What has the third blond haired, blue eyed babe been up to lately...?

Baby Cort (aka the "third blond haired, blue eyed babe") is 21 months now and seeming much more like a 2 year old now than a 1 year old. (tears....) I loved that he stayed in the baby phase longer than Creighton did. I am so used to calling him "baby Cort" that I think that has become his unofficial name. Everyone calls him baby Cort, even the people at church...so, it seems the name shall stick. Baby Cort is now a toddler though and he keeps me busy getting him snacks, cleaning up his mess, chasing him around, telling him "no"...lots of "no" can be heard around here. :) He sneaks past the baby gate (which is attached to the staircase and opens and closes like a door) by simply by-passing it all together and slipping his thin, little self through the railing posts and going upstairs to open every drawer, closet, and cabinet he can before I get to him. He climbs on our outside play set, which terrifies me because it is so big and he is so little, but he hasn't fallen yet. He loves to color, but seems to always venture from his paper to the walls, fridge, floor, doors, and anything else in his sight. Thank you Magic Eraser!!! My house still stays clean, but I think I spend much of their nap time un-doing what they have done. O'well, kids will be kids and I want for them to explore, be inquisitive, experiment, and learn. The perfect balance, I have found, is to enjoy them and let them play and make a mess when they are awake and then clean it when they nap and God has blessed me with great sleepers. I am looking forward to Cort getting older and, even though I am sad to see his baby stage end, I am happy to have another toddler.

I am really enjoying Creighton, except when nap time is approaching or has been missed. He is so funny, talks like a small adult, and is SOOO loving. Oh my gosh, he is so loving-not all the time to Baby Cort, but I am convinced he thinks that he and I are married. He is always coming up behind me and hugging me and kissing me, saying "I love you". He holds my hand when we watch a movie. He is very, very protective of me and won't let me do a lot of things because he says they are too dangerous for me. He spends his days mowing the lawn (with his mower, of course) weed whacking, leaf blowing, shoveling dirt into a wheel barrow and moving it to it's new destination. His papa said that he will be the only 21 year old ready to retire because he gets up and "goes to work" everyday right now and in 20 years, he'll be too tired to get off my sofa. He is funny about his work though and he has a better work ethic than most adults do. He gets up around 6am every morning, comes out of his room fully dressed in a baseball cap, a t-shirt, jeans, and his boots. He eats a quick breakfast and then moves onto the first task of the day. He put me into time-out the other day (because he mimiks EVERYTHING we do!). I obeyed because I didn't want for him to think that it's okay to say "no" when you are told to take a time-out and, let's be honest, I don't mind sitting in a quiet corner for 3 minutes. He paced back and forth in front of me while I sat in the time-out corner. Every few paces, he would look at me and smile. When the timer dinged, he came to me and said I could get out if I said I was sorry-so I did. He then asked me to hug him and said "I love you, don't do that again"-referring to what had gotten me in time-out originally. I just love that I can stay at home and enjoy the kids so much.

The kids are all at great ages right now and I feel like life with 4 is pretty easy...not easy enough to add a 5th though! Kiley is almost 10 and very independent. She spends her days outside playing with her friends. Creighton is very independent too and spends his time "working", coloring, painting, and hoarding items under my dining room table. Cort is so sweet. He loves to play outside, read, watch movies, color-on everything, and nap. He still does two long naps during the day. Cheyenne is the easiest baby ever!!! Around 5 weeks, I was finally able to switch her schedule and she is now sleeping 4 hours at a time and has a pretty set schedule of: going to bed at 10pm, eating at 2am and going right back to sleep, eating at 6am and staying awake until around noon and then sleeping most of the day (waking to eat every few hours), waking up for about an hour or two around 7pm and then back to sleep around 8pm or 9pm. She's great. Life is pretty easy with an infant who lets you get 8 hours of accumulated sleep at night. Don't be jealous though, it took about 5 weeks of being up most of the night to get her on the right schedule. She only cries if she is starving. I can go a couple days not hearing her cry at all. I feel so blessed to have 4 healthy, beautiful, easy-going kids. If I didn't have to get pregnant to have another baby, I'd take a 5th or 6th, but the idea of being pregnant again makes me sick to my stomach. Chad's already started to try to convince me....we shall see...but, I think 4 is good.

