A Hippo Named Boo-Boo Butt

If you've been around us anytime in the past month, you've heard all about the hippo named Boo-Boo Butt.  John is obsessed, and Sus thinks it's hilarious.  Boo-Boo Butt comes from a book that the kids are in love with called The Book With No Pictures - the premise being that this book requires grown-ups to say silly things.  John now says "Boo-Boo Butt" approximately 47 times a day.  A few weeks ago we had some friends over for dinner, and I had a talk with John about not saying Boo-Boo Butt at all while they were here.  I was so proud of that little buddy because he only let it slip past his lips ONCE at dinner time and immediately covered his mouth with his hands.  Shortly after dinner, however, I took him to his room to change his diaper.  As soon as we crossed the threshold and were officially away from our guests for a moment, John, overcome with the urge to speak the best words he's EVER KNOWN EVER, worked Boo-Boo Butt into our 2-minute private conversation 17 times. I love him so much.

Another fun factoid about John: HE'S POTTY TRAINED!!!  John Boy has been in undies for 3 weeks now, and is doing amazingly well.

Susannah has recently been making up stories and songs, many of which have made up words and/or are combinations of stories she's heard.  Tonight's song was enlightening: "I loooove youuuuu.  I looooove youuuuu.  But I reeeealllyyyy love your boooooat!"  Must be all those Jersey Shore re-runs she's been watching.

And our sweet Mary...I've never met a baby as polite as Mary!  She's the easiest little thing to love and care for.  She smiles so much and loves watching her siblings play.  She's sleeping through the night now (7:30ish - 6:30ish) and is happy as a lark upon waking.

I know I'm biased, but I swear I have the best kids in the world.  They love life, most of the time love each other, are sweet to their friends, and are SO sweet to me and Pete.  I cannot hug them tight enough for the love that I feel for each of them!  I know you other parents out there know what I'm talking about.  This baby love is just so unreal.

And so is the amount of pictures you snap of these chirren.  Here are a few from the last couple months!

Got to see some of our favorite Auburn friends while in Harrisonburg back in June!

AUNT KK CAME TO VISIT!!!!!

Mary @ 3 months old

Twinsies

Mary seems quite taken with Fake Mom

Male model on the loose, showing off his big boy undies!

Celebrating his successful potty training with a yummy Frosty 

Our favorite game: pretend sleep.

SUP.

Our new sleep trick with Mary Girl: the Magic Sleepsuit!  

Four months old!

SUCH a happy baby (AND such a handsome hubby...Mmmmhmmm!)

A cup of milk and a magazine 

Front porch picnickers

Sus is getting pretty good at photography!

This is where the pics get out of chronological order, as you'll see as you scroll...

We've been doing some preschool stuff at home (only things that require < 5 minutes of prep). Ice cream cone counting!

More preschool!

So much sugar 

Twins

Just felt like sitting in the dress up box for a bit

Potty training be like...  

Got to see the Gilberts and FiggyPop for a bday celebration, and these buddies are too funny!

WATER BALLOON READY!

Trying to take a good pic only to be ambushed by kids with water balloons

So thankful for them! 

MAKE ROOM!

Mary was made for this life

Cow Appreciation Day -- Pete and I have only missed one of these since its beginning.

Aunt KK is SO CRAZY

Just a boy and his Pop.  (I LOVE THIS PICTURE SO MUCH.)

Crafting is fun....

Why not?

Life With Three

We've officially found our stride in just two months' time thanks to the easiest newborn in the world and my two less-small babes being the most patient, loving big siblings known to man.  I've not only managed to cook a few meals recently, but I've found time to both read and workout lately!  Life is becoming normal, and it's wonderful (and wild).

Susannah's imagination is really fun these days, and she invites any willing parties into her dream world as long as you do everything she says and pretend the way she wants you to pretend.  My favorite thing that we play now is "Pretend Sleep," where -- get this -- we pretend to go to sleep.  I normally have a hard time pretending with her, but not with this scenario, no sir.  I also feel that it's important to note that Susannah is still the best eater imaginable.  It's a common thing for her to ask for more asparagus or other good-for-you vegetable after dessert.  She's an anomaly.

John wants to do everything Susannah wants to do until she invites him to do it; then he says no and runs away with something of hers in hand.  He's a little trickster with the cutest dimples ever, but one must not let said dimples fool one into thinking he's too sweet to be conniving (easier said than done).  John's obsession with balls still reigns, and it is so fun.  He wants to wear his "ba-ball" (basketball) shorts everyday to play basket/base/football with whomever is near.  And he's got a pretty good arm!

Mary is, as mentioned above, a dream.  She sleeps well at night (normally around 7 hours but has recently gone 9!) and is so chill during the day.  She's happy with most circumstances and smiles almost as much as her big brother.  She has a 6th sense that lets her know when Mommy leaves the house, and she immediately ups her maintenance requirements for dear ole Dad, but dear ole Dad is the BEST by never calling me home or complaining like some other dads would.  

