He eats!

Mr. Brennen is not doing well with waiting 3 hours to eat so we thought we would try some solids today! We usually start with carrots, but this momma forgot to buy any yesterday at the store, so we switched it up a bit and started with squash instead. No real reason we start with carrots except there are 3 orange veggies and it's the least sweet. I usually go orange, green, orange, etc on veggies when they start eating just so they don't turn orange with all the same stuff! HA

 Funny story about this...I got Matt a bib and a spoon out to start feeding Brennen. I just grabbed the first bib on the pile which was from a goodie bag I got from the OB. He looked at it when he put it on Brennen and said "hell no, get him a sports bib". HA

First bite and it was blocked by Matt's big ole hand in my picture! I saw it first hand, but no blog first bite picture...this is the best I could do! 

Not too sure if he liked it or not. His tongue was doing a fun little trick of trying to lick it off the spoon which instead just spit squash at us! He did eat about 8 spoonfuls though.

You can most definately tell he's our third child! Matt did have to find his baby spoon to feed Brennen though so that's a plus. Teagan used it as well, and Emmersyn used my first spoon so we kept that tradition. 

We waited until 6 months before we started any solids with Teagan, about 5 months with Emmersyn, and Brennen is 4! Crazy how relaxed you get with each kid! I'm gonna hate to see our grocery bill in a few more months with FIVE eating Murray people! Better start saving now!

Happy Easter!

  Happy Easter 2013!!!

Easter is probably my FAVORITE holiday ever! You get to play all day, get together and eat, and hide eggs/do fun things without the obligation of getting presents.  I do not feel the need to go "all out" for Easter either. My kids will get baskets with some candy and eggs in it and while they are too little for candy, they will get a toy instead. I want them to understand the reason for the holiday and not expect lots of extra things.

The Easter bunny came last night and the kids woke up to find eggs hidden all over the downstairs and their baskets on the table! I got the girls their baskets last year with their names on them and LOVE them! I tried to get Brennen one this year, but the lady didn't have any so I'm going to have to shop around and see what I can find him. This year, he shared a basket with mommy and daddy and got a toy!

Easter Egg hunt

We had a few friends over for a last minute, impromptu Easter Egg hunt on Saturday evening. Since I work most weekends, especially holidays, it's hard for me to take the kids to any of the hunts so a friend and I decided to just throw one at my house! We had 4 couples with their kids over for some hunting, pizza, and fun. We ended up with 7 kids ranging from 4 months to 4 years! 

Teagan was READY! 

All the kids here are within 5 months of age with Teagan being the oldest, 4. The others will turn 4 in July and August!  

 And of course Emmersyn wanted to play with the big kids too!

Searching for more!

I am so glad I have friends who have kids so close in age with mine! It definitely makes for some fun evenings and get togethers! Can't wait to do it again!!!

A normal day

On any given day, you can find Teagan dressed like this:

 She got this Tangled dress for her birthday and wears it practically everyday! It's a safe bet that she likes it! She also got some makeup for her birthday so that's why her eyes are so blue...they are not bruised! LOL

4 year checkup

Teagan had her 4 year check up on Tuesday with both babies well checks too! That's right, all 3 kids at the doctor getting shots at once... Good times! The babies got their regular shots and we went ahead and got Teagan's kindergarten shots. They told us we could get them next year if we wanted, but I had already been working Teagan up to it all day (I didn't know it was an option) and had bribed her with a milkshake if she was good. When we found out it was an option to wait, Matt and I thought about it, but decided to go ahead with the plan as she was getting blood drawn anyways to check some other things. No point in her throwing a fit for nothing.

Here are her 4 year stats:
Weight: 48lbs4oz (98.12%)
Height: 43inches (97.03%)

She is definately a big, solid girl, but I don't think she looks too much bigger (wight wise) than the other kids her age. It is so weird to see she is 3foot 7 inches tall already at 4 though considering Randi is all of 5ft 4 maybe....no idea where she gets her height!

Brennen at 4 months

Brennen turned 4 months on the 27th as well and again, I'm late on posting...big surprise! 

