Adley Has Arrived!

Adley Sarah Lopez
"Wise & Just Princess"

It was just the lil' ladies & I at home Saturday & Daddy was on shift at the fire station. We had just finished up our movie night & I was wiping the messy pizza sauce from the lil' girls' faces ( and just about everywhere else they could have possibly gotten the sauce) when suddenly contractions started up. At first, I didn't really think anything of them because good o' Braxton Hicks had been frequently coming to visit me lately as each afternoon would wind down. But then they suddenly started hitting quickly & more intensely & it suddenly went from regular night time routine to "super sonic get those girlies to bed ASAP" time. I probably set some world records, lol...But seriously.

After everyone was tucked safely away, I decided to just wait things out for a second to make sure I didn't alert anyone unnecessarily. After an hour, I decided it was time to go to the hospital where J was waiting. To make a long & frustrating story short, despite walking it out & enduring continuous contractions I just dilated to a 3& then everything stopped. FRUSTRATING. So, 11pm we dragged ourselves back home. Those girls were super troopers for sure. Once again I went through the bed time routine before J & I headed off to bed ourselves. I joked with him that my water was going to break in bed so I could really gross him out. Off to Dreamland my husband went (he was going to have to head back to work in a few hours so he was super tired) & I closed my eyes hoping that I would not be too far behind him when suddenly my exact words became reality! My water broke!?!

It was kind of funny to lean over & wake up my husband to this piece of news, even though I was beyond exhausted at this point. As we waited for the babysitter to arrive (Grandma), I literally had to stand in the bath tub, lol.

Fast forward to Sunday at 8:42am & after literally only 2 minutes of pushing, my lil' miracle was finally here!

Before I move on to more details about her measurements & appearance, I want to voice just how special & important this baby is to me & what she stands for. This pregnancy I had so many things try to come against me & this precious baby. So many wonderful women around me suffered miscarriages or struggled with infertility. How my heart goes out to each & every 1 of them & how much more do I need to value this baby. At 23 weeks pregnant we were hit in a car accident where my labor started & my placenta tore. The Dr. literally came in the room & said that since it was too early in the pregnancy for them to do anything to save her all I could do was "pray that God would have mercy". For more than a month & a half I literally was not even allowed to get out of bed, complete & total bed rest. It was 1 of the most challenging things I have been through, but I also knew that nothing was too big for my God & my placenta healed itself & labor stopped. I eventually got moved to partial bed rest, but soon found myself in the hospital again at 34 weeks pregnant in full term labor. After 2 days of being unsure if they could stop it with medicine, I was finally released to go home. Being able to bring new life into this world is a huge thing & we should never take this privilege & miracle lightly. There is NO WAY I can take credit for this baby making it as long as she did & coming out perfectly healthy & whole. In fact, with my first pregnancy the Dr. said that my body & cervix were just not strong enough to handle bearing children & I should not have a lot of children. That's just not my husband or my heart & here I am 4 miracles later. Thank you everyone who has supported us over these past 4 pregnancies/4 years in countless ways. God is good & He is bigger than any problem or struggle you could have!

Now on to the details of this beautiful girl!!! She was born on 4/22/12 at 8:44am. She weighed 7lbs & is 18 1/4 inches long. She is light complected & has blonde eyelashes & eyebrows. The 1st thing my oldest noticed, "Mommy, she has no eyebrows just like me!" lol. Her hair is a very very light brown/red & her eyes are blue. She is extremely calm & literally looks like a petite lil' doll. As my husband & I always say, "We never know what we are going to get". :)

Well, thank you everyone for all the warm wishes!!!

:)

-M&M Momma

Last picture pregnant!

Our Family!

Breaking It Up!

I have been asked several times now if my kids ever comment on being bored. To be perfectly honest with you, "No". First of all, I would not let them make comments like because it shows a lack of appreciation for the things that they have & it also might be a sign they are watching too much television because they are requiring more to stimulate their minds & their imaginations/creativity seem to be struggling.

I think routines are very good to have in place because they provide structure & the stability every kid needs & craves, but we don't want to get so ridged about it that our kid can't flow or handle things changing up from time to time.

Especially when you are a stay at home mom, it might be hard to stay creative all the time & for the days to not become somewhat monotonous. First of all, I think that is why play dates, trips to the library, classes, or any other activity that can get them out of the house for a moment are important to spread throughout the week. Aside from that, creating "stations" in your house or blocks of time dedicated to certain activities is important for your kids, but also for your own sanity. Here are some ideas....

1) Creating a special area dedicated to reading. Make it look different from play areas for your kids so that they realize you expect a different attitude when they are in this area. Maybe put a small rug & pillows to make it look comfy. Establish rules for that specific area like using soft voices or only becing able to have 1 book out at a time or treat books with respect. Changing out the books from time to time is also important. You can establish weekly themes if you want (i.e. nature) or whatever. If you do not have a lot of books, the library is a great place to rent some from.

2) This "quiet zone" can also double as a puzzle station if you add a lil' table. I am obsessed with IKEA so I definitely recommend getting their child size furniture.

