Twisties

After rocking her natural twists for a few days, we re-twisted them with yarn to give them extended longevity, added protection, and some super fun extra length. 

*Plus, these yarn twisties are a perfect low-maintenance beach-week style :)

Addy was thrilled with the result - loving the feel of shaking her twists and being able to pull her hair back with a hair-tie herself.  
We can't get over how much older she looks! 

As cute as she is with twisties, I miss her gorgeous curls. 
Beautiful girl :)

Hilton Head 2020

2 months

Our sweet angel Alarie Adeola is 2 months old!

We are so in love with this sweetest 13th babe :)

This new baby stage is the best and we're all soaking it up - her older siblings all quick to scoop her up and enjoy time with their littlest sister.  The younger kids all check-in with Alarie throughout the day and love to give her kisses.  Watching Alarie and marveling at her has become a favorite pastime of us all.  She's a gift! 

Alarie at two-months-old:

loves having her belly rubbed

likes her pacy (pacifier) but can't keep it in

prefers to be held upright

sleeps tightly swaddled (and often breaks out of her swaddle)

sleeps 4-5 hour stretches at night

takes a bottle every 3 hours during the day

grabs fingers

gives sweet smiles

looks towards mama's voice

coos

superman tummy time

strong leg kicks

wears 1-3 mo. size clothing

size 1 diapers

switched to Baby's Only Organic LactoRelief formula 

loves stroller walks

loves being held in the sling carrier

loves being talked to

noisy sleeper

easy baby

perfect carseat road traveler

wide-eyed when startled

grabs at her blankets

has met all her grandparents and all of her cousins ;)

Alarie was 9 lbs 13 oz at one month . . . and is now 11 pounds 3 oz (!) at two months old.
Little one is growing fast! 

Hocking Hills

It was such a treat to have a weekend away with Amy's family at Hocking Hills State Park.

We're all trying to stay safe and protect our families during this Covid-19 pandemic - we've been staying home and wearing masks in public - and it's hard to know which outings are safe and which are not . . . but a weekend in a remote cabin and hiking at a state park with family seemed like a perfect "safe" vacation opportunity in the middle of this pandemic.

(we were a nervous when Amy and Davis were both diagnosed with bronchitis a few days before the trip, uh-oh)

We are thankful for to have time with family and enjoy this beautiful park in Ohio.
*And thankful everyone remained healthy afterwards, praise God!

The family went on two all-family hikes and two "big guys" hikes, shared meals, roasted marshmallows, played pool and lawn games, enjoyed the hot tub, and time together in the cabin. 

Day 2 hikes:

July 4th

July 4th gave us another excuse for charcoal grilled burgers, a fire in the backyard, and roasted marshmallows and s'mores!   Bonus, our big boys chopped firewood.

This has been our favorite weekend activity of late with the current state of things (Covid-19) - enjoying our backyard ;)

 

8 weeks old

We have been marveling at a sweet one for 8 weeks (!)
(time is passing too quickly)

Our sweet Alarie Adeola is 8-weeks-old!

We are loving watching this wonderful baby become more aware of her surroundings and interact with us - coos, gurgles, tracking, and sweet smiles.  She's a marvel. 

She's also starting to stretch out her night feedings - 4 hour stretches at night (woot woot!)

This baby stage is magical.
We are so blessed by this 13th baby :)

Arms Full

I am so thankful to have my arms full with this sweet babe.  Alarie is such a gift.  

I am grateful to be her mama. 

(I'm just now starting to find my footing and new normal as a mom to 13 - whew!  Alarie's siblings are all grateful for a return to home-cooked meals.)

Hair

Addy has a new do

To prep for recital hair (ballet bun), we did our first blow out on Addy's hair:
using a blow dryer on tight wet curls, working small sections at a time with a big round brush to stretch the curls. 

The ballet bun was beautiful for her performance!

Afterwards, Addy let me play with her fully-detangled, stretched curls - we did twisties! 

Addy's looking so grown up!
(and her hair is so long!)

*She really enjoyed the feeling of shaking her hair :)