Elias' Baptism

We decided to wait a little longer for Elias' baptism than we did for the big boys. Mostly so I would be less postpartum and more not-a-mess. 

Elias was baptized on May 15, 2016, which also happens to be our anniversary (7!), and when we were in Rome on our honeymoon Pope Benedict blessed our marriage, and Elias shares a birthday with Pope Benedict. So there you go. All the connections. 

Dreaming of becoming Catholic that morning!

Jeremy and Erin are his godparents...he's a lucky boy!

Msgr. Nemec has baptized all our boys.

My mom made the cake and I just love how it looked. It was delicious too...and I don't even like cake. 

Elias received lots of thoughtful gifts. My cousin Kolya gave him some goodies, including a little dolphin because when he was a little boy his favorite toy was a dolphin. So sweet. 

My mom always gives me a necklace with my child's birthstone on it, so I combined them all onto one chain. Elias is an April birthday, so diamond. My mom used the last diamond from her Uncle Louie's wedding ring for the necklace. I have the other two diamonds from his ring in my engagement ring. So thoughtful and special!

Welcome to God's family, Elias!

Lazy Days

He's very random about when he will sleep in his cot. For the most part he likes it. 

He doesn't mind tummy time in small doses. 

He liked the infant seat at G&G's. This was the day I found out he really likes that swaddler. 

The Baby U in the stroller is a winning combo for naps. 

I was starting to worry about some food intolerances so Elias went to the doctor. The doc really doesn't think he has food issues...music to my ears! Just newborn rash (still at almost a month old) and a yeast infection. Easy fixes. 

So we celebrated on the way home. :) It was my first ice cream in four months due to having GD. 

The staff of the Newman Center gave us this thoughtful - and amazingly soft - baby gift. We love it!

So Big (Brother)

Augustine has amazed me by how helpful he's been since Elias was born. 

Last week at the doctor's office he held the door for me, carries the baby seat for me, and even helped Lewis in the bathroom while we were there! 

Augustine loves being Elias' helper in the car and is really good at it. He can get his baby brother to take the binki like a champ. 

Yesterday I was overwhelmed with the happenings of the day and just needed to sit and cry a little. I explained to the boys that they didn't do anything wrong and I wasn't mad. I just felt tired and stressed and crying a little helped me feel better. I mentioned the groceries that needed to be put in the fridge and Augustine popped up and said he would do that job. I couldn't believe what a giving gesture that was from him. I said I would give him some coins for his piggy bank, but he said he didn't want any coins. Maybe we are doing a few things right after all. 

These two are getting good at finding things to play together. 

He really likes his new summer hat from Grandma Kathleen. 

He can't get enough of his "sweet little baby", as he calls Elias. 

He graduated from preschool!

All the kids got an award...Augustine got the leadership award!

His beloved Miss Shauna. 

Congrats Augustine! We are so proud of you!

His Wake Is Wide

It seems like the bulk of my day is newborn care and cleaning up the messes Lewis has made. He's has periods of time where he's so incredibly busy that I can't keep up. 

He wanted to build a water tower, so this is what we came up with. 

Go find something to do, I said. Be quiet, I said. SLAP SLAP SLAP SLAP go the flippers on wooden floors. 

He likes to try out all baby gear. 

He was shunned to the back row, which makes me want a van. So much so that I looked into trading in our car. It would cost us four more years of debt...oy. 

After a year and a half of refusing  to ride his bike he's off! Hasn't stopped for two days!

Except for food. Priorities, people. 

It takes every ounce of my energy to love him some days, but he's totally worth it.  

I'm telling you...he tests all baby gear. 

Mother's Day

I didn't get a photo with all my boys on Mother's Day. Oops. We spent the day at my sister's with family and then had a quiet night at home. Logan gave me a book and Augustine made some very nice art for me at school. 

We made all the moms and Godmothers cards and fortune flowers because Augustine is in to HyVee fortune cookies. 

Here's my Goddaughter with her baby cousin. :)

Here's a tired Momma. 

Here's a loved mom/Grandma. (Grandma Kathleen was out of town or else we would have a photo of her too!)

Livin' the Dream

Lewis, Elias, and I were sitting in Conroy's Bakery enjoying a celebratory donut when the mailman walked in and delivered the mail to the bakery worker. The bakery worker said "How's it going?" to which the mailman replied "Livin' the dream!" and I chuckled. 

As I sat there celebrating the little successes of motherhood with my chocolate apple fritter, I realized he was right. I really am. The life I've been given is what I always dreamed would make me happy. A man who is really good at loving me, children of our very own, a home we love, our needs met, and extended family close. 

So here's a little glimpse of my dream life as of late...

It's a whole different ballgame when nursing goes well. Praying with every fiber of my being that it continues to go well. 

Augustine is SO good with Elias. He will hold him any time I ask. Even if his friends are outside playing, he will forgo bike riding and hold his baby. (Elias is yawning, not crying.)

He found his thumb three times so far, but more exciting is his willingness to use a binki!!!

My mom took this photo. My heart...

Constantly helping me with his brothers. He loves to massage Elias' head with the hair brush. At the doctor's office he even helped Lewis use the bathroom!

We popped into AAA for their free bike helmet event. Yep...free. Goes all month until they run out! Lewis' head was too small for the sizes they had...maybe next year Mr. 11th percentile for growth. 

Said donut. 

Babies who sleep without help are THE BEST. 

He was driving me to drink so I gave him this plate and asked him to make some mud brownies. He was happy to! He made them and set the plate of mud cookies (he switched it up) on the back step. I heard him yelling "ding dong!" over and over. When I got to the door he stood up and ran away. I quickly realized he was playing May Day. He was ticked pink that I understood. 

Speaking of May Day...I made these for $1 each!

Augustine spent the day with my mom the other day and they were very busy. He practiced his cake decorating skills. He also washed dishes (which he begs to do at home), helped Grandma take 48lbs of shredding to a shred day event, scrubbed her toilet (which he offered to do!), and watched a well-earned Paw Patrol!

Throwing his all-out daily fit about food. 

He got Elias to sleep! Logan and I just can't believe how good he is with babies.