3) An art station can also be fun. You can either set up more independent projects like painting or playdoh or a larger project that you can do together with your lil' ones. If you have a theme for the week this is another awesome place to incorporate it. Online is a great place to find projects, their are inexpensive crafts at craft stores, or check out your local dollar store or the "Dollar Spot" at Target. Again, IKEA offers some EXCELLENT craft aprons that provide excellent coverage for your lil' ones for the more messy projects.

4) Adding a cooking project into the week can also be super fun. Include your child in this process by letting them help pick what you should cook, write up the grocery list, & even go shopping with you to get everything.

5) Nap time is also a fun lil' way to break up the day. Even if your kid is "getting a lil' old for naps". This time in the middle of the day is really nice to give everyone a chance to unwind & to leave them alone with their thoughts. I can't tell you how many times I have walked past Aidann during nap time & she is singing or telling herself lil' stories. You can even send older kids to bed with a more quiet & imaginative toy (like a few Barbies) or books. Be sure to establish expectations to your child again about how they need to use quiet voices & they are not allowed to get out of bed. I personally seperate my kids during this time because I want them to do the independent thing & also be able to unwind & take a nap if they need it (sometimes they don't even know they need it).

6) Water play is also a wonderful activity. I have a water table & it provides hours of fun for the girls, but if that is not an investment you really want or can make right now, create your own water play area with bath toys or items from the kitchen. I definitely suggest doing this in the kitchen on top of towels or even buying 1 of those small inexpensive plastic pools. Supervision for this activity is ALWAYS needed!

7) Music is great to incorporate into childhood. You can simpily turn on some music & dance around all crazy together or add in insruments from the store or make your own. This is also a wonderful time to incoporate some of the classic songs with music or make up new ones.

8) Independent play is very important to add intot he daily routine, especially with the younger ones who tend to want to be right there on your hip all the time. Assign each child a station or area to play in away from you & away from their other sibilings. This is so healthy for them to learn how to create fun/entertainment by themselves. You can start doing this with smaller increments of time if it is not something you have been doing since 9 months & then slowly increase time to an hour.

9) Special time/1-on-1 time is something your child will definitely cherish if you can add it into the day. It can be something as simple as sitting that one child down with you for a story, letting just them help you with dinner, playing something that interests them for awhile, or just taking the time to sit them down & listen to what they have to say. You may not be able to squeeze this in for all your kids every day, but there is always tomorrow & don't ever beat yourself up for not being able to make it happen.

10) Dedicating time specifically to learning is also important. It is never too early. Austin doesn't quite understand the concept of shapes & colors right now, but for her "school time" there are other things I can start teaching her (i.e. animal recognition & sounds, saying the alphabet & counting, etc). Again, before beginning this very important time, estblashing epectations is very important. Try to make the learning area in the same place every day also so that your child knows that when they are in this "space", it is time to get serious & ready for learning.

Well, I hope I provided you with at least some ideas on how to break up your days in a positive & productive way :).

-M&M Momma

SO ready

Today we apparently woke up to a blizzard!
Girls put on snow gear and we built snowmen,
threw snowballs, & more snow fun!

Snowball fight!

Pushing her baby in a sled through the snow

Helping me make "hot coco"

Chillin' lol

Products You'll Love-Magnetic Dolls

Paper dolls, although they can be fun, are somewhat of a thing of the past. The clothing is constantly falling off & you constantly have to worry about your lil' 1 accidentally ripping them or bending them. The new & improved "paper dolls" are magnetic & so much fun! The clothing easily stays on & they usually come in nice organized boxes or plastic bags to keep everything in. The 2 brands that I can personally vouch for are "Melissa & Doug" as well as "Shure". I already had a princess set for the girls made by "Melissa & Doug" & the girls loved it, but when I found this set of magnetic doll triplets by "Shure" I was even more pleased. Under my super vision even Austin can get in on the fun now! Sometimes they play with them as dolls & other times they like sticking the clothes on pictures of people I already have sticking on our fridge. Your boys don't have to be left out of this 1 because they also create some cool boy packs as well, plus your girls would probably love playing with a daddy or brother. Check them out and give me your feedback! :)

-M&M Momma

They even make a house!
(SHURE)



(Melissa & Doug)

(Melissa & Doug)

My ladies love this pack
& we can easily take it
on the go
(Great for waiting at dr. office)
(SHURE)

I Got a New Way 2 Walk!

So funny. If you watch my oldest daughter, Aidann, walk around she tends to automatically put her hand on her hip & do a lil' strut. Its not at all "diva like", but its more like a confidence thing. It cracks my husband & I up every single time.

Recently, we were walking through Target & that classic Aidy strut started up. The next thing we knew, Asher started doing it too with her lil' Asher flare added to it, lol. Good stuff.

-M&M Momma

What's Gonna Work? Teamwork!

