Caroline turns Three

It's so hard to believe that Caroline is now three years old. She arrived four weeks early, a scheduled C-Section, in all her tiny glory. Though we knew she would be small, we had hoped she would be healthy. She experienced significant fluid in her lungs at birth and was immediately taken to the NICU.

At two days old she developed a hole in her lung. I was immediately grateful that she WAS in the NICU. She was exactly where she needed to be so the nurses and doctors would be awake, monitoring her in the middle of the night, (2 am) when she would experience this distress. She was sedated, had surgery to insert a chest tube, and placed on a ventilator. It was so awful to see her in that condition.

Christmas day, three days after her lung collapsed, I was finally able to hold her.

12/25/13 : 5 days old

Every Christmas I put on that same flannel shirt and take another picture with Caroline, holding her to my chest. It serves as a visible reminder to me of how precious her life is, and how holding her in my arms that day was one of the greatest Christmas gifts I will ever receive.

12/25/14 : 1 year + 5 days old

12/25/15: 2 years + 5 days

12/25/16 : 3 years + 5 days

And now Carrie is three. She is so spunky and fun. She is such a chatterbox and says the most hilarious things. On her birthday we ate chili for dinner. She ate everything out of her bowl that she liked. Then she said, "I want some more cold." I had no idea what she was talking about. She repeatedly told us she wanted more cold and got angrier by the moment that we didn't know what she was referring to. It finally dawned on me that chili = cold. I was amazed that she was able to recognize chilly as a synonym for cold and replace the word was had been using to describe the meal with a word she was more familiar with. She was delighted when we finally understood what she meant and ate her "cold" with gusto.

birthday cookie

She is completely devoted to her sisters (usually it's a different sister each day), but most often it is Abbey. Caroline absolutely loves babies. Her current favorite little person is her cousin Matteo. She delights in him (it's hard not to, he is really sweet and cute!)

Her new baby "Olivia"

Caroline is so excited to be a big sister. Every time we get a new picture or video of her sister she loves to look at it and talk about her sister and be hopeful for when she will get to see her in real life.

Caroline is also excited to move into the same room with her older sisters. I feel very strongly about the bond created by sharing a bedroom. We (as in I) have decided that Caroline will move in with her big sisters sometime in the New Year. I hope to create a new post for that transition.

always drawing

Caroline still sucks her thumb when she sleeps. She will only suck her thumb when she has her special night time blanket. She never sucks her thumb during the day.

She is definitely, very much a three-year-old. She is starting to assert her own will more and more. She is very sensitive. Usually if I tell her "no" very sternly she will start crying.

She loves playing the game Sequence for kids, but only according to her own rules. She likes beans, and chips and salsa and sour cream. She loves coffee with cream. She hates to have her hair brushed and her teeth brushed, unless she is doing those things by herself. She likes to snuggle up to watch movies. She went to Sight and Sound Theater to see Samson and loved when he knocked all the walls down. She loves Sunday School and her teachers. She intentionally wriggles during church so she can go to nursery with her beloved cousin, Matteo. She likes painting her fingernails, and has unfortunately gone to great lengths to achieve this; going so far as to get a stool, put it in the closet to reach the nail polish , and paint her own nails while the rest of us were busy elsewhere in the house. When she was found out she immediately started crying and saying she was sorry. She loves sparkles and boots and sparkly boots from Mema. She loves her piggy bank and delights in demanding coins from her Grandpa every Wednesday night. She likes tea parties with Grandma and books in her bed.

All that to say, Caroline is a joy to our hearts. We are so glad she was born. While she still is just a peanut, she is quite healthy, with just a tiny white scar to show for her rough start. Happy third birthday little bird. We love you!

Maggie turns 6 & Adoption

Teeny tiny adoption update. We have been officially waiting for two months - so most likely another 7 to go! This means approximately 7 more months until we are matched with our daughter, then after that we will have another 5-6 months until we travel. I'm sure the waiting will be hard as we get closer to our match, but right now the time is slipping right on by, for which I am grateful. I'm also thankful for the consistency of the China program and for the way our adoption agency keeps in touch with waiting families so we don't feel forgotten.

She had a traumatic entry into the world, but not much slows her down now!

Now, for Miss Magdalena. It's hard to believe our smallest baby, our third daughter, is six.

Leaving the hospital after 6 days in the NICU

Her first day home - about 4.5 pounds and 17" long.

It's so hard to believe that our sweet baby is now six years old!

For her birthday she went to the Strasburg Rail Road to ride the train. This was followed by a trip to Isaac's for dinner. The daddy-daughter dates have been one of the best investments I believe we could make. This trip was very low cost (Maggie had a free ticket to the RR and her meal was free at Isaac's - both of those things she earned during the summer reading program through our local library). **Trent has these photos - I'll try to add them later!**

Princess Maggie at the fundraiser

While our kids do enjoy gifts, they all appreciate the gift of time more than anything else. They may not remember what gift they got during any particular year, but they can all recall where they went with their daddy at each age. These moments are more precious than anything I could ever give them. I've learned through my own experiences as well as parenting books and psychology courses I've taken the profound impact dads have on their children, but ESPECIALLY their daughters.

