Briggs is SIX Months!

Somehow, this little tot is HALF A YEAR OLD. How did this happen? And how do I make it stop??

Weighs: Thankfully, we haven't had to have a doctor's visit since his four month check-up (his six month appointment is later this week), so I can't say for sure what he weighs right now. I did get on the scale with him the other day, and he was about 19lbs.

Sleeps: As far as naps are concerned, Briggs isn't super consistent. Some days he'll take a morning nap that lasts 3 hours! And some mornings he doesn't want to take a morning nap at all. Same thing goes for the afternoon. But he has been a CHAMP at sleeping at night this month. Many nights he has been sleeping until 4:30ish before waking up to eat and then going back down. And two times this past week, he slept all the way through the night. One of those nights, he went down early at 7pm and did not wake up until 6:30am!!! Mama could get used to that!

Eats: I mentioned in the last update that even thought he had started trying some foods, he began not to be interested in them anymore (whether they were homemade or store bought / fruit or veggie / thick or thin). He was only interested in nursing. Well, in the alst week or two, he has definitely had a change of heart :) He happily eats food now, but he does prefer mashed up table food as opposed to baby food. He still nurses a lot when I am home but can go about 4 hours between bottles on the days I am at work.

Wears: Briggs is wearing 6-9-month and 9-month clothing (and an occasional 12-month outfit!). He is still in a size 3 diaper.

Plays: He really loves to play with his toys when he is sitting in his swing or car seat. He also likes to sit in his Bumbo seat in the playroom and watch his brothers play around him. When he is in the right mood, he will jump in his doorway jumper for a while! He likes doing it the most when there is a lot going on and he can watch. He's been enjoying his walker, too. He can stretch one foot down to move the walker at home, but he's not quite tall enough to make it move a ton. The walker at our church is lower, though, and he can cruise around in that pretty well.

Milestones: Little man popped not one but two teeth this month! He was fussy Halloween night (which was pretty out of character), and that first tooth popped through soon after. And that toothy grin is the cutest thing ever! Also, he learned how to sit up on his own this month. He is still not doing it all the time, but he is able to do it for a little while.

We sure do love this baby brother and can't believe he's already six months old! He is the perfect addition to our family, and we are all pretty smitten with him. Happy six months, Briggsie!

Briggs is FIVE Months!

Welp, another month has somehow come and gone. Our littlest buddy is a whopping FIVE MONTHS OLD! #insertallthecryingemojis ...#seriouslyallofthem. Someone was not interested in taking pictures for this monthly update either. He was way more interested in the cactus pillow and in overall looking like a deer in the headlights. :)

Weighs: Thankfully, we haven't had to have a doctor's visit since his four month check-up (at which he weighed 17lbs) We continue to get comments all the time about the size of this guy! I love each and every roll of his so stinking much.

Sleeps: I would say that this month, Briggs has not stuck as closely with his nap routine. He was doing a decent morning nap, decent afternoon nap, and then a possible catnap in the late afternoon/evening. In the past few weeks, though, his sleeping has been more sporadic. I am going to attribute it to the fact that he is no longer a newborn and doesn't sleep quite as deeply. He is used to sleeping with noise for sure (hello, loud big brothers!), but he sometimes does wake up due to noise I think and then can't quite put himself back to sleep like he did in the newborn days. Let's hope he corrects this soon! ;) He has been waking up a little more at night the past few weeks, and I think it's for the same reason as the sporadic naps. A couple of nights ago, he slept from 9pm to 6am, and this mama was so grateful!!!

Eats: Weird turn of events here. I wrote on the last monthly update that he was trying out some foods. However, he is now not into it all! Whether it's fruits or veggies, thick or thin, cereal or no cereal, homemade or store bought, he is just not interested. He makes an awful face any time I try to feed him baby food! Lol. He has sucked on a couple pieces of fruit that I have eaten around him, and he LOVES that. He's had pear, pineapple, and watermelon that way. So, maybe it's the spoon or just having a mouthful of food that he doesn't like. I did buy him one of those little mesh feeders the other day, and he seems to like that - so far he has eaten pears, bananas, cantaloupe, and honeydew melon out of it. He is still a big-time nursing baby. He sometimes nurses every two hours during the day. Don't know what it is about my boys being such grazers as babies!

