Ralph

Meet Ralph.  He is our elf on the shelf that entered our home right after thanksgiving.  He is watching Aiden and Ty to see if they are good or bad.  He is very mischievous and only moves at night.  When he first arrived he ate some cheerios and spilled them on the floor.  Ty woke up, saw the cheerios and started having breakfast. 

Aiden wakes up every morning looking for him.  He is very intrigued by Ralph and will often just look at him during the day; I can tell he is thinking and trying to figure him out.  When Ty is misbehaving, Aiden will tell him, "Ralph is watching you, you better be good".  Ty isn't quite as interested in our elf, but he takes notice because of Aiden.  

 

Mark- 6 weeks

 

 

Tree

Today, we went to the tree farm to pick out our Christmas tree. It was a beautiful day, perfect for playing outside. The boys treated the tree farm like a maze and they played hide and seek with Dadda. They ran through the rows and whenever I asked which tree they liked, they would point to the one closest to them; they really didn't have an opinion about which tree to get.

At home, they were very helpful in decorating the tree. I was unpacking ornaments and looked up at the tree to find the bottom half full of decorations, many with multiple ornaments on the same branch. I decorated the top half and Aiden put the star on top. Mark slept through it all; I'm sure he will be into everything next year. I tried to take a picture of all the boys, but Mark didn't like the way his brothers were holding him.

 

 

Thanksgiving

A few family pictures on Thanksgiving morning.

 

 

 

We went to Aunt Susan's house in Douglasville for Thanksgiving and had a feast!  We ate a wide variety of good southern food.  Aiden and Ty loved the macaroni and cheese and Mom's chocolate cake (which they watched me make this morning).  They were anxious to feed the fish and so the fish enjoyed a big lunch too.   

This picture was taken after numerous attempts at a good "smiling" picture.  They were so over it!

 

We helped Aunt Susan pick bell peppers from her garden.

After picking the peppers, the boys weighed them on a scale.  This was so exciting for Aiden, and it kept them entertained for a while.

The boys love spending time at Aunt Susan's house.  Mark slept most of the day, but we all had a great time relaxing and spending time with family.

Great Grandma

Grandma came for a visit all the way from Marquette, MI!  She met Mark and played with Aiden and Ty.  She brought toys and treated our family to dinner.  We enjoyed our time with her.  My boys are blessed to be able to spend time and play with their great grandmother. 

 

 

 

 

Doc Update

Mark went to the pediatrician today for his one month check up.  Dr. P said he is doing great and "looks perfect".  He has grown a lot, here are his stats:

Weight: 10 lbs 14 oz
Length: 22 3/4 in
Head Cir: 15 cm

He got a vaccination today and was such a tough boy; he let out one big scream and then was over it.  The doctor asked if he was responding to sound and watching our faces when we talk to him.  He is becoming more alert every day.  We will go back in one month for another check. 

1 month

Mark is one month old!

 

 Mark . . .

is such a sweet baby.  He is so cuddly and I love to hold him.

usually has a confused look on his face (like in this picture).  This is the face he makes 90% of the time.

likes to be held upright on the chest or shoulder.

likes the bouncy seat best.  Sometimes he'll hang out in the swing, but he sometimes cries when I put him in it where as the bouncy seat soothes him.  He will sleep in it at night sometimes too.

spits up a lot.  The past two weeks it seems like I change his and my own clothes at least twice a day.

eats about every three hours and sleeps on and off during the day.  He is usually awake for about a total of two or three hours each day.

has peed and pooped on me more than either of his brothers' ever did.  For some reason, when the diaper comes off, he likes to go.  Once it happened during a middle of the night changing and I woke Jeff up to go get me towels.  He has shot poop onto my leg- not fun at 2:00am!

has already rolled over!  I usually put him on his belly a few times a day and a few days ago, he got angry and rolled himself over (from front to back).  He did it again the next day too!

grunts, or makes little noises a lot.  They seem so loud in church during the sermon.

(in my opinion) looks just like Aiden when he was a baby.  I see Aiden in him so much, especially in his eyes.  Everyone else says he looks like both the boys and like Jeff.



Aiden and Ty just love "baby Mark" and they always call him that.  They are both very sweet to him.  When he cries, Ty will come over and put his pacifier in his mouth and bounce his chair if need be.  Aiden loves to hug and "pet" Mark all the time.  Sometimes a little too much.  Aiden helps when we are riding in the car; getting his pacifier or moving his car seat when Mark gets fussy.  Aiden also likes to show Mark things; he'll read books to him, flipping the pages and talking to him, or he'll show him his toys and explain how he plays with them.  It is so sweet to watch him. 

 

 

 

 

Thankful Turkeys

The Dove kids came over today for a play date!  The boys showed the girls their bed and all the fun things in their room.  Aiden calls the closet part of his bed the "elevator" and each floor takes you to a different room in the house.  The kids brought toys up to the top bunk and loved hanging out up there.  They always have fun playing together!

Since it was raining outside, I thought it would be fun to do a craft.  We made turkeys out of paper plates and construction paper.  On the feathers, we wrote what the kids were thankful for.  Emily and I did most of the work while Clara colored on lots of sheets of paper and Ty cut up paper and tried to eat a marker.  Sadie and Aiden were somewhat helpful with the gluing and cutting out a few misshaped feathers.  After our craft, we had chicken noodle soup for lunch.  Braden and Mark both took naps, despite all the loud noises coming from their siblings.  We always enjoy spending time with their family.

Ty is thankful for UmiZoomi, Dadda, his bed, snacks, God, family, baby Mark and toys.  Aiden is thankful for Ty, church, nice teachers, flowers & trees, toys, baby Mark, Jesus and God is always with us.