Brennen, at 4mn, you are a great boy! You laugh out loud now and light up when you see your sisters. You love people and will usually "talk" to them by gooing and are not lacking in the friend department.  You are a messy eater still, but are gaining weight so the doctors aren't too concerned, although it makes for extra laundry for mommy! 

Your hair has lightened up and has thinned out. You can blame daddy for the thinning hair! HA! It looks like your eyes will be blue, although some days they still look green so who knows!  

At 4 months, you are wearing a size 3 or 3-6 mn in sleepers and usually a size 3mn in clothes.  I haven't tried shoes on you, but you have some cute socks that look like shoes.  You are wearing a size 2 diaper and eat about 5 oz of formula every 3-4 hrs. You usually sleep about 5hrs straight at night and then go 4 hrs until you wake again. Much better than it has been so I'll take it.

You weigh 16lb5oz (78.8%) and are 26.3 inches (90.03%). You have gotten to be a big boy lately and are soon going to be as big as Emmy! Some days I can't believe you are mine. You can roll to your side on your back but can't flip to the belly yet. You are such an easy baby. You are happy ALL the time except when you want to eat and then you want to eat and nothing else will soothe you.

Brennen Michael, I love you with all my heart!

Emmersyn at 15mn

Emmersyn turned 15 months on the 27th and in true middle child form, I am late posting! HA. I was hoping things would get easier the older my babies got, but it has gotten more challenging trying to do blog posts on a regular basis. 

Emmy, at 15mn you are a feisty girl! You LOVE to climb into and on top of anything. You love to jump off the couch and climb over anyone laying on the floor. Your newest conquest has been climbing the chairs and onto the kitchen table and you have mastered climbing out of your crib already! You are definitely the one to keep mommy and daddy on our toes. 

You are a happy girl though. You LOVE your sister and brother and they love you too....usually.  You think you're bigger than you really are though. You try to do anything Teagan does. You LOVE running around and being outside. You aren't a fan of being contained in the carseat, and will usually just fuss or fall asleep in the car.  You have the best personality and I think you'll be a tomboy. You love to get dirty. You love bathtime and ANYTHING with water and love to put your face in the water and blow bubbles.

You love to eat. You will eat anything and I joke you would probably eat a rock if we let you. If anyone is eating, you stand there and grunt until they feed you something too! You love to throw balls and play with the rocking horse, although you usually like to climb on his back and stand on him.

At 15 months, you weigh 23lb2oz (57%) and are 31.75inches (87%). I still think you are so tiny though. You are wearing 12-18month clothes and a size 4 diaper and size 4 shoes.  You are still taking 2 naps a day and sleep about 10 hrs at night (8pm-6am) usually, but you also have night terrors and scream several times a night even though you are still asleep...it wakes mommy up though!

You are such a great daughter and we love you beyond words, even if you do keep us jumping all day!

Directory Picture

Here is the newest Murray Family of 5 picture for the church directory! I love the original (this is a copy). I wish Emmersyn  was smiling, but all 3 kids were looking at the camera and no one was crying so I call it a success!

Emmy the climber

Emmersyn has learned how to climb EVERYTHING! It started with the kitchen chairs and she then learned she can climb up the table from there. And, she can move the chairs all over the kitchen and reach everything off the cabinets...FUN times!!!
At her morning naps, I usually take a shower since she is contained. Today, I put her and Brennen to bed and jumped in the shower. I heard what I thought was crying and then a second later Emmersyn walked into the bathroom...yup, she has now figured out how to climb out of her crib...at 14monthes! I think she hit her face on the way out though because she has a red mark on her forehead and a chipped tooth which means her first dentist appointment was scheduled for tomorrow! The joys of having 3 kids! I wish I could back in time and realize how good Teagan was as a babY! HA

mY 3 Princesses

Sorry Brennen, This is what happens when you have 2 big sisters though. Sometimes you have to take one for the team! I'm sure he will be embarrassed later in life, but for now, he's a good sport! And Matt let Teagan paint his nails today for her birthday so maybe the guys are just destined to be overran by the girls in this house!