She always wanted a red-headed baby, and now she has one!

Just a little about Maggie:
-She loves babies
-She loves drinking water
-She does not love juice
-She loves coffee
-She learned to tie her shoes in one try this summer
-She is becoming a more confident reader everyday
-She is still very small for her age despite her perfect cheeks
-She wants 10 babies when she grows up (5 from her belly and 5 from China)
-She has big dreams of getting married and considers her options seriously
-Did I mention she loves babies?
-She is very excited to start soccer practice
-She loves catching frogs with her sisters
-She loves to draw
-She is thoughtful (she often will draw pictures for people and send them in the mail or hand-deliver them)
-She is generous (she is continually giving Caroline her own favorite toys to make her happy)
-She loves bugs
-Her favorite color is yellow
-She loves Taco Bell bean burritos
-She is a great story teller
-She is very creative and is always coming up with new ideas for crafts or building forts

Maggie says that when she grows up she wants to be a mom. When Anne tells her that she has to do something else first, like, get a job, her reply is always, "I'm going to paint signs, like Mommy!" Bless her little heart.

She was thrilled to find and inspect a cicada

Recently Maggie has had some hard feelings toward herself. She has struggled with feeling like she isn't good enough. Learning to read has been very difficult for Maggie, along with some other memory problems. It's such a challenge to see these precious little souls face their insecurities. Generally her frustrations blow up into fits of crying and running to her room. Recently during one of these fits she told me she feels like she is a "bad girl" and can never be good. I was able to tell her that she's right. None of us are good. Only God is good. But we can have forgiveness and peace because of Jesus' death on the cross.

Such a devoted big sister!

I know my girls will at some point have to experience some hard things and do some growing up. My hope for all of them is that when those trials come, that they will turn to my Savior and fully accept Him as their own Savior. I feel like my job as their mom, role model, and teacher is to lead them there. I want to provide them with the facts, but so much more. I want to show by word and deed what a Christ follower looks like, even the messy, ugly parts of failure and mistakes because that's where grace shines through brighter. Eventually they will all come to a point in their lives where they must choose for themselves whom they will serve. I cannot save my children. It's a humbling reality for a Mama who likes to DO things.

So happy sixth birthday, Magdalena Faith! You are more precious than rubies. I can't wait to see what grand adventures you'll have now that you are six!
xoxo,
Mama

FLASH SALE

Let me cut right to the chase then give you the story afterwards.

I have two CUSTOM listings that I am marking $10 off for one day only. Monday, October 26, 2015 in the morning until 11:59 PM the following two signs will be reduced. All sales must be made through Etsy. These signs may take up to 8 (EIGHT) weeks to be finished depending upon the volume of orders. They will all be made and ship/be ready for pick up prior to Christmas. If you want to pick up your sign use the code PICKUP at checkout on Etsy. PLEASE DO NOT USE THIS CODE IF YOU ARE NOT PICKING UP!!! In the drop down menu I listed the most frequently purchased colors. If you do not see the color you would like simply choose "other" and in the Notes to Seller box at check out write out the color you would like instead using the color sample chart that is pictured in the last photo of the listing.

1.) Regularly $40+tax, this one is marked to $30+tax. (Click link below for full information)

Personalized Mark 10:9

2.) Regularly $35 reduced to $25. This is a STEAL!!!

Order this sign HERE!

Now the fun part. The story. Many of you may know that the past week my husband and I have been gallivanting in Charlottesville, Virginia, acting as though we haven't a care in the world, let alone four children! And why? We were celebrating!! December 17, Trent and I will be married for ten years. In honor of our tenth anniversary I am marking these two signs, which recognize the value of a committed, Christ-centered marriage, down by TEN dollars. 

This idea popped into my head months ago when we started planning our trip. Originally I wanted to have the sale on our anniversary, but that is the very end of the busiest time of the year for Mama Hess. (I mean, who gets married the week before Christmas?? Oh yeah, us crazy, in love kids.)  So, there you have it. A great sale for you and a fun way to encourage your marriage, or a loved one's marriage!  I can't wait to see the colors each of you choose for your special sign.

 So: happy {early} anniversary to us and merry {early} Christmas to y'all! Look for a blog post of our trip - hopefully soon!!

Abbey Frances turns 3!!