Wears: Briggs is wearing 6-month, 6-9-month, and 9-month clothing. He is in a size 3 diaper.

Plays: He's getting more and more into playing with toys and loves to have one in his hand when he's in the carseat or his swing. His two favorite toys are a little crinkly giraffe and a colorful alligator with rattles, etc. attached to it. He's really enjoying the doorway jumper. He bounces and bounces and bounces, and it is just too cute! He still loves watching the big boys (and Daddy) play. He likes when things are busy and there's a lot going on around him.

Milestones: I don't think he hit any milestones this month...which is fine with me because CAN HE PLEASE STOP GROWING UP SO FAST?!?!?

Briggs continues to be the happiest little guy ever. Even though he's had a cough and the sniffles for the last few days, he's still just as happy and content. We love our Briggsie Wiggsie! I want him to stay our little baby forever, but next month he'll already be half a year old! Somebody hold me.

Life Lately

Other than the boys' little updates, blogging once again has been placed on the back burner (#surprisesurprise). But I absolutely LOVE looking back at old entries and seeing what we were up to and how the boys have grown, so I am just going to keep right on blogging, as infrequent as it may be!

Life has been super hectic lately, with birthday parties, get-togethers, soccer games, two nearby hurricanes, and just life in general! I pretty much feel like this picture all the time! Ha!

At the end of August, Wells started playing rec soccer. This is his first year, and he is learning a lot! Eric has been practicing with him at night, and he is getting better and better each day. Grayer usually wants to play, too (he will be on a team next year) and sometimes joins the kiddos on the field before or after practice. And Briggs just hangs out (and sometimes catches a little nap). One night each week and every Saturday morning, you can catch us at the ball park! #soccermomstatus

Also in August, Briggs was dedicated at our church. It was a sweet time with friends and family who came to celebrate with us. And Wells cracked everyone up by plopping right down on the stage steps and practicing his best modeling poses! 

Wells is in PreK4 and Grayer is in a 2-day (morning only) PreK2 program. Why do they look so GROWN walking inside with their book bags????

On Labor Day, we made a quick day trip to Columbia, SC, to meet Eric's sister and mom at the zoo. The boys had a blast, especially at the new splash pad they built since our last trip there. But nobody had a better set-up than Briggs! :)

As usual, there's been lots of playtime! Our house ALWAYS has some kind of train track set up somewhere. Briggs is playing a little bit with toys now, too, which is fun.

Eric planted a little garden next to our front door earlier this year. The last couple of months we have had SO MANY butterflies flying around them! The boys love it, and I think we'll all be sad when they leave once it gets colder. 

Eric and I recently had a little date night while my parents watched the kiddos. We got milkshakes, did a little shopping, and finally got to give Flaco's Tacos a try! Delish!

 We ate lunch with Wells at school on a day that Eric had off from work. It was so fun to see him with all his friends. ...And there was a fake burp contest #because4yearoldboys

Briggs has remained to be the happiest baby on the planet. He is always smiling and just rolls with whatever we are doing. Love my littlest sidekick.

Back in September, we attended a beautiful wedding for close family friends, and the next day we got to eat brunch with my grandparents and my sister and her family who were all in town.

We've had multiple pizza nights lately. The big boys love helping me make them (while eating the toppings, of course!). I am hoping Friday nights will become our pizza + a movie nights because, goodness gracious, I love a good family tradition.

Wells has brought home some adorable artwork from school. Love his first family portrait! And I cracked up at his artwork about making a bad choice at school. 

We took advantage of fall break and headed to Sea World with Eric's family. The boys had a great time, and we have been trying to catch up on sleep ever since! :)

We are in such a busy stage of life right now. Busy schedules, of course, but also just the busyness of having three little ones (someone always needs something!). We are wiped out at the end of each day, but our hearts are truly full. We get to spend each day loving on and laughing with the three greatest blessings we ever could have asked for!

Briggs is FOUR Months!

