Logan Is Seven!!

Logan-

Today you are SEVEN! How is this possible? Where does time go? Mommy and daddy are so proud of you, sweet boy. You are kind, generous, loving and fun. You are crazy smart and amaze us every day. You also challenge us more than we ever thought possible. On a daily basis, we have to remind ourselves to be happy you only act up at home. You have not only taught me patience I never thought possible, but also how to find joy in the simplest things. You still have the best smile and big eyes that make it hard to say "no" to. Watching you become a big brother this year has been so much fun. No one can make Miles laugh the way you do; he loves you so much.

At your birthday party this year, you asked for toy donations to a local children's home, Coyote Hill.  We were so proud of you for being so selfless on your birthday.  Honestly, I was even more proud when you didn't ask to keep any of the toy donations for yourself!

Just like every year, I asked you the same list of questions for your birthday. Here are your answers:

1. What is your favorite color? Blue
2. What is your favorite toy? That's hard. Cars 3.
3. What is your favorite fruit? Blueberries
4. What is your favorite TV show? Wild Kratts
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Donuts
6. What is your favorite outfit? Workout Clothes
7. What is your favorite game? Mousetrap
8. What is your favorite snack? Chocolate
9. What is your favorite animal? Orca and Narwhal
10. What is your favorite song? Whatever It Takes, Imagine Dragons
11. What is your favorite book? Otis and the Puppy
12. Who is your best friend? Anders and Zach
13. What is your favorite food? M & M Yogurt
14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play with Nerf Guns by myself
15. What is your favorite drink? Powerade
16. What is your favorite holiday? Thanksgiving
17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? Teddy, "B" and my snuggly
18. What do you like to do with daddy? Play Super Mario 3-D World
19. What do you like to do with mommy? Snuggle
20. What do you want to be when you grow up? An app creator
21. What do you like to do with Avery? Play Puppy Dog Pals
22. What do you like to do with Miles? Snuggle

Happy Birthday, Logan!  Mommy and daddy love you!

178 Days

I started my maternity leave 178 days ago and Miles joined our family twelve days later.  I can't even begin to describe how incredible it has been to spend almost six months at home with Avery, Logan and Miles.  Don't get me wrong, we've had our share of stress, meltdowns and exhaustion, but overall, the time with my babies has been incredible.  Although there isn't ever enough time, I feel so fortunate that my company allowed me to take the time off that I did.

Over the past six months, I spent the majority of my days holding, snuggling and talking to my high maintenance sweet baby Miles. Baby boy missed the memo that third babies are supposed to go with the flow and be "easy".  For months, the common phrase around the Musselman house has been, "September is going to be ugly."  We say this because Miles is a complete mama's boy and I fully give in to ALL of his needs and wants.  To date, I have only spent 29 of his waking hours away from him.  Starting today, I go back to my 40 plus hour a week full-time job and Miles starts full-time daycare.  Yikes!

This summer was busy and hectic and stressful, but so much fun.  We enjoyed a family vacation to Aruba, multiple trips to St. Louis, behavior boot-camp, movies, parks, ice skating and so much more.  We sang "The Wheels on the Bus" and "If You're Happy and You Know It" more times than I can count and played at least 100 rounds of SkipBo and Monopoly Jr.  I loved watching Avery and Logan play with Miles.  Their interactions with their baby brother really showcased their different personalities.  Avery is the typical big sister.  She loves to take care of her baby brother.  She was like a second mom and the best helper.  Logan, on the other hand, is the fun one.  He can make Miles smile and giggle in an instant, but only wants to play with Miles on his terms.

I'm going to miss being home with Miles all day and meeting the big kids at the bus stop after school.  I love being able to help with homework and talk about their days while they can still remember what they did.  To keep things real, I won't miss daily fighting about healthy vs. unhealthy snacks and emptying backpacks and lunch boxes.

The days spent at home were often long and exhausting, but the weeks flew by.  Tonight, Miles was eating and fell asleep in my arms.  While I held him, Avery told me that it reminded her of when he was in the hospital after he was born and that "it felt like just yesterday".  I couldn't agree more. 

Avery's 8!

