Christmas Tree 2012

 Emma really enjoyed decorating the tree this year.  She wanted everything in its exact place.

 Jessa was not very interested in this activity.  The tree keep poking her.

 Boy have they grown in just one year.

I can only image what is going through this little boy's head.

Time to wash the car

The girls are helping Daddy wash Mommy's car.


Uh oh, Jessa has a hose.



Jessa is very intense at her job.




I love Emma's close-up shots.





Look at that lip.






Now they are washing their cars.

What has been happening!!!!

I am probably one of the worst blog writer that you have ever read. It has been quite a few weeks since I have written about the goings on in our lives. Having three children is quite a different experience in my life. On top of all of this, we are packing and moving.

We have a contract on our house and close on this house and our new house on the 15th of June. So needless to say, our house is getting filled with boxes and blank walls. This is the first time I have packed with other people around. When I moved into John's house, I was able to pack at a slow steady pace, but with children you may get 20 minutes here and 5 minutes there. So what should take you a day or two, it takes you a week to get accomplished. I do not know how many times I have answered, " Mommy, what are you doing?", my response - "packing", their question "Why are you packing?", my response - "we are moving to our new house"

The girls are growing like crazy. Emma is trying very hard to be independent. She is a great helper with Jack. She loves to play with him and talk with him. She is a lover of learning. When Emma is boring, you can see it on her face. She loves to be provided with choices for meals and activities. She will say "Mom, give me choices".

Jessa is 2 1/2 going on 13. She loves to play games on our I-Touches. She can change around the pages on the Touch like a champ. She continues to love her little brother, however she is starting to notice that he is getting bigger and needing more attention, which she does not like. She will tell me that she is a baby and put on one of Jack's bibs and crawls around on the floor.

Jack is growing leaps and bounds. He is almost 20 lbs and 28 inches long. He is rolling all around and starting to scoot around the floor to get his toys. He is a very happy baby. We started food a couple of months ago, which he mastered quite well as you can tell by his weight and height. We are still controlling his reflux with meds which seems to be working quite well.

We took our first family vacation as a family of five. We took the auto train to Florida to visit Grandma and Grandpa Pieters. The trip down went quite well. We boarded that train at 2:30, leave the station at 4:00, dinner at 5:00, and bed at 8:00. Jessa was up a couple of times due to the noises of the wheels on the tracks, which so could hear by her head. We pulled into the station around 8:30 and we were on the road to Tampa by 10:00. We had a great visit with the Grandparents. The girls loved the pool. (will post pictures soon) The ride home was delayed by 4 hours due to a disabled freight train in South Carolina during the night.

I will post new picture in the next couple of days. Talk with you soon

Swim Lesson

The girls have been taking swim lessons. John got a video of this last Monday.

Update in Total

I am probably the worst blog writer you will come across. When Jessa was a baby and I was up feeding her at nights, I would try to blog. For some reason, I can not seem to type and feed at the same time with Jack. I also thought I may be able to find a few minutes each day to write something, but if you know anything about have three children, 3 years and under you would understand the concept of a few minutes to do anything is a joke.

So I thought this Sunday morning, I would forego some sleep and update the last two months with pictures and a short run down of the events. Here we go!!!

January -

The first week of January is always going to be filled with excitement. Emma's birthday is then (which I did post about recently) and John's Dad and brother have a birthday the day before Emma's. Have and will always try to go to Rochester to celebrate right around that time. We had a party for all three at the Pieters Family Life Center. We had a great time. Wonderful pizza and cake. This was also the first time some of John's family got to meet Jack. Since his birth was so close to all of the holidays, we were not able to get to NY before now to show him off. We had a great time and here are some pictures.

Emma and Jessa love their cousin - Ethan. Jessa greeted him with a wonderful hug. I am not sure Ethan knows what to do.


Emma's greeting was a little less overwhelming for Ethan. I think she was trying to tickle him.

Here is a good picture of Grandpa, his little grandchildren, and Uncle Bob.

Here are the birthday boys and Emma with their cake.

We decided that it would be great to get a picture of all of the cousins. This was the not so organized one.

This was the better one.

About mid January, all three kids headed off to the doctors. Emma had her 3 year check-up - all is well with her. Jessa had her 2 1/2 year check-up - she cried during part of it, but still did very well. Jack had his 2 month check-up. He was 10 lbs at the time. Boy had he grown.

We got Wii from John's parents for Christmas and the girls love playing it. However Jessa is sometimes too light to play the games and Emma sometimes does not understand the directions. So they have found a way to make it work. Aren't sisters great!!!!

