Memorial Day Weekend & the delights therein!

Hello Friends. Paisley girl is resting soundly across my knees on this cozy afternoon. It's been some time since I've checked in, life has taken on a new sort of busy....an adjustment time to be sure.

Last weekend, Memorial Day, had to be one of the best weekends I've had in a long while. Delightful would be the word. Saturday morning Jake took Tyler fishing for the first time while Luke, Paisley and I went to myriads of garage sales. I found some cute things, it's SO FUN looking at all the girly stuff now!! My options use to be so limited...."yes, we have some boys clothing", (proceed to the one tiny table in the corner where stained, ripped and faded clothing abound!!!) My favorite find was a yellow down comforter for Luke's toddler bed....so sweet.

Saturday afternoon we went to Tyler and Luke's friends birthday party. She turned 3 and had a princess party. It was fun being together as a family and watching the boys interact with their friends. And the homemade ice cream cake was amazing.

Saturday night after the party we took the boys to my old stompin' grounds, my high school. We had a picnic along the Millstream, (the stream that runs through the property). We walked all around the property, found the perfect sticks/rocks for throwing into the water, ran around the tennis courts/soccer field. I got teary eyed watching my boys run around the field as I sat in the bleacher cheering them on. Before too long I'll be attending their little sports events. Unfortunately I forgot my camera! :-( Sunday morning we gave Paisley a bath in the sink, got all dolled up and headed to church....our first time with Paisley! It went great, we were actually EARLY to church for once. With three little ones now, I think I am allowing even more time getting ready and out the door then I usually do. Sunday afternoon we all had our glorious naps. After we woke up we headed to walmart for a few things, I don't remember what we went for, but we came out with a whale pool that squirts water and a Thomas kite! We loaded everyone up and went for some creek fun. Such a darling little place, the boys loved it and so did I.

Paisley's perch: full belly, clean diaper & nuk.

Mama's perch: homemade lemonade, chips, US weekly!

When the children were tucked in, we took some time to watch an ENTIRE movie, "Flicka" from start to finish...it was w-o-n-d-e-r-f-u-l. The movie was great, but it was the uninterrupted time of movie indulgence that was the best!

Monday morning we were up bright and early for the annual Memorial Day parade. My sister and her husband and some of our good friends joined us with their children.

Needless to say, the candy throwing people were our favorite!! After the parade we all went to a local restaurant for an authentic "Amish" breakfast: corn mush, stewed crackers, pancakes, scrambled eggs, bacon and OJ! Delish!
Next we made our way to the Strasburg Railroad and watched the train go by. Jake flew the Thomas kite and it went quite high...I wish I would have taken some pictures....it looked so cool! The rest of the day we spent here at home, playing in the whale pool and relaxing in the gazebo. What a fabulous weekend it was! I'm enjoying this time with my husband because I know that very soon his "spare" time will be spent renovating the carriage house. We hope to start on that next month....exciting times.
I hope you're having a good weekend....they go by so fast and Monday morning rolls around far too quickly!!

"A perfect summer day is when the sun is shining,

the breeze is blowing,

the birds are singing,

and the lawn mower is broken."

~James Dent~

Some fun with Paisley-girl

My friend Adrienne came over the other day and we had some fun with Paisley-girl, that's what I've been calling her and now Tyler does as well. It's just too cute for words to hear him say, "hello Paisley-girl." Today Tyler said, "oh Mama, I see Tyler in Paisley's eyes." Oh melting of my heart. I am enjoying life right now, although sleep deprived, I am fulfilled. I love my children.

I came upon this new song and just LOVE the lyrics,
they seem to be written just for me.

"I was a little girl alone in my little world
who dreamed of a little home for me.
I played pretend between the trees,
and fed my houseguests bark and leaves,
and laughed in my pretty bed of green."
~Priscilla Ahn~

Lawn Boys

Last weekend Jake, (and the boys) did some work around our yard....it looks sooooo beautiful. The hot pink azalea's against the black mulch is just breathtaking....and with the white gazebo and the green tree branches against the blue sky....this place is such a refuge for us. I should get some pictures of what I'm writing about, but until then, here are some pictures of my lawn boys, the best in town for sure!! (and the cutest too)!! Luke was a darling, just staying by his Daddy's side all. day. long. He was out there at 8:30 am, came in for lunch and a nap and then went back out from 1-7:30 pm!! I have NEVER seen a child so young stick with something for so long. He is so much like his Dad and I see it more each week. He and Jake have such a special connection and it's really neat to watch that unfold through everyday living. What would we do without our sweet Lukie? Tyler off in pretend land...I have to be careful what I let him watch on TV or videos because he picks up the words so easily and acts/talks it out all. day. long. Sometimes I just stop what I'm doing and tune into his little world....it usually makes me chuckle!

"A boy is Truth with dirt on it's face,
Beauty with a cut on its finger,
Wisdom with bubble gum in its hair,
and the Hope of the future with a frog in its pocket."
~Author Unknown~

Oh, we are sooooo in love with this little girl...perhaps smitten would be a better word! We are doing well and adjusting to life with Paisley at our side. The boys are adoring her and asking for her most of the time; first thing in the morning, while they're eating lunch, during nap, at night time. It's been special watching them interact with her, "can I pet her?" asks Tyler about 100 times a day. "Yes, Tyler, you can touch her." I'm not sure where this "pet" thing came from, but it's endearing.

