Travel (Part TWO)

We made it back to Florida! The second part of our trip back home went well and probably better than the first part (part one here). On the way home we decided to split the drive so that the first day we drove more hours than the second... opposite of what we did on the way to New York. This was definitely the better option! After hyping the kids up for the "next" big trip we woke up bright and early to hit the road and it was a good thing we were leaving that day because it was a cold 48 degrees!! The kids slept great for the first two hours which makes for easy travel. We made minimal stops and listened to zootopia for the 100th and 101st times.. it is always a lot of fun to listen to the same movie over and over especially with there is a great song to sing along too (said no one ever). Parker also did very well but we could tell she was at the point of "get me out of this car seat". Our stop for the night included swimming and a first for eating at Jack in the Box. I was so proud of the twins, they made up a bed for themselves on the floor without being asked and they went to sleep so well. We all slept really well that night and woke up refreshed and ready to go the next morning. A short eight and a half hour drive and we would be home... YES!!! Only a few stops, more zootopia, and some running around the rest stop and we made it home sweet home!
We had a great time in New York ... post to come soon ... but I always think part of the adventure is the trip to get there and back. Let me tell you toddlers get very funny when they are tired and have been in the car for more than a few hours. My sister in-law and I had a lot of fun laughing at the kids and trying to find music to listen to during the short periods of time we had with out a movie playing.
The kids are all recovered with the exception of Parker ...she still gets a bit upset when she first gets in the carseat, I'm hoping she gets over it soon! I have finally finished unpacking and laundry is all but done... We are super glad to be home and back into our normal routine ... just in time to start getting ready for school!

Four Months ~ Parker

What a big month of changes for this little chunk...

•sleep. Still sleeping through the night and we are very happy about that! She is going down for the night a little earlier between 7:30 and 8:00 and sleeping until about 7:00 or 8:00. She likes to kick her legs up and down and spin herself around all throughout the night. Most mornings she is in a totally different direction from where she started the night. I have to give her her paci from time to time but for the most part she does a great job sleeping. She also does pretty well with nap time taking several 30-45 minutes naps a day and one longer 2-3 hour nap. She does ok falling asleep on her own, sometimes she needs a little rocking or holding but we are ok with that from time to time. A much as I love to hold and snuggle miss Parker I do have two toddlers to chase after! She absolutely loves her stuffed kitty lovey and sleeps with it all the time. She always wants to be holding onto something so her kitty is perfect to snuggle up to. 

•eat. Little Mama is up to 6 ounces of formula 5-6 times a day, to say she loves to eat is an understatement! She absolutely lets us know when she is hungry and don't even think about stopping to burp her. She still has a some issues with reflux but we have been able to drop down to only giving her one dose of her medicine each day. Since she had her 4 month checkup a few days ago we talked about starting her on some cereal and we were given the go ahead. She's doing great so far!!

•play. She loves to play and is starting to hold onto some of her toys and of course puts them right to her mouth. Big sisters love to hug and kiss little sister ALL.THE.TIME. Get your hands any where near her face and your finger is going to end up in her mouth. I'm sure there is much more play to come but right now we are really enjoying this fun stage!

~other changes. 

As mentioned above we love to call Parker "chunk" she is by far our chubbiest baby and we are loving it! She takes after Kendal in the length department and I have a feeling she is going to be tall just like big sister. Here are her 4 month stats:

Weight: 15 pounds 8 ounces Birth: 7 pounds 7 ounces (75th percentile)
Length: 26 inches Birth 19 inches (95th percentile)


Parker is doing a great job with tummy time and actually enjoys it now. She definitely has mastered rolling from her belly to her back and is working very hard on going from her back to her belly. It's so much fun to watch her try. She is "talking" a lot more, mostly with her hands in her mouth but just as always it's so cute to listen to her little noises. She also giggles "sometimes" we want to hear it all the time because it is just so adorable, which leads us to trying all kinds of silly things to get her giggling.

Parker is entering a really fun stage which also means she is growing so fast. Like always we are just soaking up all sweetness this little one throws our way.


Happy 4 Months Parker



3 Month update

Parker and her cousin Paisley

Travel (part ONE)

Well we made it to New York State... Only took us 24 hours to make a 19 hour drive! I'd say we did pretty well with 2 toddlers, an infant, and (a very helpful) 10 year old. We drove through 6 states and 1,188 miles. We split the trip into two days as it's nearly impossible, ok it IS impossible to drive that far in one day with young kids. Our first day was ahhhhmazing we drove a total of 10 hours and only stopped once! If you remember above I have TWO (almost) three year olds and a four month old so only making one stop was like heaven. The kids watch (and we listened) to the same movies (zootopia, Olivia, and Mickey Mouse club house) on repeat. We had to watch Charlotte perform tricks with fruit loops and Livy ask to see Kendal 1 million times! There was minimal crying by Parker and my sister in-law (hubby had to stay in FL) and I kept each other company. We stopped at a hotel for night one, we ate pizza, swam in the pool, and relaxed in the hot tub. Sleeping was a little rough ... But we won't mention that... We ate some breakfast at the hotel and headed out.

Day two... GPS was set for 11 hours and we were hopeful we would make it with only one stop again! And hopeful is about all we got, we made it about an hour and had to stop for a potty break for the twins. We ended up stopping a total of 5 times for potty breaks, lunch, RITAs (the best Italian ice on the planet), one sore botty, and gas. I think I started to go a bit crazy as my snapchat (klynn4613) portrayed.  When we arrived it was and always is such a relief to just be done! The girls played for a good hour and then fell right to sleep and slept amazingly.

We are here for another 7 days with lots to do and experience before we head out on the second part of our "big trip" per the twins description! 

Family, Friends, and the Fourth

We had a great fourth of July, spending it with friends who are like family and family who is well... family. Some of the kids are in New York so we were missing them for sure but none the less we had a very relaxing long weekend. So much so that I only snapped a few photos the whole weekend. As much as I love to capture photos of my family sometimes it is nice to put the phone down and enjoy the moments. 

Sunday we lounged around the house for the better part of the morning and afternoon until it was time to prep for our cook out with friends. Since our friends put a pool in we have had several get togethers at their place... we always try to do our part by bringing some food along! The 4th of July was yet another great reason to have a pool party! We grilled, we swam, we ate, and we swam some more oh then we ate again. The twins were a little sick from a cold they had gotten earlier in the week so we headed home and straight to bed. Around that time hubby said he wasn't feeling too well either. 

Monday came and hubby was in fact sick so we were in for another day of relaxing and doing nothing... which was just fine with me.

All though we didn't partake in any "real" independence day activities we enjoyed the weekend as a family and got in some much needed rest and relaxation. Some holidays are busy and others are spent doing nothing, either way the meaning behind the holiday is never lost so here is to America's Independence.. Happy "late" 4th of July everyone!