February:

I headed back to work - ugh!!!! This is a big challenge for me. Getting three children ready in the mornings and myself to be at school by 8:30 so I can be ready to see my first client by 9:00. Some morning I just do not think I can do it. The girls have been great. They are learning to dress themselves and with try to entertain Jack if needed.

I had to include this picture of Jessa. I just think she looks so grown up.

The girls love playing with Jack. Anytime he is on the floor, he is fair game. I have been trying to sneak belly time to be during the girls' naptime.

Jessa so wants her brother to play with her. She loves giving him toys and stuffed animals.

This is Jack stating the he has had enough of everything and he just wants to be picked up.

Here is our Jack with his great smile.

Now he is bored with all of this playing.

Do you think Jessa loves her brother? I have never seen a 2 1/2 year that is as mothering as Jessa.

Emma loves to touch Jack - on the ears, eyes, nose and mouth.

You may want to know how work is going -- Well it is a challenge. Do not ever start a job that you deal with children during February. I have had so many cancellations within the first two weeks during my clients being sick and now Jack is sick. The day before our second big February snow storm, I took him off to the doctors and he was put on a Nebulizer treatment.

We had two big snow storms. The first happened over a Saturday

Two days later I am able to finish this posting - Sorry about that!!!

Did I happen to say that the Friday prior to the first snowstorm had a simple procedure done which caused him not to be able to lift things. Which meant no snow shoveling!!! Thankfully one of Emma and Jessa's teachers lives in our area and her 15 year old son was able to come down and help with the shoveling.

Ready to head back to work and school when the second storm hit. This time Jack was sick and on a Neb. I don't think I told you that when we were at the doctors on that Tuesday, the nurse wanted to get a weight on Jack for medicine purposes - Are you sitting down - 14 lbs with clothes on. I can not believe that my little peanut that was only 6 lbs, 7 oz at birth is now almost 14 lbs naked.

Well after a few more days isolated in our house we were getting a little creative with our activities. You will see with the pictures below.

Jessa decided a few weeks ago that she wanted to take one of Jack pacifiers and chew on it. After she got all dressed up in this outfit, we gave it the name of the Bikie Fairy. She also crawls around when she is chewing on the pacifier. It is interesting how each child reacts to a new baby.

Emma decided to get in on the act with her various of the Fairy - maybe the dance fairy.

Here is Mr Jack so serious

Daddy made a snow tunnel for the girls to play in during our second snowstorm.

Emma laying in the snow.

This is to remind the girls just how much snow we got.

Two weeks ago, John's parents stopped in for a visit on their way to Florida. Emma suckered Grandpa into reading her stories - alots of stories.

Well, I have been back to work for almost three weeks now and I do not know how most woman do it. Between the lunches that have to be packed, details to remember for school each day, and also thinking about my stuff, I am exhausted at the end of the day. I am hoping it gets easier as the weeks pass.

There is my update - look for more in the weeks to come. I may just surprise you with more frequent ones.

Emma's 3rd Birthday

I know this is a late posting, but I am finding that it is very hard to find time to do many things that are not very important in my day. Three children really fill up a day.

I can not believe that Emma is Three Years Old now. Her birthday was January 8th. She is changing so much each day. I am seeing a little lady coming out. She has be very helpful with Jack. She love to get me diapers when I am changing Jack.

We went up the Rochester for her birthday. She had been asking to go to the Jumpy place with her Aunt Kim and Ethan. So Friday morning we met Aunt Kim and Ethan at the Jumpy place. The girls and Ethan had a great time. Jack slept through the whole experience.

We went out to lunch after at a local sandwich place.

Emma at 3 years old

Emma at 2 years old


Jessa riding an elephant.

Emma riding the elephant

Ethan riding the lion

Ethan going down one of the slides

Emma going down the slide

Jessa going down the slide

Jessa wandering around inside one of the Jumpy things

Our first significant snow!!!!

This was our first snow of the season the weekend before Christmas. The girls loved it and wanted to be out in it continuously. I am so glad that my wonderful husband is an outdoors person.

Daddy made a huge pile of snow and the girls slide down it. They thought is was a great slide in their yard.

Emma hated her mittens on and insisted that she did not need them until she did not like her hands getting cold.

Jessa discovered a new invention - the scarf. Mommy took a scarf of hers and wrapped it around Jessa's neck. She thought it was great to suck on. That my oral sensory kid.

Jessa attempt at a snow ball.

The girls taking a walk in the snow. They did not get very far before the snow drift were too big for them to walk. This picture looks like they are leaving home.

Jack and I decide that it was too cold outside and we snuggled under a warm blanket.


He decided a nap is a good activity for the day. I have an idea it will not be long before he is asking to go out there with his sisters.