Avery-

Eight years around the sun, sweet girl, I know I say this every year, but where did time go? Daddy and I are so proud of the person you have become. You truly got the best parts of your daddy and me.  You are beautiful and don’t even know it.  You are kind, compassionate, and thoughtful.  And you always believe that the glass is half full.

In a year of Avery, seven was pretty awesome.  You had a great teacher at school and learned so much.  You had a few tears and plenty of celebrations as we tackled math wizard (rapid math facts) head on, you learned to love reading chapter books and you met lots of new friends.  At home, you mastered your ripstick and pogo stick and became a big sister for the second time.  You have always been such a great big sister to Logan, but watching you become big sister to Miles has been amazing.  You are such a big help with him.

In the last year, so many of your "little kid" traits have started to disappear.  You are turning into such a beautiful, smart, grown up girl before our eyes.  With that said, I love it when I get to witness and hold on to some of the things that remind me of you as a little kid.  The one thing that really stands out is your pronunciation of the word, "finger".  You still pronounce it as "thinger" and I hope you always do as this is the only word that you still mispronounce.  It makes me smile every time I hear you say it.

Happy Birthday, goosey girl!  I couldn't love you more!

Every year, I ask the kids the same interview questions to see how their answers change over the years.  Here are Avery's 8-year-old answers:

1. What is your favorite color? Red
2. What is your favorite toy? Nerf Gun
3. What is your favorite fruit? Watermelon
4. What is your favorite TV show? Full House
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Chocolate Donuts
6. What is your favorite outfit? Workout clothes
7. What is your favorite game? Hide and seek
8. What is your favorite snack? Donuts
9. What is your favorite animal? Dog
10. What is your favorite song? Nothing's Holding Me Back, Shawn Mendes
11. What is your favorite book? Harry Potter
12. Who is your best friend? Addisyn
13. What is your favorite food? Candy
14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Ripstick
15. What is your favorite drink? Root Beer
16. What is your favorite holiday? Christmas
17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? Owl and "B" (Blanket)
18. What do you like to do with daddy? Go in caves when we are hiking
19. What do you like to do with mommy? Eat Chocolate
20. What do you want to be when you grow up? Own a farm
21. What do you like to do with Logan? Steal Papa/s candy
22. What do you like to do with Miles: Talk to him

Avery had her well child check a few days after her birthday, her stats are as follows: 

Introducing Miles Oliver Musselman

I've been meaning to post this for weeks, but with three kids, time just isn't my friend these days. Miles Oliver joined our family on March 19, 2017 and is the perfect final addition to our family.  Aside from his full head of dark hair, he looks a lot like his big sister and brother.  So far, he's a sweet, but needy baby; we joke that he missed the memo about third kids being low maintenance.

Fortunately, Miles' birth story is fairly uneventful. We scheduled a c-section for March 21, but my water broke minutes after I climbed into bed at 11:15 pm on March 18. I hadn't been feeling well all day, but certainly didn't think I was in labor.  When my water broke, we called a neighbor to come stay at the house with the big kids until my mom could get to Columbia.  By the time we got to the hospital, I was in a lot of pain and ready for an epidural.  I was lucky because my OB-GYN was on call and I was the only patient in labor and delivery the entire time I was there.  After getting checked in and changed, Dr. Jones checked me and I was dilated to a 5.  At this time, Dr. Jones discussed a VBAC with me.  I initially declined and began signing all of my c-setion paperwork, but as I signed the paperwork, I started getting anxious.  Dr. Jones came back into the room and convinced me to attempt a VBAC with the promise that I could switch to a c-section at any time.  With the decision made, I was able to get my epidural.  At first, the epidural only worked on the left side and it took quite a bit of manipulation to get it to work on both sides.  (This was fine except that it took FOREVER to wear off.)  Once the epidural was working and in place, Luke took a nap and I relaxed for a couple hours.  At around 4:00 am, Dr. Jones came in to prep me to push.  I pushed through two and a half contractions and Miles and was born at 4:23 am.  Miles weighed 7 lbs, 3 oz and was 21 inches with a full head of dark hair.

Avery, Logan, Luke and I all completely adore sweet Miles.  I can't get enough baby snuggles and the big kids constantly hold and hug and kiss him.  It is so much fun to see them with their baby brother.