Sweden Penelope is Blessed

 

 

On September 17, 2017 Sweden Penelope Snarr was given a name and a blessing by her daddy. It took place at San Pedro Ward and the following men stood in the circle to bless her: Jeff Foster, Gary Ellsworth, Randy Cardon, Robert Hernandez, and our bishopric, Bishop Bruce Ballio, Bob Beck and Gamble Money.

Sweden wore a flower crown and a simple and pretty white dress that I made. After the blessing the men all commented how slippery she was because of her dress... thank goodness she wasn't too squirmy and didn't fuss at all, if so, she might have slipped right out of their hands.

The blessing was beautiful and we were able to take some sweet pictures of her afterwards. My favorite is this one, where her brothers are kissing her head and her face is all content and she's holding her arms and chubby little fingers in such a girly way. 

 

 

  

 

 

 

  

Sweden at Four Months

September 15, 2017

4 months old

Milestones

recording all the firsts

• Sweden loves to sit up in the bumbo and pretend to be a big girl. It's crazy to see her sitting up already!
• Sweden rolls from her belly to her back... she hasn't quite figured out how to roll from her back to her belly but is getting really close!
• Sweden is full of joy and smiles all the time. She giggles when you tickle her, hold her high in the air or when her brothers play with her.
• She is  making lots of noises and has a cute little squeal and tries to mimic mommy and make the rolled r sound.
• She has stopped crying in the carseat for the most part. Hallelujah! 

some of Sweden's

Favorite Things

• Sweden loves toys, or really anything she can get her hands on so she can put it in her mouth.
• She loves taking showers or baths with mommy.
• Being outside.

• We joke that she has "FOMO" (fear of missing out)because she will fight sleep if there seems to be anything exciting going on.

some of Sweden's

Not so Favorite Things

• Tummy time for too long.
• When no one is paying attention to her. 
• Mommy's not so favorite thing is how drooly Swedie tends to be. If she doesn't wear a bib she needs a new shirt often. That means more laundry- ugh!

  

Her first time in the bumbo! 

 

Looking pretty content in her car seat!  

The boys wanted to take a picture with their lil' sis. :) 

 

She's already got major selfie skills...

 

First Day of School 2017

We gladly welcomed fall this year... it meant the weather would be a bit cooler, and the boys would be in mothers day out 2 days a week. School for the boys has been a nice break for me, and a great time for learning and growth for the boys. It is clear that their teachers and the director, Miss Kathy, love them, pray for them and are wonderful influences on them. Finn's class is preschool and his teacher, Ms. Jennifer is wonderful! She has the perfect commanding voice and patience for 4 year olds. She keeps her class structured and full of learning activities. Fox has two teachers, Gigi and Trinity, they both seem to love him a lot and he never cries when going to school. 

Age: 4years old

School: Thousand Oaks Bible Church Pre-School (two days a week)

Teacher: Jennifer

Favorite Foods: spaghetti, salad, carrots with ketchup, icees

Favorite Toys: legos, puzzles, car track

Favorite Things to Do: ride his bike or skateboard, draw/paint/craft, swing

Favorite Color: Blue
Favorite Places: Zoo, Chuck E Cheese, Jumpy Place

Talents: drawing/coloring (he likes to draw people, rainbows and his name; he stays in the lines really well when coloring), gymnastics (he is agile and unafraid; he does flips all around the house and does acrobatics on his swing outside), friendly (he likes to make friends and play with other kids), outgoing (he is not shy and likes to stand up in primary to give talks or the prayer).

Loves: exploring and learning new things (he asks lots of questions!), bugs and animals (he is always asking to keep them as his pet), cooking in the kitchen, mommy singing him to sleep,  watching movies

Age: 2 years old

School: Thousand Oaks Bible Church Pre-School (two days a week)

Teachers: Gigi & Trinity

Favorite Foods: spaghetti, candy, graham crackers, jerky

Favorite Toys: legos, remote control doggie, farm 

Favorite Things to Do: ride his bike, swing, sand box

Favorite Color: Green
Favorite Places: Library, Zoo, Chuck E Cheese

Talents: building with his legos or in the sandbox, or building forts, zipping around on his red trike, imaginative--he loves to play pretend and be silly, being affectionate and sweet--he gives kisses and hugs to us all even if some of us (Finn) doesn't want it and wipes it off.

Loves: animals, playing pretend (he pretends to be a robot monster or pretends there are animals all around us), he loves rhinos and hippos, the library (there, he sits in the little house and reads books with mommy, while pretending to cook for her and pretending there are animals outside of the house that we need to hide from or keep out), mommy singing him to sleep, watching movies, boss baby (he went through a phase where he wanted to watch it everyday).

 

San Antonio Summer

Let's be honest... three little ones ain't easy! I'm out-numberd and exhausted. The boys know how to  prey on my weaknesses... ie. while i'm feeding the baby or putting her to sleep, or when i'm trying to get some rest myself. They definitely get away with a heck of a lot more these days. I'm figuring things out and slowly but surely and getting my groove back.  But still, why didn't anyone warn me!? Haha! I remember when Finn was just a little baby and how I hard I thought it was. Look at me now! Having just one baby sounds quite easy. Yet, I know it's not. I think when it is your first everything is so new to you that it is definitely hard and emotional. Now that I have three it is hard but in different ways. At the end of the day, when all the little runts are finally sleeping and Ben's rubbing my feet... I actually am incredibly grateful to have the best job in the world--mommy. I am so lucky to have three beautiful souls to care for, nurture and love. These days I take one day at a time, try to make it the best day and choose to be happy and smile through it... even when they are trying my patience, making messes and talking back. #momlife

This Summer I figured out how to take three little kids out of the house and keep them all alive (because staying at home drove all of us insane). We spent the summer at splash pads, Morgans Wonderland, the Doseum, parks, Six Flags and exploring our yard. Nana and PopPop came to visit  just a couple weeks after Sweden was born and my niece Arden came to visit in July. 

 

 

Found a feather while making money picking up Acorns

Fredricksburg for berry picking with Nana and PopPop.

Pearl Farmers Market and splash pad.

We went to Lulu's Bakery and Cafe for breakfast and the biggest cinnamon roll you ever did see. That's what they are famous for. That and their large portion of chicken fried steak.

Many of our days this summer were spent at Hemisfair park where the kids splashed and ate Popsicles.

Morgans Wonderland has an amazing water park that was built for children with and without disabilities. Finn and Fox could run around that place for hours on end and still want to go back again the next day.