleep, and I can't blame him; it's been cold around here! He's nursing about every 3 hours during the day and about every day and a half I give him 2 oz of formula to let my body recharge. The fact that he takes a bottle is wonderful, and a new thing for me. Oh and his blocked tear ducts cleared up about 6 weeks - so no more eye boogers!

Stats: 12lb 120z and 23 3/4 in long

A Princess Party

We at last celebrated Elena's birthday with friends and family. Elena had a "Princess Party" (so original, right?), where all her little friends came wearing their "royal finest". We made crowns and had a royal procession down the stairs to eat our PB&J's. I couldn't just pick a few pictures, so here ya go.

Working on her crown.

Announcing her royal highness, Princess Elena!

One by one they were announced and came down the stairs... but this was by no means as orderly as it may sound. :)

Wardrobe malfunctions stopped the show for a little bit.

Our one and only prince! (He was a bit outnumbered, but it wouldn't be a party without him.)

Her jewels are sparkling!

And then....... chaos! At any point during the party there were one or multiple traffic jams.

Lunch... The sandwiches were cut into crown shapes.

The Cake... The woman decorating it didn't exactly catch my vision of how I'd like it done. But really, I don't care, because it was one less thing I had to do. And it was delicious!

Evan made himself scarce during the party, but you better believe he came running when he heard the word, "cake!"

Hey, I bet even Cinderella picked her boogers.

Prince Charming made a wardrobe change.

Char-Char, Aunt Patty, cousin Aubrey and Asher. Asher was really glad Char-Char was there to hold him the whole time.

Mace left work and was able to make it too!

We loved celebrating your four years, Elena!

Elena at 4

At One

At Two

At Three

At Four

She has become so nurturing with her baby dolls, stuffed animals, and of course Baby Asher.

If there's a party she wants to be there. If neighbors are outside she wants out. "The more the merrier" is definitely her motto.

She's become a great eater, and loves to give compliments to the chef.

I really think her love language is going to be words of affirmation. She can be so affectionate and encouraging with adorable phrasing like, "Mommy, you're my sweet little mommy." On the flip side, her frowns disappear and stubborn streaks melt away with calm loving words from Mommy and Daddy.

She's become very aware of the conversations around her and Ben and I have to be extra diligent not to "discuss strongly" anything in her presence.

Her mind is always busy, busy, busy. She'll run up to tell me something, but can hardly get it out because she also wants to talk about the object now right in front of her.

She's an aspiring princess and changes clothes a dozen times a day in an effort to get the right look.

She can read any 3 letter word, and we're going through a book together that will take us further in the journey of reading.

She can really entertain herself in her room during "room time". Outside of the room she wants to involve everyone around her in her play, so I'm glad that for those two hours she has figured out how to have fun with her toys by herself.

She's a puzzle whiz and I'm amazed at how much she enjoys them.

She's starting to observe that some people have especially beautiful voices and comments on how she enjoys them. But she also seems a little insecure about her own singing abilities (this is the first and only area where I've ever noticed an occasional lack of confidence).

For the most part she is really self-sufficient at getting ready in the morning and for the bed. She just struggles with getting her shoes on the right feet.

"My Panties Are In My Bottom!" will be shouted in frustration if she gets an elusive wedgy. :)

She appreciates "pretty things" - anything from a purse to the decorations in her room. And the definition of pretty usually means pink + purple + glitter.

Grinning from Ear to Ear

We now have his gorgeous little grin in pictures! Asher loves his daddy. It's almost like he misses Ben during the day and is extra excited to see him in the evenings because of it.

But, why oh why did I have to put a pink blanket down.