And lastly before we get to pictures, I have a poem to share with you!  The other night while I sat in Mary's room rocking her to sleep for the night, Pete, Sus, and John were in the middle of their nighttime ritual of "Chase," where they run circles around the house taking turns chasing each other.  It's adorable and full of giggles, and I could just barely see/hear them from Mary's room.  My heart was SO FULL at that moment that I wrote a poem:

A Glimpse

I watch them through
The cracked door
While they run --
And run
And run --
Giggles barely audible
Over the whooshing of
The large fan meant to separate
Their sounds
From our youngest's slumber.
Rocking her to sleep
(Rather, while she sleeps),
I smile,
glimpsing the forms
As they dash --
And dash
And dash --
Blocking the light for
But a blink each.
Daddy leads the
Wild ritual,
But the two shadows beg --
And beg --
For more.
Their affection for him
And his for them
Cannot be contained
And seep into our darkened room
As I whisper in thanksgiving,
"They belong to us, my darling."


And now for the pictures (lots of pictures)!

  

SWEET GIRL! 

John Boy came down with a mystery [extremely high] fever on Mother's Day, and it hit while we were at church.

Lane, one of John's best buds, was not feeling too hot on Mother's Day either, so the dads (also good buds) got some cute, identical snuggles.

Mary's Dedication

And I was worried about timing Mary's morning so that she'd stay awake while we were on stage for her dedication, but it was John who was passed out the whole time! (Figgy snagged this cute pic. :) )

POOL MAINTENANCE!

Stop being so cute, Mary!

John turned TWO on May 22!

This mustache and this look crack me UP (and creep me out just a tad).  It lasted a few weeks! 

Cookouts with friends are so much fun!

Ready to slip-n-slide!

This will be framed and on a wall somewhere in this house ASAP.

Dr. Shoey at work

Oozing sweetness.

Princess Susannah's favorite "princess" dress happens to be the dress she wore on her first date with her Daddy, quite a significant correlation.

Mary Kendrick is HERE! (...and she has been for over a month...whoops!)

As if anyone who reads this blog doesn't already know, we had a GIRL!

(...a month ago...) 

Mary Kendrick Acker was born midmorning on April 5, one day after her due date.  I am finally getting a minute to sit down to write her little "entrance story" so I don't forget it and so those of you who don't know the silly little details can be in-the-know -- because I'm sure you've been checking on the regular. ;)

So here's the story with pictures that fit in the timeline of events:

When I went in for my 36-week checkup, I was 3cm dilated and 50% effaced already, so my doc excitedly exclaimed, "You won't be pregnant much longer!"  So I went ahead and let the parental troops know it could be any day.  A week went by, and I had my 37-week checkup: 3cm and 75% effaced.  Getting closer!  It really could be any day now!  

Another week went by, and I headed to my 38-week checkup: 3cm and 90% effaced.  Basically the baby would slide right out if my water broke at this point, but I still had not had a single contraction nor was the baby super low yet.  But any day now, he/she is going to be here!  A few days passed, and I finally had some contractions, real contractions.  So I called the troops once again and told my parents to go ahead and pack their bags and come on.  They arrived on a Saturday, and a few days later (when I still had not had the baby) I had my 39-week checkup: 3cm and 90%.  WHAT IN THE WORLD.

 

So the doctor and I had a conversation about induction, as I had tested positive for Group-B Strep and they didn't want a big ole baby to be delivered at home or on the side of the highway by accident.  So induction was scheduled for April 5 at 6am, and we began praying hard that the baby would come before then on his/her own.

I'd never been 39 weeks pregnant before; Susannah came at 37 weeks, and John came the day before 39 weeks.  The Lord used that last week of pregnancy to show me, "THIS is why so many women hate the 3rd trimester."  I could literally feel the baby's feet in my ribcage (kicking, mind you) and head in my hip joint.  My back was killing me 90% of the day, and I couldn't do anything without breathing like I'd just run a marathon.  So this induction scenario was sounding more and more appealing if I reached April 5 and Baby still wasn't here.
40-week checkup on April 4: 3cm and fully effaced.  Laughable, really.  So I said, "Seeya tomorrow!" to the doctor and headed home to pray for labor and pack the car.

Since this was my first 40-weeks experience, I took a self-timer selfie, and I'm only slightly ashamed of that.

After going to bed that night around 10, contractions woke me up at 12:30.  They were about 15 minutes apart, and after a few rounds, I got up to walk some, and (of course) they went away.  So I sadly went back to bed.  A little later at 3am, contractions woke me up once again and were 10 minutes apart but this time did not go away.  I woke Pete up at 4, and we were en route to the hospital at 4:30am with consistent and intense contractions 7 minutes apart: I was in natural labor, y'all!!  Can I get a hallelujah?!  

So we got to the hospital nice and early, which means I was the first one to claim an epidural nice and early!  Wahoo!  The antibiotics for the Group-B Strep started, I got my epidural an hour or so later, and we were smoooooth sailing until my doctor finished a C-section and came in to break my water.  After the waters flowed freely, he said, "Alright, we'll have this baby in an hour or two!" and left to take care of other business.  About 15 minutes after he left, our baby decided it was time to make an entrance, so back he came; and in 1 push, Mary Kendrick was here, a whopping 9lbs even and 21 1/2 inches long!

 

I can honestly say I am living my dreams right now.  Every new season of adulthood has brought the same emotion of undeserved blessing and favor from the Lord (each new season's more intense than the last), and I find myself often stepping back and asking, "How did I get here?  I've wanted this life for as long as I can remember, but how did it actually happen?"  God has been gracious to me and Pete, and I don't know if my heart has ever felt so thankful.  

"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than we could ask or imagine, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever!" -Eph. 3:20-21