A CHRISTMAS TO REMEMBER...

Rece's first Christmas was a good one!  Even though the boys were all fighting off a bug, we managed to have a great Christmas with family.  It was amazing to experience Christmas through KJ's eyes, as he asked for thoughtful gifts, like a Christmas sweater, and wanted to get gifts for others.  Lance was excited to see the twinkling lights and open gifts, while Rece loved watching people and having lots of company.

  

We managed to get in a number of our family traditions- visiting Santa at Sherwood Forest, new Christmas pajamas, making Christmas cookies, listening to Christmas music on the radio, Christmas Eve with the Schusters and Christmas Day with the Nordquists.

I hope that I am passing on my love for this time of year to my little men.  It seems that they like all the grandeur and I love watching them enjoy the season.

ANNUAL FAMILY PICTURES...

Over a year has already gone by since the last time the boys, Kurt and I went to the park to get our family pictures taken with Chuck.  We had an absolutely beautiful October day in the low 70's to flash our pearly whites.


The boys tried very hard to give "good smiles", but Chuck definitely had his work cut out for him.  As always, he managed to give me my one good picture of the family and a few nice ones of my growing boys.  I just developed the pictures and put them in the frames, and I was in awe as how fast my little men are growing up, each as their own unique individual.  Time is not going to stand still, and I might miss the days when chaos was a way of life.


There are two things that I know- my boys sure are beautiful and I am always happier after pictures are finished- they are a ton of work!

4 MONTHS OF FUN...

Faster than any of the other boys, my little man, Rece, has already reached 4 months old.  He is a big boy, full of love for his brothers, a large appetite and LOTS of words.  He is rolling over from the back to front on his left side, absolutely loves his exersaucer and recognizes his name.

Rece talks quite a bit, letting us know what he thinks about everything, especially after baths and during diaper changes.  If he isn't talking, I swear that he is eating or trying to figure out where his brothers are hiding.  He loves to watch KJ dance in front of him.  He will laugh and squeal when KJ is moving and shaking it.  He is constantly getting kisses and hugs.  It is awesome to see how much love Rece has brought to our house.

Because our boys are getting so big, we were able to take the whole family to East Lansing to see MSU take on Notre Dame last week.  It was a beautiful day and the boys really enjoyed the tailgate.  After all the food, football and walking around, they were tuckered out by the time we got home.

ON THE MOVE...

How is he getting so big?  Rece isn't even three months old and the little guy rolled over for the first time yesterday.  Pretty soon he will be mobile and I won't know what to do.  Slow it down, Rece!

3 MONTHS OF WATCHING RECE GROW...

The littlest man of our clan is turning into a boy by the minute.  He found his hands in the past couple of weeks and is shoving them into his mouth every chance he gets.  He is starting to turn on his side and is an AMAZING sleeper.  He goes in his bed at night and fusses for a bit before putting himself to sleep.  Naps are coming along too.

Rece loves his brothers and daddy as much as they love him.  He gives his daddy big smiles everyday when he comes home from work and lets his brothers climb all over him.  KJ kisses him all the time and Lance says "Hi Buddy" every time he sees him.

Exersaucers, teething, rolling over- its all coming soon.  The next month will be a big one.

OUR BIG BOY IS 2 MONTHS...

Rece is getting so big- literally.  My "little boy" is already two months old, but is the size of most 4 month olds.  He is getting quite the personality, smiling and talking all the time to anyone that will listen to him.  He cannot get enough of his favorite friend...the fan!  I swear that he would stare at it for hours.

His brothers love him a ton!  KJ wants to talk with him anytime his eyes are open and Lance is a big helper when Rece needs anything- a diaper, a toy, a baby wipe- you name it.  I never thought I could love one baby, let alone three, as much as I do.  They are SO much work, but my boys are amazing.

VISITING OUR ANIMAL FRIENDS...

The boys and I took a trip with Aunt Katrina to the Detroit Zoo to let Rece meet the animals for the first time.  KJ and Lance ran around the grounds, keeping me and their aunt very busy on an extremely hot day, but you could tell they were having a great time.

The boys really loved the prairie dogs.  Some of the smallest animals in the zoo and a rodent, and they couldn't get enough of them.

As usual, it was a ton of work to get ourselves down to the zoo, but I would like to think that they enjoyed the morning and will appreciate the pictures someday.

