Growing Up

My kids are getting so BIG! Lizzy just turned SEVEN! How is that possible? She really wanted an ipod for her birthday because she loves music and especially loves the popular music on the radio. She sings along to them and then when it is over she says "rewind it Mom!" I guess she thinks that it is like the TV. Kevy put a splitter in so that they all could listen. They thought the whole thing was pretty cool.

I love how Janie isn't wearing her pants.

We decided to get Janie a big girl bike because we don't have a double stroller and we don't have the money to get one, besides I don't know how much longer she would ride in a stroller anyway. So if we ever want to walk to get the girls at school Jane needed a way to get there and it is way too far for her to walk. We also were planning on getting her one for her second birthday back in January and never did, so we decided it was about time. She got a Dora helmet and it came with a bell, so she was just thrilled. We are just working on getting her to pedal for more than one time around. She is just too cute though!

Mr. Russ is just getting so big. He is already 6 weeks old and growing so fast. At four weeks he was already the size that the girls were at 2 months. (9lbs. 11 oz.) He is already filling out all of his 0-3 month clothes. So I guess there is hope for us to have a boy that is not little like the rest of us. We just adore him so much! I thought the girls would get over him and not be in his face all the time loving on him but that hasn't happened. It has been nice because none of them have really had any jealousy and I think partly that is because of him being a boy. It is different for them than if they had another sister to compete with I guess.

He is starting to smile a lot and he really loves me. He really does recognize when it is me and he is attached to me. Here is hoping that it stays that way. I could just eat him up he is so cute. We always get a lot of comments on his hair because he has quite a bit and it is light. And everyone loves how I spike it in the front. What can I say, I want him to be in style.

Janie really wanted some Dora nails and usually I don't cave but the girls were playing at a friends and Jane didn't get to go so when we were out I bought her some because she is always so good when I take her to the store without her sisters. With them is another story. They lasted all of 5 minutes before they fell off or got lost, but she loved them for that 5 min.

I seriously could just eat her up. She gets away with too much because she is cute. One day I got mad at her for getting her hands all over the TV and I told her daddy would come home and be mad. She just said "daddy will say 'Janie it's okay' " Little stinker, she is just too cute for her own good.

Happy Halloween!

We had a super great Halloween this year! It was really low key since I decided not to make the costumes and stress myself out. We did realize that we hadn't carved pumpkins and you can't have Halloween without carving pumpkins, so I ran to the store and grabbed some and we hurried and carved them before we went out trick-or-treating. It really was the very first year that the girls have actually gone trick-or-treating. We just have done trunk-or-treats in the past, and Lizzy was SO excited to do the actual thing. I was surprised Jane didn't mind getting the guts out. Usually my kids refuse to do it since it is so slimy.

Our cute pumpkin. Lizzy got this outfit when she was a baby and they all (except Jane) have worn it. Jane was too big by the time it was Halloween. He was such a darn cute pumpkin I would have to say.

I had suggested that Jane be a ladybug and she was all for it, then I remembered that we already had the outfit, I had bought it for her last year and she wouldn't wear it, so that worked out great.

Nellie changed her mind probably fifty times on what she wanted to be for Halloween so I suggested a butterfly since Lizzy and Jane were both insects and thankfully she went for it.

I still can't believe I have FOUR kids! It has been pretty smooth as long as we are healthy.

Our finished product. Kevy did the Dora one for Jane because he is much more meticulous and patient with pumpkin carving than I am.

