Big Guy turns 5!

So as if there wasn't enough going on, we hosted a small family party for Noah this past Saturday.  It actually worked out quite well that Isaac got to meet some more relatives and Noah got some new toys to keep him and Sam occupied.  I had grand designs pre-Isaac to make Noah a lego table (inspired by the Worsts and Pinterest).  I had all the supplies, but never got the project completed.  In steps Bamma to save the day and got a store bought one for us to give Noah.  The homemade one will get finished and will be at Bamma and Bampa's house at some point.

The theme this year was Angry Birds, so we also got him an Angry Birds suitcase for all the trips to the lakehouse, etc.

 Per usual, Daddy had a masterpiece cake ready for him.  He has really perfected his fondant process and it took him only 4 hours (as opposed to the usually 6-7 hour marathon).  Sam is already talking about what cake Daddy will make for his "3 birthday" in July.

 Here are my 3 boys.  Still can't believe I am responsible for this crew!  I did not plan the striped-ness, but it worked out well.

 Another hilarious picture of Sam.  He really does love his brother, but this picture might convince you otherwise.  So cute!

 Ike got to meet his cousins Nick and Francesca.  I still vividly remember when both of them were little ones, it's crazy how big they are now!

Despite being sick (which we later found out was the flu), Noah was still very excited for his party and his cake!

 Another great job by Daddy on the cake, Noah thought it was fantastic!

 Noah got a big kid bike from Bamma and Bampa (spiderman of course).  He was also the lucky recipient of several lego sets, it's been great to keep them busy when I have to tend to Ike.

 Auntie Kim takes a turn with the Ike-man!

 Noah got TWO of this set.  You might think we'd return one, but nope.  The fact that we have two Spiderman mini-figs is totally worth keeping the second set.  It has prevented WWIII countless times.  That and the extra parts will come in handy when building.

 Here's our family!  In what seems like 5 short years we've gone from a married couple with a dog to THIS!  Craziness!

Of course I've had to capture some of Ike's cute newborn features before he grows out of them.  He has hairy ears (and a hairy back, hairy shoulders, etc, you get the picture) just like Noah did.  

 And his toes, while tiny, seem really long to me.

 Such a sweet face.  He has been doing fantastic eating and sleeping and pooping like expected.  He seems to have a pretty mellow personality, but that could just be he's our 3rd and he knows he can't be high maintenance!

Isaac Alan arrives, a tad early!

So, let's catch up a bit shall we?  About 2 weeks ago on a Wednesday (march 13 to be exact) my parents spent the day moving to their new house.  I spent the day taking some last pre-baby pictures with the boys.  I wanted to make sure to capture what they were like before their brother showed up.  With more than 2 weeks to my due date, I figured I had plenty of time.  But the boys were in good moods, so we took some pictures...

 I allowed the boys to try their hand at photography.  So Noah strapped on the camera and shot some of his brother.  I absolutely LOVE this picture...

 Not being a fan of belly shots, I tried to get at least a couple with me in them to remember just how big I was on this last pregnancy.  Then I had a doctors appointment that afternoon during which she warned me that 3rd babies come fast and that I had better get myself to the hospital post haste when the time came.

 Fast forward about 12 hours, to 2am on Thursday morning.  I had a few contractions and got up, by 3:45ish I decided I had better rouse the troops.  So I got Mike up and called my folks (who were exhausted by having just spent the day moving) and we headed to the hospital.  Wanting to be an independent child, this baby took his sweet time arriving.  But finally, at 9:34pm on Thursday March 14th, Isaac Alan arrived to complete our family. 

 He was the biggest of our brood at 8lb 3oz and 20 inches long.  We were shocked by the amount of hair he had, more than either of the other two.  

 The next morning, the proud big brothers showed up with Bamma and Bampa and Uncle Josh.

The nurse rolled him in and they were so excited!  Noah chatted with just about every nurse in the place, declared he was the biggest brother, that he was turning 5 on March 26 and that he was ready to go to kindergarten.  By the end of my stay, they were fairly famous at the nurses station.

 Our first shot as a family of 5!  Mike and I realized that we're considered a "big" family now and that we certainly feel like a brood with all our boys.

After some indecision about releasing us because of borderline high bilirubin levels, Isaac and I arrived home on Saturday night. 

 The boys woke up on Sunday and were beyond excited that Ike was home.

 Noah had to show him the superhero getups as soon as possible of course.

Unfortunately, Isaac's bilirubins shot back up and on Monday, he and I were back at the hospital for some phototherapy.  We were there until Wednesday afternoon.  It was a long 2 days as the other boys could not visit due to Noah having a fever.  But he gradually improved and finally were were all reunited.

He finally got his first bath at home, we were very curious to see how his hair would behave...

 This is the result after some combing.  It seems to be different everyday, but I love it!

  Evelyn and Leo came over to meet their newest bud.  I think Evie will fair just fine with all these boys!

The boys are settling into their role as co-big brothers.  Mike headed back to work and we're just adjusting to our new lives.  Thankfully Isaac sleeps well and Noah has some new birthday toys (post about his party coming soon) to keep the big guys busy.  Thanks for all the well wishes, we are so happy!

If you give your kids your iPad...

...they'll probably take loads of pictures on it while you are resting your pregnant self.  I went through my iPad this morning only to discover about 300 pictures on there that the boys have taken over the last 3-4 months.  They made me chuckle!

 The last week has involved more time trying to get things in order before boy #3 arrives.  I went to the spring Cossitt clothing sale and scored a new swimsuit for Sam.  (Because he needed the slimming effect, psssshhhh right!?)

 Noah has been looking more and more like a big kid to us lately.  I was struck by it in this picture, he's no toddler anymore, no sir!  The crazy hair is result of running around Bamma & Bampa's basement at their new house, getting sweaty, and putting on a hat.  Gotta love that Rodriguez hair!

 Sam enjoys a little snuggle time with Ellie.  The boys have been all about playing with her and loving on her lately.  It's very cute!

 This week marked the beginning of the spring birthday bonanza.  Noah was fortunate enough to be invited to two different parties of school friends this weekend.  Friday we went to Kyle's bday, where Noah played a lot with his friend Michael at Chuck E Cheese.  We also went to Karen's birthday party (where I slacked and took no photos).  We celebrated Bamma's birthday this week and we're gearing up for Fred's party next weekend.  All of this times well, as Noah's excitement builds to his own birthday and the baby's birthday!

 And in the ongoing pursuit of cheap thrills, we tried a glow stick bath this weekend.  It was fun, basically a lot of splashing and waving around.  The noise level reminded me that I live in a house of boys!  Let the good times continue!