Our boy is growing so fast and is already four months old! He did lots of new things this month, so here we go...

Weighs: As of his four month check-up, Briggs weighs 17 lbs and is 26 inches long! He is in the 85th or so percentile for size (honestly, less than I thought lol). He is such a big boy, and I love it!

Sleeps: Briggs has continued his nap routine of a mid-morning nap that lasts about an hour or so, an early-mid afternoon nap which lasts about 2 hours, and then a short cat nap in the late afternoon. Depending on the day and our schedule, the times and lengths do change a bit, but for them most part, he sticks with the two good naps and one short one. Little mister started sleeping in his own bed this month and has been doing great! He goes to bed around 8pm with his white noise machine (all the boys had one as babies) and a little nightlight, and typically sleeps for about 5 hours, though sometimes an hour or two longer. Sometimes he wakes up another time in the night, but sometimes I have to wake him up to eat before we take Wells to school. (Side note: I'm guessing it's the dreaded four month sleep regression that both other boys went through, but the last few days, Briggs has not wanted to take his usual naps. And he has been waking up more than once at night. Hopefully this phase is over soon because I was really loving having a champion sleeper!)

Eats: He is still a grazer, eating sometimes every two hours when he is with me. On the two days I'm working, he is still eating about 4.5-5oz every three hours. Last week he had his first taste of baby food - purple carrots! A few weeks ago, I started making and freezing some foods - I always loved doing this for the other boys when they were little. So far he's eaten carrots, peas, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, and mashed banana. He's doing really well eating with a spoon. Right now, he is just getting about a tablespoon of food - whatever veggie/fruit plus a little bit of breast milk and a dash of cereal.

Wears: Briggs has been wearing 6-month, 6-9-month, and 9-month clothing. We also bumped him up to a size 3 diaper.

Plays: Briggs is really starting to enjoy playing with some of his toys. When we are in the car (which is NOT his favorite place to be!), I usually put a toy in his lap. I usually hand him a toy when he is in his swing/rocker, as well, and it keeps his attention for a while. He loves putting his hands in his mouth, and any toy he's holding goes straight to his mouth, too! He started sitting in his Bumbo seat this month. I put him in it in the playroom and he just watches the boys do whatever crazy thing they're doing. He is such a smiley baby and laughs a good bit now! He also tried out the little doorway jumper this month. He's not jumping a lot yet, but he must just like to be standing because he'll stay in there for a while without getting upset.

Milestones: I already mentioned that he started food and started sleeping in his crib. He has also started rolling over from back to tummy this month. Pretty much any time you lay him down, he rolls. When I go in to check on him in his crib, he has usually rolled over and is sleeping on his tummy. Briggs also went to the church nursery for the first time last week for a small part of the service. He wasn't crying in church, but he wanted to play! So, I took him to the nursery, where he played and then fell asleep.

Briggs is growing up so fast! I wish time would slow down; but I know it won't, so I am enjoying all the baby-ness while it lasts! We love our littlest big guy so much and can't wait to see all the new things he'll do this month!

Briggs is THREE months!

Is it just me, or are these months FLYING by?! Briggs is growing so fast! How in the world is he three whole months old??

Weighs: We haven't been to the doctor since his 2 month appointment (at the appt. he weighed 14lbs). I weighed myself on the scale alone the other day, and then held him with me on the scale, and...drumroll please...this boy is 17lbs! He gained three pounds in a month! We always get comments on how chunky he is, and I love each and every one of his rolls! #moretolove

Sleeps: Briggs is finally getting into a napping routine. He was kind of sleeping all day (and some days not as much) without much of a rhythm. But he is now taking two solidly long naps a day sometime in the morning and then in the early afternoon with a shorter nap in the late afternoon. He goes down sometime around 8pm on a normal weeknight. Several times this month he has gone 6-, 7-, and even 8-hour stretches without waking at night!!!! And it has been awesome! Some nights he still wakes after 4 or 5 hours, but not all the time. During the week, I wake him up to change his diaper and feed him a little before we take Wells to school, but on the weekends, he will stay asleep until 8 or later. He gets a gold star for sleeping!

