SO thankful....

Throughout last week I could not stop thinking about how thankful I am for my family.  Last year during Thanksgiving I was very sick with morning sickness and couldn't wrap my mind around the idea of having 3 kids and working full time.  This year I feel so thankful for all the wonderful blessings God has given our family this year.  We have 3 beautiful healthy children that make our family whole.  I can't imagine what our life would be like without Ellie in it, and I truly feel like she has made our family complete.  I know I say it all the time, but she is the happiest baby in the whole world and her adorable smile just lights up a room.  I'm so thankful for Ben who keeps us on our toes and gets us laughing every single day.  Before bed each night, he thanks God for everyone in his life.  His list is seriously 30 people long.  Lately before bed, he tells me, "I have so much fun today Mommy!"

We are so thankful for our sweet Hannah.  I don't think I could make it through a lot of days without her.  She is always helping us by getting bibs, burp cloths, wipes, etc...  She has such a kind heart and goes out of her way to make her brother and sister feel loved.  I'm thankful for the sweet notes she leaves on my night stand reminding me that she loves me. 

I can't be thankful for my family without being thankful for the glue that holds us together and that is my amazing husband.  He is not only my best friend, but a true partner in this parenting adventure.  He spends countless hours with the kids and would do just about anything for each of them.  They adore their daddy and love the special time that he gives each of them individually. 

Jay and I are both so thankful for our families in town and out of town that continue to support us.  We are so lucky to have so many people in our life that love and adore our children. 

Although our life is beyond busy and at times chaotic, we wouldn't trade it for anything.  I cannot put into words how thankful I am for everything I have.   

Ellie at 5 Months

I keep thinking that my math is off because there is no way it has been 5 months with this sweet girl!  Ellie is such an amazing baby.  Jay and I are often overwhelmed by how much we love this little girl.  She hardly ever cries.  Gloria told me last week that is was the first time she ever heard her cry.  She is so easy going.  She is starting to attempt sitting up by herself.  She has been spending more time in the playroom with the big kids.  She likes to grab their toys and explore.

She rolled over for the first time on Friday night.  She went from front to back.  She's a little late with the rolling, but, let's face it, she has a lot to roll over!  It won't be long until she is chasing after her brother and sister.

Only 3 more days until she meets her Nanny that shares her name!  We are SO excited!

House Picture Part 2 and other tidbits...

I have finally taken some pictures of the kids rooms.  I had Tuesday off so we spent the entire day organizing and cleaning bedrooms.

This is the landing at the top of our stairs.  We have two built in bookcases and a great window bench.  Hannah can often be found reading or playing video games on the bench seat.  Ben usually pulls out lots of books and reads them on the floor.

We finally hung up the shelves in Ellie's room.  Jay and I are pretty certain that her room is the biggest of the 3 rooms.

Ben's room is decorated with cars, trucks, and trains.  He LOVES the cars driving on his wall.  We have found him several times in his room with the door closed just looking at his cars.  We plan on buying him a dresser this weekend, so his room will be complete!

Hannah's room is the star room.  She loves to hang her art work on her wall and play in her dollhouse.  Ben is not allowed in her bedroom, so she can keep her dollhouse safe.

Our baby girl is SO happy.  She has really started "talking" to us lately! 

I remember another older sibling that used to love to crawl in the crib with her baby brother...

Here is a nice example of Ben in the "library"...

And finally....what could be more fun than making Ellie play baby doll?

Halloween

Finally getting around to my Halloween post.  Hannah had pink eye earlier this week followed by me getting strep throat.  We've been trying to take it easy the past few days!

Nana came over Halloween night in her vampire costume to sit with Ellie and hand out candy while Jay and I took the big kids trick or treating.

Hannah was a pirate, Ben was Scooby, and Ellie was the little pumpkin.  The kids loved trick or treating and Ben held hands with one of the older girls in the neighborhood and went house to house with her.  He told me when we got home that he "loves Makayla"!  The weather was perfect and we couldn't have asked for a better Halloween night!

The rest of October...

It feels like I have been back to work for 3 months instead of 3 weeks!  Things have become even more busy at the Mayfield house since my return to work, but overall it has been a pretty smooth transition.  Needless to say, working and being a mom to 3 kids, 5 and under, leaves me limited time for blogging!

Hannah participated in a "fun run" at school to help raise money for projects around the school.  She called some friends and family members to get pledges per lap.  She had a blast the day of the fun run, and Mommy, Daddy, Ben, and Ellie all came out to cheer her on.

We had Ellie baptized at our church this month.  She was perfect throughout the entire service.  We have actually been able to bring her to church multiple times and keep her with us.  She usually stays awake for the beginning of the service to enjoy the music.  She usually falls asleep during the sermon and wakes up during the closing hymn.  We had both of our families in town to celebrate this special day with us, and our new pastor came to the house earlier that week to get to know our family.

Uncle Mike has to keep watch on his nephew because they both love the same girl!  Ben adores his Auntie Ashton and always talks about giving her a kiss.  He gets so silly whenever she is around.  We feel SO lucky to have her join our family!

Hannah decided to be a pirate for Halloween this year.  This meant several days of her and Ben dressing up in her costume and fighting as pirates.  I thought Ben was going to change his mind about his costume, but luckily he was okay with staying Scooby Doo.

This was the first year that Ben was old enough to have his face painted at the pumpkin patch.  I've never seen him sit so still.  He picked out a ghost for his face.

We have been going to the pumpkin patch every year since Hannah was born with the Young family.  We always have so much fun with kids running through the pumpkins. 

The day after we went to the pumpkin patch last year, was the day I found out we would be having another little pumpkin.  It was special to get a picture of Ellie with the pumpkins to see what a difference a year makes!

It's close to impossible to get all 5 kids looking at the same camera and smiling at the same time!  They had such a blast picking out their own little pumpkins and a big family pumpkin to bring home.

Our family of 5 with the pumpkins!  Maybe one day Ben will smile for the camera!

Our neighborhood had a Halloween party in our cul-de-sac for all the kids.  They had pumpkin painting and lots of goodies.  Hannah, Ben, and I baked cupcakes to share with their friends.  Both kids had a blast playing with kids.  We LOVE our new neighborhood!  With the exception of Halloween, that has been our month of October.  I've got a crying baby that needs some love, so the Halloween post will have to wait until tomorrow!