Checking in....

It's been a busy, busy summer! Here is a quick update on everyone. Cheyenne is a little over a month old now. She just began to finally get her days and nights switched back to normal and I am getting an accumulated 7-8 hours of sleep a night. At least, that is how this past week has gone. The first month was hard! She would be up from about midnight to 6am and then when she fell asleep, the boys woke up. It's impossible to take a nap with little ones and a house to maintain. Finally, I think we have everyone on a schedule that ensures I get enough rest (I actually am good with 5-6 hours a night, but I'll take anything more I can get!) and have enough time mid-day that they are all napping and I can get some stuff done around here. Cheyenne is sooooo cute and soooo sweet. I still can't believe how blessed we are to have 4 healthy, beautiful kids...and 2 of each gender!!! Cheyenne looks a lot like me....yay!!! Finally, a baby that looks like they belong to me :) She does have light hair and blue eyes, but her features are all mine. Creighton is so cute and loving, but as 3 1/2 approaches, we are getting more defiance from him. He did seamlessly transition into his twin bed and still goes to bed without a peep at 7pm. I don't mind the misbehavior that toddlerhood brings. In fact, I laugh about it daily and appreciate the randomness of a 3 year old and the challenges they bring. I know it won't last long and I will miss a lot of it, even the bad, when they are older. Cort is hysterical!!! He is so little, or seems so little. He is actually in the 90% for height, but only the 10% for weight, so maybe that is why he seems so tiny. He has hair now!!! About time! He is talking some and so, so, so sweet. One of the sweetest boys I have met. Kiley will be going into 4th grade this year! Wow, how time flies. She is going to be 10 in November. Geesh.....She is a really great young lady and such a great big sister to Creighton, Cort, and Cheyenne. Creighton is obsessed with Kiley and is constantly begging to sleep in her bed. She is like a second mother to them because of the age difference. I miss her being the cutest little 2 year old, but I really have enjoyed watching her grow up and mature. Chad's kept himself busy with the basement and work. Fortunately, his office has been pretty slow since June and he has had lots of time to be at home with me and the kids, which is invaluable since Cheyenne is so little and when his work is busy, he can put in 80 hour weeks for 3 months straight! It has also given him time to work on the basement. He started in late April and has moved pretty fast on it, considering he is doing it by himself! He framed the entire thing (an office, a bedroom, a living room, a play area, a bathroom, a storage room and a workout room-that is a lot of framing!) He did the electrical work a couple weeks ago and finished up the plumbing this past weekend. Next weekend, he is going to do the mechanical and then I think we will be close to ready for our first inspection. Everyone is doing great and we are all adjusting well to being a family of 6...although, I haven't yet mastered running errands with the three little ones yet. :)

Cheyenne Isabella 5.5 weeks old.

Baby Cort, 21 months....I know he isn't a baby anymore, but I will still call him baby Cort when he is 16.

Creighton. He is 3....that is my explanation for the outside toys inside the house, shoes on the wrong feet, the outfit, and I am sure he doesn't have underwear on under his shorts.....;)

Waiting for daddy to come home....one of the kids favorite things to do in the evening.

Cheyenne 3 weeks old.

Creighton and Cooper.......if it were up to me, we would have no animals, but the kids love them. They are napping on the patio with deflated swimming pools as blankets.

Creighton in a serious moment.

Cheyenne is 1 month old!!

I can't believe how fast the first month of Cheyenne's life has gone by. She is such a joy and blessing. She is so laid-back and easy going. You would have to be when you are the 4th child. She loves to be in her swing, on the floor kicking around, on her tummy, in her crib, and being held. She is really content just about anywhere. She is sleeping now for 3 hours at a time now. She is still only 8lbs, but seems to be filling out her little body and has some adorable little rolls starting to show up. We are so in love with her. These pictures were taken on our window seat at our house.

Lots of updating from the past month.