Eats: On the two days I'm working and  he gets bottles of breast milk, he is drinking 4.5-5oz every three hours (give or take). He tends to eat more often than that when he is with me, though. I am about to start making and freezing baby food (I did this with Wells & Grayer, and I love doing it!) so he'll be ready to start trying some out when he hits 4 months!

Wears: This guy is already wearing 6-month outfits! He can wear 3-6 months clothes, as well. I've already started getting out the 9-month clothing because if he keeps growing as quickly as he is now, he'll be wearing those in no time! He is in a size 2 diaper.

Plays: Briggs is the happiest baby. He smiles and coos all day. He barely cries (but throws a straight-up fit the minute he's decided he's been riding in the car too long!). He has started grabbing his blanket if it is within his reach, and he likes to shove his hands in his mouth right now, too. I've gotten a few little laughs out of him in the last week or so, but it's not a regular thing yet. Love baby laughs and can't wait for them to get louder and more frequent!

We can't imagine our lives without our sweet Briggs! He is so laid back and content and has been the perfect addition to our family. He brings a little peace to our chaos (I'm looking at you, Wells & Grayer!), and I wish he'd stay my little baby forever!

Grayer: A 2.5 Year Snapshot

Our middle guy is two and a half, so it's time for his half-year snapshot!

The Stats:
Grayer weighed 28 pounds at his last doctor's visit a few weeks ago. I don't remember how tall he was (I want to say 36" maybe), but I know that he is pretty average for his age in height and weight. Judging by the stature of his brothers, he may be our smallest-framed kiddo once he grows up :)

Sleep:
Grayer sleeps through the night (with a very occasional wake-up. if he DOES wake up, though, it might take him a while to go back down). He is our early riser. He is almost always the first one up in the house. On weekends, he gets to hang out with his tablet in our room for a little bit while everyone else wakes up! Ha! He still takes an afternoon nap, which I would say lasts about 1.5 hours on average.

Talking:
Just like his older brother, boy is a talker! He is always talking, and we get a lot of comments on how well/much he talks for his age. I love hearing the conversations he comes up with when playing with toys. Usually, it's trains arguing back and forth or one needing help, etc. It's adorable.

Brotherhood:
As I mentioned in Wells' last update, the two big boys are best friends and worst enemies. They love playing together and love each other so much...but they also love to annoy each other! He's also Wells' little copycat. As far as his little brother, Grayer really adjusted very well to having a new baby in the house. He loves Briggs...and sometimes he shows it a little too much! He is always in Briggs' face, touching his head/face, giving him sugars, hugging him, and, yes, occasionally licking him (#weirdo). I am constantly having to tell him to be gentle or just to back off the baby for a second!

The Smarts:
Grayer is really smart. He knows all his colors, shapes, ABCs, and can count to 20. I am starting to work on him being able to identify letters when he sees them (he can do it with some, but not all).

Playing:
Grayer was notoriously awful as a baby for never entertaining himself or wanting to play by himself. But now, he entertains himself so well - much better than Wells, actually. He loves anything with wheels and, of course, TRAINS. His favorite toy train is James (from Thomas) that he carries around the house all the time and sometimes sleeps with. He and Wells have also both been pretty into Legos lately. I will say that since Wells started PreK-4 a few weeks ago, Grayer seems to need a little more attention on the days I am home and not working. I think he really misses having his bubba to play with during the day :(

Potty Training:
We started really potty training Grayer about two and a half months ago. It took him a couple of weeks to get the swing of things, but since then, he's had it down pat! It is VERY rare for him to have an accident. He's only wearing diapers when he sleeps, and even then, he usually wakes up dry.

School:
Little man started PreK-2 (on Tuesday/Thursday mornings) last week! He seems to be enjoying it so far, and I think it will be really good for him to be around other kiddos for part of the week. Of course, he has a train lunch box and a Thomas the Tank Engine book bag.

