3rd Trimester and a Name!

Wow!  28 weeks today = beginning of 3rd trimester.  I must admit that so far, this pregnancy has FLOWN by.  This little boy is still pretty laid back.  I can tell he is definitely getting stronger and bigger but he has never been one to do big flips in my belly.  He seems content to just stretch and gently push on me.  Crossing my fingers that this personality continues! 

Because I want this blog to be an accurate documentation, I am going to post comparison pictures from 5 weeks to 19 weeks to 28 weeks.

Whoa baby... 28 weeks :)... you also get a sneak peak of the new paint color in our bedroom!   

19 weeks

5 weeks

You know, I can handle the belly.... inevitable... however, why oh why must my butt get bigger... seriously?!?!

Anyway, I thought I would also unveil his name.  I have been tentative to totally commit to a name- this happens to me every pregnancy.  It's like I know it, but I dont want to make it official. But, at this point it seems silly to not make it official, we all (boys included) refer to him by this name.  Anytime I suggest something else, my boys veto it and tell me he already has a name... and I agree with them.. He does already have a name.

I asked the boys to disguise their names. Shep was definitely up for the challenge and his is almost impossible to read, Ashton just wanted to do his own thing (so typical), and Hunter really disguised them as people.  I love how different they are.  And there, at the bottom, undisguised- not knowing his personality- is Bennett.

Bennett means "blessed one" or "little blessed one."  God has done a complete 180 on me when it comes to listing my blessings... counting each and every piece of life as His gift to me.  It only seems fitting that I name my last baby something that speaks to the transformation that God has done in me in finding joy, finding contentment by counting my blessings.

Bennett's middle name was the hardest part of naming him.  I struggled between Brady and Stewart.  Both have significant family meaning for me.  My middle name was Stewart which was a last name on my dad's side.  I recently also found out that it is a last name on Chad's father's side.  However, "Uncle Brady" played a huge role in my GrandpaGordie's life.  GrandpaGordie's father wasnt the best dad and Brady filled that roll for GrandpaG.  With GrandpaGordie passing away, I want to honor Brady for helping to raise my amazing Grandpa and honor GrandpaGordie by paying tribute to his family.

So, it is Bennett Brady... final answer.  Yes, there is a bit of aliteration and yes, his first initial and last initial is BS... haha.  But, we love it and feel that is a good fit with the other boys!

Ashton's Birthday Round Up

WEDNESDAY
The birthday celebrations began Wednesday by taking lunch and cupcakes to Ashton's preschool.

I found these cute little cupcakes on pinterest and thought, "perfect."  Turns out, accourding to Chad, my boys, and even my mother, they look like spider webs.  Oh well, we like soccer and spiderman in this house so either will work! ;)

Webs or soccer ballls?

Everyone singing Happy Birthday to Ashton

Chowing down on the spiderman/ soccer ball cupcakes.

Ashton staged this picture of him eating while I took the picture. 

 THURSDAY
Thursday was not really a birthday celebrations but we did get to go on a field trip to the pumpkin patch with Ashton's preschool.  It is a smaller farm but perfect size for 2 to 5 year olds.

On the "hayride"

FRIDAY
The ACTUAL birthday.  Looking back, we crammed a lot into a small window.  We started early and tackled the birthday presents.  There was no need to wait for Chad since it was a game day.

Happy as a pig in mud!

Getting excited to open his big gift

His loot.  He got a basketball hoop (thanks to PapHub and Grandma for helping us put it together on Saturday!), a Spiderman toy, the new LarryBoy (Veggietales movie), and a Nerf football.  Oh, and Jodi and her kids got him the boardgame, Sorry! and Queenie stopped by and gave him his birthday money (he is all about cash right now)

 Right after presents, we went to see daddy at work so we could cut the brownies and sing.

Yummy brownies.

Blowing out his candles

We all then took our normal "visit daddy at work golf cart ride" around the campus.

The golf cart ride.

  

Me and the birthday boy!

We were home by 10ish and then Jodi, Connor and Karson (Jodi took her out of school to join on adventure) teamed up with us.  We went to G-ville and ate at the mall and then conquered Chuck E Cheese.

Shep and Connor (with Jodi) playing.

Shepherd is petrified of Chuck E Cheese so he would get near the rat or the picture!

The crew!  Love all these kiddos! 

We got back at 2:30 and rested for a few hours and then took off for the football game.  I had asked Chad if during the game sometime, the announcer would say Happy Birthday to Ashton.  Well, he did better than that, the whole stadium sang Happy Birthday to him.  Unfortunately, he had just started playing with Aunt Sandee's iphone and was either embarressed by the attention (doubt it) or really into the game (probably).  Either way, he told me the next day, he loved everyone singing to him.

Needless to say, it was all about Ashton the past few days.  To top it all off, he played in his last soccer game on Saturday where he scored 3 of the 4 goals for his team.  He was definitely the little all-star on his team this year.  One kid was literally all over him and by the 3rd quarter, Ashton had enough and shoved the kid off of him with both hands... hahaha- he is a fiesty little thing (unfortunately he gets it honestly from both his mother and father). 

