The Aisle Walk

Here's a little video of the kids walking down the aisle!

Marie's Wedding Weekend

Friday afternoon we packed up and headed to Grosse Pointe for the wedding rehearsal. Noelle was so excited, Max was unsure. Noelle preformed her duty as flower girl during rehearsal perfectly. Max made it five foot before throwing on of his infamous tantrums. We were not sure what to expect the following day!

We skipped the rehearsal dinner, as it was past 7pm by the time it ended. We decided to go to my Aunt Cindy's house to let the kids tire themselves out in the pool before bedtime. The pool chemicals were too high, but the hot tub was perfect. Max and Noelle loved having a giant bathtub at their disposal to frolic in.
We spent the night at another one of my Aunt's houses, Aunt Judy. In the morning the kids were treated to donuts and loved exploring/menacing a new house. We were able to see my Grandparents and my Mom and brother while the kids enjoyed the beach in front of my Grandparent's condo. My Aunt Barb, from Texas, was in town as well. It was a wonderful to spend time with all the Babcock family.
The wedding was an evening one so Max and Violette were able to sneak in their much needed naps. We kept prepping, reminding, and encouraging Max of his very important job later in the day. He still was on the fence about it, but we kept being very positive, hoping to entice him. Noelle got her hair done and slipped into her flower dress, Max looked her up and down and said, "Noelle you are so pretty!" and repeated it over and over.

We got Max dressed at the church and he was in a pretty good mood so we were all optimistic. When the time came to line up the wedding party I stayed in the back of the church keeping Max and Noelle busy. Their time came and Max did it! I had that huge Proud Mom feeling in my stomach and a few tears welled up in my eyes as they headed down. He stood next to Noelle and they walked so well down the aisle like little pros. I went down the side and met my Mom who had Violette. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see them and Tom was unable to take pictures because he was showing them which pew to walk to. I'm sure many of my family did get pictures of the actually event, but in the mean time here are some shots that I do have of the kids:

The reception was held at the beautiful Groose Pointe Yatch Club and the setting was breathtaking. We didn't stay too late, just until 10pm, when dinner was finishing up because my kids were exhausted! They had a very tiring couple of days filled with tons of fun and seeing lots of family. Here are a few pictures from the reception.





Sunday we took it easy, sleeping in and unpacking after the long weekend. The kids were beyond good and I am so proud of how they handled the late nights, and being totally out of their element. We were constantly in motion from one place to another and they were little troopers.

Busy Week

On Sunday, June 6th, we attended the Annual Roehrig Summer Gathering to celebrate Father's Day and Grandpa Roehrig's birthday. We all had a really great time together. Noelle was in love with her cousin's and enjoyed playing with some older girls. They were patient and very attentive and loving with her, Max and Violette. There was a lot of oohing and ahhing as we all watched the younger cousins playing so well together.

I wish I would've taken more pictures, and I seem to always wish that after any event we attend. I have concluded that at most times the camera takes a back seat to tending the very busy kids. As a present for Grandpa Roehrig we did get a professional photographer to come to the house and take pictures. Max decided to be, well, Max and turn his back towards the camera and not smile! I haven't seen the pictures yet, but I think we have have gotten a few with at least a half smile/not screaming face. I have to admit that it was really great to have the whole family together, outside, getting pictures done professionally. I hope that my sour son doesn't spoil them, but it's his personality and will only add character to the pictures!

Monday I went in to the doctor to go over my ultrasound results and to get a, gasp, bladder biopsy. I have known about the test for awhile and it was weighing heavily in my thoughts. The ultrasound of Baby R4 yielded great results, with a seemingly perfect little baby growing away inside me. I made it very clear the doctor that we are going to have this baby be a delivery surprise and he made sure to note it in my chart and avoid that area while given me another ultrasound. The biopsy was a quick, and painless, albeit, tad uncomfortable procedure. I had to wait until Thursday to get the wonderful news of normal results! That was awesome news, but to be honest the children keep me so busy I didn't have too much time to think about the "what if" of the situation, although it did creep into my thoughts and make me break down every so often.

Noelle had two more private swimming lessons on Tuesday and Thursday. She is getting a lot better swimming on her own and thrives with the one on one teaching scenario. We will be taking a break while the teacher is away and start up again in the beginning of July. I love her enthusiasm and the joy that each lesson brings to her. She is gaining much confidence and is very proud of herself after each lesson.

Friday we headed of for the weekend wedding of my cousin....more in the next post.

Some Stuff

Noelle has been pulling out all the stops to get from going to bed. Last night she was sobbing horrifically and I walk into her room and she cries out, "I'm the saddest Noelle ever!".

Upon leaving a McDonald's Play place Noelle says, "I was making friends and being friendly, aren't you proud of me?!"

After getting out of time out Max says, "I'm mad at you for putting me in time out and now I'm going to poop my pants because you put me in time out." And he did. Then said, "Take that Mommy"

A Preview of Next Weekend

We tried on the children's wedding attire for next weekend this morning. Noelle's hair is a wreck and we left out the tie on Max, but they still look cute. These outfits will be put on the moment before the walk down the aisle, because a two year old boy will never be able to keep it clean otherwise! The children are very excited. Even Max talks about how proud of him we will be when he walks down the aisle all by himself.

Hot Cross Legs

I went in to this ultrasound so excited to spend an hour staring at our fourth little miracle, hoping to also find out the sex of the baby. Well this child, like some of his/her siblings decided to keep their legs completely crossed the entire time. I was on my left side, my right side, on all fours and the baby just wouldn't cooperate today. I had told the tech that I wanted her to write down the sex so we could open as a family. In the end she told me that at first she was sure it was a girl, then she was sure she saw a penis, but then she just had no idea because a clear view wasn't possible. She couldn't even lean one way or the other because of the lack of a good genital view. Very frustrating, but luckily I will get more ultrasounds, one on Monday even. I'm sure as the pregnancy progresses little Baby R4 will reveal his/her sex to us. For now it will remain a mystery.

I did get to revel in the miracle of an almost 20 week baby. He/she was perfect, waving their little arms and flipping all around. The baby was difficult overall, not just with the gender reveal, because the technician had a hard time getting all the measurements. It seems all my children are just difficult in utero and out! Monday I will see my doctor and he'll go over all the results with me.

Update: After talking it over with Tom we have decided to just wait until the baby is born to find out the gender. The surprise will be fun for all.

Wordless Wednesday