Bennett's 7 Month Letter

Bennett Harris,
   You are just growing up too fast! It seems like you've learned and accomplished so much this month. You were a baby when we hit six months and by seven you are super close to being mobile and more independent. You continue to be the sweetest little charmer! You smile so sweetly and your giggle/squeal is one of my very favorite sounds. I can't believe you are closer to being a year old then my baby!

   This month you began sitting up and you are a pro! You can lean all the over to either side to get a toy. You have decided you'd rather turn a complete circle on your booty then lean far enough over to fall onto your belly, although you do that on purpose as well and scoot your legs. Our lament floors aren't super conducive to forward movement but you go backwards pretty well. Your little arms are getting stronger everyday and you push yourself up with ease now. You will be crawling before we know it. And while I'm not nearly as pumped about your mobility as I was with Tucker's because I'm no longer a rookie and know what this stage brings, I'm excited to see you accomplish it. You also showed us all that you can patty cake by yourself this month! Who knew? Pretty cute Middle Brother!!! Two of your bottom teeth also made their big appearance this month. They're really cute but make you look older. You still LOVE to eat! Your favorite foods are orange vegetables and baby cereal. You don't really like any fruit that we've tried or the green veggies. Sometimes you refuse a bottle because you want to eat off of a spoon. You also really like puffs but you love Mum-Mum's. You got your second hair cut this month from Aunt Sass and it's getting thicker every day. It's still really soft and always stands up like a baby duck.
   At your six month doctor's appointment you weighed 18.14 and were 27.75 inches long. They were surprised how well you were already sitting up and thought everything else looked great! You are wearing a size 3 diaper and size 6-12 month clothes. You have two teeth.
   Your favorite things are your brothers, bath time, eating from a spoon, sitting up, sweet potatoes, being thrown up in the air and bouncing. You don't like green veggies, being left alone or trying to go to sleep by yourself.

 
You got to go a lot this month! Your laid back personality lands you on a lot of shopping trips and errand runs. Aunt Chelsie is getting married in less then a month and you've helped us do a lot of shopping for things for her. You also usually get to go to the store with me or any other outings because your brothers are both more trouble then you are. Tucker is bear without his nap and Casen spits up all the time so you draw the short straw. But you are so sweet about it and never complain. You nap on my shoulder or in the car between destinations and still manage to smile sweetly and not fuss. You my friend are a trooper!
   This month we celebrated several big events. Tucker's 3rd Birthday, Aunt Chelsie and Uncle Jared's wedding showers, Aunt Chelsie and Aunt Sarah's graduations from OSU, Mother's Day and your baby dedication. You were happy to be loved on by lots of people and traveled like a champ all over the place. We couldn't ask for a better disposition in a baby! I hope you keep your laid back personality, we need one that's a little less drama!

 
Bennett you are the perfect addition to our family and you love your brothers so much! You are so happy just to be near Tucker or Casen. You talk to them and laugh at most everything they do. You also have developed quite the love for your Daddy. You get so excited when he comes around, you flap your arms until he gets you and just love on him.

    You are a charmer pure and simple. All who know you, love you instantly. You are just super sweet and laid back. I can't imagine life without you and I love when you grab my face to give kisses or rest your head on my shoulder to fall asleep. You wake up smiling and go to sleep sweetly. We love you so much and we're so thankful for you! We can't wait to see the twists and turns your story takes.

I love you more,
Momma

Mother's Day 2013

This was my first Mother's Day with multiple children and it was extra special for several reasons. We got to dedicate both Bennett and Casen on Sunday morning made a little sweeter because their Daddy was the one who got to do the honors since we are currently without a pastor at our church. Lots of family was in attendance for this special day in the life of our boys. We had a great cookout at our house surrounded by both my family and Chris', which is a rarity. It was a long day, as most Sunday's are, but it was so sweet to be reminded how important family and Jesus are. We pray that all three of our boys will grow up to be men of God who love Jesus the most then their families. Triple blessed!

Casen's Three Month Letter

Littlest Casen Cole -
  You have taught us all so much in your three short months of life. You have tested and stretched me in ways I didn't know still hadn't been stretched by your big brothers. But you have captured all of our hearts in the same way they have. You are getting so chubby and smiley. When you smile your little eyes light up and your whole face gleams. You are precious little man. You already have such a personality and are not going to run over by your big brothers. You are either really happy or really not. You don't have a middle ground! Your place in our family has not been without its tough moments, but we wouldn't trade for you. You are my little dark chocolate baby with the bright eyes and strong personality and we're crazy about you baby boy.
   You are still struggling with reflux. We've tried several different medicines, combinations of medicines, oils, chiropractor, an ultrasound and other homeopathic things without much relief. You aren't crying as much as you were at first, but you do spit up a LOT still. We all go through several outfits and burp rags a day and sometimes you can still see how uncomfortable you are, but we're still trying all we know to do. At your last doctors appointment you weighed 11.14 and were 21.5 inches long. (the smallest of the three brothers at their two month appointments) You are gaining weight even with all the spitting up, so our doctor isn't too worried about you at this point. We are all just ready to get your little belly to feeling better.

   Your neck and legs are super strong! You like to look around even if your up on our chests. You can push yourself up on your arms and look around during tummy time and you love to stand up in our laps for long periods of time. And you much prefer to look around and make sure your not missing out on any brother fun. You're still very aware of the world and don't miss much. You have also started "talking" a lot more this month. Your favorite people to chat with are Momma, Bennett and the toy cow that hangs over your changing table. You let that guy know what's up on a very regular basis! It's pretty cute.
   You like to eat, take a bath and be held. You also don't mind the jumperoo and the bumbo because of their view is better then the floor. You don't like laying flat on your back, not being held, the wind in his face and sometimes you don't like your car seat. When you do cry you sweat all over. Almost immediately after your first noise your whole body is soaked! It's the weirdest thing to feel your body be covered in sweat from head to toe. You definitely have opinions about most things. It's funny to see such a small baby have such specific preferences.

   This month we celebrated Tucker's 3rd Birthday, Aunt Chelsie & Uncle Jared's wedding showers, Aunt Sarah & Aunt Chelsie's OSU graduations and Emrie's baptism. We spent a lot more time outside as the weather has gotten nicer which I think we've all enjoyed. You have been so sweet as you've been passed around and around and around and as we've been in the car a ton.

   We also got to visit Kateri twice this month. It's always a little nerve wrecking before we spend time with her, but afterwards its so worth it! She loved on you a lot both times and you were so sweet with her. I hope seeing how great your doing helped her as she too is processing your adoption. We're so grateful to her for giving us you and for wanting to still play a role in your life. I hope you always know how much your first momma and your forever momma love you! Your so special and so is your story.

   As the days pass you get bigger and we get more and more comfortable with our family of five. It's definitely still not easy and is still a learning process, but I'm more confident you and your brothers will be good friends instead of just hating your Dad and I for adopting all of you so close to each other. Hang in there with us buddy we'll get it figured out one of these days! We love you so much and we're so glad God chose you to be the third Gordon boy. We can't wait to see how you grow and what your contribution to our family will look like. I can't believe you're THREE months old! Here's to the next three!
I love you more,
Momma