And the REAL baby!

Macy is a very good baby. She usually sleeps through the night now, or just wakes up once. She has started smiling, which is soooo adorable. She had her baby blessing at church a couple of weeks ago, and her beautiful dress is from my mom. It was a little big, but she sure looked pretty in it! Macy had her 8-week doctor's appointment just yesterday, and she is already 12 pounds and 3 ounces, and is 24 inches long. She is in the 90th percentile for weight, and in the 97th percentile for height. She will definitely be bigger than Lily. The doctor said that in a couple of years everyone will probably think that Lily and Macy are the twins since Max is so much bigger than Lily, and Macy will quickly catch up! Macy is very alert and attentive when looking at people. She is also pretty resiliant when it comes to all the "love" that she recieves from her siblings!!!

Max

Max would like to still be our baby! He loves his bottle, his binky, and is a bit of a loner. He loves to cuddle, and is such a little ladies-man!! Max almost always has a smile on his face. He is mostly very easy-going, but he gets very upset when anyone leaves to go someplace without him. He will throw himself on the floor, and is completely inconsolable for a few minutes every morning when Branden leaves for work. Max makes a fishy-mouth everytime he kisses, which is frequently. If he gets hurt, I will feel someone by my leg, and I look down and he kisses me, and then walks away like he is all better now. Max loves nature! He would live outside if he could, and when he is outside, it's all about the leaves, flowers, and the dirt. He LOVES dirt!! He still loves to create messes, and loves to climb into any little hole or cupboard or tunnel-like thing that he can find! Max is in the 95th percentile for his height and weight, and shows no sign of slowing down on his growth. But oh, how he loves to be held! Max is wimpier than Lily, for sure, but also definitely sweeter. We love our sweet Max!!

Alec

Alec is enjoying 1rst grade. He lost one of his front teeth, and he is often concerned about his hair. Alec has entered that slightly obnoxious 7-12 year-old boy phase where he is frequently loud, doesn't always think before he acts, and goes back and forth from being a cuddly sweet little boy, to a cool, video game playing, tough guy. He is a great reader himself, but mostly loves our reading time together when I read something to him. Currently we are reading "The Magician's nephew" for the second time. It is the first Chronicles of Narnia book.

He had fun imagining giving a secret Valentine to a cute girl in his class, but chickened out at the last minute! He has lots of friends, but not one really close friend. He has playdates with friends a few times each week, and it's usually a different kid each time. Alec recently finished up basketball and is now taking swimming lessons. He really loves his swimming class. We expect a lot of Alec, and he does a great job helping at home. He picks up all the toys each night, holds Macy when I need him to, and keeps Max and Lily entertained so I can occasionally get a shower in or get dinner on. We got a Wii for Christmas, and he knows how to get it all set up better than I do! He is up to my shoulders now, but his feet are about the same size as mine. Alec has always been a very good boy, and we are so glad he is our oldest!!

Lily

Lily is daring, smart as can be, funny, a bully, silly, organized, a sweetheart, and a good little mommy to Max, Macy, and her "baby" whom she named Gina. She loves learning knew things, and focuses intently until she has it figured out! She loves to get wipes and clean the floor, wipe her face, and Maxes face, and anything else she could possibly clean. She adores Alec, and isn't intimidated by him at all even if he is playing kind of rough with her. She definitely loves it when Branden comes home and throws her up in the air or hangs her upside down. Her vocabulary is increasing rapidly, and she can tell you all the sounds that the letters make. She loves making animal sounds, naming everybody's various body parts, and hiding from me when I tell her to come!! She loves her blanky, her thumb, her baby (Gina), and spinning in circles until she gets so dizzy she falls down! She will jump off of anything, and will attempt anything she sees bigger people doing. She is fearless and a thrill seeker!! Oh yeah, and she is gorgeous!!

Siblings

Everyone is trying to get to know Macy. When Lily first got to "hold" Macy on my lap, I told her to give Macy a kiss and she licked her instead! Max and Lily love to give her her binky or hug and kiss Macy. Lily is always wanting to hold her. She also stuck a pretzel in Macy's mouth to share with her the other day. Lily frequently gives Macy her special blanky and is very sweet to Macy. Max is sometimes jealous when I am holding her, but he seems to love her too. Alec is delighted to have a new little sister and in his prayers the other night he asked for mom to have ANOTHER baby! I just started laughing during the prayer and told Alec to have mercy on me!! Isn't three babies at once in our family enough right now?!! Apparently not for Alec!