{ Hello 5 Months }

 Wret

Today you are five months old. It was only a little over a year ago that we found out that you would be joining our family, and now here you are, a busy, growing, happy baby.

This has been a busy month with learning to roll over, both ways.  You discovered your toes and you love to play with toys! You're also not very happy when your brother or sister steal them. You're already learning to stick up for yourself :)

You will still go to anyone and you have a HUGE smile ready for anyone who smiles at you or talks to you. Your whole body smiles. It's pretty cute.

You've also gone on two camping trips this summer as well as been swimming (dipping your toes counts).
At your 4 months check up you weighed 16 pounds, so you must be about 16 1/2 by now. I am putting away almost all of your 3 months clothes for 6 months ones. It makes me a little sad that you're already so grown up. We love your chunky little thighs and how you bounce whenever you're held. Before too long you'll be big enough for the Jonny Jump-Up and I know you're going to love it. You were playing very happily in your bouncy chair until you decided you want to sit up, but since you're not quite ready for that yet, we've traded the chair for the exer-saucer and you LOVE it!

You enjoy being outside and I am enjoying being able to spend these little months out there with you, after two winter babies.

Big sister and brother love you! Oliver calls you our "Happy Baby Wret" and always says "Morning Wret" when you get up. Katy misses you if you've been sleeping for a while. She'll ask where you are. When you're playing she will come running by and wave at you and say, "Hi Wret". We can tell you get frustrated when you see them doing something fun and you want to do it too. Before long you will be!

You're taking 3 naps still, but I think you'll be going to 2 soon. You go to bed at 8 pm every night and sleep until around 2:30 am. After I feed you I move you to the guest room in your pack n play because you often want to be awake for an hour or two. You're happy just talking to yourself and playing with your feet. I'm so thankful you don't expect me to stay up with you!

Lately you've been going to the nursery at church on Sunday mornings. You've been taking a good nap in there, which is such a blessing since I have been teaching Oliver's class the past 3 weeks. I have one more week to go and then, I must admit, I'm looking forward to holding you through church again. We'll see if you're happy with that.

This coming Sunday we are dedicating you. What a special day! We count it such a privilege to raise you to know Jesus and we pray you come to Him at an early age.

This next month it looks like we'll be getting ready for your first tooth to come in. That would explain all of the slobber. We are also getting close to starting solid foods.

I love you, Little Man. Happy 5 months old!

{ Little Mama }

{ We're spending a lot of time caring for our babies.  

It is so sweet to see what a good little mama she is. }

{ A Shower for Baby Wret }

 When Wret was just over a month old, we had a very special visit from my sister Bethany, whom we affectionately call Auntie B.  It was her first time to meet Wret.  She traveled over for the weekend with my aunt and uncle.  The evening she arrived also happened to be Wret's baby shower!  It was an added blessing to have her here for that.  Here we are getting ready to go.

 I hadn't expected to have a shower, but one of the ladies in our church graciously offered to host one.  It was such a blessing and a much needed time out with friends after being fairly housebound after Wret's arrival.  They combined the shower with another lady from church as well.  It was a lot of fun to have a joint shower!  Because she was having a girl and Wret is obviously a boy, they settled on Dr. Seuss as the theme, a neutral subject.  Such fun!

 I have actually had very little exposure to the Dr. Seuss books, but this shower has definitely peaked my interest.  I can't wait to read them all to my kids.  They made food to represent several books, and they did an amazing job!

 Of course there were many wonderful gifts to open!  Several darling summer outfits and LOTS of childrens books, which I'm thrilled about!

{ My sweet boy }

 { Tessa, the hostess and Laurie the mom-to-be }

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The rest of the weekend we spent with Bethany, playing and just hanging out.  She got lots of snuggles in, too!

 That weekend was also my mom's birthday, so we had everyone up for dinner one day.  It was very special to get to celebrate her special day and the arrival of Wret all at the same time.

 

{ Celebrating Easter }

We didn't really make any plans for Easter this year.  After all, we could very well have been having a baby.  Wret's actual due date was today, April 1.  I am very, very glad he came early, but with recuperating and adjusting to life with a new baby, the festivities kind of took a back seat.  Despite our lack of plans, however, the weekend turned out really nice and I am pretty sure we made some lifelong memories.

 We spent the weekend as our little family.  It was a BEAUTIFUL weekend of warm sunshine.  Saturday morning we took the kids to the Easter egg hunt with our church.  I was feeling pretty sick, having come down with a sore throat/cold the day before, but I didn't want to miss it, and thankfully I felt better after being in the fresh air and sunshine.  The kids had a lot of fun!  It is such a blessing to have gotten to know all of these families at our church over the past year.  We are so thankful for the relationships that have been built during this time and look forward to them growing more over time.

Sunday morning we went to church.  It was pretty crazy getting everyone ready on time, but we made it!!!! Tim and I worked together on our dinner.  We kept it simple, spiral ham, scalloped potatoes and asparagus, with carrot cake for dessert...... from a box!  NOT as good as one from scratch, but it was what I could manage :)

{ Our littlest Easter Egg }

When the kids woke up from their naps we did an egg hunt in the front yard and then took them to the park.  It was a wonderful weekend of celebrating our Risen Saviour!  Happy Easter!

{ Welcome to our Family Baby Wret }

 William Ronald Emerson (Wret)

was welcomed into our hearts back in July 2012, 

when we found out he would join our family

and into our arms on March 14, 2013

at 12:01 pm

6 lbs. 10 oz.

18.8 inches long

We are so in love with this little bundle of blessing.

It was our hope to have him at home, but after a long and tiring day and night of on-and-off labor, I made the call that I was ready to go the hospital.  We were so blessed by a wonderful team of our midwives and the doctor and nurses.  It was a difficult but beautiful birth and we are so blessed that God took care of us every step of the way.

 Isn't this amazing?  He was born with a perfect knot in the cord!

 The day after Wret was born, my parents brought Oliver and Katy Grace back home to meet their little brother.  Their reactions were priceless.  They LOVE him so much and are completely in awe of the whole thing.

Tim and his little tribe.  How I love this man!

  We are a family of FIVE!!!!!  Wow!