Hope Turns One!

Wow!  Time really does fly with the 3rd baby.  I can't believe she is already one.  I want to go back and treasure all the little moments.  I do find myself thinking about the all the firsts as the lasts too.  It is so exciting and scary to move on to the next stage of life (I'll say this light heartedly because I know God can change my plans at any moment).  I love how Hope greets me in the morning with the biggest smile.  It makes getting out of bed so delightful!  I pray this never stops, but I know it will.  I mentioned to Kate and Whitney that I think it would be fun if they greeted me each morning with a big smile too.  Kate said she would try, but she quickly forgot.  Enough about me, on to Hope.

Dear Hope,

You fill our lives with more love than we imagined.  The day that you were born you gave us a little scare.  Apparently the cord was wrapped around your neck making your heart rate drop when I turned a certain way.  Dr. Banks was eager for you to be born and when they decided it was time it all happened very quickly.  For some reason you were a little slow to cry and they called in the NICU team, but after a few minutes they said you were Perfect!  Those first few days you really didn't cry a whole lot, except when it was worth it for shots and pricks.  We brought you home the day after you were born.  It was so nice to have you home.

The first couple of months were a blur, of course.  You ate good and slept pretty good.  The Rock N Play was definitely your favorite spot to sleep, but you did sleep in your crib at night (most of the time).  You slept through the night right at about 9 weeks when I was returning to work.  Yay!  You were pretty much a thumb sucker from the beginning.  I have to admit that we really didn't fight you on it though.  You started teething around 4 months.  We loved your smiles and giggles and tried to get them whenever we could.

When I went back to work you went to Mrs. Amie's three days a week.  You got the knick name Hopey.  Every once in a while I even catch Daddy or one of the girls saying it.  She loves on you and you love on her.

At about six months you started to sit up good.  I loved this time when you would sit and play.  We also started feeding you baby food around this time.  We did do a little cereal around 4 months.  You really never disliked anything, but you definitely like your fruit a little better.  It was also around this time that you started says DaDa, Ka, and ucy.  Mama came a few months later.  We started Kindermusik for the spring semester and you loved it.  At nine months you began crawling and then you were into everything.  It's like your toys were meaningless, you had to discover new things.

It is just a couple of weeks after your Birthday and you are really starting to walk.  You really don't even like it when we try to help you.  You know which drawer in the kitchen is yours and push your limits with the one above it.  You LOVE to crawl up the stairs.  Being outside always seems to put you in a good mood.  You have twelve teeth.  Swimming has been a hit.  You have been a great sleeper this first year and we appreciate it.  Please keep it up!  You love your blankets.  People always seem to comment on your eyes, they are beautiful!  We Love You Hope Annelise!  You are our SUNSHINE!

https://youtu.be/WgmQqrAphcI

Father's Day 2014

Today is Father's Day, and I have to admit that I didn't anticipate the emotion it would bring on.  I guess I've been a little distracted by the thought that Hope could come at any moment.  Every morning that I wake up and my water hasn't broken over night is a little disappointing.  I expect it to break in the evening to overnight since that is what happened with my first two.  Well, this morning I ended up rolling out of bed around 5:30am because I could no longer sleep.  It was actually really nice to have the morning to myself and I got to work on a new Bible Study, Children of the Day by Beth Moore.  God placed a verse in my path that really spoke to me.

"And Hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us."  Romans 5:5

It was a reminder that God's timing is perfect, and His timing for Hope to enter the world will be the perfect time.  It was also a reminder of the hope I have been given through Jesus Christ to see my father in Heaven again.  I'm not sure how you deal with the loss of a loved one without that hope.

I created a slideshow of pictures of Dad a few weeks ago, and thought I would share it.  I really made it for me and my girls to watch and enjoy the memories.  I'm sure I'll find more pictures to add in the future.

Spring Break Disney World - Coming Home

We rolled out of the Villas around 5:15am.  Everyone, except Trevor, went back to sleep.  Yeah!  We pretty much just stopped for meals and gas.  The girls did really well.  Thank goodness for movies!  I always joke that I'm the biggest problem, but I had a good book I was finishing so I did pretty good too.  Of course, I did drive a little too.  We got home about 10pm so it took us 17 hours and 45 minutes (with the time change).  What a day!

Spring Break Disney World - Getting There

We decided to drive to Disney World this year for Spring Break.  With Baby Hope on the way, we moved our original Summer plans to Spring Break.  We set out Friday night after school and stayed the night in Jackson, MS.  Then it was on to Orlando on Saturday.  On Sunday we let the girls spend their souvenir money at Downtown Disney and played at the pool the rest of the day.  Trevor actually got to take advantage of pool time to go golfing.  We used our Time Share to stay at Vacation Villas at FantasyWorld.  It was a nice two bedroom townhouse close to Disney World.  The pool area had two water slides, a splash pad, and a lazy river.  Most importantly though, it was nicely heated.  The high temperatures for the week were in the upper 60s to 70s.  The weather really was terrific!

