Look at this girl....cuter every day! I cannot get enough of her--breathing in her baby smell, holding her hand, rubbing her head.  I cannot believe we've only had her 4 months and do not know what I did without her.

Ada's getting too big, too fast for me.  And she thinks she's bigger than she is...she has swiped food from my plate 3 times in the last week and acts like if she could just move her arms and legs a bit faster, she might be able to get somewhere.  She is sweet and determined and has a mighty temper.

Not that you would know it to look at her.

We are working on some positive attitude, thankfulness, and helpfulness goals at the Burch house.  I'd say the (relative) biggest strides are coming in the helpfulness category.  The only hold-up seems to be if G deems the task important to him (e.g.,  please get me my phone so I can call your teacher and tell her you are too sick for school) or fun.  The fun part is tough, because, no matter how many cutesy songs you sing--a 5 year old boy is not going to take the bait that setting the table is a joy.  

 I did discover that pouring rain makes getting the newspaper fun....it might have taken him 10 minutes to get his gear on, but he was very proud!

Rain or Shine...he delivers!

After the delivery, he tried on every item of rain clothing we own...hats, boots, ponchos, umbrellas to test them out.  Isn't that helpful?  :)

Tragedy has struck the Burch home.  My tall, strong (and handsome) husband has thrown out his back.  A lesser, weaker wife would be all I told you to lift with your legs and I knew we should have been doing Pilates together when the kids went to bed (instead of eating popcorn)....but not me.  I'm happily serving the invalid man, stepping over his camp-out on the living room floor, while doing everything that involves lifting anything heavier than a glass.  Oh, also, the driving.  I'm doing the driving because his doctor has him on a little cocktail of prescriptions that made me hide his keys.  Because the only thing that would make me more irritated than an injured husband is a dead one.  Talk about no help.

As it turns out, every single household and child rearing task requires the use of your back, did you know that? Luckily we only have two children that are totally helpless in every way, and Garrett is such a joy in terms of helpfulness and positive attitude, that he makes up for it.

Now we know that Paul has 2 bulging disks and I really do feel sorry for him.  Sorry for him and totally panicked for myself because he and I are 'in this' together and a big part of 'this' is lifting our 35 lb darling many times a day...which, unconincidently  is the cause of this excruciating pain.  I counted 30+ lifts of Lilah the other day, just for necessities (in/out of car, highchair, bed, etc) and she's only going to get bigger.  So, Paul and I are getting our acts together and starting some core training...he's thinking CrossFit and I'm thinking one of those electronic belts from the 80s that stimulate your muscles while you watch TV.  Kidding, I've started running again--which is maybe not that good for my core, but awesome for my attitude....which might be weaker than my core:).

I love watching my kids together.  I should note:  they do not fight, at all, yet.  A fact that is both wonderful, and sad.  But,  adding a 3rd increased their all their interactions by a lot, and the fighting is sure to come.  For now, I'm enjoying the new dynamic.

  Garrett, having his antics appreciated by the newest sister, gives more attention then to Lilah, hoping for a similar response.  He doesn't normally "get much" from Lilah, but she at least seems a bit more 'present' lately.  Lilah loves her baby sister...seeking her affection much more so than with anyone else (except, of course, her daddy).  She reaches for Ada constantly, wanting me to stop and hold Ada near her for kisses or pats.  Lilah will scoot across the floor more quickly to be by Ada than anything else.  Ada is just her speed.  For now.

 The thing about typical babies is that they change.  Quick.  I forgot how every day brings a new skill.....Ada is literally changing before my eyes.  And it's bittersweet. I am beyond thankful that she's strong and healthy, obviously.  And, none of her little skills go unnoticed around here.  I think she's a genius....a very strong genius.  But, it also highlights all the things that Lilah never did.... skills that we 'worked on' for a year, that Ada gets in a day...areas of development where my 3-yr-old is behind my 4 month old.  And it makes me really sad that Lilah has to work so darn hard for little things (like making a sound, or rolling over) that should be so easy.
As for Ada, she loves her siblings.  Garrett can make her smile in a nano-second, and her curiosity over what he's 'up to' far outweighs any residual fear over the "Lego Incident".  And Lilah, she's still trying to figure her out--waiting for her to talk, I think.

