Allison: 7 Months

Allison is seven months old! This month was a little more laid back than the last few, but Allie didn't let that stop her from showing us how big she is getting. 

This month her first tooth has popped through! I still haven't managed to get a good picture of it, but its on her bottom right side. 

Allie started sitting unassisted this month. She can't stay sitting for too long before she topples to one side or the other, but she's loving feeling like a big kid.

Speaking of feeling like a big kid, this girl is ready to move. She can turn herself all around, and she's been doing a little scooting forward to get what is just out of her reach. She's started to try to push up to all fours. It won't be long until she is fully on the move!

She celebrated her first Valentine's Day with lots of love from her siblings and mom and dad. She's definitely stolen our hearts. 

One of my favorite funny quirks that Allison does that I've never noticed any of our other kids do is what I like to call "baby crunches". She will lift her head and shoulders up off the ground almost like she is trying to sit up from laying on her back. Girl will have abs before I do ha!

We are wayyyyy behind on food with her, but I did give her a banana to try this month! She is undecided on real food for the time being. 

Favorites for Allison this month include the jumper, the wipes container, anything she can chew on, and being able to see what everyone is doing. She loves giving daddy kisses, and pretty much acts like she's never given kisses in her life when I try to get her to give them to me. And she has the absolute cutest little giggle.

Dislikes include the snot sucker. Aside from that, I really can't think of much else she doesn't like except maybe feeling "left out" if she isn't in the action. 

Allison is in size 6 month clothes, though some of them are getting a little snug, so I'm guessing we will be moving up soon. She is in size 2 diapers, but we are almost out and only have size 3 at the house, so we will be moving up in those too! She's still taking 30 ounces a day, and at this point she is able to hold her bottle on her own, though she would still prefer you do it for her. Her sleep schedule has remained the same as last month too. She weighs 15.6 pounds and is about 26.25 inches long. 

Here's to all the exciting things this next month has in store for Allison!

Brayden and Ashley: Five Years

Just recently I was complaining about the ridiculous amount of laundry that we have and how it never stops. (Like seriously, when will it ever stop!?) Eric was quick to tell me that it was better than the alternative, no laundry at all. And while I really wanted to just wallow in my pity party, it took me back to just over five years ago when I would have given anything in the world to have the laundry I have now. 

And then, five years ago, it happened. The start of all the laundry. All the love. All the tears. And laughs. And screams. And cuddles. 

The most beautiful sound we had ever heard happened. The tiniest newborn cries of Brayden and Ashley.

I'm not sure how five years have gone so quickly. I mean for crying out loud they had to have just been born like last week, right? And yet, I often find it hard to remember what life was like before they were here. 

Our big five-year-olds. A whole hand big. 

Let's start with Brayden, since he bested Ashley out for the oldest child by one minute. (Probably to make up for the fact that Ashley hogged the majority of the room in my stomach for the duration of my pregnancy.) This kid has the biggest heart I've ever seen. He is such a lover, and is the best brother to his sisters. He often tells me that I'm the "best mommy ever", and loves to give Allie kisses any chance he gets. 

 

His big heart can leave him with some big emotions. He hates doing something wrong and you being disappointed in him. He doesn't often get angry, but he can give up pretty quickly if he doesn't get something right away. 

He loves his boys nights with daddy. And ice cream and a trip to the park is what makes him the happiest. And maybe a trip to McDonald's ha!

He prefers going by Brady instead of Brayden. He is really interested in drawing/art and loves building things. He has recently gotten into building ramps with his magnatiles for hotwheels cars, but also enjoys using them to build the coolest towers and robots. He got new legos for Christmas and has loved building with those too.

His favorite shows are Spidey and His Amazing Friends and Paw Patrol. He loves him some sour patch kids as a snack. And if we are having pizza for dinner, he has to have Totino's party pizza instead of our typical Tombstone one. He is a morning person and is often the first one out of bed on the weekend, and already acts too big for hugs and kisses from mom in public (though he is the biggest lover/snuggler once we are home). 

And Ashley, our firecracker. Just in the last few months she has just seemed so big, even more so than Brayden somehow. She's really lost her "toddler" look and is looking more and more like a big kid every day. When she wears her hair up, I swear she looks 10. 

Ashley is much slower to get up in the morning, and usually requires me taking her covers all the way off and coming in to get her up again about 5 times in the morning before she is up for school. We are in it with this one when she's a teenager I feel. But while she may be slower to wake up, she is definitely ready to do all the things. She's been in a dance/tumble class this year where she didn't know anyone, and that has really helped bring her out of her shell and give her a little more courage to try new things. 

While Ashley doesn't resemble Eric quite like Brady does, she does take after his love of all the music. She has definite favorite songs- Call Me Maybe, Party in the USA, Shake it Off, Believer, Burn it Down, just to name a few. If there's a song that she likes but doesn't know the words, she will have me play it two or three times in a row so she can try to learn them.

She loves to draw/color and do arts and crafts. She loves when I paint her nails and likes to tell me how to do her hair in the morning. Favorite shows include Spidey and Paw Patrol, and she is also a big fan of Sour Patch Kids as a snack. She used to call McDonald's "Old McDonald's", but has already stopped doing that and it definitely makes Eric and I sad. 

 

Ashley is a lot quicker to tell a lie so she doesn't get in trouble, and has a little more attitude than her brother. But she is also the biggest helper to me, especially with Allie and Katie, and loves with all her heart. 