Kate and Whitney thought it would be funny to put on our sweatshirts, and it was!

Spring Break Disney World - Day #5

Animal Kingdom was our final park of the trip.  We were a little slow moving this morning, but were still able to beat a majority of the crowds.  Our first stop was Kilimanjaro Safaris.  The giraffes came right up by us and several of the other animals were out and about.  It's a really nice way to see a lot of animals.  Then Trevor and Kate were off to Expedition Everest.  Kate really enjoyed this roller coaster too.  She called it the Yeti ride and rode it a couple times.  We visited the Boneyard playground in the morning too.  It is another great playground done by Disney.  Then Trevor and Kate were off to Primeval Whirl, while Whitney and I rode the TriceraTop Spin (which is a lot like Dumbo).  After that the girls convinced Trevor to let them play a carnival game.  They raced against each other by rolling balls into the holes.  Kate ended up winning, but Whitney's ball got stuck at one point so I don't think there really was a clear winner.  Anyways, Kate picked a stuffed turtle as her prize, which meant we needed to make sure Whitney got something too.  Trevor shot some hoops and walked aways with a stuffed snake with ease.  Everyone was happy.  Hooray!  We also watched Finding Nemo - The Musical, which we all enjoyed.  We had planned on making it a short day and we actually stuck to our plan.  We went back to our place for a little afternoon swimming and then got to packing.

Spring Break Disney World - Day #4

Happy Birthday Trevor!  It was another day at Magic Kingdom for us.  We arrived at the park around 9am and split up almost immediately.  Trevor and Kate took off for Big Thunder again and Whitney and I went to see the Fairies again.  Then we all met for Trevor's special Birthday breakfast at Cinderella's Castle.  What a good guy to treat us to that for his Birthday!  Then we went to the Enchanted Tales with Belle again.  The girls were definitely prepared to get certain parts in the story this time and they were even determined for Trevor to win the part of a soldier. Whitney let out a big neigh before the cast director even asked for everyone to neigh, winning her the part of Philippe again.  It was pretty funny!  Kate did some of her best hopping to be Mrs. Potts, and Trevor did some good marching to be a soldier.  It was so fun to see everyone (but me) in the play.  Then it was on to Peter Pan's Flight.  As we were exiting the ride we saw Peter Pan and Wendy walking to their greeting spot, so we booked it over there to get in line.  Then Whitney and Trevor rode Barnstormer followed by Kate and Trevor once again riding Big Thunder.  After that we ventured over to Tom Sawyer's island for a little bit.  We really need to explore it more next time.  However, we were in a bit of a hurry in order to beat the afternoon parade out so we could go watch the KU Basketball game.  I did try to redeem myself a little, and took Trevor to the Boardwalk's ESPN club to view the game.  It turned out to be a great decision.  Happy Birthday Trevor!

Spring Break Disney World - Day #3

Magic Kingdom!  We started the day early at Crystal Palace for breakfast at 8am.  It was fun to see Pooh and the gang and have a good breakfast.  The park officially opened at 9am so we were out the door to beat the crowds as people began to enter.  We went to the new Enchanted Tales with Belle.  I had prepped the girls beforehand that they would get to participate in a story if they volunteered.  Well, Whitney got the part of Philippe, the horse, with the best neigh.  Kate ended up being the wardrobe, Madame Armoire.  They both had a really good time and enjoyed having a part.  It rained off and on Wednesday morning, but nothing too bad.  We really didn't get too wet and because of the rain I think a lot of people chose to stay home that day, which made for a great day for us.  We visited Ariel at her Grotto.  She really talked to the girls a lot.  Then it was off to the Barnstormer.  We were really proud of Whitney for being brave enough to ride it, which she ended up doing several times.  Then it was next door to Dumbo the Flying Elephant.  Classic!  Daisy and Minnie were close by to meet, so we stopped in to say Hello.  The Tea Cups were next, which is another classic must do ride.  The many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh was next, followed by the Magic Carpets of Aladdin.  Then Trevor and Kate rode Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.  It was, of course, a hit with Kate.  With Splash Mountain being closed for maintenance, it was the big ride of the park for Kate.  There was a little park by the railroad for Whitney to play on while Trevor and Kate rode Big Thunder.  I love these little spots.  Next was a character meeting with Rapunzel and Snow White.  We learned that the Fastpasses really did come in handy for some character greeting spots.  After a little Carousel round whirl, it was on to the afternoon parade.  Yippee!  Then it was back to our place for required nap time for everyone.  After naps and dinner we headed back to the park for a late evening.  Upon arriving, we hopped on the train to Frontierland where Trevor and Kate hopped in line for Big Thunder and Whitney and I went to claim spots for the Main Street Electrical Parade, always a treat!  After the parade, we set out for Fantasyland to take in the fireworks.  It was a great spot!  We even rode a few more rides afterwords and saw some characters while the park cleared out.  We got back to our place around 11:30pm, but it was worth it.