That Personality:
This kids keeps us laughing. He is such a spitfire and has a funny personality. He makes funny faces, uses funny voices (to make toys "talk"), basically anything to make you laugh. He's also a mischievous little thing. He is not the best listener at times - and I don't think he'll ever stop breaking crayons! #petpeeve ...He's lucky he's so cute. And because he's grown up with a big brother, he thinks he's just as big and can do any and everything Wells does. And I've gotta say, he keeps up pretty well.

Singing & Dancing:
Grayer is still a dancing fool. He loves to dance and sometimes in the car, you can look back and he'll just be nodding his head along to the music. He loves to sing, too. His favorite song that he LITERALLY sings every single day is "You Can Only Be You" from a Thomas movie.

The Pacifier:
He is STILL quite attached to his paci. But since he can't have it during school, I am hoping we can start transitioning him to having it only at nap and bed time and then take it away all together before he turns 3 in January.

Quirks/Miscellaneous:
-Grayer is our snacker. He is constantly in the pantry looking for something to eat.
-Some of his favorite foods are berries (blackberries, blueberries, strawberries), pretzels (he eats them every single day), cottage cheese, sausage (links, patties, kielbasa, on a pizza, ANY FORM), and fruit snacks.
-He has SO MUCH ENERGY. He doesn't walk - he runs. He really is non-stop all day long.
-Grayer is hands down the clumsiest kid ever. He falls/trips/bumps into things multiple times a day. And he bites his tongue or finger almost every time he eats a meal. Eric and I just roll our eyes at each other (unless it's a serious injury of course) because it happens so often.
-He is such a boy in that he constantly has a dirty face. Anything he eats, plays with, whatever, always ends up all over his face. I can't let him out of the car when we go somewhere before wiping his face down (which he hates, of course).
-We always get comments on how drastically his and Wells' hair differ from each other. Wells has wavy brown hair. Grayer's is straight as a board and is bright blonde. I would never have guessed that I'd have a blonde child! :)
-As crazy as Grayer is, he is still a mama's boy. The other day I looked over at him, and he said "I love you" just out of the blue. #heartmelted ... I hope that he stays a Mama's boy and that he'll keep letting me hold him and hug him and kiss him for as long as possible.

We love our wild middle child! Grayer brings so much laughter and love to our family, and nothing would be the same without him!

Wells: A 4-Year Snapshot

Since Wells turned 4 back in June, it's time for one of his half-year snapshots.

The Stats:
At his 4 year check-up, he was 42 pounds and 42 inches tall. A pound for every inch :) He is still pretty big for his age - with his height and weight in the 95th percentile or higher. He is wearing 4T & 5T clothes and a size 10.5/11 shoe.

Talking:
Wells still talks all. the. time. He is SUPER curious and always asking questions. He is at such a fun age too because you can totally have a full, in-depth conversation with him.

Brotherhood:
He and Grayer are best friends and worst enemies. They love each other something fierce, but goodness can they fight and argue! They know exactly which buttons to press with each other! As far as Briggs goes, he's got nothing but love. He was so excited when I was pregnant and has been in love with Briggs ever since he met him. He is always excited when the baby wakes up in the morning/from a nap. He loves holding him and talking to him, and he was actually the first person to feed Briggs a bottle.

Sleeping:
Wells is still our boy that requires lots of sleep (unlike Grayer!). He is our late sleeper and has not been a fan of getting up early in the morning now that school has started. We've bumped up their bedtime a lot since we have to get up so much earlier, but he always asks if he can lay in bed a little longer in the mornings (#hismamaschild). He will typically take a nap on the weekends as long as he didn't sleep too late that morning and sometimes takes a nap at school during "rest time."

Devotions:
Wells still loves doing devotions with Daddy. They have been learning hand motions to songs lately, and he enjoys doing that. He retains so much of the stories they learn and asks questions about Jesus and God periodically during the day.

School:
Wells was so excited to start "big boy school" and has been doing really well since starting PreK-4 two weeks ago. This summer, he kept asking if he was going to be the teacher, and I had to remind him that he would be the student! Haha! He takes his lunch each day in his sea turtle lunchbox he picked out. And he gets to ride the schoolbus to our church in the afternoons, which is literally directly across the street from his school. It's like a 2-minute drive tops. This way on the two days I'm working at the church, he gets dropped off right to me, and the other three days, I can drive to our church to pick him up and totally avoid the carpool line at the school. He has had a rough couple of mornings this week, which I think is just him having to adjust to going to school every day (as opposed to 2 mornings a week which is what he was used to in PK3). He is always in a good mood at the end of the day and tells me he had a great day, but mornings have been a little harder.

