I love my little boys! And we finally got moved!

We are moved!  Yes, it finally happened.  After 21 days (yes, you read that correctly) of delays and excuses, we are closed and moved in - hooray!  I'll put together a post of pictures about that later. I just wanted to update you since I had asked for prayers.  Thank you for all of your prayers and kind words of encouragement.  It was a trying time, that's for sure.  But, we're getting settled and there is talk about the driveway going in tomorrow! :-)

On a completely different note, I am smitten with my little boys.  As demanding as they can be, I absolutely adore them.  I snapped some pictures at bath time tonight just to share some of their cuteness with you!

Pretty cool hair-do, no?!?

He thinks it is magic how the water comes out - I think he would play with it all day long!

And a bonus picture of Benjamin making some mischief early this morning!

Now I'm off to bed so that I have energy to keep up with these guys (and the other 6, too) in the morning!

God Bless!

Heather :-)

When Mom's Away...

...Peter will play!  When will I learn to keep that darn bathroom door closed?

I was doing school work with some of  the older children when I realized it was quiet....too quiet.  Where is Peter?

   Why, he's found the box of Kleenex, of course! How fun it is to pull them out one by one!

BUSTED!  Mom found me!  I must hustle to the toilet paper and empty the roll!

Oooohhh....look how quickly I can put the entire roll on the floor.  Neat trick, huh?

What a blessing I forgot to put the camera away the night before and had it handy to snap some photos!  This little guy keeps me on my toes, that's for sure!  

God Bless!

Heather :-)

Thankful Thursday - Early Christmas Presents

This weekend, we had Peter's Godparents and their lovely family over for dinner.  They brought Peter an early Christmas gift.  It was his first try at opening gifts.  He couldn't believe we really wanted him to tear the paper!  After the paper was all torn off, he found this fabulous board book!

The waiting is almost over...Christmas is just about here!  Enjoy these last few days of preparation!

God Bless!

Heather :-)

Life According to Peter

I saw the cutest baby in the mirror the other day.

Have you seen this guy?  He is adorable!

 

Watch out when I have my hoodie on...I'm usually up to no good!

 Mom makes me model her "creations".  I had to wear this towel and didn't even get to take a bath first!

Don't even get me started talking about the stuff that they try to feed me!

 

There are lots of fun toys that I get to play with.

Can you believe they let the 3 year old hold me?  I guess she is kind of fun!

My future's so bright...I gotta wear shades!

I hope you enjoyed a peek into the life of the youngest of 7.  He is such a joy and brings much laughter and happiness to our home.  Thank God for babies!

God Bless!

Heather :-)

7 Months!

Little Peter Francis is not so little anymore.  He just passed the 7 month mark this weekend.  This last month he has begun to do so many things.  He started eating "solids" and for the most part is liking it.  He's eating from a spoon twice a day and still nursing whenever he wants.

He's all smiles until I have to clean his face!

He is soooooo close to sitting on his own.  He's proficient in rolling and pushing himself up to check out his surroundings.  I wouldn't call his method of mobility "crawling", but he definitely gets around.  Todd said that it kind of looks like an injured soldier trying to get off the battle field, and I think that creates a pretty accurate picture!  It's not pretty, but it gets him where he wants to go!

He has really discovered his voice the past few weeks, which makes it interesting during daily Mass!  I struggle with sitting there and letting him babble during the consecration versus leaving.  Because when I leave the 2 and 4 year old noisily follow me and the rest of the kids get unruly...what to do, what to do?

And most of all, he's really begun to interact with his siblings.  The all adore him and argue constantly about who's turn it is to watch Peter.  Esther is even beginning to learn "gentle" and give him hugs and kisses before she pokes his eyes and tries to touch his soft spot...hey, it's progress!  She's pretty rough around the edges!

Esther got him that chew toy and then gave him a kiss.  She's learning to be a good big sister!

Life is so good.  I am unbelievably blessed with the opportunity to raise these children and pray for the graces I need to help us all grow closer to the Lord each day.

God Bless!

Heather :-)

The New Guy

Our new guy seems to be fitting in just fine.  He is so laid back and really only cries when he's hungry, needs a diaper changed, or feels neglected.  There is so much noise and a general sense of chaos in the house that he seems to get nervous when it is too quiet.  He is adored by his siblings and puts up with an amazing amount of poking and prodding from various little fingers all day long.

He's started rolling over from his back onto his tummy which is literally met with applause from his brother and sisters.  He is grabbing and reaching for things and absolutely everything goes into his mouth. He's babbling up a storm and every now and again screams just to mix it up a bit.

Night time is still challenging.  He's a hungry little guy and likes to eat every 2-4 hours...or more.  I am blessed to have the perspective that this stage will not last forever and actually enjoy that time with him in the middle of the night when it is just the two of us.