Brayden and Ashley, the last five years with you have been the best years of our lives. And while you may drive us crazy, you also remind us to slow down, to cuddle more, to play more, and to love more. We couldn't imagine what life would be like without the two of you in it, and we are so excited we get a front row seat to continue watching you grow!

Allison: Six Months

Six months with this beaut, it doesn't seem possible! I really thought that all these milestones would hit me hard knowing Allison is our last, but I'm doing surprisingly well with them. I guess it's just because Allie makes life so fun, and I'm so looking forward to seeing how she keeps growing in the months to come. 

This past month was a big one! She celebrated her first Christmas, which I blogged about here.

She rang in 2025 at my mom and dad's house while Eric and I were at a wedding, but we enjoyed celebrating on the 1st with her and the rest of the kids.

And Allie also experienced her first snow! I don't know that any of her body actually touched the snow, but she sure looked like the cutest little marshmallow laying in it. 

She's learned so much this month! She's discovered her toes and likes to grab at those. She has also discovered her tongue and has started blowing raspberries at you. She is loving exploring all the textures, and her little fingers scratch on everything that she sees. A favorite of hers right now is grabbing at your face when she is close to you. 

She pretty consistently rolls quickly to her belly when you put her on her back, so she's started sleeping on her belly at night.  She usually falls asleep on her back, but by morning (or the end of nap) she is more often than not on her belly. 

She loves a bottle, and likes to help you hold it when she eats. If you are carrying her when you grab her bottle she is also trying to shove it in her mouth before you can get sat back down!

She also loves being talked to or sung to. She puts everything in her mouth. She is really enjoying her jumper and loves chewing on the butterfly wings on that. She pushes up really high on her arms when she is on her tummy, and I've seen her even get her belly up off the floor at times. She really kicks her legs when on her belly too, so you can tell she is ready to move. She is starting to roll to get where she wants to go. There are definitely times when I'll look over and she's rolled herself off of her blanket.

As far as dislikes, at the beginning of the month she didn't like getting "stuck" on her belly. I know she doesn't like when she spits up when she is on her tummy. But if I wipe it away she is usually happy again. She also isn't a fan of not being able to see what's going on. If you get her up and in the action she will cheer right up. But we can't complain, she isn't sad often.

She is in size 2 diapers and six month clothes. She is taking five 6 ounce bottles for a total of 30 ounces a day. She gets up around 6:30, is up for 2 to 2 and a half hours between naps. She takes 3 naps a day, and goes to bed sometime between 8 and 8:30.

She is about 26 inches long and weighs about 15.2 pounds. At her six month doctor's appointment (on the 27th), she measured in at 26.25 inches long and 15.3 pounds.

I can't believe we are only six months until our baby turns O.N.E. Here's to all the fun that is to come!

Christmas Magic

Christmas can be overstimulating AF. Let's be real. Your house is all out of sorts. Your kids are a little (or a lot) crazy. You get SO.MUCH.STUFF. (Which I admittedly did to myself this year- here's a reminder next year to scale way back on the presents! But I digress).

I often have to remind myself that these years are so fleeting, and that one day I'll be longing for a time when I couldn't wait to get all the toys out of my living room to their home in the basement. So while it might have been hard to see the magic of Christmas in the moment, I'm reliving the past few weeks and finding those precious little nuggets where the magic lived this holiday season.

First up, my favorite magical moment with Brayden. He is such a lover with the biggest heart. We did a gift exchange between the kids, and even though he didn't get Ashley's name, he wanted to buy her a present anyway. And I couldn't say no to that. He did draw Katie's name, and spent a good deal of time picking the perfect gift for her, which was this little rainbow haired stuffed puppy. Now the really magical part (for me at least), was when Ashley and Katie opened his present. Brady sat up on his knees right next to them, his eyes filled with anticipation, joy, excitement. His sweet, "do you love it?" after they opened it. If I could have bottled up those moments to play back forever I definitely would have. And as a side bar, Katie LOVES the puppy. It made it to her bed, which is a big feat for a stuffed animal.

Ashley's magical moment has absolutely nothing to do with Christmas. We've been struggling with her (and all the kids honestly) about fairness and others getting to do things when they can't. Eric decided to take all the kids to see Moana 2 in theaters after Christmas. They were so excited to get popcorn and a drink at the theater. Well as they were pulling out out of the driveway, Ashley threw up in the van. She was, of course, very sad that she wasn't going to get to go to the movie. But I was so proud of how she acted when they got home. Ashley was genuinely happy that Brayden and Katie got to go to the movies and asked them how it was. I know she was still sad she didn't get to go, but she tried really hard to not let that steal their thunder. 

My favorite magical moment with Katie doesn't have to do with Christmas day, but the excitement leading up to Christmas, especially when we looked at Christmas lights. It never failed, well except for the time I had my phone out to film her saying it ha!, that as soon as she saw Christmas lights, no matter how small or how extravagant, she would exclaim, "That's so beautiful, I love it!" Her joy in such simple things as Christmas lights has helped me remember to take joy in all the little moments, too.

And Allison, nothing beats the magic of a child's first Christmas. As I cuddled her in the warmth of our home, on our comfy couch with our decorated tree behind us, I couldn't help but think of Mary holding baby Jesus close to her. She wasn't as warm. She wasn't as comfortable. She wasn't surrounded by decorations. But oh how full her heart must have felt. How magical it must have been to know you were chosen to be Jesus' mother.

It's easy to feel worn down. To feel empty. Stressed. Not good enough. I can only pray that Jesus fills my heart up on my hardest days, with that sweet and simple fullness that Mary must have felt all those years ago. And reminds me that even the smallest moments can be full of magic.