He has two more birthday activities.  Mom and Dad have their annual "take the birthday boy to lunch and shopping" day today after church.  And then the birthday party for Ashton and Shepherd is the 10th.

Ashton, hope you had a special birthday and I CANT BELIEVE YOU ARE 5!!!!  Love you so much!

Raise a Hand...

...for Ashton.  I cant believe you are 5 today- a whole hand!  It seems like you have always been here though.  Life without you surely had to be boring… and quiet!

This past year, your personality and individuality has truly surfaced.  Gone are  the days when you just follow Hunter around wanting to do what he does.  You have truly found your own interests.  You are a sports fanatic and soooo competitive.   For you, everything is either a win or a loss. You and daddy have bonded even more over this past year with your increasing love of sports.  However, you still love your mommy time.

You are not a morning person.  Your brothers will come running down the hall in the morning while you drag up the rear and lay face down on the couch so I will can scratch your back. 

You have a twinkle in your eyes that is captivating.  Pair that with your crooked little grin and beautiful blond hair and I know you are going to be a heart throb. You already have that cool kid personality at preschool.

You have slight lisp that is adorable, though I think speech is going to be needed.  You love to sing.  And though you are small, you are a great eater and can be convinced to eat about anything with the right bribe.

You also are a pest.  You can find the buttons to push on people that they probably didn’t even know were there.  However, you will fall apart if someone pushes those buttons on you.  I don’t think this is a stage as you pretty much have always been like this--- God bless the woman that you marry. 

You look out for both your brothers.  Even though Hunter is older, you would have his back in a heartbeat.  And other kids cant pick on Shepherd without you being right there to defend him.  I know that you will be the same way with the new baby.

Speaking of new baby, you are so excited to be a big brother again. You rub my belly and talk to him.  You are so ready for him to be here and teach him things. You tell everyone about baby "B."

Ashton, you are big personality stuffed into a little body.  You are going to be grow up into an awesome man and will always be my buddy. 

Always remember to find your joy in Jesus… not in things of this world. 

I love you Smashy
Mommy

Hunter for Homecoming

Chad's team had their Homecoming game last night and Hunter was asked to hand out the flowers to the homecoming nominees.

Hunter before the game.

He seriously looked so handsome and grown up.

Under the lights all ready to go for halftime.

One of the nominees getting her flower.

And just because I dont ever post game pictures, here are two....

Can you find Chad?  Black shirt with the headset.

Besides me forgetting my stadium seat in the car, it was a great night.  Our team won pretty easily, the boys were well behaved, the weather was great, and Hunter did a really good job! 

Visit with the NC Cousins

It is seriously amazing to live so close to all the family.  I am so thankful Zach and Anna (and the boys) moved to NC!  It only took a little over an hour to make the trip and it is a perfect day trip.

Here are some pictures from our visit.

Running to the park that is right down from their house.

The tire swing... Owen and my 3 loved it! 

Anna and Caelum

Hunter and Owen during a jam session.

I am sooo jealous of this basement/ playroom!  Ug, I love this!

This is what happens when you leave your camera out where a brother can get ahold of it... this shot barely misses my middle finger.

My infant car seat expired... yes, car seats apparently expire.  So, Anna is letting me borrow their travel system.  I think this seat is adorable and is great condition... thanks for saving me a couple hundred dollars!

And now, here are the best shots of each boy. 

Wonder of wonders... I got a good picture of Owen... this kid has a way of not enjoying the camera.

Hunter bug

Not a great shot of Sheppy... I am doing haircuts tonight.

Ashton, again not a great shot and again, hair cuts tonight.

Too cute for words... he made it effortless to get his picture.  Look at his new hair do!  So grown up.

Zach, Anna, Owen, and Caelum- thank you for having us over for a playdate... thanks for the lunch, and thanks for letting me borrow your infant carseat/ stroller! :)

Mom's Birthday

The whole family was able to get together to celebrate mom's birthday.

The birthday girl with the grandboys.

Saturday, Chad was able to keep the boys and I took off to G-vill with mom and dad.  We left dad and mom and I went to the mall... it was glorious.  We had a great time and Chad had the boys bathed and basically ready for bed by the time I got home! 

Sunday after church, everyone (except Chad... football meeting) met up at mom and dads for lunch and play.  We had a great time and the cousins loved seeing eachother.  We are looking forward to our trip up to see them tomorrow!

Here are some pictures!

Look at this really cool font on the brownies.  Very seasonal.  Ok, I admit it, it was totally accidental.  The icing on the brownies never really set up and when I went to write on them, the writing merged all together.  Regardless, they were so good!

Opening packages.

Blowing out the candles on the candleless brownies.

Trying to get a picture of the 5 boys...

Nolan took this on his way out.  Group shot minus Nolan and Chad.

Happy Birthday Mom!!!  We all love you so much!