Week #3

Autumn's third week started off with another Daddy-less day (7.23.15). I decided to try HEB with three kids. This was much less scary than HEB with a toddler and a baby. I remember having nightmares trying to figure out how in the world I would go to the store when Adam was a newborn. Aaron wasn't old enough (only just turned 2) to walk along beside me. I think I remember putting the car seat in the cart and then surrounding it with food and whatever I couldn't fit in the cart or underneath would have to wait until next time. Of course the nice thing about our life and schedule is that I could just wait until Alan was home and go solo.

Anyway, so HEB with three kids... It's still strange to say that I have three kids. I never imagined this and it is surreal to say the least. I couldn't figure out a way to place the car seat so she was comfortable, so I used an entire cart for Autumn and Aaron pushed the grocery loaded cart behind me. Yes, we had two carts and Adam was the runner. You wouldn't think much of that if you've never been to our HEB... the one a couple of miles from Sun City - where the overwhelming majority of clientele are elderly, grumpy, and in no hurry to yield to the young. But we survived and so did the elders, as far as I know. 

I wanted to document me in a car with three offspring.

He's such a good big brother - both times around.

Wide-eyed sweetness.

The only thing that makes her even more irresistible is when she's with her Daddy. (7.24.15)

I tend to take more pictures on the days that Alan is on shift - and then I bombard him with photos of what he's missing (or escaping). On 7.26.15 the boys and I hunkered down to endure yet another really hot day - trying to stay busy so that they wouldn't go completely nuts on me while Daddy is gone.

Giant sleepy girl.

Sleeping again.

Adam and I putting a Lego set together. Autumn lost interest.

She's so smiley with Aaron.

During one of our feedings, Aaron read to us from his latest book.

I had to go to the bathroom so I plopped her on the bed. She was awake when I laid her down and I came back to this. Sleepy froggie.

The boys went down for another morning at the river on 7.27.15. We are not sure how much longer the water will be flowing so they are trying to make the best of a really fun, free, crowd-less place to burn energy before it dries up for the year.

(7.28.15) Sitting outside watching Alan work on something and talking to Adam.

Aspen is the first Weimaraner puppy we've had. Our other dogs came to us around the one year mark. So we had no idea that a Weim puppy "molts" and gets a new coat of fur at around this point. So, she's been leprous for a while now. The darker fur is her new coat coming in and the lighter fur will fall out. If you want to hear a funny story, ask Alan how we figured all of this out.

They are best buds. Unless she knocks him down - then he rages and stomps around the yard yelling "I wish we never got her!" and other mean things. But most of the time they are best friends.

Back inside to feed this bundle of joy. We wouldn't want those rolls to thin out. She's started smiling and smirking quite a bit. This is the closest I've gotten so far to documenting her smile.

Just so you know it's not all peaches and cream around here. If I'm three seconds late on a feeding or perhaps had a last minute bathroom run, she loses her mind. Quite the temper... may even rival Adam's.

This right here, is my favorite thing to do right now. Lay down next to her and exchange googly eyes and smiles. She's able to focus in more and sees better so she studies faces now. So fun!

Adam still struggles just a tad with how to "talk" to her - given she doesn't talk back, but he does like to make faces with her and is getting more interested as the days pass and she's ever so slightly getting closer to resembling someone who could actually interact with him.

Gives me heart palpitations. (7.30.15)

On Friday, the 31st, we arranged it so that Autumn and I could go with the boys to the river. I've only been able to go with them once, just before Autumn was born, so I wanted to see what they do and experience it with them before it disappeared. So, armed with a fan and an umbrella, we set up on the side of the water and played a little...

And then Autumn took a nice sweaty nap in my lap. Next to the water there was a nice breeze and the humidity wasn't too bad. It was a fun morning and I'm glad Autumn tolerated it just long enough for us to be included.