Okay, where do I start. I will start with the beginning of June! In due fashion, my labor did not follow the traditional rules. I went in at 37 weeks for my OB apt. and was not dilated or effaced at all. I had made some progress at that point with all other 3 kids, so I was a bit discouraged and getting anxious. At 38 weeks, I went in and was 4 cm dilated and fully effaced...and slightly uncomfortable. That was a Friday. I had contractions through the weekend, but still worked at church on Sunday. I went in for an OB apt. on Tuesday, June 7th and was 6 cm dilated. My Dr. sent me over to L & D (which was across the hall from her office) so I waddled my way over. It took a couple of hours to get me hooked up and in a bed. There was no rush, since I wasn't in active labor, despite being 6 cm. I called Chad and he came up to the hospital, but I told him to go home and help with the kids since I was just hanging out in my bed and I would call him when things got interesting. My Dr. came in around 9:30 to break my water, so Chad did come up a few min. before that. Within 15 min. of breaking my water, I dilated from 6cm to 10cm. My Dr. had gone home, assuming it would be at least an hour or two, so she had to rush back up, while I just sat there and waited....which wasn't bad at all. She came in, I pushed through one contraction and was SHOCKED to find out we had a girl!!!! Chad had kept it a secret from me and Kiley for 6 months! The labor and delivery were both so short and easy. The recovery was not as easy because of a third degree tear and some serious stitches. After a week though, I felt healed for the most part. Kiley was in bed when Chad got home and she asked what we had in the morning. He told her a boy, of course. :) She came up to the hospital and said she was happy to have another brother, but really wanted us to have a girl. I then pointed to the baby's isolette and the sign that read "it's a girl" and Kiley was thrilled. She stayed up at the hospital with me and held her sister even after everyone else had gone home. We named her Cheyenne Isabella and we are sooo excited to have her! Cheyenne weighed 7 lbs 2 oz at birth, but dropped to 6 lbs 5 oz a couple days later. She is now up to 7 lbs 5 oz and perfectly healthy, eating well, sleeping as well as to be expected, and soooooo cuddly and sweet. The only time we hear her cry is when she is starving. Chad and I have finally, after 4 kids, figured out how to work effectively as a team. I get up with Cheyenne at night all 7 days of the week, unless it's a particularly rough night. Chad gets up with all of the kids on Sat. and Sun. mornings around 6:30am-early risers-and I sleep in as late as I need to, but I haven't slept in past 7:30am yet. Chad offers to help M-F, but he has an important job and needs to be well rested and able to be productive and efficient during the day. He comes home and most evenings after we put the kids to bed, he works on finishing our basement-so, he is just as exhausted as me. So far, so good. I also know this is our last baby (Chad is not so sure about this) and I am appreciating the one on one time that Cheyenne and I get at night.

Cheyenne is almost a month old and I can't believe how fast it's gone. I am sad that it's gone by so fast and hope it's not an indication of how fast her first year will go by.

For the 4th of July, we kept it pretty low key. We worked on the basement most of the day and then went next door for a BBQ and fireworks. Creighton loved them, Cort was scared of them and cried the entire time until we took him inside to watch a movie, and Cheyenne slept through the entire show. I can't wait to get our cabin and be able to spend the 4th on the lake with family. The basement is moving faster than expected. Chad has done all the work himself. He framed the entire basement and is now running electrical, installing appropriate plumbing and mechanical and then we will call for our first inspection before August, hopefully. I am really, really impressed with how skilled Chad is. I have always been so impressed with his talent as an architect, but he is so smart and can figure out nearly anything whether it be car repairs or electrical work. I am smart too, but I know that if I were to try to figure out electrical, I would start a fire and nothing would work. Here are some pics from the past month.

Daddy with his baby girl, who has already stolen his heart.

Baby Cort playing outside. It's so nice to be able to take Cheyenne out on our porch (which is covered so she doesn't get any sun) and just sit and watch the kids play.

Kiley climbing the tree and looking into the neighbors yard. I guess she will be nosy like me. :)

Cheyenne at 3.5 weeks

Cheyenne on the 4th of July in her outfit.