Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, friends!!!

Whether you believe in New Year’s resolutions or not, we can all agree that we all like fresh starts- right?! There’s nothing like turning the page and starting over or being given a second chance, especially if it might have not been your year.

You guys know me by now… I’m quite in touch with my feelings and tend to overly analyze/think anything and everything so of course I’m going to jump at any opportunity to re-new, re-think, re-adjust, re-plan, re-dream… the list goes on.

All in all I would call 2016 a win for me. After all, Jude aka #heyjudecole joined our lives and completed our family. You know when you know you’re done? We’re done 🙂 I’ve been asked that question here and there so I thought I would officially put it out there in case there were more of you who wondered 😉 Back to 2016… although we excitingly welcomed a new baby to our family, it was also a whole new world for my husband and I. We had three kids… THREE.KIDS! I remember telling people two was the game changer… nope- three is. Three is definitely the game changer! When you’re outnumbered and playing defense, oh man. But just like anything it becomes your new normal, even if your new normal feels like a circus or pure craziness most days. We have had good days and bad days just like everyone else and I think as time has gone on in the whole “life with three kids” world- I’m learning to give myself grace for those crazy days. In looking back, I’m pretty dang proud of my husband and I for taking on the new adventure/role of raising three kids (including a newborn- whew!) and working two full time jobs. I’m thinking 2016 might go down as one of the busiest, craziest, but overwhelmingly incredible years of our lives. I honestly feel so, so blessed with the family/friends/life that I’ve been given and I will continue to give thanks to the Lord for his blessings over and over again.

But as I look into the new year, there are a few goals I want to focus on. Maybe not so much “goals” as they are lifestyle changes or habits… things I want to focus on, whether I “achieve” them or not. If we never set our eyes on something greater- we’ll never get there, right?

2017:

•  Play more with my kids (Like real playing on the ground with them)
•  Be intentional with my days/schedule… plan it out- stick to it
•  Forgive more, believe in & encourage others
•  Read four books (don’t judge me, my free time is very minimal ;))
•  Spend more time with my parents (the older I get, the more I realize the value of our relationship)
• Drink more water

Have any goals you want to share?! I’d love to hear. Sometimes it inspires others to think differently and jump on the bandwagon too!

On a different note- Quite a few people have asked about Jude’s acid reflux so I thought I’d give a quick Jude update since I feel like I’ve totally neglected giving you all life updates.

• We’re nearing the 9 1/2 month mark as he turned 9 months on December 21 (INSANE!)
• He is soooo close to crawling- on all fours and rocks back and forth but the second he goes for it he lands smack dab on his face & belly
• Sleeps through the night (THANK YA LAWD!)
• Loooooves food. If he’s cranky, I’ll give him a cracker
• Is our most serious baby. He smiles but not nearly as much as the two older ones
• In the 80% for weight and 90 something for head- ha. He has a massive dome!
• Still sleeps in his swing… yes- you read that right lol. I admit, I’ve totally babied him on this one and although it’s partially due to his acid reflux, I should have gotten rid of that thing a few months ago. I keep saying I’m going to move him into his crib and then something else happens.. he gets sick, he’s teething… you know how the first year goes- there’s always something new they’re learning or figuring out. Or mom’s figuring out- ha! We’ll get there… #thirdbabyproblems
• And lastly, he is 100% done with acid reflux! WOOOOOOO! He outgrew it about a month ago around 8 months old. For those of you who have babies currently struggling with it, I’d totally recommend checking out a previous post I did where so many of you kindly pitched in with suggestions/tips on how to get through/help/minimize acid reflux (in the comments section). If it only helps to let you know you’re not alone, that in itself is worth it. I remember feeling very isolated at times (particularly going through it the first time around with Brooklyn- his case was also much worse). There are a ton of good tips, too! What works for one might not work for another so I’d definitely recommend reading them all. I believe the blog post is titled “Life with baby Jude”

Alright- I think I’m maxed out on my writing for this post so I’ll leave you with one more family pic from 2016. I totally forgot to include this one in our Christmas pictures post and it’s one of my favs! Probably because I feel like it sums us up well…

I’m so thankful for my people! Here’s to new beginnings!

XOXO