I'm Sorry….

Dear Josie Mae,

I need to apologize to you for a few things:

* the fact that you are over 2 months old, and this is the first time I'm writing about you.
*forgetting to take your one month picture and posting it on Facebook (*GASP*)
*taking your 2 month picture when you were actually closer to 3 months.... Oh well.
*always feeding you while chasing your sister or with your bottle propped up in the car.
*failing to record your first smile in your baby book - I'm pretty sure you have a baby book somewhere...
*skipping a birth announcement - everyone on Facebook knows, so what's the point, right?

Okay - so basically all of the documentation I did for your sisters, I haven't been on top of with you.

But, here's what you're getting in return:

*a lot of dance parties while strapped to me in the Ergo.
*trips to the corn maze, apple picking, and the pumpkin patch.
*a big sister (Annessa) who reads to you all the time.
*another big sister (Elaina) who feeds you and alerts me anytime your eyes are open.  Oh, and she also pretends to be a monster to wake you up.
*jumps in leaf piles and walks through the neighborhood.
*midnight cuddles when no one else is awake.
*Lots and lots of noise - singing, talking, yelling, whispers and laughter.

So, there you have it.  Your baby book (where ever it is) may not be full to the brim, but you are so, so loved.

Until next time (hopefully before you turn one!) -
Love,
Mom 

Princess, Monster, and the Karate Kid

I currently live with a princess (Annessa), a monster (Elaina) and the Karate Kid (unborn child # 3).  My oldest daughter is pretty jealous of Duchess Kate and Princess Charlotte.  I can relate, their lives do seem pretty fabulous from the outside looking in (although I've heard the little prince is quite the spit-fire, so that makes me think that maybe no matter how great it seems on the outside, on the inside, we all struggle with the same stuff).  Lainey, on the other hand, is obsessed with Sully from Monsters University and runs around the house roaring with her fingers clenched like claws.  Meanwhile, Baby Girl # 3 is karate chopping her days away in my uterus.  No gentle rolling felt here.  All rapid-fire kicks and jabs.

I'm amazed by how my girls are so different (I'm assuming # 3 will have her own little personality as well-and I have to say, the curiosity of what our 3rd would be like was a driving factor in the decision to forego birth control and "see what happens").  The older they get, the more we uncover about who they are.  Annessa is showing more sensitivity now than ever before, while Lainey is showing more spunk than we ever thought our mild-mannered baby would have.  Both girls are funny in their own little ways - Annessa with the way she is experimenting with her sense of humor, and Lainey with the way she crosses her arms and huffs when she doesn't get her way (dangerous to laugh at, we know).

They fight like I never knew sisters fought.  As a girl with brothers, I had only heard about how territorial sisters can be, but now I actually LIVE inside of this craziness.  Yet, as the end of the day, this happens:

And I remind myself that I am the lucky one that gets to watch these sister relationships grow.  

Middle Child

Dear Ruthie,

In a few months, you are about to go from the "baby" to the "middle child."  Being the baby of the family has certain perks, that's true, but being the middle child has its benefits, too.

You will have the best of both worlds: You'll always be a little sister to Annessa and now a big sister to ??.

So, as I hear your dad and sister waking up, I have to bring this (short) post to a close.  But, what i really wanted to say can be said in one sentence anyway: You are a middle child - precious and beautiful, but most of all, you are you.

Love you Ruthie,
Mama