His onesie reads "I'm the new guy" - too cute to pass up on a trip to Target.

He's hamming it up for his sister who was making funny faces at him.  I love that gummy smile!

Of course I think he's the best, most beautiful baby ever.  But I've said that 6 times before.  This time of babyhood is so fleeting.  I just hope that I'm taking enough pictures and stopping to take it all in so that I don't forget any of it.  Thank God for the gift of life - babies are such a blessing!

God Bless!

Heather :-)

Sickness, Baby Love, and New 'Dos

The past few weeks have flown by in a blur of sickness.  We've had ear infections, sinus infections, walking pneumonia, bronchitis, high fevers, body aches, coughing, sneezing, and just all around misery.  It came to a head last Sunday when the fevers sky-rocketed in three of the children.  We took all last week off from school and just focused on getting better.  Of course, there were two dance rehearsals and recitals late in the week that couldn't be missed...but other than that we laid low.  So, many doctor visits and a few prescriptions later, we're back at it this week!  It feels good to be back in our routine.

Little Peter is 3 months old already!  He is cooing and smiling up a storm.  He is beginning to sleep better at night and will usually have 5-6 hours of sleep before waking to nurse.  He has outgrown his first set of clothes and has moved into size 2 diapers....I wish babies didn't grow so fast!  Needless to say, we are all smitten with our littlest man!

I couldn't get him to take his eyes off of the ceiling fan!

After their dance recitals, Madeline and Lillian both decided to cut off their hair and donate it to Locks of Love.  My girls are so laid back about their hair.  We pulled it back into a low ponytail and braided it.  Then I got out the scissors and chopped it off.  They are both quite happy with their new 'dos and I think they both look adorable. Perhaps I am a bit biased!

Lillian before....

and after!

Madeline before...

and after!

I'm hoping to get back into routine here and do a better job of posting more regularly.  I spend a lot of time sitting and nursing the baby, so I have many thoughts going through my head.  Now if I can just get some time to type them out...I'm sure you can't wait!

God Bless!

Heather :-)

Peter's Baptism

This past weekend, we celebrated as the Church welcomed Peter Francis into the fold!  The ceremony was held after Mass with our family, Grandma Pam, and the Godparents with their children. 

Peter was NOT happy.  He had his mind set on nursing and wanted nothing to do with this whole Baptism thing.  He cried and cried!

Father Larry holding newly baptized Peter Francis.

Peter with his Godparents.

Our first family photo with Peter!

Peter's lovely Godmother made these adorable cookies.  Esther could not wait to get her hands on them!

Here is a better look at the cookies after I took the wrapping off.

Going, going, gone!  They were as delicious as they were cute!  If you're in need of cookies for a special occasion, consider contacting Grace.  She really does excellent work!

And as if cookies weren't enough to celebrate, we had a scrumptious cake from the local grocery store....yum!

Peter is happy to wear his new sweater from his Godmother.

There were, of course, many more photos.  Grandma took some fabulous pictures of Peter in his baptismal gown...and I forgot to get them off of her camera before she left for home...ugh!  The gown is an heirloom which Todd wore at his baptism and all of our children have been baptized in it as well.  They each have their own bonnet as a keepsake of their first sacramental celebration.

I hope that your Lent is going well and you are preparing to enter into Holy Week.  We haven't kept all of our resolutions and have had to let many things slip.  We had some fabulous plans laid out.  Of course, those were all made pre-Peter.  So, for now, I am offering up many sleepless nights...such is life with a newborn.  We all do what we can, right?

God Bless!

Heather :-)

Our 9 Pounder!

Hard to believe, but our little Peter Francis is a month old today!  I know that everyone says it, but the time goes by way too quickly!  His little belly button wasn't healing up properly, so we had to make a trip to the pediatrician to have it cauterized.  Trying to keep a one month old wiggler still is a challenge!  Needless to say, he wasn't exactly a fan of the process, but it is healing nicely and I'm glad that we got it taken care of. The nurse weighed him and he's already 9 pounds!  I can't get over how quickly these little people grow!

His siblings absolutely adore him and can't get enough of him.  There certainly is no shortage of arms to hold him.  I'm having trouble keeping him asleep during his nap times because as soon as he dozes off, someone will inevitably walk by and touch/stroke/pat/kiss him with some form of affection.  But, if that is my biggest complaint...I've got it good!

His face is starting to fill out already!

Thank you for all of your prayers and well wishes.  One of the grandmas left yesterday and the other is staying through the weekend for Peter's baptism on Saturday.  We'll see how it goes next week when I'm on my own and Todd is traveling for work...yikes!

God Bless!

Heather :-)