::suds::

::snaggletooth::

a few weeks ago, i was shocked when i noticed the tiniest of tooth popping up through della's bottom gum.  i called ash and told her i could not believe that she was getting a tooth so early.  

to which ash replied, "early?  court, she's 8 months old!  most kids have teeth by now!"  

so true, ash.  so true.  lily, finn and crosby did not have even a hint of a tooth until they were one or older.  so, we were so surprised to see a little tooth popping through.

our sweet girl with her snaggle tooth.  how we love you...

::these ones::

it has started to snow here.

and whether we get a dusting or a foot, it matters not, school is cancelled for tomorrow.

since the kids won't be going to school, we decided to let lily, finn & crosby have a sleepover tonight.  it warms my heart how much they love sleeping together right now.  we pull lily's mattress into the boys' room and she sleeps next to the bunk beds on the floor.  we usually let them talk for 20 minutes or so before telling them it is quiet time.  i am not sure if it feels so sacred that they are afraid to lose the privilege, but when we tell them it is time to stop talking, they obey.  

before heading up tonight, they had been dancing and singing frozen songs at the top of their lungs.  so, they went up to bed a bit warmed up and amped up.  after we told them to quiet down, i heard a commotion upstairs.  after a few minutes, i went up to check out what was going on.  when i walked in, lily was sitting on top of her bed with no pants on.  and finn was sitting in his bed with no shirt.  they both claimed they were just too hot to sleep.  and crosby, sweet crosby, was perched in his bed with no pants.  and no pullup.  just straight up nude from the waist down.  i asked him what was going on, and he too, of course, was just too hot to sleep.

for a split second, i felt frustrated.  this is the precious time of night that ryan and i have to relax and connect together.  but, that frustration quickly melted as i realized how amazing it is that they love each other so.  and that crosby so desperately wants to be doing what lily and finn are doing -- even if he doesn't quite understand why -- to the point that he was willing to go to bed with no pants, like his sister, and no diaper either.  

these are the days...

::baby max::

holding a brand new baby has got to be one of my absolute favorite things in the world.

this past weekend, della and i had the pleasure of heading to colorado to meet baby max and spend some quality time with ash and her precious family.  

my mom had already been in town helping them adjust to life as a family of 5.  and whit was supposed to be meeting us there.  we were crushed when whit got sick and was unable to make the trip.  it definitely was not the same without her.

but, we definitely soaked up as much max time as we could and cherished the time together.  it was wonderful to be in colorado and so very hard to say goodbye.

we love you guys so much.  congratulations!

and thank you for having us!!!

::happy heart::

when we left my parents' house at christmas time, lily had a really hard time saying goodbye.

and right there on the spot, whit said, "i will be there for your birthday, lily."

what an aunt.  

lily held onto that promise and counted down the days until her birthday celebration.  

whit traveled about 22 hours on a roasting train, to be with us for only 36 hours.  talk about sacrifice.  

we had a beautiful weekend of catching up, celebrating lily with a girls' night dessert, and spending as much time outside as possible.

thank you so much for coming, whit.  you made lily (and ME!) very happy!

and the good news is, i am heading to denver this weekend and get to see my sisters and mom and meet baby max!  hooray!!