Daddy is as proud as can be. He said the other night, while she was lying peacefully on his chest, "I love how a baby stops the world." And it's true, everything else just fades away and no one says anything about it. You can just sit and BE and watch a miracle unfold before you. When I see Jake with Paisley. I have a feeling inside that I never knew before , I'm not sure what to call it, but I like how it feels.

Each day she becomes more alert and her eyes....they are piercing....when she's awake that is, which isn't too often. She's been sleeping and eating well. At night she's up every 2-3 hours, eats, poos and then goes back to sleep quite well. I am thankful for that. There's nothing quite like hearing the sound of your Baby feeding, I love it! They get all desperate sounding and then settle into a rhythm all their own as they get their nourishment and comfort from you. And when her belly is empty, I can literally hear the milk going into her belly.....oh, LOVE! I forgot about the I-just-changed-your-diaper-and-two-seconds-later-you-poo-again thing, but if my memory serves me correctly, this will be the case for some time. I'm always amazed at how many diapers a little hiney can produce in a day or even one night for that matter!! (I'm now taking donations for my friend Jeane, as she will be having twins before too long).

So far, the adjustment from 2 children to 3 has been a joy. I'm feeling just great physically and each day seems better, I'm tired of course, but that's par for the course. I have a perspective that seems to have settled in this time around....I WILL SLEEP AGAIN, it might not be for awhile, but I know that these sleepless nights will be behind me soon. I remember with Tyler, my firstborn, just lying in bed crying because I knew I would have to wake up again so soon, I didn't even want to fall asleep....but this time, (although it's only been one week) feels differently. I think it's because I DO KNOW that time goes so quickly. My little nephew, Bennett, is 6 months old already....it feels like my sister JUST called me to tell me it was a BOY!! And yesterday I received a grad announcement for my niece Tessa, my eyes teared up because I too remember when she was born and now she will embark on this wonderful new journey into womanhood, adulthood and maybe even motherhood at some time! Time is a strange thing....

These are sweet, magical days that are meant to be embraced, even if I'm tired and feeling irritable from time to time. I will sleep again, but Paisley won't ever be this new again. A quick THANK YOU to all my family and friends who have helped out around here: cleaning, cooking, bringing food, (Mandi, those strawberries are out of this world)! taking care of the boys, increasing my pink stash of clothing, bringing me coffee, (Shrish)! mowing the yard, (Tom B., that was so sweet of you to help out last night and I'm still feeling badly that you didn't know our mower was self-propelling!!! Jake wishes you wouldn't have found out so that you would think he's an ox)!!

I'm off to take a nap as the rest of my house is fast alseep right now....glorious hour!

"It was the tiniest thing I ever
decided to put my whole life into."
~Terri Guillemets~

IT'S A GIRL!!!!!!!!!!

Welcome to our world sweet NAOMI PAISLEY!!

Our new little Lady came into the world on Thursday night, here at our home, at 11:37 pm.
She weighed 8 lbs. 1 oz and is 19 1/2 inches of beautifulness!! She has the most beautiful head of black hair and her skin....oh, it's so lovely, dark and smooth!!

Daddy and his little girl in their first moments together!

Fourth generation Naomi. I went into labor early Wednesday morning, but then it stopped! I wasn't sure what to expect, so I just rested and waited for things to kick in again! Around 9 pm on Thursday night the contractions started regularly again. We called our AWESOME midwife, (love you Maribeth) around 11 pm and she was here 10 minutes later....I was only dilated to 5 centimeters by the time she got here, but within 15 minutes I was fully dilated and Paisley was born! IT WAS FAST!! I was completely taken off guard at how quickly everything happened! She was born in the water and at first I just held her and thanked God over and over that it was over and that I made it!!! A minute went by and I realized we hadn't even looked to see what it was! We looked together and I just cried out, "it's a girl!!" Lots of crying & rejoicing and double checking...I just couldn't believe it was a girl, OUR little girl!! She looks EXACTLY like Mama's baby pictures!

Here I am shortly after birth:

With my Dad!

My Dad with Paisley. He said he had to do something different since things were new around here....so he wore my gardening hat to first meet her! She smiled! It was so cute!My handsome brother Mel!! Gotta love that shirt!!

Uncle Mel meeting Paisley

My sister had the boys overnight, (Thank you Shrish!) so the next day she brought them over to meet their new little sister! Oh, Tyler just bounded up the stairs, "it's a Paisley!" and jumped up on the bed and wanted to hold her. He was so darling, he said to me, "now you can hold me Mama!" I'd been saying the last little while, "Mama can't hold you, you're a big boy and Mama's belly is so big." As you can see, pure delight! Luke wasn't so sure at first, but in typical Luke fashion, he warmed right up in his own timing and now can't get enough of her!

Tyler picked up one of his Daddy's books on the bedside table and the brothers settle in with their new little sister.

We've had lots of sweet visitors, Aunts and Uncles and Cousins!
And may I add, LOTS OF PINK, I just had to cry the one time because it's so fun to have all this newness and color surrounding me!

Aunt Von and Paisley

Grammie in all her glory!

I still can't believe it's a girl!!!

"A babe in the house is a well-spring of pleasure,
a messenger of peace and love,
a resting place for innocence on earth,
a link between angels and men"~Martin Fraquhar Tupper~

P.s. I suppose we'll have to change the name of my blog now....suggestions please!!??