My little Abbey turned 3!! We had her to the doctor yesterday. She weighs a whopping 23 pounds and was 36 inches tall. That puts Abbey in the 1% for her weight and the 25th% for her height. Our doctor asked if I was always small like I am now. I pretty much always was, and Trent is also very thin, so he was not concerned. He said that he did want to make us aware that if we are interested she could go to Hershey to have growth hormone shots. He said he doesn't really recommend it but he makes his patients aware of the option because he has had some people get very upset that they didn't know this was an option. I love each of my children just the way they are, and at this point in time, Abbey is small and that is just a part of who she is, and we love her just the way she is and wouldn't change her!

Abbey has learned a lot in the past year. She is excellent at memorizing and has memorized quite a bit of Scripture. We are also working on writing her name. I made the mistake of teaching Anne to write her name using all capital letters since they are easier to write. Now I am finding myself trying to re-teach her to write her name using the appropriate letters. To make things simpler on myself I am teaching Abbey the correct way to write her name. She can write "A-b-b..." but struggles with the lowercase e, but can sometimes do the y.

She obviously loves Annie, and when asked who her best friend is she answers, "Annie!" without hesitation.  Recently Abbey and Magdalena have become great chums. Sometimes Maggie is the first awake from naps and when I ask her who she wants to wake up first she answers, "Abbey!" Just last night Abbey and Maggie were hugging each other so tight they would fall over onto the floor and roll around laughing. They would get up and do it again. If Abbey is crying, Maggie will go over to her and hug her and comfort her.

It is a lot of fun for me to see the children getting along so well. Of course, this isn't always the case, but in general our girls get along great.

We are thankful to have a good prescription for Abbey. At her last check-up she was seeing 20-20. Sometimes when we put her glasses on her in the morning she will say, "There! Now I can see better!"

Abbey continues to enjoy puzzles. She also enjoys books, and owls. Her most recent obsession is picking flowers.

For her daddy-daughter birthday day they went for a wild morning out. You know, crazy things like taking the car to get the oil changed. While they waited inside she got to drink root beer and have a huge gum ball. Then they went through the car wash. They stopped at Toys-R-Us and she chose to buy a little toy puppy with her birthday money from Nana & Great-Grampa. She is so thoughtful and also wanted to buy one for Annie and Maggie. She was excited because it cost $3, and she is 3!! Then they went to Long's Park and she wanted Daddy to push her on the swings for awhile. They ate lunch at our favorite place in the city, Splits & Giggles. She had "gwilled cheese" and "weawwy chocowate ice cweam cone."

Abbey lives up to her name and brings joy into our home. We are so thankful for this little sweetie!

Moopsy turns 18 months

**One of my favorites. This is a very typical look for Magdalena:
A little mischievous, ready to run, grin.**

I know a lot of people don't use nick-names for their children. In fact, some people purposely choose names that cannot be shortened or request that people do not attempt to change their given names. I have no problem with that, but I'm definitely not one of those people. I think our kids each have 10 different nick-names.

(Cheese!)

Some of Magdalena's names are: Mags, Maggie, Magdie, Moopsy, Sissy, Baby, and Magda. I'm sure if A&A were awake they could think of more.

And this is a Magdalena post.

As I always say, "Where did the time go??" We have reached yet another milestone for this little girl. This precious bundle who started out so small.

Here's what Magdie likes to do:
~Run
~Chase sisters
~Play Magdie-Monster (a game in which she chases sisters)
~Close doors (this drives me crazy)
~Sleep in her toddler bed
~Climb on things that she shouldn't
~Yell (especially when she knows it is upsetting Annie)
~Wake up big sisters from their naps
~Read books
~Look at tractors out her window
~Hold Petey's leash
~Holding/sleeping with "big teddy"

(Mags and "Big Teddy")

Here's what Magdalena does not like to do:
~Sit still
~Stay in her crib
~Be looked at too closely by children who are not her siblings
~Sit at the table after she's finished eating

(Hold still?? What does that mean?)

Maggie is really starting to talk a lot. She can put about 3 words together to make a short sentence. These usually start with "I want..." and can sound like, "I want Mommy", "I want down", "I want tractor", etc. At this point she is definitely a Mama's girl, to a fault. She is really good when I'm not in the room. As soon as I come into the room she wants me to pick her up. If I don't pick her up she will usually scream and cling to my leg. So in general she's attached at the hip. I have to remind myself when I go to compare her to her siblings that they were both "big sisters" by this time, so they didn't really do what Magdalena is doing. They were already in big sister mode. I think it's high time this little girl has someone younger than her so she's no longer "Baby".

(My baby... can you see my hands in the picture?? I had to hold her because she wanted to run away!)

Trent, Annie, and Abbey often like to point out to me how big Magdie is and how she's really growing up quickly. I know it is true, but it is a little hard to swallow. Not that I want her to remain a baby forever, but it just makes me a little sad to see how quickly these years are going past.

Love those feet!

I know Maggie weighs 21 pounds since we were at the doctor last week, but I'm not sure how long (or short) she is. We'll go in a couple weeks for her 18 month check-up. I'll do a stats-comparison whenever we go!

Look at this little stinker!