Quirks:
He is our very particular child. He likes things done a certain way (namely, HIS way). If he thinks you are doing something wrong, he's quick to tell you. We are working on his bossiness and teaching him that he not in charge of others! And he is super nosy lol. If I am talking to Eric or Grayer and Wells isn't entirely within earshot, he will yell out, "What did you say, Mommy?" He wants to know everything going on with everyone else, and I tell him "nunya" or "none of your biz" all the time. Ha! Wells also went through this really funny phase where he LOVED exit signs, fire alarms, etc. So weird, but I think it stemmed from the time that he pulled the fire alarm at our church lol. Any time we were out at some kind of store or restaurant, he would point out all of the exit signs, fire alarms, and sprinklers. He is over this stage, but it's one of those quirky things I don't ever want to forget. :) Another "quirk" is that he is using both hands to write - I can't figure out if he's going to be a righty or a lefty! He writes about the same with both hands, so maybe he will be ambidextrous!

Smarts:
Wells has always been very smart. He wows us all the time with the things he knows and says. He has been able to write his name for a while, but it looks so much better than it did even a few months ago. Very readable :) He's always asking how things are spelled/what letter a certain word starts with. He can write all of his letters and can also write the numbers 1-10. He has the best memory and remembers EVERYTHING.

Singing:
He really likes to sing and has been learning lots of new songs in the Gospel Kids class at church. He has certain favorite songs that come on the radio, too. And he remembers if you like a song and is always yelling "it's your song!" or "it's Dad's song!" when a favorite comes on.

Eating:
This boy has always had quite the appetite. He has gone through and is really still in a picky stage. Some things he does love are raw veggies (carrots, broccoli, and bell peppers), pretty much any fruit, and pizza - still his all-time favorite food! He just recently started eating macaroni and cheese (neither boys liked it up until recently) and has started to also like hamburgers (I made some sliders for dinner one night, and he could not get enough!).

Sea Turtles:
Sea turtles deserve a whole section :) A few months back, Wells all of a sudden took an interest in a stuffed sea turtle someone had given to Grayer a while ago. Neither boys were into stuffed animals and it kind of just got shoved into the toy box. Also at his preschool, he had watched some cartoon about a sea turtle. And thus the sea turtle craze began! He was in sea turtle heaven on our trip to Sea World back in April, and he had an under the sea themed birthday party. We also took him on his actual birthday to a sea turtle rescue center on Jekyll Island. He has now added 6 more sea turtles to his collection, and he sleeps with ALL of them every night.

Miscellaneous
-Wells is starting U6 soccer in a couple of weeks and is excited about that - but Eric may be the most excited :)
-He is the bad word police. And by bad words, I mean "stupid," "shut up," and "hate." Ha! IF you say any of those around him, just know that he WILL tell me.
-He is still a big time mama's boy and can be so sweet. The other day I put on a pair of sunglasses in the car, and he said, "Mom, those sunglasses look really good on you." I love that kid so much.
-One of our neighbors gave him and Grayer a power wheels truck a few months back, and he's become quite the little driver (and speed demon).
-Wells is very cautious about certain things and can take a while to warm up to doing new stuff. But sometimes when you'd expect him to be cautious, he isn't at all! For example, at a birthday party, he refused to slide down the large water slide for the entire party. He did it once and didn't like it, and that was that. However, at Sea World, he had no problems riding his first (kid) rollercoaster! And he keeps telling us that he wants to go on the big, grown-up rollercoaster when he gets big enough :)
-He is at a fun age where he likes playing games - he got a few board games for his birthday.

Watching Wells grow up is so bittersweet. Even though it's sad that he's not a baby anymore, it's so fun to see each new stage and skill and personality trait develop. We love our big four-year-old!