Carly The Little Sister

Today Carly is four months old.  She's been in our family for a third of a year.  I think that calls for a post of all things Carly.  We couldn't love her more.  The boys adore her most, although they may show it in some funny ways.

... Like the time I came back from the bathroom and they had put a mustache on her.

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From the beginning Carly has loved her bath time.  This is still the case. She's super relaxed and takes it all in.

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Her big brothers all ask to hold her throughout the day.  Jack will even change her diaper and get her dressed for me.  All those helping hands are a huge blessing.

(Sometimes helping hands mean things are done a little differently than I would do them. Ahem, like these mismatched snaps. ;)

All three boys love to say hi to her when she's first waking up in the morning and is the most smiley & sweet.

We had a bit of warm weather in early May and it got me all excited for baby thighs in adorable rompers!

She has a lot of clothes, which is so much fun for me!  I don't know what she weighs yet (she has an appointment this afternoon) but she is very long & skinny.  She fits in 6 month clothes length-wise, but barely fills them out.

She prefers to be held while she sleeps during the day.  I don't mind that a bit.  She'll sleep in my arms during school and in the ring sling when we're out and about.

She also sleeps in her carseat, which is nice when we're in the car a while.  Like yesterday we drove to and from the beach, and she only cried the last twenty minutes in the car.

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She still won't take a binky, and we're pretty sure she never will... But that's okay.  I figure she'll be our one and only finger sucker.

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The other day Wyatt told me that having a baby wasn't as hard as I had told him it would be.  He said he thought it would be a lot more work.  He loves Carly and when she cries he doesn't get frustrated, he tries to cheer her up.  I love the way he talks to her, in a super high sing-songy voice.  It's just precious.

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 I do just love her hands.

 And her sweet little face.

 I'm kinda crazy about her!

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This little girl is literally the sunshine of our lives.  I'm so grateful for her.  For her smiles, her precious spirit and the joy she brings to all of us.

 We are approaching the one year mark of my missed due date & the day I found out I was pregnant with Carly.  So much has changed in a year.  Josh and I managed living apart for nine months; I grew & successfully delivered Carly in my third c-section; and we wrapped up our life in rural Alaska and are headed to Eastern Washington for the fall.  It's been a big year, and I can now see that God knew exactly what He was doing.

... He usually does.

 Me & my girl

 Watching her eyelashes grow has been amazing.  They started so small, you could barely see them.  And now they stretch out across her cheeks.

 I adore her in all hats-- but this little peach Hanna Andersson one is my current favorite.

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Josh got home recently and he & Carly's relationship hasn't missed a beat after two months apart.  The first night he got home, she smiled and talked and cooed with him for an hour.  It was so precious.  Now when he talks to her, she lights up and she loves falling asleep in his arms.

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Last week I met up with my old bible study friends from junior high.  It was especially fun to see them this year because we all had babies last year.  Left to right is: Juliet, Carly, Lincoln and Nina.  Together we have twelve (12!) children, six boys & six girls, and it's such a blessing to get together with these girls who know me so well.

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Yesterday we went to the beach and as I said earlier, Carly was a star traveler!  She had so much fun and was such a good girl.

While we were there, I enjoyed perusing my grandma's photo albums and found these gems of me with my grandparents when I was Carly's age!

I think we look a lot alike!

Oh Carly, I just can't tell you enough how much I love you & how grateful I am that you are in our lives.  You are worth every tear I shed through the miscarriages and were completely worth the wait.

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