#3- 3 WEEKS...

Rece getting big...ger.  The little man started out larger than the others, and I don't think that trend is going to stop any time soon.  I swear that all he does is eat.  We have tried to take him outside a bit in the short amount of time he has been on the "outside", but he seems to like staying inside with his mama, eating away.  I think I will be perpetually feeding him for the next few weeks.  Ah, the joys of breastfeeding.

KJ and Lance seem to be getting used to Rece.  They have started to look for him in the mornings and want to hug and kiss him all the time.  KJ really wants him to be older so he can play with him.  He gets mad at me because I am always telling him that Rece is eating or sleeping and KJ wants to see him with his eyes open.  Soon enough, big brother.

Third time around sure is different...from the older boys, to my attitude, to sleep schedules.  Each time I have a new baby, I think of my grandma and mom.  14 and 6 children, respectively.  I couldn't do it and am blown away that they rocked so many babies.  I'll just try and enjoy my three for now :-)! 

IT'S A BOY...

Our newest little man... RECE!

Maurece Jordan Schuster

Born May 14, 2012 at 11:40am

9 pounds, 3 ounces

22 inches

GETTING SO BIG...

We took a trip to the local cider mill to get come picture taken by our favorite photographer, Chuck.  It is hard to imagine that KJ is already 4 and Lance is 2.

Of course, Lance managed to get a huge cut on his face a week before the pictures, but, thanks to the beauty of photoshop, we can fix most of that!  It is so cool to see the boys grow up and love each other more every day.  I hope that they will welcome another little man into the mix and that all three can grow up with each other and enjoy every minute.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABIES...

The boys celebrated their 2nd and 4th birthdays with friends on Saturday and had a wonderful time. When I went to check on them before I went to bed, they were both snoring in their beds. I guess that they celebrated hard.

I cannot believe that my little men are already 4 and 2 and that a new little man will be joining the fold in a couple of weeks. It is crazy to think about the amount of testosterone that will be coursing through this house- now and especially when they are teenagers.

Seriously with the pictures... the cutest things I have ever seen...

10 REASONS I LOVE YOU...

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TIME WITH FAMILY...

We were lucky enough to spend some time with all the Nordquist's last weekend. The boys had a blast playing outside with their uncles, thanks to the awesome weather. I think Lance hit the golf ball a thousand times.

It was great to see Uncle Brad for the first time this year. It was also awesome that Uncle DJ moved back to the midwest so he could come back to Kalamazoo too. It is so nice to get together so the boys can build relationships with their aunts and uncles.

And check out what the little man drew for me and Kurt. We came into the livingroom and he showed us our new family picture. It was so cute. I wished I could have kept the picture forever, but the little man erased it 15 minutes later.

OUR TRIP TO DISNEY...

We took a little family "baby-moon" to Florida to visit Disney and try to get a little vitamin D from the warm sun. Kurt did a great job getting it planned, lining us up with a very nice condo with lots of stuff for the boys to enjoy.

The little guys did a great job traveling down to Florida and seemed to enjoy the trip. We got to see all the Disney parks, took in a breakfast with Minnie, Goofy and Donald, swam in the many pools and played some miniature golf.

KJ really enjoyed riding all the rides and seeing the characters. The bigger the ride, the more he liked it. The little man has no fear. Lance struggled for the first couple of days at the park, but warmed up toward the end of the trip.

It was a ton of fun. I am so glad that Kurt decided to book the trip. KJ is already asking when we can go back.

A YEAR IN REVIEW: 2011...

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20 WEEKS WITH OUR BABY BOY...

Already to 22 weeks, but a bit behind in the posting of my halfway point picture of pregnancy #3. Although I only started to feel better a few weeks ago, I have almost forgotten how horrible the first half of my pregnancies are on me and the family. I have actually started cooking again, so I must be feeling much better.

Too, we found out that we would be welcoming boy#3 to the Schuster clan on Christmas morning. I am seeing the chaos of three testosterone driven boys running around the house and wondering how we will all survive, but am looking forward to maintaining my position as queen of the house.

Also hard to imagine is how much faster the baby bump pops out when it isn't your first rodeo. I swear I look at big as I did when I was 28 weeks with KJ. But the big belly means that the baby is growing, and judging by his kicks, he is getting big!