Riley Birth

I was SO ready to meet our little guy. My body couldn't take another day of being pregnant.

He weighed 8 pounds and was 22 1/2 inches long.
There was a little bit of excitement right after the birth. I passed out for a few seconds while Ri was rushed to the nursery to make sure his breathing was ok. HeRoos was a little freaked out for a few minutes. Both of us turned out to be just fine.

Proud daddy.

One happy mama to finally meet our Ri Guy.

He wasn't too happy about making footprints.

Spa time!

We L-O-V-E this little angel!

This was the first time ZoZo and MB met their baby brother. They were pretty excited about the toys Ri Guy gave them.

Pops (Grandpa Bob) & Ri.

GG (Grandma Reta) and Ri.

Our first day home. GG and Pops stayed with Max and Zo while we were at the hospital with Riley.

Mom with her two boys. The first week that Riley was home, Max came into the room and said, "I don't like him." It took a couple weeks for him to warm up but now Max likes him and even wants to hold him.

Zoey adores him. She likes to hold him and share blankets with him. She is so natural at nurturing and instantly loved him.

Grandpa & Grandma Roos with Riley.

Ri Guy

Ri Guy (6 days old), ZoZo (2 yrs.), Mr. Boy (3 yrs.). They truly do love him. They ask to hold him, even if it is only for 30 seconds. It is sweet to see the love they have for him already.

Valentine's Day 2012

We were "heart attacked" twice today by the young girls in our neighborhood. Talk about feeling the love... the people in our new neighborhood don't even know us well and they have made us feel so welcome. They brought us meals after the baby was born, invited the kids to play dates, and they even threw me a baby shower. They are so kind. It makes me want to be a better person and to be more aware of the needs of those around me.









We made pink heart pancakes for the special day.

Silly Kids

This cracked me up so I had to get a picture of it. We were watching a National Geographic show about deadly predators. Look at their faces. Mr. Boy is afraid of watching cartoons that are scary (ie. Scooby Doo) but this didn't seem to phase him. ZoZo looks very disturbed. I guess it's never to early to learn about the circle of life.



I had to post this picture because it shows their different eye color (Zo did not want her picture taken). I wonder what color eyes "Ri Guy" will have. I'm guessing blue, but that's just a guess. Zo insists on wearing piggy tails. Every day.

Homemade Play dough

When I woke up and heard the wind howling and saw how bleak it looked outside our plans changed. I've declared today an official inside day for the Roos'. The kids love play dough so I made a couple batches and thought I'd share a great recipe I found.





Homemade Play dough

1 c. water
1 c. flour
1/4 c. salt
2 tsp. Cream of Tartar
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
food coloring

Put all the ingredients into a pot and stir. Cook over medium heat and stir constantly until it forms a ball. Take it off the heat and put it on wax paper. Wait for it to cool and then knead it until it is soft. I love the texture!

Gratitude

There is so much that I'm feeling thankful for and since I'm feeling a little sappy and can't find my journal, here goes for all of you to read...

1) I am grateful for a kind brother and sister-in-law. Seriously. We have been staying in their new home for 5 weeks while we wait to move into our new home. They have been so good to us & haven't made us feel like "stinky fish" (you know the saying, "Company is like fish, they start stinking after three days").

It has actually been quite enjoyable to share kitchen duties & have friends to talk to each night. ZoZo & MB love having their cousins to play with & will go into serious withdrawals when it's just the two of them again.

2) We are grateful that someday soon (no exact date yet) we can close on our home and begin a new adventure as a family in Highland, UT. I'm super excited to get settled and begin the house decorating. Instead of nesting for one baby, I'm feeling the "nesting bug" for our entire family. I love making a house, a home. I look forward to our family filling it with lots of lasting memories and love.

3) What better blessing than one directly from heaven... we are looking forward to meeting our baby in January. This pregnancy has been an absolute killer on my bones & ligaments and I've experienced extreme amounts of pain which is no fun at all BUT when I hold that little angel in my arms, I know it will be worth it.

I didn't think it would be but it has been exciting not knowing the sex of the baby. That was HeRoos' BIG request and I hesitantly accepted after negotiating certain terms. Those terms are TOP SECRET because if you know what HeRoos had to bribe me with to turn my head during the ultrasounds you would definitely think I am spoiled. A girl has to milk it for all that's it worth when her man really wants something.

4) I am grateful that HeRoos finished remodeling our Master Bath (at our previous home). I need to post pictures because it turned out absolutely beautiful. He tore that thing apart and rebuilt it by himself. He has a talent for figuring things out and being a perfectionist. Yes, it took NINE months from start to finish and was a lingering headache for us but he did a great job on it. We listed & sold our house within a couple months of him completing it which is another HUGE blessing.

5) Good neighbor/friends are worth more than a million bucks. It was difficult for me to get excited about moving closer to HeRoos' work because I had a really great support group of neighbors & friends. It was such a comfort to have people to "swap" kids with and know that they were in good hands. ZoZo & MB made some good little friends and so did I. It was a win-win for all of us. I'm hoping and praying that we can create something similar in our new area.

6)I am grateful for my computer-nerd husband and his brains. He amazes me with his knowledge on various subjects and his dedication to his family & work. He loves his job and we feel so very blessed that he works for people who appreciate him and treat him well. Life is so much more enjoyable when you have a job you enjoy and I'm glad he does.

7) As for my "job", I can't say that I always enjoy it but I feel so grateful that I can stay home with my kids. I've tried repeatedly to make it a goal to not complain about "my job" and somehow I keep failing miserably at the goal. The truth is, being a stay-at-home mom is one of the most challenging things I've had to do but it's fulfilling one of my life long dreams. From the time I was a young girl, I've wanted nothing more than to be a mom. Now I'm living that dream and I'm so grateful for the blessing, even when I feel my brain cells shrinking & my vocabulary mostly consisting of words like "poopy, owie, and no-no."

8) I'm so grateful for my parents and in-laws. HeRoos and I are both very fortunate to have great parents. We were raised by loving parents that extend that love on to their grandchildren.

There is so much more but now I'm ready for some zzzz's.

Watch Out for Mr. Boy!

We have discovered MB's passion...bike riding!



HeRoos and I went to a church fireside and the speaker discussed parenting. There were some great tips that we started implementing right away. One was to tell your kids what you expect of them and for them to repeat it back to you. Our daily expectaions usually include:

1) Share
2) Be Nice
3) Have Fun

Another bit of advice was to make sure your kids are getting enough play time outside every day. I agree- fresh air and sunshine are a magic potion.

Next, focus on when they are doing something positive. We have been trying so hard to give compliments when they are playing nice together or sharing instead of gettng them in trouble when they mess up.

The next thing we needed to try was something with more leverage. Time-out does not seem to be effective with our little guy so we wanted to focus on something more positive.

The two of us went to the store and MB picked out a bike (I already read reviews and knew he would choose Lighting McQueen). The agreement is that he can ONLY ride his bike if he is a nice brother. Guess what? It is working. The two of them have been playing so much better together with significantly fewer fights. He knows that if he is mean to his sister, he doesn't get to ride his bike. He is getting a lot of exercise and fresh air and there is more peace in our house.

I really hope and pray this continues because being a mom is fun again and it does my heart good to see them play so well together.