Anna-Grace turned five months old on May 5th.  Crazy!  We are just growing more in love with this girl every day.  She is a tiny little thing - she weighed 11.4 lbs at her check-up the day before she turned 5 months old and was 22.5 inches.  The 2% and 0% respectively.  TINY!  Even though she is petite, she is full of rolls on her little legs.  Love.  The doctor was a little concerned about her weight and encouraged me to feed her a little more.  She said even if she wasn't really hungry it was okay to give her a little "snack".  This goes against what I did with the big girls - they were on a good schedule and took full feedings and did not snack, but so far with AG, nothing is the same as it was when they were babies.  Different times call for different routines and strategies!  We will go with the flow.  Madelyn was also a tiny, tiny baby (and still is tiny!) and after the doctor reviewed her growth she was less concerned.  Nevertheless, we go back in 6 weeks instead of 8 weeks for her next check-up to assess her weight and to get her next round of shots. 

She is starting to fit into her 3-6 months clothes and still can wear most of her 0-3 month clothes.  I did clean out all of her newborn and super warm clothing to make room for her summer stuff.  The girls were helping me box it up and we were all sad that she is growing so fast!  It is so special that she has older siblings who love her so much.  We all have fun thinking of how old they will be when Anna-Grace is a certain age - like when Madelyn is 16, Anna-Grace will be 8.  Wow!

I'm still nursing AG and we have not needed to use any formula yet.  I do occasionally get concerned about my supply but so far things have worked.  I've got quite a bit of milk stored in the freezer and sometimes pull out a few ounces to supplement what I have pumped at work so she has enough for school.  I'm just going to do the best I can, if we can make it for a year, great!  If not, that will be okay too.  We are holding off on solids for a few more weeks.  The doctor said 6 months since I am exclusively breastfeeding, but this girl is ready to eat!  She watches us intently while we eat and follows each bite we take.  I think I'll offer her cereal soon.  Maybe it will help her sleep a little better at night!  I am still hoping to make most of her baby food so if you have experience with this leave me a comment!  It will be new to me.

Anna-Grace's sleeping has taken a turn for the worse. : (  She is waking usually 1-2 times a night now to nurse.  I'm not exactly sure why, but it could be several different things.  She could truly be hungry - I do go ahead and feed her because she falls back asleep quickly which means I can sleep more.  She could also just be craving some more time with me and therefore wants to just comfort nurse.  It also could just be a habit.  She is still in our room and ends up in our bed sometime in the middle of the night.  I think Jason and I are both kind of ready to move her to her room.  I think we will do think in the next few weeks.

AG can sit with support!  She can do pretty well with the boppy pillow around her and loves sitting in the bumbo seat.  She likes to play with little toys now like rings and puts everything in her mouth.  She discovered her feet this weekend and grabs on to them and plays.  She can take out her passy and put it back into her mouth.  She also can pick it up if it drops and get it to her mouth.  She smiles all the time and giggles too.  She is pretty verbal and makes lots of different sounds.  "Gee" with a hard g sound has been a long time favorite sound of hers. : )  She still is not a huge fan of the car but does not scream every time, just most times...  We will sometimes have a car ride without screaming now! 

For the last three years, Madelyn has participated in the Federated Music Club Piano Festival.  She learns two pieces and then plays them and is judged.  She has received superior ratings each year and after the third one, she earned a gold cup.  Last weekend she had a special Gold Cup Recital where she played and received the cup!  Way to go Madelyn - we are so proud of you!

Silas' school was the community organization of the night last week at our minor league baseball team game.  He was chosen by his school to throw out the first pitch!  He was very excited and it was a fun night. 

Today I am celebrating my 8th Mother's Day.  During these last 8 1/2 years as a mom I have learned SO much about myself and about what is truly important in life.  Being a mom is the highest calling God has given me and I am so blessed to be able to be called mommy by four precious souls he has entrusted to me.  There are two things that I have struggled with all along and maybe I am starting to find some peace with these things?

1.  I am doing the best that I can and I'm okay with that.  Is my house perfect - no way!  Are my kids perfectly behaved - never!  Do I serve my family joyfully - not always!  Do I forget things at school like teacher appreciation week and to send in lunch money - yes! (I did both of those last week)  I could go on...but the important thing is that I have learned to be okay with not being perfect as a mom.  With each addition to our family I have learned to relax more, let go more and to just be okay with what I can accomplish.  My kids need a happy mom way more than they need a perfect mom. When it was just Madelyn I felt like how she acted, looked and behaved was a direct relation to how I was doing as a mom.  Now, 8 years and 3 more kids later I know this is not true.  It's a process learning to let go and cherish what is really important.  I'm still working on this.

2.  My job status does not make me a better or worse mom.  During these years as a mom I have worked a variety of schedules from one day a week up to full-time.  Was I a better mom when I worked one day a week than I am today working full-time?  No!  I will say life was easier with me being at home more, and I do hope to go back to part-time work when Jason finishes school.  I probably treasure the time with my kids more when I am working full-time.  We do not have as much time together so I really appreciate each moment we have together.  I think we as mothers put so much pressure on each other.  Why do we do this?  Does staying at home and home-schooling make a better mother than a mom who works full time and sends her kids to public school?  If so, I fall into the "bad mom" category!  But I know I am a good mom!  I love my kids and they are thriving and turning into responsible caring people.  Each family works differently and we should support one another rather than judge and create guilt!

Mothering is a journey and I am so blessed with my four kids.  I'm sick today with a sinus infection and bronchitis (yuck!) but am having a good day.  The kids surprised me with sweet homemade items and then Jason surprised me with two chairs I had been eying for our front porch.  I'm relaxing and resting today and Jason is fixing a yummy dinner and my parents will be joining us to eat. 

 A few weeks ago I had a special date with Silas!  I had been planning this for a couple of months.  Toy Story on Ice came to our city and we went along with my sister and her youngest, Tyler.  We had so much fun!  Silas and Ty enjoyed sharing some popcorn.