Riley-4 months

I'm not sure where the time has gone, but I really need it to slow down! I can't believe Riley is already 4 months old and growing like a weed.

Her legs look so long in this picture! And she looks a lot like Gavin! 

How cute is she?!?! Today was her 4 month check up. She's still sleeping off the 2 immunizations, hence the reason I have time to blog, but she was a trooper. 

And the stats are in:

Height: 25.5 inches 75th percentile

Weight: 13lbs 14.5oz 50th percentile 

Now let's compare...

Emory at 4 months:

Height: 25.5 inches

Weight: 13lbs 11oz

Gavin at 4 months:

Height: 27 inches (he wasn't on the charts)

Weight: 17lbs even, 90th percentile

So Riley seems to be keeping pace with her sister which is pretty good considering she started out a pound smaller!

Things Riley is doing: 

-she has rolled over from her tummy to her back a few times but I think it might have been a fluke!

-she is finally sleeping well at night...really well actually. She will go to bed anytime between 8 and 9 and sleep until 8 or 9 the next morning. It is glorious! I finally have my "me time" back in the morning!

-she is wearing a size 2 diaper and 3-6 month clothing 

-she tries her hardest to get anything in her lap to her mouth

-I've gotten her to giggle a few times and it is the sweetest sound!

Oh to hit Pause...

Have you ever had a day/week/weekend that you never wanted to end? If you could just hit pause and rewind over and over you would?! This past weekend was one of those times. So, as I have mentioned before, we have started hiking on the weekends. It's a great way for us to all get outside and get some exercise, all while spending time as a family. Sunday, Emory's birthday, we went to Burgess Falls. This was by far the prettiest hike we've done so far. There were 4 waterfalls total on a 3/4 mile trail, all increasing in size the further we went on the trail.

The birthday girl...we weren't going to be losing her on the trials!

The top falls

My girls and me at the second falls

I believe this was called a flume bridge. Back in the 1800s when this was a working "power plant" it held a large pipe.

This was off to the side of the trail.

She insisted on being the line leader. Pretty cute in her camel back--a birthday gift from Nita and Papa and the outfit was thanks to the gift card from G and Dude. When asked what she wanted for her birthday she would say "something to hike in."

Another little stream off the side of the path.

Middle falls

I love this man.

Seriously love him...

The Big Falls

Absolutely beautiful!!

Handsome boys.

Made me want to go to the Grand Canyon. Even though I am not a fan of heights, in fact they make me a little light headed just thinking about them, I still find this beautiful!

Stairs down to the falls. There was a little path that took you almost all the way down but it was wet and slippery. Had we been by ourselves we might have gone but since we had our babies with us we decided to stop. Emory wanted to go all the way down.

The river at the top of the big falls

Watching my babies play with their daddy.

Riley and I hung out a little further down so she could eat.

Love this picture and I love that Riley is watching her big brother.

What a handsome boy.

Had to play for a few minutes at the playground before heading out.

We stopped at a little country store on the way out for some ice cream. Because sometimes you need to eat dessert first!

These pictures don't do it justice. This is one of those places I see and say "There are really people who don't believe in God?!" As I sat there nursing Riley and watching my older 2 play, I had a hard time grasping that concept! I love nature...or maybe the concept of nature...I wasn't too keen on the bug that kept trying to climb up my leg, but I loved feeling the breeze, watching the water flow over the rocks, and watching my children soaking it all in! I am so glad we started doing this as a family. These are the days that I hope they remember and pass along to their children.

Oh if only I could hit pause!

This Can't Be!

Emory can't really be 6?!?! Where has the time gone?! Six years ago, I told chase that Emory and I had an agreement...she wasn't coming until he mounted the over the range microwave above the stove...where it belonged (previously it had been on my living room floor and then the counter, which defeated the purpose of the "over the range"). I think he thought I was crazy but I was dead serious...well, not 12 hours after the microwave was mounted, my water broke and the rest, as they say, is history!

Sunday was our sweet girl's 6th birthday. We celebrated on Saturday with her friends and Sunday with just the 5 of us.

Saturday was a cupcake party at Kelli Kakes by our house. I'm all for paying someone and having the party somewhere other than my house! All I had to do was show up!

It was a cute little set up...very girlie!

Gavin was sure to be included.

Playing with the balloons...Chase looks thrilled to be there doesn't he?! The men (Chase, Gavin, Baxter, and my dad) all managed to escape for the hour and a half to Five Guys)

A few of the party goers!

Emily and Adeline

Hailey, Emory, and Sarah

Gavin and Theron (Jayden's brother)

My parents made the trip for the party...mom was in charge of Riley. It was a pretty tough job! :)

Lunch first...those poor boys, they were definitely out of their element, but Emory wouldn't have had it any other way...she has known all of them since birth and they had to be there!

Decorating time...loading up with sugar...main reason to have it somewhere other than our house!

Hailey's finished product!

Garrett was pretty modest with the icing...especially compared to most of the girls!

They all got 3 cupcakes to decorate and eat...talk about sugar overload!!

Abby's finished products where quite impressive!

Mrs. Christy wouldn't have missed it for the world...unless of course she had been on the other side of the world (she lives in Dubai). Lucky for us she was home for Spring break!!

Even Theron got a taste...I think he was a fan!

I think the girls had a great time...the boys seemed a little overwhelmed but loved eating the cupcakes! :)

Our afternoon was spent with the Lee family at our house. It had been a while since we had all 10 (yikes) of us had hung out! Our evening was spent at church (the new Saturday night service) followed by a Daddy/Daughter date to Buffalo Wild Wings while mommy put the babies to bed. We had a wonderful start to our weekend!

Girls Night Out

It's been awhile since I've had an actual girls night out. Sure I've gone to a friend's house to hang out but to go out to dinner AND do something else...it's been awhile. 

Kate and I decided we wanted to see Wicked. The boys had no interest so we decided to make it a girls night. The tricky part was finding a night that worked for both of us AND find sitters for the kids. Chase ended up being out of town on the night we chose but even if he had been home, a sitter was a must. I love my husband and Kate loves hers but taking care of 3 kids for 6 hours by themselves is not a strong suit of theirs. They are incredible fathers and wonderful husbands but they kinda look like a deer in the headlights when you tell them they are keeping all 3 of their kids by themselves! 

First on our agenda was finding a resturant that was not kid friendly with good food and drinks...Whiskey Kitchen was the winner. It's one of my favorite places but I rarely get to go due to the "not kid friendly" part! Second was the show. I've seen Wicked before but it was at least 4 years ago. It was a great show and I would go see it a third time. 

I'm ready to plan our next girls night...