Kevin Russell Richey

Our sweet baby Russell is here. We are so glad to have him in our family! The girls love him so much and so do Kevy and I. We are really excited to have a little boy in our home and see how that changes things. One thing for sure is that he will have plenty of mothering. Lizzy has already said that she is going to teach him to not pee on the seat and all over when he goes to the bathroom like all the yucky boys at school do.
He came earlier than expected and that is just fine with me. I was bigger this time around and I was really just so uncomfortable and really just ready to have him out! Although I said that and then when it did happen early I thought "but I didn't get everything done and ready. My house isn't clean enough!" I was scheduled to have a c-section on Friday the 21st. He was due on the 29th. On the 11th we were out driving and I noticed that it was a full moon and I said to Kevy "You know lots of women go into labor on a full moon." Knowing that would never happen to me.
Well I woke up that night around 2 and was having contractions every 3-5 minutes. But I didn't really think much of it because they weren't really too bad and that had happened before and then they would go away but I wasn't able to get much more sleep and they didn't go away. I got everyone ready for the day and I headed to the hospital to be monitored. About and hour later the nurse came in and said "you are having a baby in about an hour." I started freaking out a bit because I just needed Kevin there with me. Kevy arrived about a half hour later and then I felt ready for little Russell. He was born at 12:15 p.m. He weighed 7 lbs. 13 oz. and was 20 inches long. Good thing he did come 2 1/2 weeks early, How big would he have been if he had gone to term. I don't want to know. The c-section went pretty well, but Russell had a hard time breathing afterwards because he had fluid in his lungs so he had to go to the NICU. The one time that I actually could have the baby with me in recovery and he can't. I was pretty sad. I got to go see him after my recovery time was up but i couldn't hold him until they allowed me out of bed which was 12 hrs. after delivery. He was doing great by that point but they were worried there might have been an infection, so he was in the NICU for 48 hrs. Which was difficult, but after what I went through with Nellie, I was able to handle it better I think. At least with him I got to hold him and nurse him as often as I wanted.
We went home after 48 hrs. because they allowed him to and because I hate the hospital so bad that I go home as soon as they will possibly let me go. I just hate the constant scrutiny and the poking and prodding. I just always want to be in my own home in my bed.
It always amazes me that this perfect little person was just inside me. It is such a miracle!

After the first day I have felt pretty darn good. I think this time around has been the easiest recovery.

Most people so far have said they think he looks like Kevy. I am not very good at being able to tell but I think he does too.

Kevin's work sent us this cookie bouquet and this flower bouquet, it was so nice of them. The girls have especially enjoyed the cookies.

The girls were so very excited to see baby Russell. When they found out he was coming early they were thrilled. Nellie just kept hugging herself.

Jane is doing amazing. She had a hard time when I was in the hospital and seeing me there, but once we came home she has done so well. Very few fits, she is just so sweet. She will just go play by herself if I am busy feeding Russell.

Lizzy and Nellie love him so much. They are the best helpers too. If I need them to get me a diaper or something for him they start fighting about who's turn it is to do it. I know it won't always be that way, but it is nice right now.

Kevy is such a proud Daddy and so excited to be not quite so outnumbered anymore.

He is so handsome just like his dad.

We already love him so much and can't imagine our family without him!

Bishop's Pumpkin Farm

There is seriously the neatest pumpkin patch ever, not too far from where we live, and we didn't get to go last year, so I wanted to for sure make it this year. With not too much time left before the baby comes and soccer taking over our lives, I had to take advantage of the one week when both girls had morning games. Kevin is super busy at work right now and actually had to work on Saturday so he couldn't make it :( but Grandma and Grandpa were able to come and it was so fun to have them along. It was also a perfect fall day to go, the temperature was perfect. There were so many different things for the girls to do, we were there for quite a few hours and still didn't see everything. There was food and slides and a parade and pig races and animals and a train and forts to play in. All kinds of things.
They had the prettiest flower patches where you could go and pick your own flowers.

One of the girls favorite things to do was ride the train. They wanted to ride in the animal car. Such silly girls.

They loved the giant tires.

They had fun playing in the corn pit.

Poor lizzy is toothless right now. She is missing four teeth, with no signs of her permanent ones coming in. She has such a hard time eating, but not ice cream.

Janie wanted a shave ice rather than an ice cream and wouldn't you know she dropped it first thing. They were nice enough to give us a new one. But then she dripped some on the filthy bench and she started licking the bench, it was awful. There are some things as a mom that I just can't let myself worry about and germs are one of them. I just have to let it go sometimes. And you know what I think my kids are healthier because of it. They rarely get sick and I think it is because I just don't worry so much, who knows.

Nellie with her messy face. She is seriously the dirtiest kid I know. It doesn't matter what I do she ends up filthy.

There was this giant slide the girls got to slide down, but parents wern't allowed to take their kids sown it, so I was worried that Jane would be too scared to go , but she was the first one to go and she cruised down it. When she got to the bottom she said "Can I go again Mom?" It was so cute seeing her be so big.

My little jail birds. There were so many different things to do and explore. The girls kept telling me " Thank you so much for taking us mom, this is so fun!"