I love these 3 so.  So fiercely.  So equally.  So differently.  What a blessing it is to be their mother.  Especially at times like this.....when they are moments away from sleep.:)

Lilah is doing great with her wheelchair and using it more everyday.  She's even using it with a more cheerful attitude, which is awesome:).  The wheelchair repairman came this week, and brought a new device along with him for L to try.  I already cannot remember it's name, but basically....it's an upright wheelchair.  It supports her core, and allows for her to bear weight, but unlike other 'walkers', does not require weight bearing for movement--because it has giant wheelchair wheels also.   So, she can do a little of both, still get around, and not get frustrated.  Here's a clip:

As you can tell, she's heavy on the wheels and not so much on the legs, but this was her first time and she enjoyed it.  FYI: you'll see one of her 'signs' in the video--when she points to her mouth, she's asking for her paci.  Sweet girl:).  We are so proud of her!

Now, on to the insurance game to see if we can get one of those up in here.

Happy Birthday Garrett

Five years ago my life changed.  Two new people were  born, Garrett and me.  These have been the best years (also, undoubtedly the hardest) of my life.  He is an incredible little boy, and we are blessed in every way by him.

 The years are wizzing past, faster each one.  And, he's not a baby anymore.  I know he hasn't been for quite some time, but 5 is different.  He's becoming his own little person.  This is the year he'll start kindergarten.

I have a 5-year-old.  And I am weepy.  Very weepy.  I cannot believe Garrett is 5 and instead of feeling the joyful nostalgia that I've experienced at his other birthdays, I am downright panicked.  Make it stop.  Put on the breaks.  Slow it down. Please.  I want to freeze time.  Hold that still teensy-bit chubby hand in mine and rock him to sleep.

Birthdays are, however,  a great reminder that you cannot stop the clock....but you can enjoy each minute.

I feel like I've been spending the last month getting my children's wardrobe ready for fall.  I am baffled by the time, money, and organization it takes to outfit a child for a new season.....cool weather clothes, cold weather clothes, socks, shoes, coats, etc....and it mostly needs to coordinate to maximize the outfit possibiliites.

This is daunting enough before you add in any 'special needs'.  It started with needing button-front baby outfits to accomidate Lilah's heart monitor and then feeding tube.  The needs morphed into needing easy access to her feeding tube for me, but difficult access for her.  Then Lilah's tiny body started getting not so tiny....and her belly grew at a disproportionate rate (because of her severly low tone, they say)....leaving her with the body habitus of an 8 month preggo.  Her feet are the size of a 12 month old...meaning she needs baby shoes that are baby-proof.  Lilah's scholeosis is starting to make her shirts pull tightly accross her back.  Also, she's super hot-natured.   So that goes into account.  All of these needs are not always easy to accomidate, but I have learned a lot over the process.

I consider myself a special needs stylist:).  Kind of like Rachel Zoe for the handicapped population (of my house).  I know, it's banannas.  I like for Lilah's clothes to fill her many requirements-- and be comfortable and look cute.  There are certain brands I go for that are more....shall we say, forgiving.  And, I have many things tweaked by a very talented and creative seamstress over at Cuckcoo's Nest--who has way better things to do with her talent, but loves my girl and appreciates the joy of dressing children.  I have pants shortened, buttons moved, panels added, and things created--the latest creation is a 'belly bra', which I can't explain because the patent is pending.  kidding.

Anyway, my latest undertaking was shoes, because Lilah can and will sniff out velcro like a blood hound, and remove her shoes to chew on them.  She loves velcro.  And shoes.  And both are very gross, especially to bi-standers who think I let my child eat their shoes.  Which I do.  But hers have never touched the floor.  Still, it's gross and she needs shoes that will stay on her feet.  Mostly because I don't have time to put her shoes back on 30 times a day, and apparently neither do her teachers....because I keep finding her bare-feet at pick-up.  I had, what I thought, was brilliant idea.

 I bought 3 pairs of shoes and had an industrial snap put on, over the velcro, at the cobbler.  I'm pretty sure he goes by 'shoe repairman' these days, but I think 'cobbler' is cuter. Anyway, genius, right? I considered buckles, but cobbler-man said snaps would be quicker (sold!) and she couldn't get them off anyway.  I'm sure you can see the writing-on-the-wall here.  Lilah got the first pair of shoes off in 30 seconds, the second pair in 15, and the 3rd pair....well, she just grabbed them straight out of my hands, laughed, and started eating the velcro.  Fail.

shape sorters are the hot ticket in Lilah world these days:)

In the process of cleaning out closets, I found a pair of keds that Garrett wore when he was 10 months.  And they are precious.....she'll just have to always wear red...because she has maxed out her shoe budget.  And mama wants some new boots.