Teamwork & parenting are a wonderful combination. It is a winning combination! I know that teamwork is not always possible in every situation when parenting your lil' ones, but when it is a possibility, this winning combination can create such a stable & secure foundation for your kids and just make the parenting experience SO much easier and rewarding.

Presenting a united front to your kids is an essential component to parenting. Kids are extremely perceptive & they will definitely try more than once to play you & your spouse against each other. Its amazing how young this starts & in the beginning, I believe, it starts innocently. It goes like this - Your kid comes up to you & asks if they can have some juice. You say "No". They then decide to go ask Daddy in hopes of a different response. A good rule of thumb is to always ask your kids first if they have already asked the other parent. If they say that they did, ask them what the other parent told them & if they tell you that Mommy said, "No." then it is the perfect opportunity to present that united front by saying, "Mommy & Daddy are on the same team & whatever Mommy says, Daddy says." and so forth.

Sometimes, one parent won't agree with the response the child/children got from the other parent, but that is something that needs to be resolved behind closed doors & at a later time. Because if you choose to voice your disagreement in front of your child/children, you will actually be making things harder for yourself (and them) in the long run. Kids will sense the lack of unity, i.e., the "crack in the foundation" right away. Besides, you NEVER want to let your children be a source of conflict in your marriage.

Parenting is definitely a learning experience as well as a challenge! When a husband & wife come together & decide to embark on this new adventure of raising kids, there are definitely going to be differences of opinion as far as discipline, how/what the kids should eat, what words they are allowed to & not allowed to say, how many kids you want to have, & so forth. It is actually quite crazy how many challenges come up when you are raising kids! This is why communication between a husband & wife is KEY! Good communication is so important & absolutely necessary.

Before you get married, there are a lot of decisions to make & many things that must be worked out together as a couple, but once you actually become parents, the need to make a conscious effort to constantly talk about things becomes vital. With parenthood, being "on the same page" is now of utmost importance! You are both entrusted with the teaching & training of the impressionable, young lives of your child/children. Both parties are going to have to be willing to, not only, state their opinion on why they believe things should be done a certain way in certain situations, but also be willing to listen to the other person's perspective on these matters. This way a compromise, in which both parties can agree upon, can be reached. From time to time, you may realize that neither of you has the answer & choose to seek advice elsewhere.

I don't know 1 parent who does not want better for their kids. Sometimes this means improving upon some of the methods & techniques you were raised with. Rather than just assuming the disciplinary action, eating habits, decisions, etc. that you were raised with is the best way, re-evaluate and discuss each aspect with your spouse, always seeking to improve upon and reach higher than even your parents did.

As my children are getting older, my husband and I have encountered more and more interesting challenges in more ways than we could ever have imagined. I mean, they don't write a book on some of the more unique stages kids go through & how to successfully approach them. Sometimes you just have to get super creative! I mentioned before how 1 of my kids suddenly decided she no longer wanted to swallow her vegetables & so she would just put them into her mouth & store them on the sides of her cheeks. My husband & I talked it over together & decided how we were going to conquer this situation as a team. With both parents dealing with a situation/challenge in the same exact way, success will come a lot sooner because the child sees that they can't win or break the team apart.

Down to the smallest details, my husband & I try to stay as similar to one another as possible to help create and maintain the stable, secure environment that all kids need & crave. For one thing, we "hold tight" to the same rules at the eating area so whether it is mommy doing mealtime or daddy, the exact same expectations are in place (For example: "Sit like a lady.", "Ask to be excused.", " Chew with your mouth closed.", "Clean up your area when you are finished eating.", and so forth) - unity! It may seem like small stuff & kind of ridiculous to some but I guarantee you, our kids try to challenge us a whole lot less because they KNOW the boundaries cannot be moved. We even try to use a lot of the same terms when working with our kids like, "When do we obey?" and they respond "Right away!". Again, its seemingly lil' things like that that help to establish and solidify the united front we want our kids to see/know.

Are you ever going to slip & maybe voice disagreement with your spouse in front of your kids? Probably, but as long as you also show them how you can make up & resolve the problem, it will work out. Periodically, it may even take a little putting down of your pride to express to your child how you were wrong for something you did or didn't do. In doing these things, you are not only showing your child/children a united front as parents, but you are also demonstrating/modeling life skills, such as problem-solving skills and the art of apologizing, for them.

Teamwork is not always easy, but if you are even a lil' bit familiar with sports, you also know how necessary it is in order to win. :)

-M&M Momma

Pooped out from a LONG day

Never too tired to eat

Over the moon,
we finally got a big girl playground!!!

Got Bubbles?

My lil' ladies are absolutely obsessed with bubbles. The 2 older girls love blowing them while Austin loves trying to eat them. Its so fun to take them to the park to blow, let them blow them while we go for a walk & the ride in the wagon, & then just recently I decided to blow them while the girls are in the bath tub. Bubble bath+ bubbles blowing all around them= tons of lil' squeals of joy. Its simple, but it usually is the simpliest things that offer the most excitement & intrigue for kids. Just an idea. :)

-M&M Momma

At Lowes with Daddy