Bittersweet

Teagan's birthday is always bittersweet to me. I am so proud to be her mom. She is super sweet, smart, funny, and loving. Yes, she does get in trouble and acts like any other 3-4 year old, but to me, she's perfect! Having adopted her, I always remember the sacrifice and love Randi showed by placing her for adoption and "giving" her to us.  I can still picture her sad, crying face in the back of her moms car as they left the hospital without Teagan. And, I do not know how I can ever express my gratitude to her for giving me the best gift I could ever get.
Another reason it is so bittersweet is because I can remember how tiny Teagan looked in the NICU. She was born at 32 weeks. I was terrified seeing her hooked up to so many things, but I knew she was a fighter as soon as she pulled her first feeding tube out. I knew she got her strength from Randi and we would be going home quicker than they said. And we did. We spent a LONG 2 weeks there, and I didn't leave her side at all. I am thankful that of all my kids it was her in the NICU as I wasn't having to recover from birth and could focus 100% on her.  I know now that God gives you what you can handle and you are given the kids you are meant to raise, whether is be through adoption, birth, or both.  And, having done both, I don't think I could love Teagan any more if she had grown in my belly.

Celebrating Teagan

WOW! I can't believe Teagan is 4! We celebrated her birthday with our friends last night. Instead of having a dozen little people at the house, we decided to rent out bounce time at a local gym. I think the kids had more fun there than they would have at our house playing little games and it was a bonus I didn't have to clean the house! HA! That is well worth the price. My only con of renting it out was no food except cake/cupcakes were allowed!

Me and my big girl before the guests arrived!  

 Some of Teagan's friends listening to the rules

 playing with the trampoline and big building blocks. I think one of the boys is behind the tower, but you couldn't see him.

Happy birthday princess!!!

Favorite things!

I LOVE being a mom, but there are a few things I miss since having kids!

Here's a list of a few of the things that I miss and can remember:

• taking a LONG bath without someone wanting to join me...other than my hubby! HA
• shaving both legs on the same day and not missing half of them because I thought I heard a baby
• eating dinner in one sitting
• when having a shower every day wasn't a treat, it was the norm
• not having to think about what I want at a restaurant in terms of "what can I share with the kids"
• being able to walk out the door in 10 minutes
• not knowing the pooping habits of 3 other people on any given day
• days off
• and most of all SLEEP! 

That being said, I wouldn't change my sleepless nights and hairy legs for anything! 

my girls

Yay! A picture of my girls!

Emmersyn, 14months and Teagan, 3

Life

Time keeps getting away from me! It seems as if I blog less and less and have absolutely NO pictures...I'll get better, I promise!
Life is in full swing right now. Teagan turns FOUR next week and I'm in shock! How in the world did that happen?!?!  It seems like just yesterday she was the size of Brennen and now she's a big girl! Crazy!
Nothing new really has been going on. I was back on night shift the past 2 weeks and I don't feel like I saw Matt at all!  I'd leave when he got home and when I got home he was going to bed with the girls while I settled in with Brennen.  I'm hoping this week is a little less hectic with my inlaws back to watch the kids during the day some.
I've been battling some horrible headaches the past month or so. I've gotten to the point of barely being able to hold my head upright.  I've tried everything and finally bit the bullet and went to the doctor last week to change my blood pressure meds. Of course, my appointment was on Friday so by the time I went to the pharmacy and discovered they weren't called in, the doctor's office was closed for the weekend...awesome! I've got a call in now to the doctor! Hoping that's all it is, but it may be related to something else. I just want a quick fix so I can feel like a human again!
Emmersyn has a new tooth! Total of 8. I'm not sure if I already blogged it or not, and frankly I"m too lazy to go back and check! LOL. My new favorite phrase I say at least a dozen times a day is "Emmy, where's your brother's binky?". She LOVES to take it and hide it, but yet if I ask her where it is, she can walk on over and find it in 2 seconds! Wish I had her memory still!
We got our church directory pictures done last week and I LOVE them! I can't wait to get them. I got a CD with all the pictures so soon I will be uploading actual pictures for you all to see!
And that's all that's been going on in the Murray house. Boring people, yes!